Fred Patten met us at Los Angeles International Airport and drove us to Tom Digby's where we would be staying for a few days. It was in Los Angeles that we got our first taste of America and acclimatized ourselves to the country. I imagine that that city would always be a good place to begin, to get some idea of what we would see elsewhere without too much of a shock. Staying with Tom Digby could not have been a better idea, during the days he was at work and we were free to do whatever we felt like (which wasn't much) and in the evenings he would keep us easily occupied. I don't know how well Tom is known outside LA fandom reasonably well I would assume though not as well as most of the publishing giants. Most people, I assume, would have heard the name sometime or another as we had and if they meet him.I'm sure they will be delighted as we were. Coming straight from Australia with Fred Patten as the only American we'd met before him, the first thing that struck us about Tom was his accent which cannot be native to California. There were others which were just as beautiful to listen to but what an introduction it was. Valma would describe Tom as simply a "beautiful" person and I would agree without reservation. I would also have to describe him as some sort of genius for we had not been in his flat for an hour when he had my synthesizer on the floor with a few other black boxes he had constructed making patterns on the screen of the oscilloscope. No matter which subject our conversation wandered to, Tom would have a ·ray of looking at it which made me realize how restricted and unimaginative my thinking, imaginative is probably the main point for Tom can work his sense of wonder on almost anything. While he was at work Valma and I spent a couple of days wandering up and down Santa Monica Boulevard which is just around the corner. Doing it on our own and at our own pace proved to be a good break after the trip from Australia and we were truly glad of it. From it we learned a little of how to get by with fewer hassles later on. On the second night of our stay Phil Castora took us and Tom for a drive around the sights. We ended up at a restaurant called "Ben Frank" where we experienced the strange delights of American food. It took us a while to get used to the glass of ice water which we got everywhere later on but what continually impressed us was the size and lavishness of the desserts we always came across. Valma and I ordered something called a chocolate sundae and expected something pretty similar to what we'd been getting at home. Instead the serves were massive and tasted delicious. Valma could not finish hers and I could not do it in for her, which was such a waste. |