The brick building on the corner of West Channel and Short Street had been a restaurant of some sort since the 1930s. In 1949 it became a Billingsley’s Golden Bull — there were several Billingsley’s around Los Angeles, including the original on Pico Boulevard, which still stands today.

Owner Don Cranford (1986-2017) said, "It was definitely the place to be those years, especially for the gay crowd. The restaurant was very mixed with lots of actors and writers and artists living here in the [Santa Monica] Canyon. It was never meant to be an exclusively gay restaurant or anything, but they sort of took over the bar. It was just their hangout. Families went in the dining room door, gay people went to the bar. Everyone loved it."

F. L. M. *