Lombard’s new book grew from her love of Larchmont

| December 3, 2015 | 1 Comment
PATTY LOMBARD holds the book she has written on the village.

PATTY LOMBARD holds the book she has written on the village.

Patty Lombard first fell in love with Larchmont Village in 1988 when the family lived on Wilton Drive and she could walk her baby daughter in a stroller to the boulevard.

She has compiled a history of her favorite village in a book titled “Larchmont,” a 128-page photographic history of the shopping area. Lombard will be signing the book on Tues., Dec. 8 at Chevalier’s bookstore from 7 to 9 p.m.

Chevalier’s location was originally the offices of Julius LaBonte who developed much of the commercial street in 1921. The LaBonte Building and Loan Association safe remains in the store.

The book documents the area’s history with photos of original buildings such as the movie theater and Dippell Realty. Many aerial pictures also portray the growth of the village.

It contains copies of newspaper articles showing the village buildings when they were first erected.

Chapters are divided into Early Larchmont, Larchmont Life, Modern Larchmont and Upper Larchmont.

Business “legends” such as Bob Landis, Bob Balzer and the barber Jerry Cottone are featured plus others who have owned shops on Larchmont through the years.

The author has combined extensive research on the village and area history with an array of photographs, mainly from the pages of the Larchmont Chronicle.

Lombard, who is co-owner of the online publication, Larchmont Buzz, is president of the Fremont Place Association and on the board of the Ebell of Los Angeles and Greater Wilshire Neighborhood Council. She and her husband Bill Simon have two daughters, Emily and Alexandra.

Published by Arcadia for its Images of America series, the book sells for $21.99.

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Category: People

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