Captain Love

we love you all, we love you all....

RIP Bob Emmens..Captain Love!!!

The attraction to California was its quirkiness and stunning physical beauty. When my family moved to Santa Barbara in 1966, Southern California was a much different place and an absolute paradise. Moving from Illinois, we had a lot to learn about California Ways. But what’s to learn? Sun, fog, Junior High, California girls....

we lived in a big funky house on a Pepper Hill in Montecito built by a dancer lady...that was a cool house...I grew up there, came of age there, people were always coming and going and upstairs there was a big ballroom with giant mirrors on the walls.. I'm sure the dancers used it..I used it too for band practice.. my father was not too happy about that!!

my band was Captain Love and we thought we were pretty fuckin cool...because we were as our lead singer Bob sang: "I am Captain Love, I am Captain Love"..we love you all we love you all!!"

I played rhythm guitar...Bob held the axe...and Steve on bass...Captain Love!!

and there was good music and girls girls girls... and geezus the Byrds played Santa Barbara Junior High in 1967...I was in love with a beautiful girl named Dani although she didn't know it because she was one grade above me..but that was my introduction to California....I knew I was going to like it here!

there were surfers and greasers.. Santa Barbara was very different from Illinois and it didn’t snow here. Oh yeah.. and it had a constant beach with a mountain view!. Ever since, I can’t be away from the beach for long..I need it to feel free..or connected..to something. I’m sure many who live here feel the same way. Yes, I grew to love California even though at times it wore me rather thin. Marriage, divorce, family dysfunction, parental expectations, high expectations, low expectations, no expectations, silly expectations, private school, public school, death, alcohol, drugs, the ‘60s, homeless, broke, crazy, first girlfriend and sex, spoiled, Montecito, guitars, unspoiled, nine brothers and sisters, step families, high society, rock-n-roll and fuck ‘em all..just everything a young man needs to be a well-rounded citizen!

 ch-ch-ch- ch-changes
The beach at Santa Claus Lane is a popular spot in summer and the atmosphere is fun, funky and casual, and uncomplicated… But things are changing…. The county wants to re-route the on-ramp and put in a park-n-ride and "spiff" things up!

Santa Claus Lane played an important role in the Carpinteria Valley’s agricultural beginnings. This is important because the area surrounding Santa Claus Lane hasn’t changed that much in the last fifty years thanks to agriculture. That simple fact makes it a pleasure to live here. The pleasure will turn to pain if we continue to over-develop and jam in too many people!

The half-mile strip containing Santa’s Village was originally part of a Lima bean farm along the ocean side of the old three-lane highway. The owner, E.T. Auger, built a small juice stand there. The McKeon family bought the property in 1948. Needing an advertising theme, Patrick McKeon named the stand Santa Claus to conform with other nearby Santas like Santa Barbara and Santa Maria and used the theme to attract passing motorists. Brilliant idea!

 During their first Christmas on the lane, his wife June dressed up as Santa and waved travelers to the juice stand (the good ol’ days). The next Christmas, a passing motorist with five children, no money and low on gas stopped at the stand. For $500, he offered to build a Santa Claus on the roof of the juice stand. His offer was accepted and a monument made out of chicken wire and plaster would soon rise from the lima bean fields like a demented Phoenix!

The large Santa grew out of the chimney, wired with a loudspeaker to call out to passing motorists "Welcome to Santa Claus!" People were much looser then and not as anal as they are today!

*A western novelty shop was added in 1951, a pottery shop in 1953, and a café known as Santa’s Kitchen in 1954. A post office substation was established in the date shop where mail could be stamped "Santa Claus, California". In 1954, a four lane divided highway was built and the old coast highway became Santa Claus Lane. The area prospered as a thriving commercial enterprise until the 1970s when tastes changed and fewer travelers stopped on the lane. Many of the Santa themes and associated tourist attractions were removed, and the trend toward remodeling the lane in a Nantucket motif developed. Today, Santa Claus stands as one of the last reminders of Santa Claus Village.

The Santa Claus figure is a rare regional example of 1940’s roadside programmatic architecture. Automobile travel at the time, fostered by the construction of better highways, required the development of large, eye-catching roadside images that could be understood by a speeding motorist.

Back in the1960s, Santa Claus Lane was pretty much the same as it is today. The locals accepted it for what it was..a weird little roadside attraction that was, on first glance, pretty tacky. But somehow it fit. It was so different from all other places in Santa Barbara and that’s why I liked it....and that big red Santa? He was a non-conformist!