VERDUGO VIEWS:Alumnus recalls years at academy

April 13, 2007|By KATHERINE YAMADA

(Page 2 of 2)

"Believe it or not, he was pastor of a church there," he said. "I went and we talked later. He told me the school was going to kick out three or four kids and I was probably included, but he went to bat for me and kept me from getting kicked out."

After the Navy, Cochran returned to Glendale and opened an auto-repair business. He has two children, Monty Cochran and Tana Bistagne, and six grandsons.

"Only three from my class are left and we try to get together every year," Cochran said. "I'm 85 now, and weigh about the same as when I graduated."

He credits his good health to the meals his mother learned to make during classes sponsored by the Adventists.

KATHERINE YAMADA can be reached by calling features editor Joyce Rudolph at (818) 637-3241. For more information on Glendale's history visit the Glendale Historical Society's website: http://www.glendalehistorical.org" href="http://www.glendalehistorical.org" class="linkification-ext">www.glendalehistorical.org; call the reference desk at the Central Library at (818) 548-2027; or call (818) 548-2037 to make an appointment to visit the Special Collections Room at Central from 10 a.m. to noon and 1 to 3 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays.

READERS WRITE

Louie Deisbeck treasures a Bob's Big Boy ashtray that his wife's cousin found at a garage sale years ago for $1.

"She lived in Wichita, Kan., and came out to visit us every summer," he said.

"She gave it to me. Later, I found out it was the prototype for the ash trays used in the Bob's restaurants."

Deisbeck, a longtime Glendale News-Press photographer, said he and News-Press writer Jeannette Mazurki often went to interview Bob's founder, Bob Wian, in his Toluca Lake home.

"I always meant to tell him about it, but I never did," he said.

Deisbeck added that the local restaurant association had an annual dinner at Pike's Verdugo Oaks for many years. Each restaurant provided a centerpiece.

One year, his wife came home with the Bob's Big Boy centerpiece. He still has it.

If you have questions, comments or memories to share, please write to Verdugo Views, c/o News-Press, 221 N. Brand Blvd., 2nd Floor, Glendale, CA 91203. Please include your name, address and phone number.

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