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No Lotus Festival: Can Woody Guthrie Unite Echo Park?

The final, final word's that the Lotus Festival is cancelled while the Echo Park Lake is closed. But a free celebration of the 100th birthday of one of Echo Park's most beloved residents, Woody Guthrie, is set for July 14.

The event will feature hip-hop, blues, jazz, psychedelia and bluegrass by Guthrie-inspired musicians.

The celebration takes place from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. at . Here is the complete event schedule.

Leadership at El Centro has talked for a time now about hosting an event that would attract hipsters to the social service organization's courtyard and outdoor stage, which serves many low-income families and youth.

This could be the one.

Singer-song writer and Guthrie scholar, Darryl Holter, will be on hand to talk about the evolution of the troubadour's music and political views while he was living in L.A.

Holter will also sing a few tunes that Guthrie penned while living here.  

From his Echo Park (Red Hill) home on Preston Street, Guthrie got to know Ed Robbin, Theodore Dreiser, Will Geer, John Steinbeck, and other intellectuals, activists and artists.

Blues musician S.S. Jones, founder of The Skid Row Musician's Network, will perform Woody's song, "Hard Travelin'' and the Lead Belly tune, "Pick A Bale of Cotton."

Got kids?  Drop them off at the Children's Concert and story-telling session 10:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. in the arts activities area.

Meantime, the Lotus Festival Inc., the lead organizer of the Lotus Festival, told a Council District 13 rep in an email that it does plan on "being back in full force for next year"--when it, presumably, won't have to hold the festival in a parking lot.

Read Echo Park Now's take on the story here.

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4   Recommend J, F,

J, F, May 21, 2013 at 04:48 pm
@A.R. DID YOU GOT ANY OF MY E-MAILS IM HAVING PROBLEMS WITH MY serv.
J, F, May 21, 2013 at 03:10 pm
yes, a video from the news, from the car wash,, day that appear that night on the news channel.
J, F, May 21, 2013 at 03:04 pm
@A.R. Yes can you help me I was going to down load the video from the news from CH,34 but I can'tRead More don't go thru,, I call them they just send me video, guy,
J, F, May 18, 2013 at 09:06 pm
@A.R. thanks!! no, i call ch,34 they came, and we don't know the total.. but I hope was a good dayRead More for the cause,,, A.R. didn't know of the new page,, looking good, J,F,
Anthea Raymond (Editor) May 18, 2013 at 08:45 pm
Thanks for these great photos from the car wash to help the family of David "Dizzy"Read More Martinez. Looks like a good turnout. Would Gina know how much money they made?