Chapter 2 (above is the apartment building in Hollywood where West worked on Locust)
"The house he lived in was a nondescript affair called the San Bernardino Arms. It was oblong three stories high, the back and sides of which were plain, unpainted stucco, broken by even rows of unadorned windows. The facade was the color of diluted mustard and its windows, all double, were framed by pink Moorish columns which supported turnip-shaped lintels.
"Despite the sincere indignation that Abe's grostesque depravity aroused in him, he welcomed the company. The little man excited him and in that way made him feel certain of his need to paint.
"He had first met Abe when he was living on Ivar Street, in a hotel called the Chateau Mirabella. Another name for Ivar Street was "Lysol Alley," and the Chateau was mainly inhabited by hustlers, their managers, trainers and advance agents.
West was excited by what he saw here in California. It was a strange and beautiful subject, he knew. Indeed, the "grostesque depravity aroused him." Amen.
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