Lost L.A.

"Lost LA" explores the past through the region's archives, where photos, documents, and other rare artifacts unlock the untold history behind the fantasy of Southern California. Hosted by writer and public historian Nathan Masters of the USC Libraries, each episode of "Lost LA" brings the primary sources of history to the screen in surprising new ways. Much of L.A.'s past is lost to history, but through the region's archives, we can uncover the inspiring dreams and bitter realities that built the modern-day metropolis.

Funders | Lost LA Curriculum Project

Watch on PBS App

Suggested Show

Visiting with Huell Howser

Most Recent

Article

Lost LA

The Convoluted Logic of L.A.'s Numbered Avenues

A mountain range, parts of which are covered in snow.

Article

Lost LA

The Lost Plan to Create a National Park in L.A.’s Backyard

A view of the iconic landmark, the Bradbury Building, showing dark, ornamental grilling and brickwork and layers of stairs.

Article

Lost LA

The Savvy Mexican Businesswoman Behind the Iconic Bradbury Building

Photographic portrait of Mrs. Arcadia de Baker; previously Mrs. Abel Stearns, Arcadia Bandini, ca.1885. She can be seen from the waist up turned slightly to the left in an oval cutout. Her long dark hair is parted up the middle and pulled back to her neck. She is wearing a frilly shawl over a frilly dress with a low neckline.

Article

Lost LA

The Powerful Mexican Woman Who Helped Shape Early Santa Monica

A black and white photo depicts a row of cabins are arranged in a line along a steep slope. Each one is affixed with screened porches.

Article

Lost LA

They Built This City: How Labor Exploitation Built L.A.'s Attractions

An African American man holds a record while leaning on a music booth.

Article

Lost LA

Before Motown: L.A.'s Black-Owned Soul Music Empire

An archival black-and-white photo of Edgar Lucien Larkin inside the Lowe Observatory on Echo Mountain.

Article

Lost LA

Edgar Lucien Larkin: The Wizard of Echo Mountain

A young woman paints a a mural that says "LA28" with a sunset and palm tree silhouettes

Article

Lost LA

A Look Into the Future: The Los Angeles Olympics in 2028

Support Provided By

Griffith Observatory in construction | Courtesy of Dick Whittington Photography Collection,1924-1987, University of Southern California Libraries

Article

Lost LA

Riots, Love Fests, Buried Secrets: Griffith Park's Hidden Histories

A Monument in the Cemetery at Manzanar Relocation Center | Ansel Adams, Courtesy of the Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division

Episode

26:40

Lost LA

Three Views of Manzanar - Ansel Adams, Dorothea Lange and Toyo Miyatake

Sunset Boulevard at Gower in 1907. Courtesy of the Photo Collection - Los Angeles Public Library.

Article

Lost LA

When L.A.'s Most Famous Streets Were Dirt Roads

Full Episodes

Shindana Dolls | Still from "Lost LA" S4 E6: Shindana Toy Company

Episode

26:40

Lost LA

Shindana Toy Company - Changing the American Doll Industry

Explore the lasting impact of the Shindana Toy Company, created out of the need for community empowerment following the 1965 Watts uprising, whose ethnically correct black dolls forever changed the American doll industry.

Mount Wilson Observatory | Image from "Lost LA" S4 E5: Discovering the Universe

Episode

24:52

Lost LA

Discovering the Universe - Exploring the Cosmos Atop Mount Wilson

As recently as a century ago, scientists doubted whether the universe extended beyond our own Milky Way — until astronomer Edwin Hubble, working with the world’s most powerful telescope discovered just how vast the universe is.

Paul Revere Williams opposite a man explaining a project | Courtesy of J. Paul Getty Trust. Getty Research Institute, Los Angeles

L.A. Dodgers

Fantastic, Spooktastic L.A.

KCET Cinema Series

L.A. Dodgers

Fantastic, Spooktastic L.A.

KCET Cinema Series

Lost LA

Lost LA

Most Recent