A little girl dancing with jockeys at a grown up social. A young man having a drink and the time of his life with his pals. A married couple celebrating their 25th anniversary. No matter where a person is in his or her life, a visit to the Cockatoo Inn is often a memorable encounter….
Imagine being a 6 year-old in the 1960s, walking into the grandeur that was the Cockatoo Inn. In its prime, the Cockatoo drew patrons from all corners. Recently, one lucky lad sent us his memory, feasting like royalty in the dining room decorated in ‘ye olde English’ style. This is the brief tale of Eric…
Over the years, the Cockatoo has had many employees, managers, proprietors – all the people who contributed to make it the memorable landmark it was. Recently, we learned about someone who statedly worked at the Cockatoo, bartender Allan Rivelli. Early Days Originally from Providence, Rhode Island, Allan Rivelli was listed in the 1940 US Census…
Recently, we connected with Peter Conway, who says he was once a cook at the Cockatoo Inn. Peter was nice enough to let us ask him a few questions about his time there! Where are you from originally? Peter: I was born in Hawthorne Hospital, and we lived in Inglewood. We moved in with my…
We are not overly active on social media, but our Cockatoo Inn Instagram allowed us to connect with Mary McPadden-Bigda. She was very nice and reminisced about her time working at the Cockatoo in the late ’80s and early ’90s. She was gracious enough to answer some questions about her tenure, her experience with Stan…
Sometimes it’s hard to believe this little mid-century hotel and restaurant touched so many people from all over the world. No matter their origins or circumstances, they all seem to agree on the Cockatoo Inn’s magical charms. Even when visiting the Cockatoo during the 1992 LA riots. Through our Twitter (@cockatooinn), we met one such…
We’re thankful for our users’ many stories over the years. They help make connections to people and places, especially right here in Southern California! This recent contribution came to us via Becky Cortez, who recalled some great lunch memories at the Cockatoo with her grandfather. She writes: My grandfather owned a furniture store in Inglewood…
Recently, we had a brief chat with former Cockatoo employee, Favian Gonzales. He was a room service waiter from 1989 to 1994, just before the Cockatoo closed. We were excited to ask him some questions about his time there. CockatooInn.com: How did you first get hired? FG: I was first hired by a friend from…
Throughout the decades, people have had different types of experiences at the Cockatoo. One can imagine in the 1950s and 60s, date nights in suits and dresses. Maybe you danced with one of the many horse jockeys, like Becky did. There were countless breakfasts, brunches, lunches and group functions. Maybe you rocked out nightly to…
We recently connected with former Cockatoo Inn employee, Val Crotty. When Val worked at the Cockatoo, the joint was in different hands. By 1978, Andrew Lococo had already passed. Despite this, the Cockatoo still had an air of intrigue that commanded a certain level of esteem. Guy walks into a bar Let’s step back a…