Once Upon A Time
In West Hollywood ...

... there was a coffee house called The Garret. It was owned and operated by a folk singer called Terrea Lea and her business partner, Betty "BJ" Moore.

From 1958 through 1971 The Garret was open for business at 923 N. Fairfax Avenue in West Hollywood, California, making it the longest lived coffee house of that period. Others that came and went included The Blue Grotto, The Fifth Estate, The Epicurean, The Unicorn, The Snail, The Insomniac, The Bit and The Ash Grove. The latter, reincarnated as the Improv, actually outlived the Garret until it was destroyed by a fire (it was briefly resurrected in Santa Monica in the mid 1990s). The Ice House, in Pasadena, is still in business as a comedy club and Doug Weston's Troubadour now books rock and alternative bands.

During the folk music revival of the 1960s The Garret was a popular place for musicians to relax and hang out. Terrea was always the main performer on stage, but just about every major folk music act in the business could have been found around the fireplace at some time or other. One night it was remarked that a bomb in the place would have instantly wiped out most of the folk music movement. Reported present at the time were Peter, Paul and Mary, Joan Baez, Judy Collins, Theodore Bikel, Joni Mitchell, Bud and Travis, Hoyt Axton and assorted other greater and lesser lights of the day.

Over the years, The Garret acquired a reputation for being a clean, safe, drug free place for minors to hang out. Even local law enforcement agencies recommended it to parents. As a result, it became a safe haven to many teenagers and young adults whose lives were, shall we say, stressful for one reason or another. Your humble Webmaster was one of them, hence the existence of this Web site.

Alas, few pictures remain of those days and most of the people I remember have long since scattered to the winds. I'm doing what little I can to track them down. Perhaps some of them will find this Web site and contact me.