 I would love to introduce Louise, Lozay, Fanau. We're so happy to have you here this afternoon. My name is Rebecca Nichols and I'm moderating this interview. I heard that you are a native San Franciscan and I would love to know where you were born, some of your early history with your parents, Jenny brothers or sisters, children. I'd love to know who they are and a little about them. Well, I was born in 1930 at the old Franklin hospital, which is no longer in existence, you know, near church in Dubos. I think it's Louise and Davies now. Oh wow, okay. But it was a nice little hospital at that time. I think you have a baby picture with you. I would love to see it. This is when I was about one year old. That's my corner. And these other pictures here are of my life a little later on when I became a professional dancer. Beautiful, beautiful baby. I have my finger up like I'm teaching something because that's part of my life too. Right, it all comes. Your parents, what were your parents' names? My father's name was Louis Orleur in Germany. His name was Stella, and he came from Northern Germany near Bremenhofen. And when he was about 21 years old, and he met my mother here, and she was from Missouri, and they met at a dance. Right. At a ballroom on Upper Market Street. And then they settled down, they had my brother first. What was his mother's name? Ralph. He is not living any longer. A profession that he... He didn't actually have a profession. He kind of was like a hippie at that time. He had to... A free thinker. He was a free thinker and a free liver. And he just went and did his thing. He was older than you. He was about five years older than I was. And so I was born, and then we moved to Prague Street. My first home as a baby was on Prague Street. Now Prague Street is closer to Daly City going east. It's below our mission. And so shortly after that, they bought a home in the sunset area on 34th Avenue. That's the first home that I really remember was on 34th Avenue. And there's a lot of fog out there. Sure. And those days, at the end of our block, there was nothing except sand dunes. And that's all built in. Since the Second World War. And they put up a lot of cracker... Quick houses, yes. But my first home was on 34th Avenue. Where did you move from there, do you remember? Baker Street. It's close by here. My father was a grocer. He would open grocery stores and he would stock them. And then he would sell them. And this was his forte. And so he opened and closed about 50 stores in his lifetime. So a lot of the grocery stores we have, they're still in existence. All around the history. All around the hate area. All these little stores that you see were opened by my father. What do people know as his name? The Stelling's Grocery is. Okay. And for just a little while, a few years ago they still had retained the name of the Stelling's Market on Parnassus, I think it was. Wow. And they just recently changed that. That was the last of the name. So in this area, you hear about how old were you? About what year was this? Oh, I was just a little baby then. I was only about three years old, four years old. And then when we were out on 34th Avenue, then I was five years old out there. And then the Depression came. And came with a thunder clap to my father because he had invested in a lot of stores. Sure. And he lost a lot. And he also had someone that was very unreliable that he trusted that took advantage of him. And so he lost a lot. And at the same time that that happened, our family fell apart. A lot of pressure. He started to drink. And he was not the same person that he was before he drank. And he had a lot of talent, even though he did drink. He was always able to provide a good home for his wife and his children. But when he drank, he was a monster. He had a Nazi temperament because he grew up in Germany. And actually, before Hitler came into power as strong, he would collect pictures of Hitler and have them in an album. And he would show them to my brother. And he thought that he was the greatest thing that ever happened to Germany, which most of the German people thought too. In the beginning. In the beginning. When he went off the deep end and we became enemies, you know, they became our enemies in the Second World War. Everyone in the family that was German, stopped talking German. And he got rid of his strapples right away. We didn't want to go to concentration camps like the Japanese, you know. And they were contemplating that possibility. Wow. So, yeah. Interesting. That was my father's side of the family. My mother's side was, they were a little illustrious. We have a signer of the Declaration of Independence. I told you we go back to Washington. We have an aid camp. Wow. It's all documented in our family history. Wow. So it's their mother's line. My mother's side, yes. In Dolling Park in Missouri. Do you know who it was that signed it? Yeah. Thomas Stone. Oh. And this was my grandfather of that same line. Let's take a close look. Who became first an accountant at Gump's. And then became the treasurer of Gump's. And then finally the executor of their estate. Wow. And he was highly thought of by the Gump's people. That's a very famous department store art center. I was a little girl when he would take me through Gump's. And they would collect beautiful arts objects. Sure. It came from the Far East in those days. I mean, like that big Buddha that's in the Dolling Park. That was donated by the Gump's family. Wow. To the park. Wow. And they had statues. And I would go through it with him. And one time he opened up a little tiny jeweled case. And he said, watch this Louise. And I must have been about four or five years old. I never forgot it. It flipped open. And this little bird stood up and sang a song. Turning this way and that way. Just in that little tiny box. Right. So they had treasurers. It was a high end department store for people with a large size purse. And wanted things that they couldn't find normally. And stood for quality. God says a long time in San Francisco. He lived in the Gaylord Hotel for all the time that I read. Where was the Gaylord Hotel? That was... We're part of the city. It was downtown. Not on Powell Street. But in that area? In that area. Maybe Grant. It's still there. Yes. I know the name. I've been told that your life, if you could, maybe more. But could be broken into five parts. Just about. Just about. And I'd love to know more about each of those parts. And maybe you can tell me. And let's take it from there. Okay. Well, of course I was a student, first of all. Growing up in San Francisco as a student was wonderful. I had everything at my disposal. Being artistically inclined. I studied piano. And I had wanted to be a concert pianist. And I studied with a concert pianist until I was 14. And I should say between the ages of 12 and 14, I studied with Zephyr Reed. Over on near Devisadero Street. Was there a studio you'd go for your lessons? She had me come after I started with her for a while. I guess she liked me well enough. She wanted to coach me every day. So I had to go there every day. And she was a magnificent teacher. And the things that I learned, then I still complied. Wow. So that was quite an accomplishment for my life. And it really opened up music for me. I really didn't know too much about it before then. I had studied it ever since I was four years old. With the German family, that's sort of like the Bachian families. You know, they all play instruments. Sure. This is the way they raise their kids. That's part of their education. And they are strong disciplinarians. And they tell you, you're going to practice now. And so you sit down and you practice. Or you're going to go to this class and you go to this. I never tried to find a teacher for myself. They would always present a teacher. Wow. So it was very good. Very lucky. Very, very fortunate. So one part of you is the learning. Yes, the student. And when I was in high school, a very important thing that I learned was typing. And I guess I had that connection already from piano. And so I was an excellent typist. And I could type over 100 words a minute. Wow. So which later on served me very well to help me to raise my children. But I'm getting a little ahead of myself. That was the early part. And also the dancing. She took dance classes. I took dance lessons with Halpern Lathrop dance group. Where was that? Peter's Wright School of Dance. And that was in what area of the school? And that is, I don't know the exact street. Sure, sure. But it's like close to Sacramento, California. Gotcha. Right. In that general area, Lyons, or a little further down from there. Sure. I don't know if there's still an existence. How long did you study dance? I studied dance for seven years before I became a professional dancer. How old were you then? When you were professional. I became a professional dancer when I was 21. But I'm getting ahead of my five thumbs that I did. Next after I became, was a student and very proficient. I also won an award in school as a top scholar. I won the American Legion Award for all-round student. And so I was very interested in school and learning. I've always loved books. I love to read. And so then after I went through school, I married very young when I was 17. That was because of the dissolution of my family. And I was lonely for a relationship of a family. Sure. I had been going from an aunt. I lived with my father's sister while I was growing up. A German family. And then various foster homes. And I was very lonely. And so I had this fellow who was five years older than I. And he was a return marine who was after the Second World War. The Second World War stopped. It came to a conclusion when I was 14. And so I married him and then I had two children. What were their names? Lois and Bruce. And Lois is a magnificent painter. Wow. Her father was a painter. He had a lot of artistic. He designed book jackets. And he was a great cartoonist. But she became a very classical, beautiful, she paints in acrylics and oils. And her good things was just magnificent. It's in the family. It's very strong. And my son is also very artistic. But he became an electrical engineer. Or I should say a construction engineer. He works in Kansas City now and a power plant. That's how we... So that's a whole area of my life that was very important that I support my children. And that first husband had abandoned myself and my two children. And he was very unstable after the war and he just disappeared. And left me with the children. And I had to find some way to support them. And so that's how I got into dancing professions. Where were you living at this time? I was living on Market Street. Close to Church & Debots. I mean, it's up a little bit on Market Street. Closer to the Mint around there. And close to the dance studios of Guilhermo Del Oro, who was a very famous Spanish dancer, dance teacher. And so I was... So that's two parts of your life? Yes. Then I became the professional dancer. And I wound up in Las Vegas. And because we heard from one of the studios, the Halprin Studio, they were talking about opportunities open in Las Vegas for dancers to get jobs. And I desperately needed money to support my children. And I was told that they changed their shows every nine weeks. And so I would be sure to get a job because women were not very stable. They were having children. They were having divorces. They were having a going. And I would certainly be able to get a job there. So my friend from my youth, Camila Bonix, that I grew up with, loaned me $70. I was destitute at this time. And I went up to Las Vegas and I didn't have an agent. I just had my good looks and my seven years' experiences learning dancing, classical dancing, flamenco, modern dance, and ballet. That was my classical training. And I got a job right away at the Sands. I would love to see some of your photos. The first job I had practically was with a person that owned a part of the Sands and that was Prince Sinatra. So it was kind of an interesting thing that I should fall into to this. I think we could just go through a few of those. Briefly. Sure. Some of the people that I worked with in Las Vegas. What we want to try to do is stand up behind there. And this was a time when there was nothing in Las Vegas except desert. Of course. And only seven things. But it would be really helpful if they were stood up. Perfect. Because then we could get rid of the clear. So there's Oshawa Square you are. And the photo end right here is the tallest one in the group. And that's right. I mean, that's Trimini Ranchi. Trimini Ranchi. And this was Carmen Miranda. And that's you? Yes. And this is the Dorsey Brothers. Yes. And also Xavier Krugat. But I don't have a picture of him. Right. The time. That is in San Francisco. This is in San Francisco. Later on in the 70s when I came back. And I was a model, a powers model at that time. And I posed at the American Legion of Honor. Beautiful photo. This picture. Where I had previously danced as a girl. Wow. In small concert work. And then this is Frankie Lane. You know the picture of me. And that's not true. What is it? Autographed? Yes, it's autographed. To Louise? To Louise with love. Not an embossed one. Yeah. And have some nice stories about him. And this is when he was younger. Sure. He was a little older. He was a great gentleman. And a very kind person. He was very, very nice to all the production dancers and singers. And he was... If anyone was in the hospital he saw that they got roses. Any of the girls. He was just very kind. And who is this right here? This is Eddie Albert. That's right, okay. Yeah. And these are the Martinez Flamenco dancers. And there's me. What is this from? I'm dancing. That's part of the book that I've written called Poems for Young Dancers. All during this time I started writing poetry when I was in Vegas in the 50s. And I became a reclusive poetess all my life. I didn't like what I saw going on and what they call poetry to me was not poetry. Sure. And I was very upset by the... And that's just the end of it there. It was wonderful. Okay. Some of the people I worked with. Yeah, that's wonderful. I want to bring this to the 8 Ashbury a little bit. Yeah. So when you came back and you moved to the 8 Ashbury area, what was that about? Well, what was that about? No, what year about? Did you move back? The year 78. Okay. Now you're jumping 20 years of being a mother and a medical transcriptionist and typist. I had the opportunity to take care of my children. And that way I was always interested in science. And so I had the opportunity to become a secretary to many people, to many doctors. What brought you back to the 8? Well, I met and married my present husband. I met him at a dance, a church dance in Hollywood. Wow. And I was on his way back to Samoa. And I was on my... I was just living there at that time. And we married after a whirlwind courtship of about two months. We've been married now for 34 years. Wow. We have a home in Tonga. We have a little picture of our little home in Tonga. He was a prize fighting champion in Tonga. Very powerful man. Good man. Kind heart. Tonga. Where's Tonga? It's mid-central South Pacific. It's below Samoa, west of Tahiti, north of Australia, and east of New Zealand. It's mid-central South Pacific. It's a kingdom. The last Polynesian kingdom. That's a whole story in itself. That's when I became a teacher. Because I needed to get... We only have about eight minutes left. I wanted to pull it all together. We're probably going to be asking you back. But to just quickly finish the five we talked about. So then we had student, dancer, mother. You tell me all five. The student goes with the dancing. Sure. So you tell me all five. Then the mother and... Teacher. Then mother and then the dancing, professional dancer. Then secretary and a teacher. Teacher. And you're being a writer as well? Yes. And you've written a book? I've written a book called... There is a historical novel of Tonga. Oh, wonderful. Is it fiction or not fiction? It's a historical novel. Oh, beautiful. It's based on fact. Beautiful. Very interesting time in Tonga's existence. I would tend to think that even now, living in the Haydashbury as you do in this area, around a lot of creative free thinkers, it leaves you the space to be yourself when you go home. Yes. That's probably why a lot of people live in Haydashbury. I have never publicly read my poems or any of my works before. I would love to have you read something if you have something you enjoy that you've written. Oh, I wanted to show you my little poem. Did I show you my little poem? Yes, I did. I'd love to publish but it's called. I'd love to hear it. Well, this is why I became a reclusive poet. Sure. And it's called Poems for Young Dancers. Okay. It's called Our Poets. Many are the golden-throated frogs that bellow all around. Many are the singers who would sing without a sound. There are those who are far wiser, wiser far than they, that sit beneath the palm and think and say not, yea, nor nay. And this is called a search. Straight, strong words of truth I seek. Nothing vague, nothing weak. Symbols forceful, simple, and true. Getting classic clarity for homage to. So that was my philosophy and why I became a reclusive poet for so long. And I'll read one more to finish this off. And this was called The Heart of a Mystery. Early spring has passed. Grows now summer's glow. Planted seeds now quickly spring and tender seedlings grow to quickly take on newborn life, fresh, strong, and sapling new, and all life's old complaints do fade and falter in their view. What miracle of life lies here that science can't discern? When to the moon and back we've flown, yet every seed that air was sown spontaneously springs to life and owns its portion of this earth. Spontaneous thrust, the seedling's power, whence comes this awesome thing? Prime mover, Yahweh, Allah, God? His name's diverse as tongues above, who holds with power this mighty key and founding all its mystery. That of creative life. That's beautiful. I could understand why you live in a hate actuary. I could understand the inspiration I've heard on your life that you've given me as well. And I'm sure those that will see this take 50 years, 100 years from now, can understand why you're a part of this community. I ask you one last question. If you had a net and you could capture a moment in life that for whatever reason was most inspiring to you and that somebody was watching this video 50 years from now could listen and watch and learn, what moment would you catch and why? Was most inspiring to me? Yes. Was when I was baptized into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. That was the most right thing I ever did in my life. And I have been in that church for 50 years as a teacher, as a conductor of music, as a librarian, and have a great many people that I love very dearly and have been very supportive all my life. And it's been a great guiding light for me. The Spirit of the Lord has been with me since that time, to this present moment. And that was undoubtedly the greatest moment of my life. I think that's beautiful. And hopefully it's understood by those who watch this in the future. And I am honored to have you here. I want to tell you thank you so much for sharing your moments with me and putting them on tape with this video or a list of your projects of the Hade Ashbury. And I can see why you are a resident of the Hade Ashbury and part of this family. And again, thank you so much for being here. And it's a wonderful addition to the library. Thank you for sharing. You're welcome.