Celebrating our cultural landmarks

Yesterday, Taco Bell celebrated its 50th anniversary. They celebrated at the corporate headquarters with some 800 people, including some of founder Glen Bell's family members. They served classic Taco Bell menu items and gave away retro T-shirts.

Meanwhile, here in Downey, the Downey Conservancy's celebration was decidedly smaller. But while the corporate group might have had food and T-shirts, we have the original Taco Bell building (see yesterday's post). And joining us were Russ (above) and Mary Jones, two of Bell's first employees. Russ regaled the group with stories about Bell and how he eventually helped the Joneses start their own taco restaurant chain.

The Downey Conservancy (right, with Russ and Mary Jones) is dedicated to raising awareness of Downey's cultural landmarks, such as the original Taco Bell building.