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Health & Fitness

Blog: Longtime Photographer Henk Friezer Reminisces About Art Snyder

The City Hall dedication to Art Snyder attended by many.

Having been photographer for the Northeast community for over 50 years I had the privilege of meeting scores of elected officials and civic leaders, from presidents to Nobel laureates to monarchs, to celebrities.

None could compare to the late Art Snyder; he was in a class by himself.

I first met him when he was running for the former seat of legendary Councilman John Holland, Snyder's boss. He soon made himself a force to be reckoned with at Los Angeles City Hall. Je took care of the people who elected him and they reciprocated be electing him repeatedly, despite much negative publicity.

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Although I did not always agree with Art, I admired him for what he was able to accomplish. He knew his strength was the senior vote, and the seniors loved him. He became an icon for them; he attended their meetings and events, listened to and resolved their concerns and built them new facilities. They responded by re-electing him when others scoffed at him.

One time after he was charged for drunk driving, I was covering a parade in El Sereno. As his aides rode in the city's parade car he walked the route in front of them. Someone in the crowd yelled out, "You better walk, Snyder, you sure as Hell can't drive!"

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Another time he asked my editor, the late Fred Allen, if I could accompany him to a news conference in Beverly Hills with then Indianapolis mayor Richard Lugar. Snyder picked me up with his car at the newspaper office, and we drove to city hall to get on a helicopter to Beverly Hills. Though I have a fear of heights, I was never so happy to get out of that car and into the chopper. His driving had me on the floor praying, and I am not religious. It was downright frightening.

When we got back to city hall I called my father to come pick me up. I'd be damned to get back in a car with him.

Another thing Snyder was adapt at was having his photo taken, he wrote the book on manipulating the media. There was a running joke among the press that Snyder could smell a camera a mile away. He always made sure that he was in the center or had his arm showing--his theory was  that you would not get cropped out of the photo that way.

I could go on with hundreds of stories about the "Irish red-headed gang-banger from the barrio" as he referred to himself in numerous speeches, but I highlighted just a few.

Another thing he was good at was hiring his biggest adversaries and putting them to work as staff members. Shirley Minser--AKA Mrs. Eagle Rock--was a prime example of that.  She stayed on as a key adviser for his entire term and that of his successor. It was noteworthy how many of his  former colleagues and constituents attended the event at Eagle Rock City Hall on Saturday to pay tribute to him.

Noticeably absent was current councilman José Huizar.

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