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Lost LA
Prehistoric Landscapes
Season 5
Episode 3
How has Southern California’s climate changed over the millennia? In this episode, we sift through a natural archive of climate change at the La Brea Tar Pits, explore the remnants of a sunken super-island off the coast of Ventura, and visit a natural tar pit in Ojai that might serve scientists in the distant future.
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27:05
Trace the devastation of the 1928 St. Francis Dam collapse and its deadly flood.

26:40
How Cold War vigilance and secrecy shaped Southern California culture.

26:39
The Space Shuttle Endeavour’s journey is traced from its origins.

26:40
Tiki culture isn’t a Polynesian import — it’s a Hollywood creation.

26:49
Archives reveal the “forgotten plague” that shaped Southern California: tuberculosis.

26:50
Visit Hollywood Forever, Evergreen and Forest Lawn, where L.A. reinvented the cemetery.

26:40
The hiker-activists who led Angelenos into their hills and onto the trails.

26:39
How Filipino Americans in Southern California are making their heritage more visible.

26:47
Iconic fast-food chains from McDonald’s to Taco Bell were born in SoCal.

26:37
After internment camps, Japanese Americans made L.A.'s Crenshaw neighborhood their home.

26:04
During WWII, L.A. became a sanctuary for Europe’s accomplished artists and intellectuals.