By Sophia Fischer sfischer@theacorn.com

By Sophia Fischer sfischer@theacorn.com

Something similar to the "Santa Comes to Agoura" event took place for the first time 30 years ago this week.

Organized by Brownie troop leader Sherrie McDermott, the celebration was highlighted by Santa’s arrival via pony-drawn carriage to the cheers of an audience of nearly 300. Santa was accompanied by clown Clarabell-Bow.

Jackie Sargent, from the "Mary Annettes" of the Valley Women’s Chorus, dressed up as Shirley Temple and sang Shirley Temple songs. Six local Brownie and Girl Scout troops from the Las Virgenes Scout district sang holiday songs; free hot chocolate and coffee were served courtesy of Whizin’s Market, and free candy canes were donated by a man named Ed Ward.

Santa and Clarabell-Bow had a busy day. Played by Jerry Rocco and Bob Exum respectively, the duo left Agoura immediately after the event for the Grand Canyon to provide assistance to an impoverished Indian reservation as part of an annual Kiwanis project called We Care.

Other items in the paper that week included the "Bad News" column, which addressed "an unfortunate situation which has been allowed to occur unchecked." The story claimed that California was graduating 20,000 teachers each year into a job market that had only 10,000 openings. Lou Cusanovich, the area’s senator at the time, revealed the issue in a press release and said that steps were being taken to prompt action by the Legislature.

Advertisers had some interesting announcements. For Christmas, Bill Smith’s TeleVision Sales in the Whizin’s Mall advertised a closeout on 14- to 19-inch televisions featuring VHF and UHF antennas, Solid-State tuners and automatic tint guards. Lou Gene Construction Company advertised a formula for increasing home values through construction improvements. The ad included a graph illustrating that a home valued at $29,000 could increase in value to $35,900 if $2,500 was spent on some type of improvement.

Another advertiser, Peter S. Fayne Insurance, announced telephone consultation hours of 8 to 9 a.m., Monday, Wednesday and Friday; 8 to 9:30 p.m. Tuesday and Thursday; and "catch as catch can over the weekend."

The Acorn will be taking a look back at our first year’s issues over the next 12 months, giving an historical perspective on "30 Years Ago in The Acorn." If you have memories to share from that time period, please send your submission to Sophia Fischer at sfischer2@yahoo.com or fax to (818) 706-8942.