Del Mar Drive-In Theater 1983

The Del Mar Drive-In was actually located in Solana Beach on Valley Avenue & Via de la Valle. I remember all the entertainment venues were in Solana. In addition to the Drive-In there was sit down movie theater, a bowling alley, a skating rink and golf. The Lomas Santa Fe golf courses are still here, all the others are long gone. We used to climb up the hill on off Highland where you could watch the movie on the Drive-In screen. Just no sound. The Drive-In opened around 1953 and closed in 1983.

The Daily Aztec SDSU 1979-1980

The staff from the Aztec office at SDSU. I was fortunate to work along side of some very talented and creative people in the world of journalism. It was my first newsroom experience and I felt like I finally had a direction for my career after two years wandering around the SDSU campus. I will always be grateful to Joel Zwink who took a chance and hired me as a staff photographer. I felt right at home in this wacky office self run by a bunch of almost, but not quite adults. I wish I kept in touch with all my Aztec friends but life got in the way. I found these images and wanted to share them and hope my fellow Daily Aztec staff will enjoy the visual memories.

Tina Susman and Donna Pomerantz work on final production deadline as Bill Harris cranks out his own rift.

Tina Susman takes a break.

Amy Rinard, News Editor at SDSu Daily Aztec.

Amy Rinard, News Editor Daily Aztec

Michael D. Hewitt, Associate News Editor.

Bradley J. Fikes, Editorial editor at the daily Aztec. Bradley went on to work as a biotech reporter at the San Diego Union-Tribune. He sadly passed away in 2019.

Daniel M. Weintraub and Amy Rinard

Managing Editor Vincent M. Trioa. Classy, cool and smooth!

The Aztec Photo Crew 1979. Ian Cummings, Stephen, Chris Holme, Scott Linnette & Joel Zwink.

Chris Holme and Scott Linette at the Aztec photo desk. The darkroom was tiny!

Chris Holme, AKA "Action". His camera was spotless and mine was always a mess.

Donna Pomerantz - Production Assistant

Jeff Nahill worked as a sports writer in San Diego. His passion was the horse racing and we got to hang out in the Del Mar pressbox.

Joel Zwink, Photo Editor Daily Aztec 1979

Mary Simon was aways a kick. An excellent photographer, we would run into each other on the sidelines at a Chargers game.

Vincent M. Troia, Managing Editor and Daniel M. Weintraub, Editor.

Joel Zwink and Scott Linnette at the photo desk.

Las Planideras Skate

Lazy days driving to the top of Las Planideras, skating down the long empty hill and pileling back in the car to return to the top for another run.

Cardiff Vons & Value Fair Closed

I remember Value Fair as the store that had everything except groceries which were next door at Vons. The had it all including magazine, comics, 45’s and LPs

The Road to Black Mountain

A lone commuter drives the Carmel Valley Road shortcut connecting Del Mar to Hwy 15 before Hwy 56. The road was not maintained and made for a slow, bumpy ride but the alternatives were Del Dios to the North or Miramar Raod to the South.

Frank's Burgers Hwy 101 Encinitas

Franks was a go to choice for a quick burger and fries in downtown Encinitas. It is on the current site of URBN pizza.

Georges Beach Parking Cardiff

Curious beachgoers try to figure out how this VW with Michigan plates managed to wrap itself around a telephone pole South of The Chart House in Cardiff. Maybe 2 am drive home from one of the local bars on Restaurant Row.

San Dieguito High School 1975

Dance lessons in the newly opened gym.

Downtown Encintas early 1980's

Downtown Encinitas Hwy 101 between D and E Streets. Lots of small retail stores and restaurants that we took for granted were fixtures of the Encinitas business district. They are all long gone.

Bridge Jump Hwy 101 Del Mar

Three boys jump from the Hwy 101 bridge into the San Dieguito rivermouth in Del Mar. I remember shooting the jump but I don’t know why I was in that spot exactly at that moment.

Broom Race San Dieguito High School 1974

Students race around a course pushing milk cartons with brooms.

Cathi & Mark San Dieguito High School 1974

Catherine Lambert and Mark Henry in Mr. Davidson’s graphic classroom. Mr. Davidson’s classes were run like a print shop business. Every student had a job.

Pool Bar Honkey Tonk

I did a few freelance shots for the San diego Reader back in the late 80’s. The story was about the lifestyle of rural San Diego County.

Yacht Aground Cardiff

The captain and crew of a yacht that had come aground in Cardiff just north of Seaside survey the situation. The boat was eventually towed off the sand at high tide.

Backyard Pool Solana Beach 1976

After high school, I photographed a lot of my friends skating. I didn’t see it as a way to make any money. Although everyone wanted pictures, nobody had any money back then. I missed the big picture of magazines, advertising and sponsors.

Friday Night Football

Helping a player off the field are Coach Al Southworth, Mark Howard and Coach Ed Wiley. Mark Howard was the equipment manager for the football team and later went onto work with the San Diego Chargers I believe as an athletic trainer.

Open Campus San Dieguito High School 1975

San Dieguito had an open campus policy and students could come and go as they pleased. No hall passes required. I like these campus lifestyle photos and I wish I had taken more documentary images in high school.

Speech Team San Dieguito High School 1974

Speech Club group photo for yearbook.

Graphics Club San Dieguito High School 1974

I think this is the Graphics Club group photo for the class of 1974 yearbook. Mr David Davidson was a great teacher and ran his class like a factory. Everyone had job to do in the production of the student newspaper or magazine.

Swim Team San Dieguito High School 1974-75

The school didn’t have a pool but the team was able to use the pool at Lomas Santa fe Country Club in Solana Beach. I was on a swim team in 7th and 8th grade and we practiced and had meets there also. I must have swam a million laps in that pool. I think most of the group photos I took for the yearbook had a least one person shooting the bird! This guy wanted to remain anonymous.