LOS ANGELES. I was born and raised in L.A., and, as remarkable as it may sound, to this day, I still feel like an Angelino gone astray. I grew up in West Hollywood, a few blocks south of Santa Monica Boulevard and one block east of La Cienega Boulevard at 849 Alfred Street.

The magnetic force that Los Angeles continues to possess on me is pretty incredible. Not just me, either. The city’s attraction is in no small way thanks to the film and entertainment industries’ unwavering allure. That and the wonderful weather.

Both my parents had a short stint in 1950s Hollywood, as did I in the mid-1980s. But it’s the boundless cultural diversity, unmatched architectural multiplicity, vast urban sprawl, bombastic, palm tree-lined boulevards. and, of course, all those gorgeous, sun-drenched, beaches that keep me coming back. That and a handful of friends and family that still live in Los Angeles.