The Zorthian Ranch

A few years ago, I wrote  a blog entry about two remarkable people,  Jirayr Zorthian and his wonderful wife, Dabney.  Zorthian was a well-known artist and a free-spirit. He and Dabney enjoyed a great life on their 40 plus acre ranch in the hills above Altadena, California. Jerry passed away in 2004 at age 92. Dabney left us a few years later. I miss them both.

Just the other day, our friends, Jane Morrison and Michael Tobias, who originally introduced us to the Zorthians, sent me a link to an article that just appeared on the webpage of KCET, the PBS TV station in Los Angeles.  It recounts the Zorthian story and provides some insight into what has happened to their ranch since their passing.

Here is the link...  http://www.kcet.org/arts/artbound/counties/los-angeles/zorthian-ranch-altadena.html

Zorthian

Jirayr Zorthian was famous and much admired as a classically trained artist.  He was also a remarkable character. Adept at making friends, his public face was always intellectually spirited and always bubbling with kindness and playful cheer. 

Jirayr Zorthian

It was a treat to visit Zorthian and his warm and charismatic wife, Dabney at their ranch in the hills overlooking Pasadena, California. That place was the most delightfully quirky 48 acres anyone ever saw....  Jerry Zorthian passed away in 2004. He was 92.  Dabney followed him two years after that. I miss them a lot.

Dabney Zorthian

The Zorthians had many friends...so many friends.   Jerry's most famous friendship was with Nobel Prize winning Cal Tech physicist, Richard Feynman.  One of the most prominent members of the team that built the first atomic bomb at Los Alamos during World War Two, Feynman wrote about Zorthian in his very engaging biography, Surely You're Joking, Mister Feynman.

Check out this video clip of Feynman and Zorthian talking about their friendship. It's a hoot.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AkDJtsFd6Mg

Every year in May at the Zorthan ranch, there was a 'Primavera'  birthday party for Jerry.  It would attract something on the order of four hundred of his friends.  Late in his life, the highlight was an annual staged production, in which Jerry basked in the spotlight as the lounging Zor-Bacchus, with a dozen  young lovelies feeding him grapes, while they danced naked around him. It was joyful, not prurient. Jerry Zorthian loved being surrounded by his friends. He loved having fun.

I'm so glad I had the privilege of knowing Jerry and Dabney,  and being one of their friends.   I learned so much about enjoying life from them. 

The link below is to the Zorthian webpage, still maintained by people who loved Jirayr and Dabney. It celebrates the art both of them created, while offering some insight into their extraordinary lives.

http://zorthian.com/