A New Admiral Perry and His Scale-Model Fleet Have Met the Public--and They Are His

Loren Perry, 39, of Garden Grove, and his fleet of ships get invited to the strangest parties. For instance, he launched his 7-foot-long model ship Titanic, some tugboats and a water-spraying fireboat in the Olympic-size pool at Zsa Zsa Gabor’s Beverly Hills home.

“She thought it would be nice to have the Titanic in the pool since some of her wealthy guests were there to announce plans to build a luxury liner,” said Perry, who dazzled the crowd by putting the battery-powered vessels through their paces with handheld transmitters. “It was quite a kick for me, and I didn’t even get paid for it.” He gets similar thrills showing his model vessels, including an 8-foot replica of the nuclear-powered guided missile cruiser Long Beach, at various water holes in Orange County such as Centennial Park in Santa Ana, one of the ponds big enough to maneuver the big model ships around.

In addition, he carts them in a van to schools, colleges and to other speaking engagements to show and explain the background and construction of the vessels, the result of an early childhood interest in the Titanic and other famous ships.

“When I built the Titanic in 1971,” said Perry, “it didn’t occur to me that people would be so fascinated with it.” He noted his model of the Titanic, which took him 1 1/2 years to build, became popular only after Hollywood made the movie “Raise the Titanic” in the late 1970s. A 55-foot model of the Titanic was built for the movie.

No doubt last year’s discovery of the real Titanic, sunk in the Atlantic Ocean, sparked new interest in Perry’s model, which he claims is an accurate reconstruction of the original liner.

“Its accuracy has been attested to by the Harland and Wolff Shipyard where the real ship was built in Ireland,” said Perry, a model boat accessory dealer.

The ship, which cost $500 to build, is outfitted with working lights and foghorn, as well as an on-board tape player that blares out jazz, ragtime and Strauss waltzes.

Besides competing in miniature regattas in park ponds on Sunday afternoons, “operating the models is strictly for fun,” said Perry, a one-time U.S. Navy recruiter with roots in Orlando, Fla. Although he claims model boat building is just a hobby, Perry has spent much of his life researching the Titanic and is an active member of the Titanic Historical Society based in Massachusetts.

Adults and big kids hoping to unload outdated or unused quality toys are banned from selling them at Golden West College’s Holiday Toy Swap meet at 8 a.m. Saturday. Matter of fact, said college spokeswoman Sally Coffey, “If you’re over age 16 and want to sell anything, you need to be accompanied by someone 16 or younger.”

She said the used toy and game sale by young entrepreneurs who have cleaned out closets, rooms and garages to raise money--ostensibly for Christmas buying--”turns out to be a paradise for buyers who want to barter with youngsters.”

Coffey warns that young people are no easy prey for hagglers. “Some of them are steadfast on prices,” she said, but she noted that “many have clever ways of drawing attention to their wares.”

At last year’s sell-off, one youngster put up a sign saying, “Help send me to Hawaii.”

The movie comedy team of Laurel and Hardy is still endearing to people in Orange County, says Randy W. Skretvedt, 28, of Buena Park. More than 100 fans attend monthly meetings in Huntington Beach to review the team’s film career, he said.

“There was something that set them apart from other comedians,” said Skretvedt, immediate past president of the 100-member club (called Sons of the Desert after one of their films). “To us, they had a special friendship. It was more than slapstick.”

Conversation is never lacking at club meetings, said Skretvedt, who notes that the pair made 105 movies during their lifetime “and I’ve seen each one at least 10 times.”

The tent, as Laurel and Hardy fan clubs are called, recently held its annual banquet attended by Laurel’s daughter, Lois, who operates a business in Huntington Beach making Laurel and Hardy memorabilia.

“Laurel and Hardy appeal to all age groups,” said Skretvedt, noting that the new club president is 16-year-old Chris Carmen of Anaheim.

Acknowledgments--Theresa and Stan Pawloski of Anaheim, tireless workers for the Anaheim Museum and other Orange County philanthropic organizations, were given the museum’s Friend of the Year Award. They have been married 36 years.