He’s Purveyor of ‘Instant History’

David Letterman is on the cover of Esquire. People has Charlie’s Angels. The Steve Allen family smiles amiably from a magazine called Valley People.

A man in tailored slacks and sport shirt scans the rack. He settles for a newspaper.

“That’ll be 25 cents, sir,” says John Lauritz. “And good luck to you, sir.”

Every morning the news of the world flows as steadily as the cataracts of the Nile into Sheltam’s newsstand in Encino. Sheltam’s is a concrete-block structure, 4 by 60 feet, cut into an embankment on the south side of Ventura Boulevard between La Maida and Petit streets. It is a repository of dailies, weeklies, monthlies, comic books and paperbacks.

And John Lauritz is there to sell these publications. Lauritz is a friendly, garrulous and polite man of 73 who allows that a rocking chair is the bane of retirees. He works 20 hours a week at Sheltam’s.

‘Instant History’

“Today’s news is ‘instant history,’ as they say,” observes Lauritz, a former newspaper distributor (the erstwhile Van Nuys News & Greensheet). “History is something I’ve always been interested in.”

A man in shorts and sneakers walks up, buys a pack of cigarettes for $1.35 and asks for a receipt.

“I gave him one and made him happy,” Lauritz explains.

Regulars at the newsstand might include music star Michael Jackson, who lives just a few blocks up the hill. Television actor Steve Landesberg stops by often. And there are frequent visits by Central American immigrants bent on catching up with homeland news from one of Sheltam’s foreign periodicals.

The stand does, of course, carry the local papers. But you can also pick up a Sunday edition of the Oregonian or Houston Post for $2.50 each or the New York Times for $3. Specialty publications include the Racing Form, Daily Variety, Financial Times, Celebrity Tribune and Penny Stock News.

Variety of Magazines

Sheltam’s is also widely known for the dozens of music publications it offers. And along with National Lampoon, you can find magazines on body building, photography (six separate titles), food and wine, martial arts, sports, computers, bridal clothes, auto, video, survival, outdoor, singles, firearms, teens, animals, boats and yachting, science fiction, crossword, cycles, puzzles, three different skateboard monthlies, and more.

With each purchase, you get a little bit of Lauritz. He is something of a cracker-barrel philosopher who enjoys exchanging pleasantries as well as commentaries with the steady stream of customers who drop by for a periodical, pack of smokes, chewing gum, candy or just to shoot the breeze with the peripatetic “newsie.”

Lauritz’s favorite theme and constant postulation is:

“America is God’s country.”

World Traveler

He and his wife, Helen, travel constantly and have visited 95 different countries. But, he’ll tell customers, “No matter where I travel, I’m always thrilled to return home. I think, ‘Gee, this is the greatest place on Earth, even with all our problems.’ ”

Lauritz’s father was an artist and ultimately brought the family to Los Angeles.

“Dad had his own free life, so to speak, and liked to come and go as he pleased. He did landscapes and murals. He worked one week for one of the studios, but he didn’t like to punch the clock, saying, ‘Forget that idea. Shove the money.’

“We lived at Hollywood and Vermont. There were sheep roamin’ the hills, horses, cattle and so forth.” With only a hint of wistfulness, he notes, “Now look at it. It’s bumper-to-bumper from Santa Barbara to San Diego.”

A young woman with copper-hued spiked hair drives up for a pack of cigarettes, climbs back in her car and lights up.

Blames Politicians

Returning to his “God’s country” theme, Lauritz reflects, “I’ve come to the conclusion, as I talk with people--and I’ve said it many times--You and I have no problems. It’s the politicians who stir things up.

“People want a roof over their head, they want food on their table and they want their children to do better than they did. And I think this is inbred in all of us.

“When you see what we have in this country, even with all our problems, hey, it’s great!”

A tall man with a baby on his shoulders selects a candy bar.

“Now, how are you today?” Lauritz asks. “Fifty cents will do it, sir.”

And on the cover of US magazine are the faces of Elizabeth Taylor, Don Johnson, Bruce Springsteen, Tom Selleck, Cybill Shepherd, Kelly LeBrock, Mel Gibson and Donna Mills in a splashy color montage. Paul Newman and Tom Cruise share the cover of Life.