In Altadena, the Light Show Must Go On

Nature--and the Christmas spirit--smiled on the Altadena foothills this weekend.

It was about time.

The community, hit hard by October’s fire, had despaired when a forecast of heavy rain threatened to turn denuded hillsides into oozing mud--and spoil the opening of the area’s 73rd annual Christmas light display.

But the community got a break in the clouds Saturday evening--and the light show that is Christmas Tree Lane went on as scheduled.

“This has been a good year and a bad year, but there is a bright light in Altadena,” said Los Angeles County Supervisor Michael Antonovich, who threw the switch to illuminate a mile of giant deodar cedars.

The “bright light” was evident as locals sang Christmas carols, strolled down the lane with their dogs and babies behind the Pasadena City College Tournament of Roses band, and thanked the firefighters and sheriff’s deputies for their labors against the fires.

There had been no thought of canceling the event this year, said Mike Manning, president of the Christmas Tree Lane Assn., even thought the fire came perilously close to the lane, on Santa Rosa Avenue. Organizers worried that flying embers might ignite some of the 110-year-old cedars, which tower 100 feet. Although homes were evacuated a block above the lane, none of the trees was damaged.

About 200,000 cars annually drive through what looks like an electrically enchanted forest. The street has been illuminated every Christmas since 1920, except during World War II and the 1973 energy crisis. The display has been designated a state and national historical landmark.