Jack McGrath Bails Out of Studio City Holiday Parade

Jack McGrath, former president of the Studio City Chamber of Commerce and community activist, bailed out of the idea to try to revive the that is usually held on the first Sunday of December.

McGrath said he would have too little control over the money he was asking for from the three community agencies, the Studio City Neighborhood Council, the Studio City Residents Association and the Studio City Improvement Association.

"It seems like there would be too many restrictions in allowing me to do what I do best, organize the whole thing, and there also seemed to be competing interests going on at the same time, so I'm just not going to do it," said McGrath.

He was referring to a call from the Studio City Residents Association to come up with some sort of community event to replace the parade that could be for the families and still help stimulate business and shoppers to Ventura Boulevard.

"When I talked to Alan Dymond he was very supportive and then a communication came from Beth Dymond, his wife, calling on volunteers to plan some kind of event on the same day, Sunday, December 4, and we need every single able body in Studio City to help put on the parade," McGrath said.

Residents Association president Allan Dymond said whatever they would be planning would be an enhancement, not competition, to the parade or whatever was being planned, but nothing was ever presented to the SCRA board by McGrath.

Ray Franco, president of the Improvement Association, and John Walker, president of the Neighborhood Council both said they would wait to see if the Residents Association approves of McGrath's plan. The Residents Association took the parade over from the Chamber of Commerce, who ran it for years. In the past two years, the Residents Association's group.

The parade was always a small community event that offered a chance for all the local school bands to show off, and included scout troops, local businesses, local celebrities and cadet marchers. It was never as big as the million people who show up for the Hollywood Christmas Parade on the Sunday after Thanksgiving, but residents speak of it fondly, remembering it happening off and on for the past 40 or more years.

McGrath said he thought he could do the parade with about $20,000 in contributions and whatever extra was raised would go to charity. He was expecting to take a $10,000 fee for the work, and use volunteers.

"I chose to organize the parade, when the SCRA declined once again," McGrath said. "There will not be a parade this year since no organization or group is willing to put in the time and effort. All the children and parents in Studio City are the real losers."

So, at the moment, it will be another year without a parade in Studio City.