Somehow I missed this episode of “California’s Green,” about California’s signature habitat, the chaparral. Take a half hour, and learn from Huell, just like any Californian would, about this baffling landscape on the West Coast. The California Chaparral Institute website is to be thanked for the link:

http://www.californiachaparral.com/chaparralfacts/awheresthechaparral.html

Huell Howser needs no introduction to Californians. The PBS journalist was a fixture of evening viewing in the 80’s and 90’s and into the Aughts, with multiple series about California. A personal hero of mine, and one of the most influential and beloved journalists in California history, Huell went on-air at historic or natural sites up and down the state, playing the part of a gullible rube from Dogpatch who had never seen anything like California. Huell’s trademark was constantly repeating his guest’s information, over and over again, breathlessly, as if he couldn’t quite grasp the import of what had been said two or three times already. It gave him the common touch, and of course, we viewers were just as “Amm-aiaazed” as Huell by what he was showing us of California. He was no dummy, however. I had the honor of chatting with him at a party in Brentwood in my youth, when I was new to LA. His show was relatively new, too, and was considered by many to be corny, and strictly for geeks. I was an early fan and got the chance to tell him so. Over the years, he got show after show funded and on air, with a camera crew and a production team he kept close and working for 30 years. They provided the public thousands of hours of quality, educational TV. Bless’em.