Smoglandia, a limited podcast series from the Los Angeles Times, recently spotlighted rare materials from the USC Libraries' Regional History Collection that document how postwar Los Angeles confronted the rise of smog. The six-part series explores how Southern California’s relationship with smog shaped public health, policy, culture, and civic identity.
In episode three, titled “Cough Cough,” host Patt Morrison speaks with Suzanne Noruschat, Southern California studies specialist at the USC Libraries, about historical photographs from the now-defunct Los Angeles Examiner and a set of smog-themed curios that Morrison donated to the libraries in 2020. The materials from this latter collection—ranging from nine “gag gift” cans of smog to smog-inspired board games and a “Los Angeles smog towel”—offer an unusual window into the humor, anxiety, and creativity that Angelenos brought to the region’s air-quality crisis.
Both the Los Angeles Examiner collection and the Patt Morrison collection of Los Angeles memorabilia are available for research by appointment at Special Collections.