In November 1927, locals successfully petitioned L.A. City Council to change Alverne Avenue to Argus Drive. The namesake, at least technically: John Eugene “J.E.” Argus (1877-1950). But the real honoree was his wife Lysbeth (1877-1933), born Lysbeth Ethelry Book, as she was one of Eagle Rock’s favorite citizens and the brains behind an insanely popular mini amphitheater on the couple’s property dubbed the “Argus Bowl”. J.E. Argus, born in Buffalo, made his living in the tire industry – first in Akron and then in San Francisco. He married Lysbeth, a Pennsylvania gal, in the latter city in 1910; three years later, he was hired by Goodyear and eventually became its West Coast district manager. Goodyear transferred him to Los Angeles in December 1919 and the Arguses purchased 13 garden-filled acres in Eagle Rock, where they built their home. (It still stands, tucked away at the top of Argus Drive.) They opened the “Bowl” in 1927 and hosted countless concerts and artists, but it was not to last: Lysbeth was felled by a heart attack on Christmas Day, 1933. A news article published a week earlier cheerfully reported that she had spent the holiday season baking “hundreds of fruitcakes and dozens upon dozens of Christmas cookies”. The tireless clubwoman and benefactress died of overwork. A few years later, J.E. moved in with his sisters Mary and Clara a block away on Hermosa.
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