The Door Is Always Open<\/a>\u201d in 2013, turned the Skirball Cultural Center into a living and dining room inspired by his childhood home. He has worked with Mattel and Coach and designed the wacky cartoon characters in the popular board game Cranium. <\/p>\n ![\"Gary](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/1778581577_423_.jpeg\")
<\/p>\n
Gary Baseman\u2019s colored penciled drawings on the counter at Johnie\u2019s Coffee Shop.<\/p>\n
(Ariana Drehsler \/ For The Times)<\/p>\n
Many of the works showcased in the exhibition were made over the last few years. As the COVID-19 pandemic waned, Baseman itched to go out.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s a part of me that \u2026 [needs] to create something of value,\u201d he said. \u201cIf I\u2019m out and I just exist, I feel like that time just evaporated.\u201d The menu drawings started as a way for him to turn his meals into a piece of art that celebrated L.A. dining culture.<\/p>\n
Though he doesn\u2019t identify as a foodie, he is a passionate eater. Langer\u2019s Deli\u2019s No. 19 is the \u201cbest sandwich in America,\u201d he says of the pastrami on rye. <\/p>\n
A few drawings on display in the show are on standard paper, not menus. One work shows people attending a concert at Hollywood Forever Cemetery. He said he often brings a sandwich from the Cheese Store of Beverly Hills to eat at the cemetery.<\/p>\n
Since he never removes pages from his sketchbooks, some restaurant drawings in his sketchbooks were scanned, printed on thick paper and displayed on diner tables as \u201cplacemats.\u201d Plush toy versions of his cats and monkey characters sit on recently upholstered matte orange, cream and red booths. <\/p>\n
Built in 1955 by Googie architects Louis Armet and Eldon Davis, the Space Age coffee shop opened as Romeo\u2019s Times Square and is featured in the Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers music video for the song \u201cSwingin\u2019\u201d and movies including 1988\u2019s \u201cMiracle Mile.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"Plush](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/1778581578_432_.jpeg\")
<\/p>\n
Plush toys from left to right, Toby, Emmanuel Hare Ray, Manny Moa and Ahwroo at the \u201cOff the Menu\u201d exhibition.<\/p>\n
(Ariana Drehsler \/ For The Times)<\/p>\n
Johnie\u2019s Coffee Shop has not served food to the public in decades. The restaurant closed in 2000, and was used as a gathering place for organizers during Bernie Sanders\u2019 2016 and 2020 presidential bids.<\/p>\n
Hours before the show\u2019s opening, Baseman was still contemplating what else he could add. Pointing toward a large fading mural depicting well-dressed dogs having drinks at a bar (an original from Johnie\u2019s), he noted he\u2019d like to make a version of it with characters from his fantasy universe.<\/p>\n
Baseman speaks enthusiastically about his work in general, but becomes more animated when talking about cats.<\/p>\n
Like many a cat lover, Baseman whips out a phone to share videos of his beloved feline muses. His late cat Blackie was a \u201csage and genius\u201d with a calming \u201ctriple purr.\u201d Bosko had a penchant for leaping onto his shoulder.<\/p>\n
![\"Gary](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/1778581579_467_.jpeg\")
<\/p>\n
Artist Gary Baseman, wearing a diner cook outfit, stands next to 3D-printed sculpture cats Beverly and Fairfax at Johnie\u2019s Coffee Shop.<\/p>\n
(Ariana Drehsler \/ For The Times)<\/p>\n
His current kittens, Beverly and Fairfax, appear as red 3D-printed sculptures and stand holding plates of burgers and fries on the counter.<\/p>\n
Then there is Toby, the fictional, fez-donning cartoon cat that Baseman calls his alter ego.<\/p>\n
\u201cI always saw myself as a cat,\u201d he said Friday.<\/p>\n
Baseman said the nearly 21-year-old character, named after his childhood crush, is an all-knowing keeper of secrets and represents acceptance. Toby is everywhere: in menu drawings, as a pleather stuffed toy, as a statue, and \u2014 on opening day \u2014 even shaped as an ice cream bar. <\/p>\n
![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/1778581580_764_.jpeg\")
<\/p>\n
Toby as a stuffed toy at the \u201cOff the Menu\u201d exhibition.<\/p>\n
(Ariana Drehsler \/ For The Times)<\/p>\n
The line began to form outside the landmark diner more than an hour before the official opening. Many curious passersby poked their heads inside, wondering if the restaurant was serving food again. (No, but there is a feast for your eyes, replied a worker.)<\/p>\n
As visitors flooded in at 3 p.m., a performer from the Bob Baker Marionette Theater delighted guests with eccentric puppets, including a red-brown dog that \u201cbarked\u201d and \u201csniffed\u201d people\u2019s shoes.<\/p>\n
At one point, Baseman, still dressed in his cook outfit but now wearing a pair of sunglasses and carrying a Toby toy, stood on a counter to thank the crowd for coming.<\/p>\n
![\"People](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/1778581581_669_.jpeg\")
<\/p>\n
People walk by Johnie\u2019s Coffee Shop Restaurant on a sunny day. <\/p>\n
(Ariana Drehsler \/ For The Times)<\/p>\n
‘Off the Menu’<\/p>\n
Where:<\/b> Johnie\u2019s Coffee Shop, <\/b>6101 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles<\/p>\n
When:<\/b> Wednesday through Sunday, noon to 7 p.m. Closes June 14<\/p>\n
Tickets:<\/b> Free<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Minutes before the opening of his latest show, artist Gary Baseman, dressed as a retro diner cook, in…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":790853,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5123],"tags":[322955,322952,1582,276,23930,71316,116898,18149,3043,322954,322953,8625,2961,14165,224,5337,50789,37543,8463,8066],"class_list":{"0":"post-790852","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-los-angeles","8":"tag-art-frame","9":"tag-baseman","10":"tag-ca","11":"tag-california","12":"tag-cat","13":"tag-decade","14":"tag-deli","15":"tag-fairfax","16":"tag-hour","17":"tag-iconic-l-a-coffee-shop","18":"tag-johnie","19":"tag-l-a-restaurant","20":"tag-la","21":"tag-late-show","22":"tag-los-angeles","23":"tag-losangeles","24":"tag-menu","25":"tag-opening","26":"tag-restaurant","27":"tag-work"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/116561130109936437","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/790852","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=790852"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/790852\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/790853"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=790852"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=790852"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=790852"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
![\"Two](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/1778581576_981_.jpeg\")
<\/p>\n