Obituaries : Alma Ortega Callies, Restaurant Proprietor

Alma Ortega Callies, proprietor of a landmark Mexican restaurant in the San Fernando Valley, has died.

Mrs. Callies, 87, died of natural causes Oct 20 at Laurelwood Convalescent Hospital in North Hollywood, where she had lived since 1990.

Born Oct. 8, 1908, in Torreon, Mexico, Mrs. Callies and her family moved to Los Angeles in 1910 during the Mexican Revolution. The Ortegas were a well-off merchant family and, fearing reprisals against the rich by Pancho Villa, fled to the United States on a cattle train in the middle of the night.

During the 1920s, Mrs. Callies appeared in silent films and toured the country as a chorus girl in several theater troupes. Her skill as a performer earned her a featured role in the Romeros Theatre Troupe. A dancer, she also won the U.S. Charleston Dance Championship.

It was during her travels that she met her husband, German violinist Werner Callies. The couple married in 1929 and moved to Los Angeles, later living in Van Nuys, Sherman Oaks and Tarzana.

In 1949, the couple opened Ortega’s Taco House on Ventura Boulevard in Sherman Oaks. The restaurant soon became a popular movie industry hangout, according to Mrs. Callies’ great-granddaughter, Vanessa Foumberg of Van Nuys.

It was at Ortega’s that Mrs. Callies’ granddaughter, actress Lisa Loring, Wednesday of “The Addams Family” television series, was discovered by photographer Tom Kelly in the early 1960s.

After thriving for nearly 25 years, Ortega’s finally closed in 1973. Werner Callies died in 1985.

During her retirement, Mrs. Callies remained active, but put most of her energy into raising her great-granddaughter.

“She was an artist,” said Foumberg. “She did oil paintings, which she used to hang in the restaurant. She rode her bicycle . . . she was extremely vivacious.”

In 1990, Mrs. Callies suffered a stroke that left her paralyzed on her left side, prompting the move to the Laurelwood facility. Although her health steadily declined, she remained mentally sharp, according to Foumberg.

“She was alert to the end. She had the best care. Her body just slowly shut down.”

In addition to Foumberg and Loring, Mrs. Callies is survived by her son, Paul Callies of Cuero, Tex., and great-granddaughter, Marianne Stevenson of Toluca Lake.

A private memorial service was held Oct. 23. Memorial contributions may be made to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society.