Countdown to 2000

This is us. Our history, our past, the steps we have taken to climb from

one end of the century to the other. From today through the end of the

year, we’ll tell you the story of Newport Beach and Costa Mesa. Countdown

to 2000 will look at each decade of the 20th century -- the events, the

changes, the people and the trends that shaped our community and made it

what it is today. Each week, Countdown to 2000 will explore a different

decade. Each day we’ll delve into an aspect of life at that time -- from

music to fashion, from politics to education. We’ve tapped into our best

resources: books written by early settlers and local historians, archived

photos and newspaper articles and memories of the people who lived

through natural disasters, economic hardships and times of prosperity. As

we take this journey into the past, our hope is that all of us learn a

little more about our background and, just maybe, about ourselves.

--The editors