A marvellous find for my novel, The Ozone Café

The Ozone Café

This is the Ozone Café that I am currently writing about and titled as its namesake. When I was a teenager, I used to visit the cafe, have a milkshake, some lollies and either play a pinball machine, snooker or listen to The Animals on the jukebox. As I grew up and moved to Western Australia, it eventually disappeared from the landscape. It once sat on prime land, close to the beach in Broken Bay, Ettalong. My novel suggests that the cafe's demise was brought about by corruption. I know I am not far wrong!

This photograph was taken by Press photographer Sam Hood. It is believed to date from around November 1945, when Phil "the Jew" Jeffs died in St. Vincent's hospital in Sydney. He is buried in the Jewish section of Rookwood Cemetery, under the name "Phillip Davis". The building is of a style known as "P & O" an interwar style that reflected the architecture of a ship's bridge. Unfortunately this building has since been demolished. Aerial photographs from 1957 reveal that Phil Jeff's former house was on the corner of Beach Street and The Esplanade, Ettalong Beach, near Memorial Avenue. The house faced due south, looking straight out to Broken Bay and Lion Island.This was THE prime spot for views in the area, and the site is now the location of Mantra (s/b a large ostentatious resort known as Ettalong Oceanview Apartments my words) at Ettalong Beach.

Double click for larger view

Nothing remains of Phil Jeffs house in 2011.
A brief report of Phil Jeffs death can be read at:
nla.gov.au/nla.news-article56436952

Another former Razor war criminal, Kate Leigh, was embroiled in an assault case at Woy Woy in 1931.
Read about this case on the Trove newspaper website:
trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper
search under the terms " Ikin Leigh Woy Woy".

Inside the Ozone Cafe (double click for larger view)

Acknowledgement to:  http://www.flickr.com/photos/gostalgia/6165132528/