Fahrenheit 451 Books (1976-1994) was a bookstore, formerly located on 509 South Coast Highway in Laguna Beach, California. It was described by the Los Angeles Times as a "literary landmark" of the region. Early years The bookstore, which also included an art gallery, was established in 1968 by Dennis Madison and Lyn Chevli, owned in her name because she had a state reseller's license. After their divorce, it was sold in 1972 to Gordon & Evie Wilson. The bookstore had legal battles with the City of Laguna Beach, charged with selling obscene literature including early underground comics by R. Crumb, Joyce Farmer, and Chevli. Philip Hackett ran the Poets' Corner reading house there during the early 70's with support from Marta Mitrovich. New owners The bookstore's fortunes changed for the better when, in June 1976, Fahrenheit was bought by Lorraine and Norman Zimmerman, and their friend, Mike Kopp (the Zimmermans became sole owners from the fall of 1978). After extensive renovation, the new owners opened the bookstore to the public in October 1976. With about 10,000 titles confined to a 650 sq. ft. space, the grand opening ceremony took place on Nov. 14, 1976, with famed activist Jerry Rubin signing copies of his new book, Growing Up at Thirty-Seven (New York : M. Evans, 1976). On Dec. 14, 1982, Fahrenheit 451 Books opened a Used Book Annex. Present at the annex's grand opening was none other than Ray Bradbury and his favorite illustrator, Joseph Mugnaini. Run by Carmen Blue, the Annex drew bibliophiles from the entire Orange Country region until it closed in 1987. National recognition Within five years of its grand opening, Fahrenheit 451 Books received national recognition. In a 1981 article in The New York Times on the effect of the economic slowdown on book sales throughout the country, Lorraine Zimmerman was one of five booksellers interviewed. By the time Zimmerman sold the bookstore on Dec. 18, 1988, to Dorothy Ibsen (the bookstore closed its doors shortly after), Fahrenheit 451 Books had become a celebrated cultural institution throughout the whole of Southern California and beyond. In January 1987, the Los Angeles Times described Fahrenheit as “one of the most distinctive independent bookstore in Southern California next to George Sand Books in West Hollywood.” When the store closed under Zimmerman's ownership, the same newspaper referred to Fahrenheit as "a socially liberal literary oasis in a county famous for its