Eric Goode, creater of "Tiger King" and founder of the Ojai-based Turtle Conservancy, with a plowshare tortoise

Eric Goode, creator of “Tiger King,” and founder of the Ojai Turtle Conservancy, with a plowshare tortoise.

The Summer issue of the Ojai Quarterly will be coming just as Ojai emerges from the stay-at-home order. There’s a full slate of talent on display – writing and photography of the quality that people have come to expect from Team OQ.

There’s also big news we’re eager to share. The Netflix sensation, “Tiger King,” about the gay polygamist zookeeper Joe Exotic who ended up being sentenced to 22 years for a murder-for-hire plot, was created and co-directed by Ojai Turtle Conservancy founder Eric Goode, who spent the past 5 years putting together this incredible story of the people who exploit these charismatic megafauna and the people who are trying to stop them.

The best news from Ojai’s point of view is that Goode and two partners have purchased an Ojai landmark and plan to restore it to its historic character.

We also have stories about Eve Babitz, the Los Angeles “It” girl, who dated rock stars and artists, creating her own special art through her writings as a counterweight to the cultural criticisms of Joan Didion, and whose parents helped found the Ojai Music Festival. We also have another splendid piece of manic comic genius from Sami Zahringer, reproducing newts, an interview with Ara Guzelimian, the new artistic director of the Ojai Music Festival, quarantine-themed recipes, online events, and plenty more to entertain and inform people as Ojai emerges from the pandemic. Stay tuned.