First of two parts. 

Venerable John Riordan, Culver City’s most enduring and best liked plumber, is celebrating his 47th anniversary in business – with only one more year to go, he says.

How did he begin?

“I started at the Rand Corp., in 1960,” Mr. Riordan was saying, “and I was there for 12 years. While I was there, I bought me a duplex.

“One day I had to have a plumber. I called Jack Newton Plumbing, and he sent someone out. The man fixed a washer on the faucet. He was there 15 minutes. When he charged $7.50 for labor, I thought ‘Boy, as hard as I am working at Rand, I can do better.’

“I said to Jack, ‘What do you have to do to become a plumber?’ He said ‘it’s real simple. Just go to L.A. Trade Tech five years. Get your contractor’s license, and you are set for life.’”

Mr. Riordan promptly made a plan. “Boy, I thought I will work at Rand (in the mechanical department) during the day, go to school at night and get my license,” he said.

Mr. Riordan did, and in 1970 he opened the now legendary John Riordan Plumbing in Culver City.

In spite of the extraordinary technological advances of the last half century, he believes that plumbing still is an attractive career option.

“Plumbers are very scarce today,” the native Midwesterner says.  “So many buildings and so few plumbers that people always say, ‘How soon can you come?’ That is more important than ‘how much is it going to be?’”

Average wait time on housecalls is two or three days, Mr. Riordan says.

(To be continued)