Arcadia wants to shut down sex therapist-radio host’s local studios

Original Article By ANNAKAI GESHLIDER | ageshlider@scng.com | PUBLISHED: September 27, 2021 at 3:40 p.m. | UPDATED: September 27, 2021 at 4:01 p.m.

Susan M. Block, Ph.D. at the Saybrook Media Group in Arcadia on Thursday, September 23, 2021. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Pasadena Star-News/ SCNG)

The following article was published in the Pasadena Star News and L.A. Daily News on 9/27/21. We feel it’s mostly a good, accurate article, thanks to Kai Gshlider’s in-depth reporting. Still, a lot of the critical facts are missing. The journalist told us that her editor “cut it nearly in half in length and made some adjustments.” We are not complaining. As fellow journalists, we understand the demands of publishing. However, it’s important to set the record straight and tell the truth about some of the issues, injustices and downright “Mattress Madness” referenced in the article, so that is what we have done here. The full article is in black, and our responses are in violet. ~Dr. Suzy and Max

A zoning dispute in Arcadia has pitted a larger-than-life sex therapist against code enforcement officers and, along the way, involved a registered sex offender, an unprecedented court order for a surprise inspection and a painting of a half-nude Marilyn Monroe.

The sex therapist and her colorful partner-slash-husband say they’re just misunderstood. The city, which initially suspected them of running an adult business, says they’re unlawfully converting their internet studios compound into a home. But the area they’re in is zoned for office use, not residential.

The Truth is…

At first, we thought the city code officials “misunderstood” us.  However, we now can see this is not an innocent case of “misunderstanding.” Considering how they’ve continuously harassed us since we moved in, accusing us of operating a hotel, AirBnB or illegal adult business (then dropping those charges), telling us we had to create more parking spaces, move our limousine or our RV, get different licensing or signage, and more, it is now apparent that this is targeted discrimination against a “larger-than-life sex therapist.”

The brick building at the center of the dispute was indeed once a home, a home for the deaf with bedrooms, a courtyard with pool and a full-size kitchen. It stands along a literal urban planning dividing line, with homes on one side of the tree-dotted, median-divided street, and offices and shops on the other.

The Truth is…

Once a “home,” always a home. Not that we “live” here, but the place is very homey with that “lived in” feeling. That’s one reason we love it!

Rezoned for office and professional businesses, the building on Las Tunas Drive now houses Saybrook Media, home of the “The Dr. Susan Block Show,” which has covered politics, culture and sexuality since 1984 and now is available through I Heart Radio.

The Truth is…

We’re on a lot more platforms than I Heart Radio; let’s not neglect Podbean, Audiomack, Spotify, iTunes, Pandora, Soundcloud, Apple, Google podcasts, Reddit, Clubhouse, Facebook and Youtube!

She may be more widely known for her HBO special from the ’90s, “Radio Sex TV with Dr. Susan Block,” in which she answered callers’ questions while lying on a bed scantily clad.

The Truth is…

I hosted my HBO specials and many other shows from bed. Just as chefs do their cooking shows from  kitchens, I’ve long hosted my sex-educational shows from beds. Currently, I host “Bedside Chats,” inspired by F.D.R.’s “Fireside Chats.” But my theatrical use of beds and mattresses as magic carpets into different worlds goes back to my first one-woman poetry show in 1988, “Mattress Madness,” in which the only furniture on the stage was a bed.

That very bed and nine others are at the heart of the city’s case against the business.

The Truth is…

We have about 15 beds (actually, 15  mattresses, since most don’t have bed frames) and 10 couches (people also take naps on the couches), but who’s counting?

For what was likely the first time in Arcadia history, according to Building License Officer Amber Abeyta, the city took the extraordinary step of securing an inspection warrant to take a peek inside.

The Truth is…

This is the Truth. When a city inspector’s action is “extraordinary” and “unprecedented” (e.g., “without precedent”) “in Arcadia history,” that’s probably because it’s wrong, unfair and ill-advised, and that’s exactly what it is. Following “precedent” promotes legal stability and community trust.

Inspectors, with members of the Arcadia Police Department at their side, executed the warrant in July. What they found were 10 bedrooms, nine of which looked very lived in. Toiletries and clothes were strewn about. Cigarette butts filled an ashtray. A guitar rested in a stand.

The Truth is…

Just because a bed is in a room does not make it a “bedroom.”  We do not consider these rooms to be “bedrooms” (although that is what they were called when we moved in!). For us, they are offices, storage rooms, studios and set rooms with mattresses in them that are stored and/or used for different purposes. As for the “toiletries,” yes, people work and hang out here for long periods of time, so they keep toiletries here. “Cigarette butts”? Actually, smoking ciggies inside is against our rules! It’s probably (legal) cannabis. But how do “butts” of any kind indicate “living” and not “working”? And what is the significance of the “guitar”? Some of our volunteers are musicians, including several who have created music for our show. Why shouldn’t they have their musical instruments here?

Based on those findings, the city has revoked Saybrook’s license. The proprietors are fighting it. An appeals hearing is scheduled for Tuesday, Sept. 28, before the Arcadia Business Permit and License Review Board — comprised of the same members of the Planning Commission — at Arcadia City Hall.

The Truth is…

The hearing was a joke. Sadly but unsurprisingly, the city inspectors’ politburo supported its own unconstitutional inspection, circling the wagons, banking on us being too intimidated by their force to fight for our rights. Apparently, they don’t know us very well.

The web business owners say the beds are used for employees when they’re too tired to drive home after putting in long hours at the studios. Nobody resides there. It’s just a homey atmosphere.

They say it’s not the first time they’ve been misunderstood.

Susan M. Block, Ph.D., right, with her husband/Producer Maximillian Lobkowicz at the Saybrook Media Group in Arcadia on Thursday, September 23, 2021. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Pasadena Star-News/ SCNG)

The characters

For 29 years, Susan Block, aka “Dr. Suzy” — the Dr. comes from two doctorates, one in psychology from for-profit California Miramar University, and one in philosophy from the Institute for the Advanced Study of Human Sexuality, a now-defunct, for-profit unaccredited institution, although she did do her undergrad at Yale — has been married to her collaborator, Maximilian Lobkowicz, 77, a publisher, artist and producer who goes by Captain Max.

The Truth is…

I didn’t just “do [my] undergrad at Yale” (that sounds like I didn’t graduate); I graduated magna cum laude with distinction. Ironically, the name of my Yale residential college was “Saybrook,” thus the name of our media company.

Along with their radio show, the couple also runs 14 websites and a 24-hour therapy and information line. Most of the “employees” are actually unpaid volunteers who share Block and Lobkowicz’s vision of a sexually free and supportive society.

The Truth is…

They are not “employees.” They’re independent artists and technologists.

“We provide the forum for people to talk about stuff they can’t talk about anywhere else,” Block said. It’s important for people to be able to talk about their feelings without judgment, she added.

The Truth is…

This IS the Truth! Amen and Awomen.

Not long after the couple set up shop in Arcadia in 2019, the city discovered they were operating without a license, according to court documents.

The Truth is…

We didn’t “set up shop” and we weren’t “operating” before we applied for our license. We were in the process of moving 30 years worth of archives, art, memorabilia, equipment, set pieces, desks, chairs, rugs and yes, mattresses, into the new space, which took a couple of months. As we were moving in, Building License Officer Amber Abeyta and another city inspector named Vanessa came by and told us that we needed about 10 more parking spaces (!). We were perplexed; there is no place to build 10 more parking spaces on this property, and there is always plenty of room to park in our current parking lot. We felt we were being asked to do the impossible—magically create 10 extra parking spaces (that we didn’t need)! We were perplexed by Amber’s demands, delaying both our operation and license application.  Then Amber asked us to pay $1200 for a hearing about getting a parking space exemption. Our landlady graciously paid this fee, and we waited for the hearing. Suddenly, Amber canceled the hearing, saying that they changed her mind and we didn’t need the parking spaces after all, because they had come up with their own “solution.” They returned $700 of our landlady’s $1200 and kept $500 for “processing.”

What followed were a couple of stabs at licensure. For the first attempt, Saybrook applied as a radio studio but was denied because studio use and 24/7 operations are prohibited there.

The Truth is…

There’s a radio/TV station about 10 feet away from us (on the business side), and they’re open 24/7, so what’s going on here? Why are we “prohibited” from broadcasting or even podcasting (which millions of people do from all kinds of locations)? Discrimination?

The next application simply referred to the business as “office use.” It was approved; “the bedrooms were to be used as offices and the common areas and kitchen were to be used as break rooms,” the city required, according to a court filing.

The Truth is…

It was “office use and storage use,” as specified by Building License Officer Amber Abeyta. This was her “solution.” We thought it was all rather strange, but we didn’t argue with her, figuring “When in Rome, do as the Romans,” and when in Arcadia, do what the Arcadia building license officer tells you to do… but it was a trap!

Things were mostly quiet. Neighbors say they haven’t noticed anything untoward or disruptive.

The Truth is…

Our neighbors like us not just because we’re nice, peaceful, law-abiding and friendly, but because before we moved in, there were people living here… but they weren’t paying rent. They were vagrants and homeless people. The neighbors were happy to see us move in because the vagrants moved out! They are also happy that we patronize their businesses, and so do our volunteers!

 

Susan M. Block, Ph.D. at the Saybrook Media Group in Arcadia on Thursday, September 23, 2021. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Pasadena Star-News/ SCNG)

First eyebrow raised

That was until April 14 of this year, when Arcadia police received a call from a sex offender who wanted to register Saybrook Media as his home address. Police said that’s not possible because it’s a business address.

The man, who told police he had lived on the property for four days at that point, said Saybrook operated a “phone sex business,” according to court documents.

Block and Lobkowicz said the man gave them a different story — and a different name. He volunteered to record a session of the radio show. “He was here one Saturday night,” Lobkowicz said. “He left his sneakers here, and that’s the last we heard from him.”

Block added: “He was only here twice, so we really don’t feel he’s any reflection on us.”

Lobkowicz and Block believe the individual may not have understood the therapeutic nature of their business and mischaracterized it to police.

 

The Truth is…

This man gave us an excellent IT resume and a fake name and said he wanted to volunteer.  Of course, we had no idea he was a sex offender because he lied to us… just like he lied to the police. He only worked with us for one show. And yes, he definitely misinterpreted and mischaracterized my work as a therapist who does sex therapy over the phone as a “phone sex business.”

Based on the would-be registrant’s information, the city began its two-pronged attack: First, the business, being adult in nature, was in the wrong place. In Arcadia, adult-oriented businesses can operate only in a manufacturing zone, not one designated for office and professional uses.

The Truth is…

“Attack” is a good word for what the city did and continues to do to us. We are only “adult” in the sense that I am a sexologist, sex therapist and sex educator. My work involves writing and talking with people about sexuality. Notably, any and all therapy I conduct from here is over the phone or Zoom.  But since when is a therapist required to have her office in “a manufacturing zone” ?

 

And second, in allowing people to live there, Saybrook was violating the terms of its business license.

The Truth is…

People don’t “live” here in the sense of it being their residence or domicile. They spend a lot of time here, mostly working, but also taking “breaks” to relax, eat, drink and have fun. During the Covid-19 pandemic, they have been here even more, because some of their family members or roommates are sick. We don’t want to send them home where they can catch Covid. We are proud to maintain a safe, physically-distanced work environment, and we do that partly through physically distancing our break areas into the different rooms that we have here (the building layout is perfect for this). Does the city inspector expect all our volunteers to take a break on the same mattress?

A notice of a violation followed, ordering them to remove any portion of the business that did not conform to its approved office use.

A week later, a city employee discovered what the city believes is a damning help-wanted ad on one of the websites Saybrook operates, bonoboville.com. The site gets its name from one of Block’s books, “The Bonobo Way,” which advocates that humans should take a hint from the primate’s societies, known for their sexual freedom and relatively peaceful existence.

The post described the job as a “live-in” position.

The Truth is…

You have be here or at least available 24/7 when working on certain show projects, and you ought to be at least interested in the Bonobo Way as a “lifestyle.”

“Your room is a private room with private shower and bathroom, looks out into the courtyard with a private entrance,” said the classified, found on the Way Back Machine. “Facility has an industrial kitchen and on site laundry room and tons of privacy and space and is quiet.”

The Truth is…

That is an accurate description of one of the rooms here. Note that it is not described as a “bedroom.” It is an office/storage room for the volunteer to use, when working with us and also for their own “private” use. And isn’t it cool to have a bathroom with shower in your office? Having 14 restrooms and 10 private showers is one of the awesome features of this building that made it perfect for us. Little did we know we’d have a Mad Mattress Inspector on our tail. Inspector Clouseau, watch out! Inspector Abeyta is overtaking your legacy…

Lobkowicz said he described the online volunteer opportunity at Saybrook as “live-in” to indicate the media company is in constant production, working on and off throughout the day — and thus it is more convenient for people to spend a few days there at a time instead of commuting long distances.

The Truth is…

Commuting is not only inconvenient; it pollutes the world. We are very climate conscious and always looking for ways to lower our carbon footprint. The way that we work reduces the costs and hazards of commuting.

A second notice of violation followed. It ordered Saybrook to cease and desist any overnight stays at the property.

An unusual request to a judge

To prove their case, city officials would have to get inside the studios. Back in 2019, a fire inspector had made an initial trek, discovering “sex toys and other items that appeared to be pornographic in nature,” according to paperwork filed in court.

The Truth is…

There was art on our walls, including a large painting of Marilyn Monroe. “Marilyn” is my middle name, and I collect portraits of Monroe. There were also some sex toys on my show bed in one of the areas where we do my “Bedside Chats”. We prefer to call it erotic art, not “pornographic,” but anti-sex extremists like this hysterical, puritanical fire inspector call anything sex-positive “pornographic.”

According to Lobkowicz, the visit by the Fire Department was brief. Upon entering the building, a fire marshal saw a large painting of a topless Marilyn Monroe hanging in the front lobby, as well as a storyboard for a lecture Block frequently gives based on her research into the sexuality of bonobos, then walked out in exasperation.

The Truth is…

Before the fire inspector “walked out in exasperation,” she blurted, “this is creeping me out! I’m leaving.” Technical point:  The Bonobo Way poster was made for me as a “graphic recording” based on one of my lectures, and since then, I’ve used it in other lectures. It’s not a “storyboard” of any kind, let alone, as the fire inspector kept calling it, a “porn storyboard.”

With each notice of violation this year, Lobkowicz contacted the city and denied Saybrook was breaking any laws.

The Truth is…

We’re not breaking any laws.

The city needed more proof: “We don’t want to just revoke a business license,” said Abeyta, the business license officer. “We want hard evidence.”

The Truth is…

They are harassing us.

City officials feared any planned inspection would inspire the operators to quickly gussy up the place. They’d be “incentivized to conceal or prevent discovery of these illegal uses” should the city go about its typical inspection process of setting up an appointment, according to court documents.

The Truth is…

According to her own documents, Amber Ambeyta lied when she told the judge she had been denied access to inspect the building. We always gave her and all the inspectors full access, and they saw the rooms with the mattresses, the guitars, the butts, etc. a few times, and we passed inspection! They didn’t need a surprise inspection to see whatever they wanted to see. They just wanted to bully us.

But how to pull off a surprise inspection? An inspection warrant is a tool in a city’s toolbox. It’s not unlike a search warrant police use to discover contraband and parole violators, but, in this case, its purpose was to allow officials to look for violations of building codes and zoning laws, administrative matters cities oversee, according to the League of California Cities, an advocacy group for municipalities.

The Truth is…

An inspection warrant should be very different than police search. Did they really need to frisk us and feel up our private parts? Did they need to detain our volunteers in the parking lot? Did they need to prevent us from going to the restroom or getting water? They treated us like criminals, not like we were just the subjects of an inspection.

On July 13, a judge signed off on the warrant, which gave the city permission to forcibly enter the property if necessary.

The Truth is…

Amber Abeyta lied to get this warrant: She said (in writing) that we didn’t give her access, and we have always given her access to the property whenever she wanted to inspect it.

She agreed with the city that using the building for an adult business and/or to house people “is anathema to the very purpose of the City’s zoning laws,” which provide for the public’s health and safety.

The Truth is…

“Anathema” sounds frightening! However, 1) This is not an “adult business” (as explained above), and 2) we don’t “house people” (also explained above). In any case, all of that has nothing to do with “health and safety.” There are residences right next door and in back of us, so there’s no problem with people living here, and there’s a radio station on the other side of us, so there’s no problem with broadcasting and running a 24/7 business like ours. It’s like the city zoning laws are boxing our building – and us – into a corner where we can’t do anything at all.

On July 22, representatives of the city showed up with the warrant and eight police officers in tow.

The Truth is…

There were nine, but what’s another armed cop among friends?

At 8 a.m., Block and Lobkowicz heard a knock at the door.

The Truth is…

Our records show they arrived before 8am, which is technically against the warrant.

Opening it, they found themselves facing several officers accompanied by city inspectors, Lobkowicz said. The officers ordered them, along with seven staff and volunteers, to stand outside with hands behind their backs, he said. The police confiscated all bags and cellphones.

The Truth is…

They also frisked us, including handling private areas, in the parking lot in front of neighbors and rush hour traffic. Some of the frisking went on without consent. When some of us who have medical conditions ask to go to the restroom or get water, the police told us we were not allowed.

That’s standard procedure, Arcadia’s Lt. Tom Cullen said, and it’s done for safety. “If somebody had a phone outside, and was talking to someone inside, it could be dangerous to an officer.” He added a cellphone could be used to alert people on the inside potentially violating building codes that inspectors were about to enter.

The Truth is…

This so-called “standard procedure” was not for anyone’s “safety.” It was done to bully us.

Arcadia PD sent one sergeant, six detectives and one uniformed officer to help city building and fire inspectors execute the warrant, Cullen said.

The Truth is…

That’s a lot of firepower to inspect a building operated by peaceful people who haven’t refused you entry or broken any laws.

Going on the defense — and offense

Block said the city has misunderstood their business. The beds are part of the comfortable environment she likes to create in her workplace. When she records her radio show, she likes to lie down in bed, a ritual the HBO special highlighted.

“Plus, we’re old people and need to lie down,” said Block, sporting fuzzy pajamas as she wrote on deadline for the publication Counterpunch. “The studio has beds for people who want to sit and lie down. We’re just always working and relaxing. We’ve always had hominess around our workplace, and workiness around our homeplace.”

After receiving notice that their business license had been revoked, Lobkowicz filed an appeal on Aug. 9.

“I am honestly baffled by the misrepresentations, flat-out falsehoods, and defamatory accusations leveled against me, my wife and our volunteers,” his three-page letter opens. He argues the registered sex offender had no real knowledge of the “comings and goings” of the business and that the advertisement “is a case of literary license.”

Volunteers are treated as family, and they use the beds — separated into different rooms to promote social distancing in the age of coronavirus — to rest if too tired to drive home, Lobkowicz wrote.

“The accusation that our volunteers ‘live’ here is as preposterous as accusing a hardworking lawyer who sleeps at their desk (or on their couch) after a long day,” he wrote.

The couple believes the subject matter of the podcasts and website are making them an unfair target.

The Truth is…

That is the Truth, as well as the crux of the matter: The City of Arcadia zoning office is harassing us, discriminating against us and infringing upon our Freedom of Speech.

“Anyone that works in sex is discriminated against,” Lobkowicz said.

“They figure there’s gotta be prostitution,” Block said. “There’s a lot of conflation of any kind of sexual expression with prostitution. … Ninety-nine percent of the time I’m just talking to people,” Block said. “I do a show, I get porn stars to show off and demonstrate things, and it’s exciting, and it’s sexy, and it’s fun. But I guess religious people think there’s something else going on.”

That’s not necessarily unfair, she acknowledged: “In a way, I kind of foster the idea that there’s more going on, because I’m a show woman.”

The Truth is…

That’s why I appear to be “larger than life.” Though I’m only 5’3″ and very down to earth. I’m also determined to fight for my First and Fourth Amendment rights and the rights of all individuals and groups who work in sexuality, leftist politics, art or independent media, have unorthodox work arrangements or take naps on a mattress in the middle of an 18-hour work day. More to come!