My Town: Santa Monica (Route 66)

McEnroe Francis ’05 is one of many Americans who have headed west looking for opportunity.

Although he originally planned to be a sports reporter, he started eyeing production after a sports production class at TU and conversations with a WBAL cameraman at the gym.

“I had an adjunct professor who produced the (Philadelphia) Eagles’ games live at the stadium from the control room, and he recorded audio of himself directing the games,” Francis says. “Then he would show the games and play the audio recording simultaneously, to show us how the action behind the scenes affected what viewers saw. It was one of the coolest classes.”

The electronic media and film major got a job as a producer at WBAL after graduation then worked in Philadelphia until industry-wide layoffs in 2010 left him looking for work.

The potential for freelance jobs drew him to Santa Monica. The climate and his role at NFL Network have kept him there.

“I love the beach; the weather is always perfect. Santa Monica is so perfectly placed. You can get to the desert in two hours and to the mountains in three hours. You can go to a baseball or basketball game or see some of the best concerts in some of the coolest venues in the world.

“You have every sports team and all the arts and culture within driving distance. I’ve realized that even more now during quarantine. I haven’t felt boxed in here. You drive two hours and you feel like you’re on vacation. But you’re just a drive back to your house.”

Nearby Malibu has its beaches and Los Angeles offers the Hollywood sign and Graumann’s Chinese Theater, but once his friends and family have taken in the tourist spots, Francis takes them back out of town.

“I always take people to Point Dume, which is basically the Santa Monica Bay,” he says. “It’s a 200-plus-degree view of the ocean. If you go at the right time, you can see whales, everything from up there. If it’s a longer weekend, I would say Catalina Island. You can take a ferry over to the island that’s about 20 miles off the coast. It’s like the South of France. It’s absolutely incredible. The water is crystal clear, and you can snorkel there. A boat tour launching from Marina del Rey is another great way to spend the day on the water.”

While Francis hasn’t yet driven Route 66, several of his favorite restaurants are very near the Santa Monica Pier, which is considered to be the end of the “Mother Road.”

Before the pandemic, Francis would go to Big Dean’s Oceanfront Cafe under the pier to catch college and NFL games. He would also enjoy a meal on the balcony at the Venice Whaler, where staff ring a bell every night to draw patrons’ attention to the spectacular sunsets over the Venice Pier.