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Ricki Lake Connects With Artist Who Found ‘Priceless’ Family Photos at Pasadena Flea Market

Social media turned a $20 flea‑market purchase into a planned handoff of long‑lost family snapshots.

Overview

  • Lake lost her Malibu home and personal archives in the January Palisades wildfires, believing family pictures were gone.
  • Artist Patty Scanlon bought a box of vintage images for $20 at the Pasadena City College Flea Market and recognized Lake and her son Milo as a toddler.
  • Scanlon posted the find on Instagram and Facebook, Lake responded almost immediately, and the two spoke together on Instagram Live on Dec. 8.
  • A postmarked envelope in the box indicated Lake had mailed the photos years ago, and Scanlon suggested they may have reached the market through an estate sale.
  • Lake and Scanlon arranged to meet in Los Angeles so the pictures can be returned, with Scanlon saying she plans to paint Lake using the images as inspiration.