If you’ve ever said “sci fi” in lieu of “science fiction,” thank the late Forrest J. Ackerman for coining the term. But wait, there’s more! In 1958, Ackerman also founded Famous Monsters of Filmland, a first-of-its-kind publication devoted to movie-monsters and the acting legends–Karloff, Lugosi, Chaney–who brought them to life. “Uncle Forry”* also generously offered free tours of his 18-room “Ackermansion” in Los Feliz, which once held the roughly 300,000 items of his personal sci-fi and horror memorabilia collection.

It would be difficult to measure the importance that “The Ackermonster”* had on the growth of science fiction, fantasy and horror as popular genres. His passing in December of last year was a sad moment for fanboys everywhere and brought forth eulogies from creative titans ranging from Farenheit 451 author Ray Bradbury to Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson. The Los Angeles Times’ Dennis McLellan wrote a beautiful obituary for Ackerman–required reading for anybody interested in the man.

This Sunday afternoon, the American Cinematheque will present a free tribute to “Dr. Acula”* at the Egyptian Theater. Ray Bradbury, Famous Monsters of Filmland publisher James Warner and An American Werewolf in London director John Landis are all scheduled to offer testimonials to help celebrate the life and legend of “Sgt. Ack-Ack.”* Later in the evening, the Egyptian will screen the documentary Famous Monster: Forrest J. Ackerman and Ib Melchoir’s The Time Travelers, which features a cameo by Ackerman.

* I’m not joking. The guy had more nom de plumes than the Wu Tang Clan.

Images: Uncle Forry (left) and a publicity still for The Time Travelers (middle), both courtesy of the American Cinematheque. Ackerman in his Ackermansion (right), photo by Alan Light.

You know the stuff, minerals, gems and lapidary.  Monrovia Rockhounds are having their 49th Annual Gem & Mineral show at the LA Arboretum this weekend.  Its not a huge event, but it is jam-packed with all sorts of gems and minerals including geodes and fossils that makes it worth the time it takes to go through it all.

I have known Janie Duncan a very active member and vice-president of the group for years.  The Rockhounds’ booth at the Celebrate the Arts held each fall in town is extremely popular with the kids.  As with this weekends event, the $2 buck grab bags are always cheap way to entertain the kids and teach them a thing or two about rocks.  

Even more popular with the kids, especially middle-school aged boys is the polished hematite.  They are shiny silver.  They are magnetic.  Two hematites together can be tossed lightly in the air and they will connect and bounce off each other until you catch them.  The noise is not unlike the pops and cracks of little firecrackers increasing in staccato as they drop.  Grab a pair and see for yourself.

Details: March 7 & 8, 2009, 9AM – 4:30PM daily.  Los Angeles County Arboretum, 301 S. Baldwin Avenue, Arcadia CA  91007.

Admission to the show is free, but you will need to pay the normal Arboretum admission. You can download your copy of the flyer front and flyer back with a quick click on the hyperlink.

Come In, We're Closed

Sorry, We're Open

Los Angeles isn’t really the sort of place that has stuffed jackalope in windows, redneck bumperstickers about guns, or behind-the-register signs reading “”In God we trust the rest pay cash.” It’s nice to see a bit of the sort of deadpan humor around town that was old when the hills were young.

Photo by Mike Hudson

I’m in Hollywood regularly and revel in having “good parking karma.” That is, I usually have good luck in usually finding street spots within a few blocks of my destination and avoid the lots. While I’d read about city-wide changes in parking rates, hours, and meters, it didn’t really affect me until this past weekend.

Running a little late for a show at the Pantages Theatre, where we parked would possibly make or break us seeing the beginning of the performance. With that in mind, we resolved to just find a lot and I had the cash ready to hand over. But, we saw a spot on Hollywood Boulevard very close to the theater. Based on our prior knowledge, we knew at 7:55 pm, we’d be fine parking there.

Wrong. Not only are all of the meters chopped off of the poles in favor of pay stations, there are new rates and hours. And they are outrageously ridiculous. Not only is it $2 an hour to park in that area*, it is 1 hour parking only until MIDNIGHT on Fridays and Saturdays! This is in the middle of a dense collection of restaurants, clubs, and theaters. What could someone do that will only take one hour? I’m guessing the parking lot fees will go up even higher.

Since the musical we were attending was not going to be wrapped up in 50 minutes, we ended up in a lot. At least we still made it to our seats on time.

*I don’t know the exact geography of these hours. I was on Hollywood Blvd. between Vine and Cahuenga.

For those who wanted to go to the last private-home-hosted dinner from underground chef David Weidman but who couldn’t get in (he had to turn about a dozen folks away), hoo boy are you in luck! Chef David is hosting another dinner, this time at the super-cool Downtown location known as Abundant Sugar.

An apple tarte tatin begins its journey to your tummy.

This artist’s loft/warehouse/performance space will play host to his “Dinner & A Movie” event on March 14. For only $25 you get a gourmet dinner and a movie–Sergio Leone? The Godfather?–well, something Italian, as you’ll guess from the menu. It’s a super cool venue and an amazing chef, so find a babysitter, grab a date or a pal, and go
here to sign up (if you’re not on facebook, leave a comment & I’ll connect you with Chef David). Only twenty-five seats are available.

Menu:

Cold seafood Cioppino (clams, mussels and oysters steamed in vermouth with tomatoes, olives, anchovies and saffron)
Blood oranges and wild greens
Antipasti: 3 meats, 2 cheeses, marinated mushrooms, eggplant salad, white bean puree, bread
White lasagna in a cream sauce with caramelized garlic w/ yellow-foot chanterelles…OR…Penne with pancetta, Italian sausage, Chianti, garlic and tomatoes; meat balls (pork and beef with bread crumbs and Parmigiano in tomato sauce)
Assorted cheesecakes, coffee with Belgian chocolate, Cinnamon apples

Taking a walk in my Marina del Rey neighborhood today, I ended up behind this orange-and-plaid-clad bloke with orange hair and multiple earrings.  He had just gotten off the bus with a few small bags of groceries.  I’ve seen him and his groceries here on the street before.  Although the beefier presence is deceptive, my grocery-toting neighbor is John Lydon, a/k/a Johnny Rotten, frontman for The Sex Pistols and the former Public Image Ltd.

Normally, I would never post about a “c-word” sighting.  What makes this newsworthy, however, is the incongruence of having Johnny Rotten, who made his name, his reputation, and his career on being angry and edgy more than on his musical talent or anything else, living in a place that is known for being laid-back and anything but angry and edgy.

The next time I run into John/Johnny, I will try to say hello, and ask him for an impromptu mini-interview.  I want to know whether he is now living an idyllic, anger-managed life by the sea.  Hopefully, he won’t lose his temper.

Locals-made-good the Moving Units play this Friday at the El Rey with Rumspringa, All Leather and HAWEsome local DJ Them Jeans. Should be a fantastic show. And we’ve got tickets to give you! IF you enter a comment, that is.

Drop in a comment below telling me who YOUR favorite local DJ is. If they have a website or myspace page please do include a link. Tell me why they’re awesome, where you first heard them, and where they usually spin.

And if you’d like, you could twitter this post so people can see your listings of all these local DJs. How ya like them apples?

Info on the show is here.

I'll be your author this evening

I moved to Los Angeles in October 2006, for a strange contract, in this strange specular land. Then, as now, I was reminded of our friends at the Bureau of Public Secrets who so presciently remarked of 21st century LA:

As the world of the spectacle extends its reign it approaches the climax of its offensive, provoking new resistances everywhere. These resistances are very little known precisely because the reigning spectacle is designed to present an omnipresent hypnotic image of unanimous submission.

Read the rest of this entry →

Here’s a close-up of the first one in the backyard found juuuuuuust opening up this morning (click to biggify):

For the trivia buffs/googlers: Who’s the actor famous for saying the headline? What was the name of the film? What year was it released?

This was spotted this morning between the 105 and 710 near LAX by Jason DeFillippo. I always find it interesting when one group of people trys to tell another what they can and can’t believe. It’s interesting to contrast that with this pro Atheism campaign which ran recently in London:

As I’ve been saying, voter turnout is expected to be AROUND TEN PERCENT today -

PATHETIC!

Please take a moment to go and vote – I voted for Moore (yeah bring on the attacks; I can take it) and against all the Props, especially B which gives a monopoly to the unions and does pretty much the opposite of what it claims (another shock).

Lastly, if you don’t vote, I don’t want to hear any of your bellyaching about what goes on around here. I’m disgusted that our motto has gone from “E Pluribus Unum” to “Can’t Somebody ELSE do it?”

To complement its current exhibition ZAP! POW! BAM! The Superhero: The Golden Age of Comic Books, 1938-1950, this Thursday the Skirball is presenting a lecture by the co-creator of Batman’s arch nemesis, the Joker, comic book artist and ZAP! POW! BAM! exhibition curator Jerry Robinson.

Look up “comic book villain” in the dictionary (or Wikipedia, you kids) and you’ll probably find an illustration of the Joker. Since debuting in 1940, the homicidal clown with the mysterious past has been drawn by countless artists and interpreted by actors ranging from Cesar Romero and Jack Nicholson, to Mark Hamill and Heath Ledger.

Though the amount of ownership is debatable, it’s generally accepted that the character of the Joker was co-created by three individuals: artist/writer and Batman creator Bob Kane, writer Bill Finger and artist Jerry Robinson.

As a bonus, the lecture will be moderated by writer Mark Evanier, who began his career as an assistant to Jack “King of Comics” Kirby, the man who co-created this author’s favorite comic book villain.

No offense, Jerry!

Image: Detective Comics #71, cover art; Artist: Jerry Robinson;
© 1942 DC Comics; Batman, Robin, and The Joker ™ and © DC Comics;
All rights reserved; Used with permission; Collection of Jerry Robinson.

Apparently, today is Election Day here in Los Angeles.  I know, already!  We are voting for a variety of citywide offices, chief amongst them: Mayor of our fair city.  Whether you’re in the anyone-but-Antonio-camp, the maybe-Walter-Moore camp, the reluctant-but-firm-Antonio camp, or the have-nothing-better-to-do-during-my-lunch-break camp, here is a roundup of my favorite quotes from the top (all-male) mayoral candidates.  These may or may not sum up their entire campaign or raison d’etre for running.

Antonio Villaraigosa, Incumbent

Regarding his aspirations for the Governor’s office, he has a short-term view of the situation, and hopes that residents will be similarly myopic:  “I’ll look down the line at other opportunities to serve the public but for now, I’m running for re-election.  I’m focused on this job.”

Walter Moore, Lawyer

So many choice quotes, so little time.  Ultimately, I decided on this gem in which he channels John Stossel and warns of the slippery slope that is Spanish advertising in LA:  ”You better get a GPS to make sure you’re in America’s second largest city.  We’ve gotta fix this; we’ve gotta make LA an American city once more.”

The rest of the candidates, after the jump.

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As surely as many bad things pertain to our current global depression, it has had a twofold benefit for me personally. Mind you, I am little fond of the decimation of my retirement accounts or the continuing unemployment of my significant other. Still, I am a renter in L.A., and one has to see some redemption in the free-fall of rental prices (even if they are not, perhaps, quite so rapid as those of underlying property values).

I just moved to a new apartment a few days ago. As with most moves, it was accompanied by endless fretting over finding just the right place, with advantages and drawbacks of each one. Quite a few candidates went through the mill, in various neighborhoods (but generally roughly West Side). The ultimate result was renting a Fairfax District place, 400 feet away from our prior apartment… Read the rest of this entry →

Is a cruel and oppressive boss/wife/husband/dog/life keeping you from visiting LA Metblogs 20 or 30 times a day? Do you wake up in cold sweats several times a night in a panic that you might have missed one of our witty yet informative posts? It’s OK, you can admit it. Denial is the first thing to overcome. We won’t judge.

In fact, we’ll enable. Our team of crack scientists have just released their newest invention – LA Metblogs Home Delivery. While the technology behind this is just too complex for most people, I can tell you that upon clicking that link, and plugging in the required informations, you can have an email sent to you each and every day with the posts from that we made in the last 24 hours or so. It’s breathtaking. It’s revolutionary. It’s even free.

In our locked up behind the scenes trials of this, our own David Markland said of the service: “I like it.” With a recommendation like that you know it’s all that and more. What are you waiting for?