Is this the first cool-weather Friday this fall? With the drop in temperature and the shortening daylight, it seems perfect for (symbolically, anyway) shaking off summer’s heat by stopping by LACMA’s outdoor Friday Night Jazz event this evening, tucked behind Chris Burden’s glowing Urban Light sculpture. This weekly free-admission series finishes its season November 6th.

Tonight, violinist Lesa Terry, music director of the Women’s Jazz Orchestra and Women’s Jazz Quartet, leads an ensemble drawn from the LA jazz scene.

Lesa Terry & Friends, 6 PM tonight at LACMA, 5905 Wilshire (at Fairfax) Los Angeles 90036. Free admission.

Hotel President Herman B. Sarno was joined by film starlets Heidi Heidemann, Beverly Anderson, and Kathy Marlowe, comedian Jack Carson, film Actress Connie Towers, and singing star Byron Palmer for the ceremonial groundbreaking of the luxurious Hollywood Knickerbocker Hotel.

The year was 1955.

Photo from the USC Digital Library

MAFA "Featured Artist" Rouzanna Berberian

Art is the word in the SGV this weekend. Specifically FREE Art shows and receptions in Pasadena and Monrovia starting Friday night running through Sunday. Pasadena will kick it off with ARTNight on Friday and host its ARTWalk on Saturday.  Saturday is the first day of the Monrovia Association of Fine Arts (MAFA) 46th Annual “Celebrate the Arts” that runs all weekend.

The featured artist at this years Celebrate the Arts is Rouzanna Berberian. I’ve enjoyed her art since I saw her first exhibition a couple of years ago. She uses very bold, expressive brush strokes with equally powerful colors in her paintings to stir some deep emotional connections. She can be found in space 6 in Monrovia’s Library Park located in Old Town Monrovia at 312 S Myrtle Ave.

In conjunction with MAFA the folks at NuVein will be hosting a Comic Con at the Monrovia Library on Saturday only. Additionally NuVein has numerous musicians scheduled to play through out Old Town Monrovia as well as Library Park adding to the overall festivities of the weekend.

Both the Pasadena ARTWalk and the Celebrate the Arts will have numerous kid friendly venues where they can can learn about art as well as create their own art. Read the rest of this entry →

Heading west this morning, I stopped pedaling between Hudson Avenue and June Street on 4th Street through Hancock Park because some immortalized shoeprints caught my eye, probably from some young prankster who I could picture mischieviously scampering over the patch of wet concrete repairwork that had been freshly poured on the roadway however many years ago.

Then I turned and found this — signed, no less? — and promptly forget about the footsteps frozen in time:

It’s but a block and a half to the east of this one I chanced upon last November. Staring at it I wondered several things: how old it was, where the next one might reveal itself, and if the Bureau of Street Services would act upon or ignore a request (that I’ve since made) to have the repugnant symbols of hatred excised. I was remiss in tolerating that first one. Two will just not do.

UPDATED (10.13): Following my second request this morning to L.A. Bureau of Street Services via its website I received an email reply stating that the job doesn’t fall under their jurisdiction and that they forwarded it to the city’s Beautification Committee. Rather than wait to hear from that entity I filed a graffiti removal request via its website and am awaiting their response.

Earlier this week I alerted you to the LA Opera’s first ever costume sale and now I bring you this, just in time for Halloween costume shopping.

The Movie Wardrobe Sale Takes Place at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel - Second Home to Hot Stars Like Us

There is going to be another amazing sale this weekend, the Hollywood Studio Collection’s wardrobe sale. A portion of the proceeds from this sale will benefit Childhelp, one of the world’s largest organizations that aids victims of child abuse and neglect.

Thousands of wardrobe pieces from various movie sets will be sold during the three-day event that consists of both vintage and contemporary clothing, shoes, décor, accessories and props that have been used in some of today and yesterday’s most influential blockbuster films. The sample sale will offer rare and one-of-a-kind items that would normally be sold for thousands of dollars, for as little as $10.

The sale takes place at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel this Saturday, October 10 through Monday, October 12 in the Oscar Room on the second level of the hotel.

Admission is only $5. For more information, visit www.TheHollywoodStudioCollection.com or call (818) 812-6068.

LAPD Chief Bill Bratton’s dissatisfactions with the way things run in Los Angeles, compared to Boston and New York where he was also police chief prior to his tenure here, have been known. And in some respects, there is no love lost for him over his departure at the end of this month. (Yes, his last day on the job in LA is Halloween.)

Yesterday he laid out east vs. west complaints at Los Angeles Magazine’s regular Breakfast Conversation confab at the Foundry restaurant on Melrose.

East Coast, it’s much more in your face, bloody the nose and then go and have a drink. Here it’s basically, don’t have it out and hold a grudge and try to undermine each other at every turn. I don’t know whether that’s the ethos of the movie industry that’s now basically going into the rest of the society out here.

My style is basically, fight it out, get it done and move on… Life is too short, get it over with, instead of this lingering payback.

This city is almost a city that doesn’t work in so many respects and it’s frustrating. The New York minute – the reason that phrase is so appropriate for New York, things get done.

Audio excerpts were aired this morning on KPCC by Frank Stoltze on Morning Edition. A video of the entire event is on LA Mag’s site.

On the heels of last month’s elimination of Saber’s huge L.A. River mural, comes news via CBS2.com that today a contractor with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has begun painting over the gigantic MTA tag (Wiki page) on the river’s west bank estimated to be almost 60-feet tall and a third of a mile long.

According to this L.A. Times story from January of this year, seven members of the crew suspected of painting the the tag (which stands for “Metro Transit Assassins”) were arrested.

In that article the Army Corps of Engineers said it “estimates that removing the MTA tag from the river alone will cost $3.7 million because hazardous materials crews must create an elaborate dam to capture all the paint and runoff water so it doesn’t get into the riverbed.”

Federal stimulus money well-spent?

Really early rendering of attack on the moon.

Have a decent sized telescope? Turn it toward the moon Friday morning at about 4:30am, when NASA will crash a pair of orbiters into the south pole, and you may be able to see the resulting plumes of dust.

The NASA exercise is intended to determine is water is contained in the moon’s soil.

Of course, Griffith Park Observatory will be closed at that hour. Because, y’know, its so darn early.

No Public Viewing of Moon Impact from Observatory
NASA’s LCROSS mission, searching for water ice, will culminate with two lunar impacts near the Moon’s south pole at approximately 4:30 a.m. PDT on Friday, October 9. The impacts may be visible with a telescope. However, due to the very early hour, neither Griffith Park nor the Observatory will be open for public viewing.

The attack on the moon will also be televised.

It’s been about a sweet 16 years since the first episode of The X-Files aired.  It’s been about a sweet 16 years since I developed my first crush:  Gillian Anderson.  Sigh.  I think my mom sort of looked the other way and chalked it up to an adolescent search for a role model and, really, could you ask anything more from Dr. Dana Scully?  No, no you could not.  So, you can imagine the all sorts of first-love butterflies that fluttered when I got wind of this: IBG is hosting Ms. Anderson, along with executive producer/writer Frank Spotnitz, at a “Celebration of The X-Files” panel on November 14 at the Beverly Wilshire.  Along with other to-be-announced guests, the pair will remember, reflect, and re-live the ground-breaking series on a moderated Q & A panel (here’s to hoping that someone articulates exactly how one runs in high heels) aimed at raising money and awareness for a number of charities, including the Rape Treatment Center.  Tickets range from $50 for general seating to limited $125 tickets for VIP seating.  Those with the Benjamin to spare for a VIP ticket will have the opportunity to queue up for an autograph from the panelists, including the lovely Ms. Anderson.  As if that weren’t enough, IBG just organized an auction to meet and greet Ms. Anderson prior to the panel.  Additional auctions will shortly follow — keep checking IBG’s site for further details, and check out their FAQ for other questions you may have about the event.  Oh, be still my beating heart.

Clockwise from the left, Gillian Anderson is: my Dana Scully action figure, circa 1998 and recently retrieved from the back of my closet; Data Nully from the series “ReBoot”; Moro in the American version of Princess Mononoke; and Queen Vorkana in Robbie the Reindeer: Close Encounters of the Herd Kind.

I’m still not convinced there even IS a future for journalism, at least not as we’ve known it (and heck I have a degree in it). Further, I won’t exactly miss what it’s become. But that’s not the point -

Should you wish to witness a spirited and entertaining discourse on this very subject, however, why not head out to The Warehouse in Marina Del Rey on Saturday, and catch The Lowdown?

Here’s what your host Jeff Norman has to say about it:

The Lowdown is a bold cultural revival fueled by unique collaborations between world-class artists, authors, activists and other public-spirited leaders. Presenters and performers connect the dots between media, government, national security, sustainability, psychology and the arts. By confronting disinformation, promoting civic engagement and having fun in the process, we help people cope with life in America.

The Warehouse Restaurant
4499 Admiralty Way
Marina del Rey, CA 90292
Hosted by JEFF NORMAN and featuring performances and a discussion with

music by I SEE HAWKS IN L.A. (Full set at 5 PM)
Author PETER RICHARDSON
Journalist ROBERT SCHEER
LA Weekly founder JAY LEVIN
Comedian ED CRASNICK
Musician-satirist GARY GORDON
Drinks and appetizers available – no minimum required.
Happy hour discounts from 5 to 6!
FREE admission
Seating is first come, first served.
The evening will conclude with a book sale and signing by Peter Richardson, author of A Bomb in Every Issue: How the Short, Unruly Life of Ramparts Magazine Changed America, hosted by Book Soup.

(Ow, my linking hand!)

This is happening in the hills above Calabasas, in the West Valley, so I have a soft spot for this new Halloween attraction. Plus, they incorporate actual real-life ghost storytelling into the event, which is crazy cool.

Looks spooky already: Gillette Ranch from above.

The Haunted Hayride was started by a couple gals who were transplants from the midwest & east coast, and who missed the Halloween hayrides they’d had in their childhoods. In addition to being super spooky ’cause it’s, well, in the woods and all, it has your standard scares and scream-inducing surprises. It also has readings of ghost stories, a carnival sideshow,  cider & candy apples, so I’m sold.

They’re getting well-known names to do the ghost story sessions, and it looks like Amy Smart will be doing this Friday’s reading.

They’ve given me a discount to pass on to you, our loyal Metblogs readers. When you buy your tix online, you’ll have the option to enter a promotional code: type in “Metblogs” for five bucks off! You’re welcome.

As mentioned yesterday by Lucinda, the Pee-Wee Herman Show originally scheduled to run this November at the Music Box has since been moved to Club Nokia in November.

Press releases cite the move was made due to “popular demand,” and promised those with existing tickets would be able to call Ticketmaster and to make arrangements to switch their purchase to comparable seats.

Alas, Twitter is all abuzz today (as are the comments of yesterday’s post) with tales of people being stuck on hold for hours with Ticketmaster, then when connected being told to call back later, or, perhaps worse of all, finding out “comparable” seats meant “comparably priced” seats, and that they’d have to pay extra to be as close to the stage or in as prime a spot as before. Numerous out of towners are upset that they’d booked airfare and hotels for a show they can now no longer attend.

Are you among the Pee-Wee fans who has been inconvenienced by this switcheroo? Let us know your story in the comments… were you able to get through to Ticketmaster? How long were you on hold? What were your original seats compared to the new ones?

"I think I'll..." by Ed Ruscha, on loan to the White House.

Los Angeles artist Ed Ruscha is one of several artists whose work is hanging in the Obama White House, according to today’s NY Times. Museums in Washington DC have loaned the works.

A luminary in the early years of the LA art scene in the 1960s (and a towering international figure ever since,) Ruscha’s work draws on imagery from the urban landscape of  southern California, although in a recent interview, for London’s Daily Telegraph, he’s of two minds about the city where he’s made his home since 1956.

‘It puzzles me that people can come to Los Angeles and actually get excited about it.’ But he also admits, a little grudgingly, that there is a ‘certain neurotic anxiety’ about the city that nourishes him. ‘It’s oily about the edges,’ he explains. ‘It’s gritty, but at the same time it promises something. I don’t know what, the fountain of youth, maybe.’

And then later, reflecting on his decision to move to LA from where he grew up in Oklahoma, ”’It had an irresistible flavor to it that drew me out here. California had sunlight and jazz… It was all glamorous to me, the life of an artist. It had its high moments, the only thing it didn’t promise you was a living. But I was 18 years old, so that wasn’t scary. It didn’t matter.’’

A fair amount of cool things have come across my desk for this weekend…

Friday: DineLA Restaurant Week
Be warned: Restaurant Week’s low prices do NOT apply on the weekends. So Thursday & Friday’s your last chance to nab reservations to some of LA’s hottest joints like Chaya, Mr. Chow, Akasha, Arroyo Chop House, BLT Steak, even Royal/T (pretty much every place you wanna eat is participating…check here). Prices for these special price-fixe lunches & dinners top out at $44 per person at even the most snooty of steakhouses, so dash on over & make reservations asap!

Saturday: 26th Annual Hollywood Forever Cemetery Tour
The Art Deco Society presents its yearly tour of that star of the cinema scene, Hollywood Forever Cemetery.  It’s a one-day-only event, but tours depart every 20 minutes or so from 10am to noon. It’s a walkthru not only of Hollywood history–many of the stars of the Golden Era of cinema are interred here–but architectural styles as well, with gorgeous mausoleums & monuments.

Friday thru Sunday: The Bead Show
Attention, crafty people and my mom! Time to geek out on beads at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium. If you’re like me, you’ll go, ooh and ahh over amazing beads, buy them, and then never do anything with them. But if you’re not like me, I can’t wait to see what you create!

Sunday: LA Luxury Chocolate Salon
Thousands of opportunities to sample chocolate, plus an art-meets-chocolate smackdown as top students from the California School of Culinary Arts attempt to create masterworks of fine art with chocolate. There will be a cocktail bar as well, with chocolate-based apéritifs.

Sunday: Part Time Punks Festival at The Echo
From 2pm to 2am these savants of all things musical and underground will be parading a veritable smorgasbord of awesome across the stage at the Echo.  Check out a DJ set from Gang Of Four, and music from Savage Republic, Abe Vigoda, Viv Albertine of The Slits, Rainbow/\Arabia, Brendan Mullen of The Masque, and gobs more.

Monday: Wumpskate at World on Wheels
It’s that time again:  The spookiest month of the year and goth roller skating collide for Wumpskate’s annual Halloween-themed skate night.  Costumes are, of course, mandatory insomuch as you will be totally scorned if you show up without one.  These goths don’t take themselves too seriously, though (who can, when they’re on a pair of tan-and-orange quad skates from 1982?), so prepare to have some serious fun.

… but Ridley Scott’s Alien is the scariest movie of all time!

People seem to be peeing their pants over Oren Peli’s Paranormal Activity, and who can blame them for being excited over a movie that’s genuinely scary?

But let’s not forget that 2009 marks the 30th — yes, as in three oh, you dabgum punks — anniversary of Ridley Scott’s Alien, the indisputed monster movie heavyweight champion of the world. To celebrate the occasion, the American Cinematheque is screening a double feature of Alien and it’s inferior-but-pretty-damn-entertaining sequel Aliens (1986) at the Egyptian Theater this Friday at 8:00 p.m..

That’s over four hours of facesucking fun for the entire family!