Joshuah Bearman

Jesse Thorn; Credit: Kevin Scanlon

LA People 2009: Radio Guy — Jesse Thorn

Joshuah Bearman
It’s odd, Jesse Thorn knows, for small children to adore public radio. “But it’s what my parents always had on in the car,” Thorn says. “I’ve been hearing Terry Gross my whole life.” All that listening time has given Thorn an uncanny ability to parse, in detail, the style and......
John Gaughan; Credit: Kevin Scanlon

LA People 2009: The Magician's Secret — John Gaughan

Joshuah Bearman
In 1770, Wolfgang von Kempelen wheeled a wooden box into the Habsburg court in Vienna. On top was a chessboard. Seated to one side was an automaton, wearing a dramatic coat and turban. “The Turk,” it was called, and it played chess quite well. For years the Turk toured Europe......
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Best Ape Hoots and Howls: Gibbon Conservation Center

Joshuah Bearman
The sun is high, the sky is blue, and a few scattered hoots are on the verge of becoming a rare midafternoon chorus at the Gibbon Conservation Center. “These guys usually sing in the morning,” says Alan Mootnick, director of the center. “But maybe you’ll get lucky.” Sure enough, the......
Credit: Mr. Fish

The Delegate From Sadr City

Joshuah Bearman
Majid Al-Bahadli came a long way to get to Denver. Born near Basra, raised in Sadr City, refugeed after the 1991 uprising against Saddam, married and naturalize...
The sincerest form of flattery: Korine cozies up to Morton/Monroe on the Mister Lonely set

Mister Lonely, Harmony Korine's Way

Joshuah Bearman
It’s been more than a decade since Harmony Korine was the 19-year-old NYU dropout who, so the story goes, turned around the screenplay for Kids in just three weeks. Korine quickly advanced his reputation as a curiously challenging young filmmaker, earning mainstream scorn and selective critical praise for his meandering,......

Geek Love

Joshuah Bearman
More than a decade ago, Greg Mottola spent $30,000 and 17 days filming The Daytrippers, a small but smart story about a feuding family looking for a wayward spouse on a sudden, daylong road trip through New York City. The film, which was produced by Steven Soderbergh but was nevertheless......

Geek Love

Joshuah Bearman
More than a decade ago, Greg Mottola spent $30,000 and 17 days filming The Daytrippers, a small but smart story about a feuding family looking for a wayward spouse on a sudden, daylong road trip through New York City. The film, which was produced by Steven Soderbergh but was nevertheless......
Show me your fluke

Catch a Whale

Joshuah Bearman
People often forget that wildlife is everywhere in Los Angeles, including the ocean. Right out there, mere yards from the beach at times, a vast flotilla of gray and humpback whales migrates past our shores to their winter spawning grounds near Baja and Costa Rica, respectively, and then make the......
Not exactly roughing it: A safari tent (nearby bathrooms

Camping, but Not Really

Joshuah Bearman
The first thing you notice entering the El Capitan Canyon campground is that there is no actual camping. There used to be, until the family-owned operation got new owners who turned the facilities into a “vacation resort.” Over one winter a few years back, the traditional fire pits, dirt patches......