2011 Japan Disaster

Los Angeles Times' Oscar Coverage Sees All-Time Record Web Traffic

There was a time, it seems, when there was a wall between pajama-bottom bloggers and real journalists. Real journalists didn't bait Google. Real journalists focused on facts and not on fancy photos. Real journalists trumpeted reporting awards over readership. Now? Not so much. The Los Angeles Time ... More >>

Hammer Museum's 'Made in L.A.': Three Artists' Journeys to L.A.'s New Biennial

Oscar Nominated Shorts Reviewed

Asian Vacation: One L.A. Businessman Wants You to Tour Post-Quake Japan

When you think it's-almost-spring vacation, you probably don't think rural, post-earthquake Japan. But Little Tokyo businessman Shige Higashi wants to put that option in your head. He's organizing a $2,100, one-week tour of Kesennuma and environs, an area in the northeast that was not hit by radi ... More >>

Scientists Developing Salt-Resistant Rice

Flickr/tamaki​Prompted in part by the scores of rice crops that were destroyed by last year's devastating Japan tsunami, scientists are developing a salt-resistant variety of rice, Voice of America reports. (Rice cannot survive in salt-contaminated soil, and 20,000 hectares of paddies were flo ... More >>

Kevin Eastman's Studio: See What's Up for Auction

Shannon CottrellKevin Eastman at Meltdown Comics.​Read more in "Kevin Eastman, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Co-Creator, Takes Over Meltdown Comics for 35 Days." See more photos in "Kevin Eastman @ Meltdown Comics." When Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles co-creator Kevin Eastman took over a portion ... More >>

Domino's To Open Pizza Shop on The Moon

Source images from dominos.jpThe Japanese out-innovate America? Yes, they do!​ MEMORANDUM From: Shuji Sakai, LA Weekly To: Scott Oelkers, C.E.O. of Dominos Pizza Japan In re: Your wacky video to build a Domino's on the moon. Dear Mr. Oelkers: We realize you planned and spent the money on y ... More >>

Wanna Go to a Secret Linkin Park Show in L.A.?

Linkin Park got heart​Want to make someone else buy you a ticket to a secret Linkin Park show, and feel good about doing it? If you raise at least $500 for Japan Tsunami Relief, you'll be invited with a guest to a private Linkin Park concert in a "small, intimate venue" in the Los Angeles are ... More >>

Japan Tsunami Debris Could be Headed to California by Late 2013

Look out.​Debris from Japan's March tsunami could reach our shores by 2013, according to a report in the San Jose Mercury-News. The problem is that scientists aren't sure exactly when or where it will hit: The stuff could strike anywhere from California to Washington late next year. Macabre ... More >>

Lucky Peach: The New Food Journal From David Chang & Friends Is Here

​Lucky Peach, the food quarterly from Momofuku's David Chang, debuted yesterday. It's an enormous amount of fun, as you would expect, kind of like Grand Street crossed with No Reservations. This makes sense once you run down the list of contributors: Anthony Bourdain, Harold McGee, Ruth Reichl ... More >>

Earthquakes Are Scary and Expensive: The 'Big One' Along San Andreas Fault Would Cost L.A. County $125 Billion

The redder, the more potential damage inflicted by Big One. Good luck, L.A.​The 'Big One" -- you know, the One you can't seem to push from your mind during rooftop parties atop decrepid downtown buildings, especially each time a semi rolls by -- is coming. Dramatic, yes, and over-exploited by ... More >>

X Japan Releases first U.S. Single 'Jade' on June 28

​X Japan's U.S. fans are a patient bunch. You've waited almost two decades since the band initially formed for this moment. You may have heard about the influential Japanese rock group's L.A. video shoots back in January of 2010, caught the acoustic benefit show in July of that year, the Lolla ... More >>

Freeze-Dried Camping Foods Return: Just in Time To Escape From L.A.

Flickr / United States Marine Corps Official Page​ Shortly after the Fukushima disaster spread fears of a tsunami and radioactive plume hitting the Western United States, panicked buyers cleaned out many retailers of freeze-dried camping foods and left shelves bare at outdoor sports retailers. ... More >>

Anime Fans Get Together at Tomo Neko Maid Cafe for Comedy, Games and More

Shannon Cottrell​See more photos in Shannon Cottrell's gallery "Tomo Neko Maid Cafe." Sunday afternoon, we went to a maid cafe. Well, we kind of went to a maid cafe. No, we still haven't made our way to Tokyo. Instead, we were inside the Miyako Hotel in Little Tokyo for Tomo Neko Maid Cafe, ... More >>

Mendocino Farms to Sell Winning Grilled Cheese Invitational Sandwich

Mendocino Farms​ In addition to the new four-category format at the 2011 Grilled Cheese Invitational, this year's event will feature a bonus for one lucky winner: Their sandwich will be sold at Mendocino Farms and the money will go to charity. Company founder Mario Del Pero will serve as an e ... More >>

Japan Tsunami Debris Headed to Southern California Beaches

Curt Ebbesmeyer.​Next year we could see an eerie reminder of one of the world's worst tsunamis when pieces of houses, whole boats, and even toys wash ashore at Southern California beaches. This is according to an L.A.-born oceanographer, Curt Ebbesmeyer, who tells ABC News it's coming our way ... More >>

Godzilla Would Be Proud

Japan's Crisis Will Hit L.A.'s Pocketbook: City Prepared to See Fewer Tourists, Less Trade

L.A.'s Little Tokyo.​What's bad for Japan is bad for L.A. And while we can't belittle the pain and suffering of that nation, we can say that its triple disaster (earthquake, tsunami, nuclear crisis) will put a dent in our own economy. That's because Japan is the Port of Los Angeles' number-tw ... More >>

Alexandra Wallace Porn: Vivid Entertainment Casts UCLA Racist in 'String Thongs and Ding Dongs' Opposite Blackie Chan

Co-Ed MagazineWallace is a 'natural,' says Vivid​Who said "Asians in the Library" hottie Alexandra Wallace wouldn't be able to land a job? L.A. porn king Vivid Entertainment, apparently tired of knocking down Octomom's door for a train-wreck celebrity cameo, made a trip to Wallace's Sacrament ... More >>

L.A. Beaches, Venice, Marina Del Rey, Could Get Tsunami Warning Sirens

Tsunami warning sirens for L.A?​Update: The county Board of Supervisors today approved the motion to have the Office of Emergency Management look into the feasibility of installing sirens on the coast. We noted recently that some of Southern California's most densely populated beach communiti ... More >>

Monday Morning News Roundup: Yak Farmers, Vegan Boxers, World's Worst Restaurant More

Guzzle & Nosh​And when we say "news," we mean it in the loosest sense of the word. --"Mrs. Cheeseburger," wife of cheeseburger inventor, passes away. [Denver Post] --Japan faces food radiation problems. [WSJ] --Iodized salt is no antidote for radiation. [NPR] --But red wine might be. [Telegrap ... More >>

We Heart Japan Brings Together Anime Industry and Fans for Earthquake Relief at Meltdown Comics

See more photos in Dianne Garcia's gallery "Voice Actors, Artists and Anime Fans Say 'We Heart Japan' at Meltdown Comics." "I always wanted to be an actor and anime was the first job, career thing, that let me be an actor," said Stephanie Sheh at Thursday night's We Heart Japan fundraiser at Meltdo ... More >>

Michael Collins, L.A. 'Enviroreporter,' Gets Local, Global Attention For His Geiger Counter Cam

Michael Collins and wife Denise Ann Duffield, who also works on enviroreporter.com.​Michael Collins has been covering the environment for 13 years. He's won several awards, including the Los Angeles Press Club's Journalist of the Year. But it wasn't his long-form exposes of gooey landfills th ... More >>

Nutters Claim Huge Full Moon Could Cause Earthquakes, Tidal Waves: L.A. Might Not See it in the Rain, Unfortunately

David DeHetreThe 'Super Moon' comes to L.A. Or maybe it doesn't.​Biggest moon in nearly 20 years this weekend. So says the U.S. Naval Observatory, which reports tomorrow's 'Super Moon' will be the first since March, 1993. Some nutters predict havoc. We shrug with doubt. The Observatory states ... More >>

Alexandra Wallace-Inspired 'Ching Chong' T-Shirts to Fund Japan Relief Efforts

Internet meme for a cause​Updated after the jump with PHOTO EVIDENCE of Wallace herself modeling the "ching chong" shirt for Red Cross! (Sort of.) When UCLA student Alexandra Wallace uploaded her "Asians in the Library" rant to YouTube that fateful Sunday afternoon -- blissfully unaware she ... More >>

Japan: If You Fly From LAX to Tokyo, Will You be Exposed to Radiation in the Jet Stream?

Japan Airlines​If you fly to Japan, will you be exposed to radiation, possibly in the not-so-friendly skies? It's a possibility. But you won't hear that from U.S. officials. At least not yet. The U.S. State Department issued an alert last weekend telling Americans to avoid travel to the earth ... More >>

Restaurants Step Up to Help Japan Relief Effort

Photos by Anne Fishbein.​We already told you about Takami Sushi's incredibly generous offer to donate 100% of profits for the foreseeable future to the Red Cross Japanese Relief Fund. Now, other restaurants are stepping up to the plate. The Innovative Dining Group (IDG) family of restaurants ... More >>