Bing Crosby

Five Historic L.A. Jazz Spots

Have you hugged a jazz musician today? You should. For the second year in a row, April 30th has been declared International Jazz Day by no less a reputable organization than the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. This year's host city is Istanbul. But why not L.A.? A ... More >>

Theater to See in L.A. This Week, Including Garry Marshall Directing a Play About the Making of Double Indemnity

Lost Moon Radio did another bang-up job hosting the 34th annual L.A. Weekly Theater Awards Monday night. (See the full list of L.A. Weekly Theater Award winners here.) Thanks to Lauren Ludwig, Trish Hadley and the LMR troupe for their talent, and thanks for all the kind missives from people who had ... More >>

Theater to See in L.A. This Week, Including a Pycho-Sexual Boxing Match

Pycho-sexual spectacles got nods from our critics this week, including Illyrian Players' Lord Blackberry's Apocalypse and our Pick of the Week, Tender Napalm. Nice reviews also for Doma Theatre Company's Dreamgirls at the MET, Sarah Ruhl's Eurydice at A Noise Within, Latino Theatre Company's Melacho ... More >>

Theater to See in L.A. This Week, Including an Unusual Look at Motherhood

This week, our critics enjoyed composer and musical director Gregory Nabours' 90-minute musical The Trouble With Words (Coeurage Theatre Company at the Unknown Theatre) as well as a quartet of one-acts at the Lillian under the collective title Unscreened. This week's Pick goes to Dorothy Fortenberry ... More >>

Class Warfare: Metro Rides and Homelessness Have Readers Talking

Theater to See in L.A. This Week, Including Dostoevsky's Notes From Underground

Nods this week for Laguna Playhouse's production of Neil Simon's Chapter Two and Dostoevsky's Notes from Underground at Zombie Joe's Underground in North Hollywood. For the latest new reviews and comprehensive stage listings, see below. Tanna Frederick and Robert Standley star in N. Richard Nash's T ... More >>

Theater to See in L.A. This Week, Including a Solo Show About Pioneering Actress Hattie McDaniel

Our critic Lovell Estell was entranced by Vickilyn Reynolds' performance in a show based on the life of Hattie McDaniel, Hattie -- What I Need You To Know. For all the latest New Theater Reviews, and comprehensive stage listings, see below.This week's Stage Feature takes a look a three shows th ... More >>

Hattie ... What I Need You to Know

Hair We Come a Caroling

A Wayne in a Manger

Bing, Bing, Bing Those Christmas Bells

Peter Ford's Glenn Ford: A Life: Son's New Book About His Celebrity Dad, With Dish on Marilyn Monroe, Rita Hayworth and Judy Garland

A boy's life: Scenes from Peter Ford's childhood, with father Glenn Ford and mother Eleanor Powell​He had a one-night stand with Marilyn Monroe, a six-month fling with Judy Garland and a 40-year, on-and-off affair with Rita Hayworth.After a 16-year marriage to film star Eleanor Powell, he ma ... More >>

Beirut - The Greek Theater - October 4, 2011

Timothy NorrisZach Condon and his axe ​Beirut The Greek Theater October 4, 2011 As we wrote last week, playing a large, open-air amphitheater can be a challenge for any act that doesn't feature an orchestra or power chords. Last night, however, Beirut showed 'em how it's done. While autumn ... More >>

Music Picks: Ravi Shankar, Marilyn Scott, Duran Duran, Burkina Electric

Also, Emmylou Harris & Her Red Dirt Boys, Odd Future, Gillian Welch and others

Top 10 Totally Awesome Artists Inspired by the Valley, plus She Wants Revenge's Valleyheart

​ She Wants Revenge releases Valleyheart today, the band's third full length release, which sees them submerging themselves in blissful nostalgia. Not for dark '80s sounds as they are unremittingly accused of (though, yes there is still some of that), but for the breeding grounds that made the ... More >>

Vaudeville on Film at UCLA

An economic stimulus from the last Depression

Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein & The Legend of Sleepy Hollow

The North Pole Melts with R&B, Funk, Soul-Jazz, and Boogaloo on 'In the Christmas Groove' [MP3]

By Daniel Siwek ​Not everyone dreams of a white Christmas, if I have to hear Bing Crosby one more time I swear I'll make Dan Aykroyd in Trading Places look like Kris Kringle in the Miracle On 34th Street. Luckily Strut Records offers a surefire way to get some mistletoe smooching this yuletid ... More >>

Happy Thanksgiving: We've Gone Fishing

Enjoy your long weekend. Squid Ink is taking the holiday off. Although we haven't really gone fishing, here's the Louis Armstrong and Bing Crosby soundtrack to our metaphorical fishing trip. (We were going to post a Gone Hunting video, that being more menu-driven, but all those YouTube videos showed ... More >>

Only in LA: Les Paul, W.C. Fields, Groucho Marx and the Invention of Multi-Track Recording

A few years ago, longtime LA Weekly writer John Payne interviewed Les Paul, who died yesterday, as part of a comprehensive overview of his career. We'll be publishing Payne's remembrance on the guitar and recording innovator in next week's paper. Below is an excerpt of that piece. ​ He was w ... More >>

Bob Hope and Bing Crosby Film Screening

LA People 2009: Buckskin Blues — Pat Boone

Lincoln Hts. Jail: A Hard Cell for Condo Conversion?

The Eastsider L.A. poses the tantalizing possibility that the old Lincoln Heights Jail could be converted to loft spaces. (I'm waiving all rights to jokes and puns here to cut to the chase.) The under-employed jail, whose storied cells have been home to Minsky's burlesque queen Betty Rowland, a youn ... More >>

Hark! the Harry Shearer Sings!*

What to do in L.A., December 5-11

Celebuspeak: My Neighborhood is a Hybrid, Driving the Westside and Beyond!

BY HAL SPARKS When I'm not on a stand-up tour of the country, thrilling people in the Bible Belt with my razor sharp wit and polysyllabic dissections of pop culture and socio-political shenanigans, I live in Los Angeles. I have loved here, I have lost here... I shot Dude, Where's My Car?, Spider- ... More >>

Hark! the Harry Shearer Sings

What to do in Los Angeles this week

Warning: Contains Grateful Dead Karaoke!

What to do in Los Angeles this week

Superbad: It Happened One Night

Yes, this movie is bad... Superbad

Best Smoky Tinder Box

Naa Na Na Na Naa

How the West Coast Eastside sound changed rock & roll

Heaux, Heaux, Heaux!

I’m Dreaming of a Kitsch Christmas

A Day at the Races

Faster, Speedycat! Thrill! Thrill!

Live in LA

Tiny Malice

John Patrick Shanley’s nuns’ story

Captain, My Captain

William Shatner on life, love, horses and making a record with Ben Folds

Give Us Back Our Damn Flag

The leftist case for patriotism

Criminals of the Heart

Road kills and clerical errors

Chong Family Values

Tapping the Source

Surfing The Ranch with Step Into Liquid’s Dana Brown and Endless Summer’s “Wingnut” Weaver

The Cutup

Bob Hope, piece by piece

Iannis and the Big Bang

Sweet ’n’ Nasty

tepping out with the L.A. old-time-music underground

A Fan’s Notes

Tori Spelling, live onstage!

Same As It Ever Was

Nothing can stop the new fall season

The Look of Love

Men of the Old School

A thin gray line regroups

Bada Bing

Gary Giddins’ bio of the great white jazzbo

Out and About Food

Tasteful summer adventures that redefine Saturday afternoons at the ballpark

Letters