Occupy Wall Street

Why James Adomian's Debut Is A Lock For Comedy Album Of The Year

On comedian James Adomian's debut album Low Hangin' Fruit, his celebrity impressions are so well-developed that it's sometimes hard to tell where they end and when his true voice begins. After honing his craft at Groundlings and the UCB Theater, the 32 year-old L.A. native has made his mark in rece ... More >>

'Legitimate Rape,' the Art Exhibit? Yes, It Opens Tonight

"Legitimate Rape," an exhibition of political art that opens tonight at Katherine Cone Gallery, was largely inspired by one particular project. This past April, artist Jill Greenberg shot a film of white men in suits laughing in slow-motion. The film is dramatically lit, making the whites of their s ... More >>

Occupy Used a 'People's Microphone' to Spread Info Through a Crowd. Now There's a People's Mic Choir

The Occupy Movement's one-year anniversary is today. This means, nation-wide, morning headlines say things like "Why Occupy Fizzed," "Occupy in Disarray but Spirit Lives On" or "Can Occupy Come up with a Second Act?" Yesterday, a few hundred protesters who returned to Zucotti Park, where the Occup ... More >>

White Powder Found in Envelope at Paramount Studios; LAFD Determines It 'Non-Hazardous' But 'Suspicious'

Someone at 5555 West Melrose Avenue (the address for Paramount Studios) called 911 today after discovering a "white powder like substance" in an envelope. So the L.A. City Fire Department dispatched its hazmat team to the studios for a "chemical investigation" of this "unknown type of suspicious su ... More >>

Dark Knight Rises Review

Self-important and overstuffed, The Dark Knight Rises feels like Batman forever

Eli Broad: A Conversation With the L.A. Billionaire Philanthropist About His Critics and His Legacy

When the Museum of Contemporary Art shocked the art world last month by firing highly respected curator Paul Schimmel after 22 years on the job, Eli Broad, the billionaire philanthropist and MOCA board member, personally gave Schimmel the bad news. Broad, who founded two Fortune 500 companies b ... More >>

The Black Glass at the Hollywood Fringe and Heartbreak House at Theatricum Botanicum

The Original Original Gangsta

Ice-T talks about his star-studded directorial debut, his famous affiliates and his life with Coco in New York

Radiohead's Artist Stanley Donwood's New Work Pictures L.A. in Flames

Stanley Donwood doesn't have the slightest objection to the term "commercial artist." Often considered the sixth member of the band Radiohead, the 44-year old Essex native is responsible for all of the band's artwork since 1994 and has the commercial marketplace to thank for part of his success. "It ... More >>

Ying Wu, Ming Qu Murdered in BMW: Some in China Blame USC Grad Students for 'Showing off Their Wealth'

While hundreds of USC students and staff gathered at the Tommy Trojan statue last night to pay their respects to Ying Wu and Ming Qu -- the electrical-engineering grad students murdered early Wednesday morning -- a debate raged on Chinese news sites and comment boards over whether Wu and Qu were ask ... More >>

An Actual Corporation Is Running for L.A. Mayor

We've all seen the Occupy Wall Street signs: America for sale! End corporate personhood! Get the money out of politics! But what if a corporation actually became a politician? Farmscape LLC, which describes itself as "the largest urban farming venture in Los Angeles," is launching a full-fledged m ... More >>

Ron Paul Mania at UCLA: Stadium Reaches Capacity, Students Climb Trees to Get a Glimpse

Republican presidential hopeful Ron Paul has the libertarian college kids going ga-ga for his firm anti-big government stance. Whereas the clean, hopeful, Shepard-Fairey vetted Obama campaign in 2008 was all the rage with Gen Y, Paul's more skeptical (even paranoid) approach is winning over young v ... More >>

Andrew Breitbart Was L.A.'s Implausible Native Son

How L.A.'s liberal Westside produced a fierce conservative provocateur

Andrew Breitbart's 5 Angriest Moments

In the two days since he collapsed dead near his home in Westwood -- likely from a heart attack -- conservative blogger and personality (and publisher and author and everything else) Andrew Breitbart, 43, has been praised for his Internet ingenuity and deep understanding of the media/the audience. ... More >>

Alex Weinschenker, Occupy L.A. Protester Behind 99% Bandana on Cover of TIME, Dies in Alleged Overdose

Though Occupy L.A. has always been firm about its status as a collective, not a group of individuals, some protesters have inevitably achieved more celebrity than the rest. The first and foremost being Sarah Mason, whose portrait at a Bank of America occupation ended up on the cover of TIME's "Prot ... More >>

Iron Comic at UCB: Like Iron Chef for Stand-Up Comics

"I'm glad I remembered the 'cum salad' story," is the first thing Greg Behrendt said backstage after "Iron Comic" at the UCB Theater on Saturday night. Fortunately, we are talking about comedy. Iron Comic is an improvisational stand-up competition created by Nato Green. Behrendt and four other cont ... More >>

Candida, and other New Theater Reviews . . .

Aaron Morgan"Candida," produced by Crysalis Stage at The Complex​Chrysalis Stage's revival of G.B. Shaw's Candida at The Complex nabbed this week's Pick of the Week. ​ Our critics also liked On Holy Ground with Salome Jens at the MET, in Hollywood. See here for all the latest New Theater Reviews ... More >>

Allan Munnecke's Charges Lifted by D.A. -- Rose Parade Official Arrested for Murder of Parade Volunteer Goes Free

L.A. County Sheriff's DepartmentMunnecke.​Richard Allan Munnecke, the ex-Rose Parade director suspected by sheriff's investigators of murdering a Rose Parade volunteer almost a decade ago, won't be prosecuted for the crime, says the L.A. County District Attorney's office. (At least for now.) ... More >>

Pomona College Caught in 'Wave of Anti-Immigrant Hysteria,' Says Professor

The illegal-immigration debate is on fire at Pomona College in far-east L.A. County. "You'd think that if any place was going to be a safe haven for immigrants, it would be at colleges and universities," says Peter Dreier, a professor at Occidental College in L.A. proper. "But that doesn't seem to ... More >>

Lou Reed on How His Attempt at Career Suicide, Metal Machine Music, Became an Art Show

Lou Reed is a rock & roll legend. That is an indisputable fact. And he doesn't bless Southern California with his downtown swagger very often. So when he takes part in a staged conversation, it is only fair that he gets to pick the subjects. Unfortunately for many who paid 45 bucks to hear Reed's ... More >>

Man on a Ledge Review

Wrong-man thriller goes thud

Should China Own the L.A. Subway?

Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa is getting desperate. His ambitious plan to squeeze 30 years of public-transit construction into a mere 10 -- by borrowing $10 billion or so from the federal government -- has been scoffed at and dismissed by Congressmembers for a few years now. But seeing as ... More >>

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa Screws Over L.A. With $100 Million Credit Bubble That Could Burst Once He Leaves Office

Los Angeles city leaders are apparently no more responsible or accountable than the self-serving Wall Street banksters who set up America to fall with an impossible Jenga tower of home loans. A new Los Angeles Times expose outlines a series of politically motivated, built-to-fail budget decisions b ... More >>

George Diller, Marine Vet at 'Occupy Long Beach,' Claims Police Brutality During Smoking Citation

Greggory Moore/Long Beach PostOfficer Dinsdale puts a Long Beach smoker in his place.​A brave few campers remain at Occupy Long Beach headquarters in Lincoln Park. Christopher Perkins, an organizer, counts maybe a dozen, tops. Every night at 10 p.m., when the park closes, they drag their tents ... More >>

Sarah Mason, TIME's Protester of the Year: More Photos, Details Behind Occupy L.A. Cover

UPISarah Mason, TIME covergirl sans beanie and bandana, far left.​Updated on second page with even more up-close shots of Mason -- these ones taken by Ted Soqui, the LA Weekly photographer behind the TIME cover. Originally posted December 15 at 4:40 p.m. Ah, the elusive Sarah Mason -- she of ... More >>

Arthur S. Rodríguez, Cesar Chavez's Grandson, Arrested in Occupy L.A. Raid: UFW 'Proud'

UFWArthur Rodriguez.​Arthur S. Rodriguez, the grandson of labor and civil rights leader Cesar Chavez, was arrested as part of the raid on the L.A. City Hall Occupy encampment last week. Arturo S. Rodriguez, his father and the president of the United Farm Workers group that Chavez made famous ... More >>

LAPD Info Posted by 'Anonymous' Hackers in Response to Occupy L.A. Raid

​Not everyone's buying L.A. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and LAPD Chief Charlie Beck's glowing review of police performance during last week's raid of Occupy L.A. A hacker group under Twitter handle @CabinCr3w just published the personal information of about two dozen LAPD officers on Tumblr. T ... More >>

Ho, Ho, Hoes? Garfunkel and Oates Have Our Number

Garfunkel and Oates​See also: Garfunkel & Oates Write Song about Greatest "Lost" Mystery: "Why Isn't There More Fucking On This Island?" Comedy-folk duo Garfunkel and Oates -- aka Riki Lindhome and Kate Micucci -- have blossing TV and film careers. But for the past three years they've been pe ... More >>

Jodie Foster's Ancient Father, or 'Bernie Madoff of Sherman Oaks,' to Be Jailed for Bad 1-Percent Behavior

radaronline.comLucias Foster, left -- the most resilient scammer alive.​Today's proceedings in Van Nuys Superior Court could not have gotten any weirder: Lucius Foster, the 89-year-old father of actress Jodie, was declared "guilty" of concocting a home-building scheme that leeched thousands ... More >>

Women! Comedy! Festival! at Room 101: Indie Improv Show Celebrates Female Comedians in L.A.

Steve LaPickle Duck, with Laura Davis (left) and Suzi Barrett​On a cold and windy Wednesday night, an army of female performers assembled at the Flight Theatre in Hollywood. The women were dispersed onstage, in the hallways and lobby doing various types of theater warmups. In one corner of the ... More >>

Music Picks: Digital Underground, Beady Eye, Erykah Badu

Also, Jane Birkin, Human Drama, Big Jay McNeely

Tyson Heder, Photojournalist Mauled by LAPD, Still in Jail After Occupy L.A. Raid; Others Allege Baton Brutality

Updated at the bottom with a photo of Heder's black eye. Update, 7 p.m.: According to the "Free Tyson Heder" Facebook group, his bail is set at $20,000 -- four times the standard $5,000 bail of the other protesters. Update, 5:30 p.m.: According to the City Attorney's Office, Tyson Heder (or Header ... More >>

Occupy Ports: L.A. Occupiers to Halt Sea Commerce for 'Day Without Goldman Sachs'

Though they've arguably got bigger things to worry about right now -- like where in the world they're going to live, come LAPD eviction -- Occupy L.A. organizers are chattering about another big day of action on December 12: Occupy Ports. (And they'll have to recuperate by January 2, when they plan ... More >>

Occupy L.A. and the Art World

A wave of art projects go hand in hand with the protest

The Zen of LAPD Chief Charlie Beck

Police top gun ignores pot smoking, finds his inner haiku at Occupy L.A.

Shepard Fairey Designs Wall for New District La Brea Shopping Complex

​ Wait, what? Is that Shepard Fairey putting up a mural in broad daylight on La Brea at 11 a.m.? The cops are going to stop him any second! Fairey is the street artist who rose to fame in 2008 when his Obama "Hope" poster became the emblem of an era, and was a major player in the 2010 Banksy ... More >>

MAKE US LAUGH, FUNNY BOY! BILL MAHER

Pavement Occupies L.A.: The Many Voices of the Movement (VIDEO)

Sam Slovick in front of his tent at City Hall​Sam Slovick is sleeping down at City Hall to report firsthand on Occupy L.A. For continued coverage, visit SamSlovick.com. There are many voices to be heard in the movement. The nightly general assembly meets on the south steps at 7:30pm where wid ... More >>

Kamala Harris, California's Top Cop, Pressured by Occupy Movement to Fry Big Banks Over Bad Home Loans

Kamala.​An activist platform that supports Occupy Wall Street is telling California Attorney General Kamala Harris to hold fast against pressure to make nice with major banks that allegedly committed fraud in their drive to sell home loans to folks who couldn't afford them. That, of course, l ... More >>

Occupy L.A. Comedy Show with Josh Androsky: This is What Democracy Yuks Like

Paul T. BradleyJosh Androsky's Occupy L.A. comedy: this is what democracy yuks like. ​ "I don't know man, whatever," a sullen and unfriendly guy spits out. I want to know when the Occupy L.A. comedy show is going to start. The sullen guy doesn't have an answer. This is at the information boot ... More >>

Union Workers Picket Hotel Bel-Air, Favorite Haunt of Hollywood Celebrities

Picketers outside the Hotel Bel Air​Several hundred union demonstrators picketed outside the Hotel Bel-Air this evening, calling on managers to rehire workers who were laid off when the hotel closed for renovations."They say go away! We say no way!" the protesters chanted. After a march down to Su ... More >>

Are Bands Really Asking Concert Photographers To Hand Over Their Copyrights?

Timothy NorrisTimothy Norris' shot of Dave Grohl at a Foo Fighters performance in 2007​The Foo Fighters perform at The Forum tomorrow and Friday, and while fans may be giddy, some concert photographers are less enthused. Our sister paper City Pages in Minneapolis recently published an article ... More >>

Kristen Chrstian: L.A. Gallery Owner Behind Bank Transfer Day Talks About Her Inspiration to Take Her Cash to a Credit Union

Courtesy Kristen Christian​She says it has nothing to do with Occupy L.A. and its Occupy Wall Street sister movement. Class warfare? Meh. Yet the timing of L.A. gallery owner Kristen Christian's idea couldn't have been better for those fed up with corporate banks that took billions in taxpaye ... More >>

City Council Unanimously Passes Occupy L.A. Resolution -- Protesters Struggle to Distance Themselves From Democrats, Unions

Los Angeles TimesCity Council President Eric Garcetti shows his support.​Just now, the L.A. City Council unanimously approved a joint resolution to officially "support" the Occupy L.A. demonstration and "demand accountability and results from the banks we invest taxpayer dollars in." (Full tex ... More >>

Occupy L.A. Now Allowed to Camp on City Hall Lawn: Why Are Politicians Sucking Up to Protesters?

Update: "City Council Unanimously Passes Occupy L.A. Resolution -- Protesters Struggle to Distance Themselves From Democrats, Unions." On Saturday night, the number of tents pitched outside L.A. City Hall had nearly doubled from the night before to 256, according to Joe Briones in the media tent. ... More >>

Class Warfare Reaches West Coast: 'Occupy L.A.' Demonstrations Over The Weekend

Occupy L.A. Facebook​The push-back on the economic crisis from the working class and the left has now reached the West Coast. The nearly two-week-strong movement called Occupy Wall Street -- a call to arms to point fingers at bailed-out investment bankers for the real estate meltdown and subs ... More >>