FRIDAY, October 3

Face it, you should probably read “Best of L.A.” and traipse over to as many of the food joints, shops and bars as you can in 24 hours before they get overrun and ruined. But you only have a limited time to catch Freak Dance: The Forbidden Dirty Boogaloo. The Weekly praised Matt Besser’s “comic book satire of self-righteous programs claiming to use the arts to get kids off drugs” for its “dance-bulge codpieces.” What more do you need? How about snazzy breakdancing and a dance contest? Upright Citizens Brigade, 5919 Franklin Ave., Hollywood; Fri., Oct. 3, 8 p.m.; $10. (323) 908-8702.

 

SATURDAY, October 4

Erik Davis is a scholarly Burning Man type — indigenous to Northern California — who’s done extensive work in the history of technology and society. Along with writing a book entirely on Led Zeppelin’s fourth album and being a Philip K. Dick expert, Davis authored TechGnosis: Myth, Magic and Mysticism in the Age of Information. He’ll lead Esotouric’s Visionary Hollywood Tour of mystical historical sites in L.A. Stops include the Aetherius Society, Krotona Apartments, Sister Aimee Semple McPherson’s Parsonage and the Vedanta Society of Southern California. L. Ron Hubbard’s Scientology Celebrity Center not included. Bodhi Tree, 8585 Melrose Ave., West Hollywood; Sat., Oct. 4, 11 a.m.-3:30 p.m.; $64, includes mystical snacks. (323) 223-2767 or www.esotouric.com.

 

SUNDAY, October 5

There is an overwhelming amount of free cultural offerings today — so much to choose from that you may just want to stay in bed all day. We have Museums Free-for-All Weekend 2008 with 24 museums not charging for admission. Basically, it’s every major museum in town except for Huntington Gardens. Do not go to Huntington Gardens today. Sat.-Sun., Oct. 4-5. www.museumsla.org.

Also free and cultural, though not as air-conditioned, is the NoHo Scene. For years, NoHo has wanted so-o-o-o-o badly to be your No. 1 artsy-neighborhood destination. Won’t you sample its music, dance, theater, improv and acting workshops, boutiques and more? There will be a food-and-wine garden, artists village and Kids Scene. Hooray for North Hollywood! NoHo Arts District, Lankershim Blvd. between Magnolia Blvd. and Hesby St., North Hollywood; Sun., Oct. 5, 11 a.m.-8 p.m.; free. (818) 980-NOHO.

 

MONDAY, October 6

Be the first on your block, or gated community, to see The Secret Life of Bees. The screening, part of Reel Talk with Stephen Farber, concludes with a talk by writer-director Gina Prince-Bythewood, at which point you will be a big cinematic know-it-all who can impress the rest of us at the water cooler the next day. Wadsworth Theatre, on the Veterans Administration grounds, 11301 Wilshire Blvd., West L.A.; Mon., Oct. 6, 7 p.m.; $20. (213) 365-3500.

 

TUESDAY, October 7

Once upon a time, the literary douche-baggy types who love to fawn over newly discovered Bukowski Juniors found a new star in a waifish writer named JT LeRoy, who told interviewers about his druggy, homeless-prostitute past. The thing was, however, that Jeremiah “Terminator” LeRoy was really this chick named Laura Albert, who wrote such “autobiographical” novels as The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things and Sarah, among several others. Albert enlisted her pal Savannah Knoop to play the part of LeRoy. All kinds of celebrities — Carrie Fisher, Marilyn Manson, Gus Van Sant, Winona Ryder — became fans/dupes. Now Knoop has a book called Girl Boy Girl: How I Became JT LeRoy, which takes the sleazy factor to a whole new level. Even Albert has said Knoop’s book “disgusts” her. The whole charade was pretty genius, so I feel it’s time to reveal that “Libby Molyneaux” is really Dickie Swisher, a 72-year-old blue-blood Republican from La Jolla who is voting for McCain. Go, Sarah Palin! You rock! Ha, ha, L.A. Weekly! The joke is on you! Knoop signs at Book Soup (which is fun to say), 8818 Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood; Tues., Oct. 7, 7 p.m.; free, book is $17.95. (310) 659-3110.

 

WEDNESDAY, October 8

Puppet-heads are already getting major wood for the first-ever Santa Monica Puppetry Festival, brought to us by Steve Meltzer of Puppetolio! (seen elsewhere in this issue — man, who does he know?). The fest opens today with a reception and display of puppets from the film Lili. Highlights over the coming days include screenings of films featuring iconic puppetry work, live puppet theater with ventriloquist Dan Horn, a performance by Mallory Lewis & Lamb Chop (she’s Shari’s daughter), plus a very special appearance by Lili star Leslie Caron. Various locations; Oct. 8-12. www.­santamonicapuppetryfestival.com.

 

THURSDAY, October 9

Every two years, Freewaves raises its big, arty head and presents ambitious multilocation creative offerings of the global-art variety. No idea what that means? Try being Freewaves publicist Lynn Hasty. “Since there is a lot going on — both event/location-wise and theme/intention-wise — it is a complex festival for folks to quickly digest.” Fortunately, this year, the festival is streamlined, sticking to all things Tinseltown, calling itself Hollywould. There are five days, each with a theme, showcasing 160 experimental video and film works, Web sites and video billboards, all of them unconventional. Just go. Forty venues in Hollywood; Oct. 9-13. www.freewaves.org/hollywould.

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