FRIDAY, August 17

From the Just-Trust-Us-and-Go Department: When lady comics Karen Kilgariff and Laura Milligan do anything together, you know it’s going to be clever and funny as all get-out (whatever the hell that means). These two always go the extra creative mile, and for The L.A. River Anthology, the pair is joined by Ed Crasnick, Jen Kirkman, Frank Conniff, Eddie Pepitone and others for a spoof of The Spoon River Anthology with a show-biz bent themed “Our Dreams Are Just Dead on the Inside.” You’re practically guaranteed up to eight laughs a minute, followed by a desire to kill yourself. The Fake Gallery, 4319 Melrose Ave., L.A.; Fri., Aug. 17, 9 p.m.; $10. (323) 661-0786.

SATURDAY, August 18

Imagine if they stopped having the Sunset Junction. Would we all get sentimental about all the great times we had trudging the hot-as-hell asphalt past food trucks selling yucky kebabs and greasy pad Thai? Would we long to withstand near-riots to see bands like Sonic Youth, Sleater-Kinney, L7 and X perform with a crappy sound system? Everybody loves to say how the Sunset Junction fest brings together Latin families, punk rockers and leather daddies. But ever since they started the $15 admission, the games and rides for kids sit woefully empty, and even the leather-daddy quotient has been squeezed out by the alterna-kids and their ironic T-shirts. So, will we still go to Sunset Junction 2007? Sure. Why? The Buzzcocks are playing. I’m sure this time they won’t run out of beer and everything will run on time and the sound system will be great and no riots will break out and everything will be peace and love and Buzzcocks. The Buzzcocks!!! 3900 to 4300 Sunset Blvd., Silver Lake; Sat., Aug. 18, 10 a.m.-11 p.m.; Sun., Aug. 19, 10 a.m.-10 p.m.; $15, $12 in advance at www.ticketweb.com.

Fiesta Argentina 2007: Tangos de Ayer y de Hoy promises “a total immersion in Argentine culture.” With Buenos Aires’ Tanghetto, Pablo Motta and his Los Angeles Tango Quartet, and the Otero Dance Company. Free tango lessons and Argentine food for sale complete the experience. Ford Amphitheatre, 2580 Cahuenga Blvd. East, Hlywd.; Sat., Aug. 18, 8 p.m.; $42 & $35, $12 students & children under 12. (323) 461-3673.

SUNDAY, August 19

The following is not a joke: Ramones drummer Richie Ramone joins the Pasadena Pops Orchestra for a program that includes Buddy Rich’s orchestrated interpretation of Leonard Bernstein’s musical West Side Story. The evening will also feature other music from 1957, including the theme from Peyton Place, The Music Man and The Treasure of the Sierra Madre. The whole shebang is titled Richie Ramone, 76 Trombones and More. Also, actor J.D. Cullum reads The Cat in the Hat. Richie, you may recall, wrote the Ramones’ hit “Somebody Put Something in My Drink,” which, when you think about it, may have been what West Side Story’s Tony was singing about in “Something’s Coming.” What would Joey say? Maybe “I feel pretty, oh so pretty.” Descanso Gardens, 1418 Descanso Dr., La Cañada–Flintridge; Fri.-Sat., Aug. 17-18, 7:30 p.m.; Sun., Aug. 19, 7 p.m.; $20-$85. (626) 792-7677, Ext. 217.

MONDAY, August 20

Come for a new hose attachment; leave with the world’s most expensive and elaborate home lap-pool/Jacuzzi/sauna system known to man: The 53rd Annual Southern California Home & Garden Show. Anaheim Convention Center, 800 W. Katella Ave., Anaheim; Sat., 10 a.m.-9 p.m.; Sun., 10 a.m.-6 p.m.; Mon.-Thurs., 2-8 p.m.; Fri., noon-9 p.m.; Aug. 18-26; $10, $8 seniors. (714) 765-8950; www.southerncaliforniahomeshow.com.

TUESDAY, August 21

The way Manu Chao brings a punked-up barrage of musical influences to his live shows is akin to the pumping energy of El Gran Silencio, the hottest thing to come out of Monterrey, Mexico, since blown glass. Last year’s Comunicaflow Underground continues the group’s exhilarating and melodic punk/rock/hip-hop/folk/ska/polka assault. House of Blues, 8430 Sunset Blvd., W. Hlywd.; Tues., Aug. 21, 8 p.m.; $20-$22.50. (323) 848-5100.

WEDNESDAY, August 22

When the tag line says it better than anyone ever could: “300 years old! Human blood keeps them alive forever!” Ladies and gentlemen, Horror Hotel and, not to be outdone in this British horror double feature, “Can a Beautiful Woman Be Enslaved Against Her Will?” Find out in Devil Doll (1964). The horror! American Cinematheque at the Egyptian Theatre, 6712 Hollywood Blvd., Hlywd.; Wed., Aug. 22, 8 p.m.; $10. (323) 466-FILM.

THURSDAY, August 23

Corteo is the name of the latest Cirque du Soleil spectacle. Here’s the premise: A clown imagines his own funeral in the form of an imaginative parade. You’ve probably had the same dream, but maybe without the New Age music. The Forum, Manchester & Prairie aves., Inglewood; Tues.-Thurs., 8 p.m.; Fri.-Sat., 4 & 8 p.m.; Sun., 1 & 5 p.m.; thru Sept. 23; $55-$90, $49.50-$81 students & seniors, $38.50-$63 children ages 2 to 12. (800) 678-5440 or cirquedusoleil.com.

Advertising disclosure: We may receive compensation for some of the links in our stories. Thank you for supporting LA Weekly and our advertisers.