Everyday Living

Record "Thriller" Dance Attempted at L.A. Live

By Ed Fuentes — October 25, 2009 — 3 Comments

IMGP6539 Ed Fuentes

|Photo Gallery| The funk of forty thousand years invaded Nokia Plaza L.A. Live Saturday as 6,000 Michael Jackson fans performed the dance from "Thriller."

One part pop star homage, one part film promotion, the downtown mass dance was a coordinated global attempt to break the world record for most people simultaneously dancing to the pop tune. — Continued Inside...


Flowery Fire Escapes at the Hayward Uprooted in the Name of Safety

By Eric Richardson — October 22, 2009 — 20 Comments

Hayward Fire Escape Flowers Eric Richardson

Flower boxes on the fire escapes of the Hayward Hotel will be removed today, a seemingly simple bit of neighborhood beautification nixed by the Los Angeles Fire Department.

The department says that the boxes could impede its ladders, and is requiring that they be removed. — Continued Inside...


Old Bank DVD Goes Bigger, Better, Sexier?

By Eric Richardson — October 20, 2009
3 Comments

Old Bank DVD

The banner in the window of Old Bank DVD's new space on 4th street says the store is now "bigger... better... sexier..." That last bit may be a stretch -- it's still Erik Loysen and Mark Schumacher running the show after all -- but the new space in the San Fernando building is definitely an upgrade.


MJ Mania Continues: L.A. Live Participating in Global "Thriller" Dance

By Eric Richardson — October 15, 2009
8 Comments

Jackson Banner

Three days before the Michael Jackson documentary "This Is It" premieres at Nokia Theatre L.A. Live, MJ mania will again grip the entertainment complex as diehard fans make their way to Nokia Plaza to dance to Jackson's hit song "Thriller." The October 24 event is part of a global effort intended to break a world record for most simultaneous dancers to the song...


Little Barn's Play Space for Kids Opens Downtown

By Susana Benavidez — October 15, 2009 — 10 Comments

STH70967 Susana Benavidez

|Photo Gallery| Downtown Los Angeles might not immediately spring forth images of the Brady Bunch, but if you go to Grand Hope Park on Saturday mornings you will see a group of parents that refuse to move to the suburbs just because children joined the family portrait. The conversations range from scoring tickets to the Yo Gabba Gabba show at the Shrine in November to whether we will ever see a set of swings in downtown L.A.

We do now, thanks to Little Barn, a new play place that is bringing bright colors, a glow-lit ball pit room and life to a sleepy street at the edge of Downtown. — Continued Inside...


LAPD Search at Huntington Hotel Fails to Produce Assault Suspect

By Eric Richardson — October 06, 2009 — 5 Comments

Huntington Search Eric Richardson

(Updated 11am) The search for an assault suspect near the Huntington Hotel late Monday night involved more than a dozen LAPD units, including at least three K9 units and a helicopter.

Just after midnight, the suspect used bodily force to take $100 from a victim at 7th and Main. The suspect fled down Main into the Huntington and managed to elude a lengthy search. — Continued Inside...


Away from the Cameras, a Different View of Mission's Shoe Giveaway

By Eric Richardson — October 02, 2009 — 20 Comments

Trash outside the Fred Jordan Mission Eric Richardson

|Photo Gallery| On Thursday, the Fred Jordan Mission partnered with Foot Locker to give away thousands of pairs of shoes to needy children. It was a story that got heavy media attention, with news crews talking to families who spent the night on the streets to ensure their children got new shoes.

Just a block away on Friday, the attendees of a hastily-called meeting had a very different view of what had gone on. The scene outside the event was "pure chaos," said LAPD Captain Blake Chow. It was a "complete and utter disaster from many different perspectives," according to Central City East Association Executive Director Estela Lopez. Business owners expressed their anger at revenue lost when trucks and customers couldn't reach their front doors. — Continued Inside...


How Do Downtown's Two Ice Rinks Stack Up?

By Eric Richardson — October 02, 2009
12 Comments

DOWNTOWN ON ICE.jpg

Downtown's getting twice the outdoor ice action this winter, as a rink at L.A. Live joins "Downtown on Ice," now in its 12th year at Pershing Square. The news, first reported yesterday by the Downtown News, means a funding hole for Pershing Square. More importantly, though, it means that Downtowners face a new question: where are we going to skate this winter...


Kings to Kick Off New Season with Rocktoberfest

By Eric Richardson — October 02, 2009 — 2 Comments

Los Angeles Kings LA Kings/Bernstein Associates

The Los Angeles Kings look to kick their new season off with a bang on Saturday, hosting "Rocktoberfest" on Nokia Plaza before the team takes on the Phoenix Coyotes. The festivities outside the arena will offer music, activities and food.

Inside the arena, the Kings will rely on a young core and some off-season acquisitions to hopefully lead the team to the playoffs for the first time since 2002. — Continued Inside...


Rumors or Truth? Stories Spread about Death at the Alexandria

By Ed Fuentes — October 01, 2009
2 Comments

On September 12, an elderly man was found dead in his 5th floor room at the Hotel Alexandria. From that basic fact, a pair of stories begin to diverge. One is fantastic, the other ordinary. Where better than the halls of the noirish 1904 hotel for such stories to start?