Weekend shorts *

Updated through the weekend

Lesbian chic: Screenwriter and "L Word" creator Ilene Chaiken is profiled in Sunday's NYT Arts section. "In 1999, after writing a magazine article about same-sex couples with children, she pitched a drama based on her life as a lesbian mother in Los Angeles. 'There wasn't a shred of receptivity,' she recalled." Then it all changed. Also in the NYT: Weekend with the kids in Santa Monica.

And in the LAT: Sherry Lansing exit interview with Rachel Abramowitz in Calendar.

No sizzle: Bernard Parks' campaign had promise but hasn't taken off, Howard Fine writes in the L.A. Business Journal. The paper also has a short follow to our post on PR executive Alan Arkatov moving to Ron Rogers and Associates and clarification that, as rumored, Steve Getzug, formerly of Fleishman-Hillard, landed at Hill & Knowlton as senior vice president of the media group. And a report on the L.A. Times testing lighter-weight newsprint.

Sunday Opinion: No "Outside the Tent" this week. The cover made room for two essays and a Stan Mack cartoon strip, and looked pretty interesting. Click on the link to view the strip.

Ok, we get it: In Fishbowl LA's first week on the media gossip beat, the blog used the "L.A. Times is boring/nobody reads it" meme five times. Number of posts that linked to LAT stories: six. Nice on-the-ground report from the Sharon Waxman book signing.

Life & Times: The KCET magazine show begins its profiles of the mayoral candidates with Bernard Parks. Tuesday, 6:30 p.m.

Dave Eggers: The author most recently of How We Are Hungry: Stories guests on Tuesday's Bookworm with Michael Silverblatt. KCRW, 2:30 p.m.

New LAT blogger: "LA Times Addict" writes that "I've been a loyal Los Angeles Times reader for years. And in fact, it's hard to start my day without reading the paper first thing in the morning. But I've never really had an outlet for my opinions on The Times. Until Now. I created this blog to vent, comment, complain, endorse, congratulate, or just rant on whatever articles I see in the Times."