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LAPD crime maps go interactive (left)...It's going to be cold and windy today...Praising Brokeback despite the Oscar upset...blocking traffic for the mayor...questions but few answers about Herb Wesson Jr....reviews of Ask the Dust...and the Galazy's GM dies suddenly. Those items, and a new look for the Morning Buzz, after you turn the page...
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Graphic: LAPD crime map
♦ Looking for the front pages?: The Los Angeles Times, New York Times, Daily News and eight other papers are now found here. Bookmark it.
♦ LAPD Online refreshes: The LAPD website adds customizable crime maps, and soon will have a blog.
Kimberly Brooks, founder of Lightray, which developed the mapping and e-policing service, said the crime data run about a week behind. But soon lag time will be slashed to one day, she said....Realtors in other cities have been up in arms over house buyers' redlining neighborhoods based on possibly misleading blips in crime. But Bratton said that doesn't worry him. "The reality is what the reality is," he said. "The reality is that in large parts of the city, it is a good reality. But it is unfortunate certain areas of the city have more than their fair share of crime. But it is not a big secret."
♦ Are you cold?: The National Weather Service issued a Hazardous Weather Outlook for L.A. due to the Arctic air mass a-coming.
"Very cold windy weather will grip Southern California Friday through Sunday. Snow levels as low as 2000 feet creating driving hazards over passes and canyons as well as foothills. Strong winds will create hazardous wind chills as well as increase the hazards of
driving. Wind chills...snow...blowing snow will create deadly hazards for people in the mountains."
♦ They can't quit: Members of a web forum devoted to Brokeback Mountain say they have an ad running in today's Variety congratulating the film for "transforming countless lives." Author and journalist Dave Cullen explains.
♦ Official gridlock: Traffic on Main Street downtown was disrupted for ten minutes so Mayor Villarigosa could introduce his new transportation chief, whose job it will be to reduce traffic jams.
♦ Smells fishy: Councilman Herb Wesson's son received $30,000 from a supposedly independent political committee, and the LAT finds the questions only mount from there.
When interviewed last week, Herb Wesson III would not specifically describe what he did for the money or for whom he worked beyond saying that he provided "advice and some relationship-building." And the person whom state disclosure forms identify as president of the Committee for a Better California said he didn't know anything about the payment — or that he was listed as the top officer.
♦ Late and wrong: LA Observed reported Wednesday that Ann Marie Tallman had resigned as president and legal counsel of MALDEF. The Times catches up to the news today, and still manages to spell her name wrong.
♦ Reviews of Ask the Dust: Robert Towne's take on the John Fante novel opens today, with Salma Hayek (and faux 1930s L.A.) looking fantabulous.
"A requiem for a city and those who escape its gilded clutches...." Manohla Dargis, NYT
"Thirty years of gestation have produced a film of great beauty with unfulfilled promise — a disappointment, but with much to recommend and be glad about..." Kevin Crust, LAT
"Thirty years of gestation have produced a film of great beauty with unfulfilled promise — a disappointment, but with much to recommend and be glad about..." Kevin Crust, LAT
♦ Death in the family: Doug Hamilton, president and general manager of the Galaxy, died after apparently suffering a heart attack at the beginning of a flight home from a Champions Cup match in Costa Rica. He was 43.
♦ Winning isn't everything: Despite the Oscar, Crash producer Cathy Schulman is broke.
"I have the interesting distinction of having made five movies in a row without ever being paid," she tells Anne Thompson of The Hollywood Reporter. "I can't pay my bills."
♦ Just wondering: Is the in-house tribute to Otis Chandler still going on at the Times? Scheduled for an hour, it was going strong after three hours. Meanwhile, the LA Weekly notices a resemblance to Steve Canyon.
♦ Services: A memorial for author Octavia Butler will be held Saturday at Lincoln Avenue Baptist Church in Pasadena; a tribute to Willie Grace Campbell will be March 18 at the California Club downtown.