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Times profile of Jerry Vlasak
The spokesman for the Animal Liberation Front and founder, with his wife, of the Animal Defense League of Los Angeles works as a trauma surgeon in Riverside and lives in the Valley.
Back to school
Seven new campuses await the 418,000 (of 710,000) L.A. Unified students who return to school today. The rest go year-round.
Three deaths in weekend officer-involved shootings
Involving police In Pasadena, Los Angeles and Santa Monica.
AFTER THE JUMP: Those faux tourist trolleys might appear downtown, EAA's calming down a bit, reviewing Bruce Wagner and Arianna Huffington, the LAT and anthrax, Joel Stein and KZLA, and of course much more on the first day back.
Politics
Pushing trolleys for downtown
CRA study is due this week.
EAA changes its tune
Fresh off failing to shut down the city or bring the mayor back to the table, union chief Robert Aquino is toning down the rhetoric and trying to win over the County Fed.
Let the voters decide
Election law prof Rick Hasen says the courts should just let us vote on Measure R — the whole thing.
Antonio's trade rep
Andre Winston Lewis, appointed to restart the mayor's Office of International Trade and Development, tells Dan Laidman of Copley News that "the primary goal that I have is to just get the word out that the mayor is concentrating on international trade. Not just the Pacific Rim but Latin America and Europe, and we'd also like to start bringing a greater emphasis to Africa and even the Middle East."
Media
Bruce Wagner reviewed
His L.A. novel Memorial is critiqued by Michiko Kakutani in the NYT and Meghan Daum in the LAT. Take your pick.
Reviewing Arianna
Susan Salter Reynolds reads Arianna Huffington's new book, On Becoming Fearless … in Love, Work, and Life, and says she should "leave the personal growth business to professionals." Also: Variety's Deborah Vankin reviews Only Revolutions: A Novel by Mark Z. Danielewski.
Mendelson out?
Ron Fineman's On the Record hears that KCAL-9 will not renew the contract of business reporter Alan Mendelson.
Exorcised over terror exercise
A blog out of Pasadena called Dick Destiny is unhappy that the Los Angeles Times' weekend coverage of a mock terrorist attack seemed to regard the biological agent anthrax as a chemical.
Personal takes
Joel Stein misses KZLA too
Writes the Times columnist: "When they took away my country music station, I went through many emotions, only some of which had to do with the flag, pickup trucks, Jesus and how much better life used to be. I felt at a loss, disconnected from a part of me that's a little tougher, a little more earnest and a lot more made fun of by my friends. Sure, it's a bit of a pose for a guy from Jersey to be blasting Trace Adkins out of his yellow convertible Mini Cooper, but it makes me feel free. To my friends — who are fine when I play rap, jazz, classical, musicals and even that guy who willingly calls himself Stench — country is flat unacceptable: grating, stupid, déclassé. Which just made me feel more like an outlaw."
He wants a shrine to the original In-N-Out
Mark Kendall writes on the LAT op-ed page: "It could be old-fashioned, like the chain, with folksy docents serving up homespun stories. Or maybe actors would earnestly re-create the early days, when the Snyders and original business partner Charles Noddin endured "cold, smoggy nights" as they sold 2,000 burgers their first month, according to the book "The Heritage of Baldwin Park."
Noted
Inside Peyton Hall
Todd Everett blogs some stories from the razed Hollywood apartment house that was remembered in the Sunday LAT by Cecilia Rasmussen.
During the last few months of its existence, Peyton Hall proved ready for one last close-up. Director Paul Bartel was looking for a cheap location, and screenwriter Dick Blackburn had a friend whose apartment was about to be demolished. As a result, a good deal of the film Eating Raoul was filmed in Art Fein’s apartment.
Breakfast with the Beatles saved?
Host Chris Carter apparently said on the air Sunday that a new radio home will be announced this month or next.
End near for Dome Village
Ted Hayes talks to the Downtown News about being "homeless by choice" for 21 years and still claims that he's being persecuted for being a Republican.
Chutes Park
Nice history piece by Jay Berman on the turn-of-the-century amusement park and baseball stadium that used to stand at Grand and Washington near downtown.
Venice romance
Novelist Francesca Segrè, a former Reuters TV reporter, gets married in the NYT weddings and celebrations section to Bernard Chen, the founder of FlipClips.
Judea Pearl wins prize
The UCLA professor and father of murdered reporter Daniel Pearl splits the $100,000 Purposes Prize.
Today
Larry Mantle returns
Airtalk gets its regular host back and Michael Shermer of the Skeptics Society guests to talk about his book, Why Darwin Matters: The Case Against Intelligent Design. KPCC 10 am.
Around LA Observed
Earlier at News & Chatter
New on the blogs
LA Biz Observed: Novelty of powerful women
Native Intelligence: David Rensin blogs for his grandfather, and Denise Hamilton looks for the perfect L.A. epigraph
Chicken Corner: Fellowship Parkway, part II
Here in Malibu: Lone shark
We Get Email: On Robert Christgau and Westside rail transit
Native Intelligence: David Rensin blogs for his grandfather, and Denise Hamilton looks for the perfect L.A. epigraph
Chicken Corner: Fellowship Parkway, part II
Here in Malibu: Lone shark
We Get Email: On Robert Christgau and Westside rail transit
Our contributors
Jenny Price appeared on Saturday's "Off-Ramp" on KPCC to further explore the hidden Malibu beaches she wrote about at Native Intelligence.