Archive: Video

Entries in this category going back awhile
 

Where in LA Kristen Stewart drives in 'Ride Em on Down' video

kristen-stewart-dtla.jpg Every location, in order, researched by reader Don Bentley and his brother.

California Incline redo in timelapse

santa-monica-sign-incline.jpg The crucial transportation link in Santa Monica reopens today after being closed for more than a year.

Downtown LA in 1946 (video)

1946-film-grab.jpg This training film for parking officers shows a lot of downtown street scenes.

Very nice photo fly-over of Los Angeles by drone (video)

bullocks-wilshire-drone.jpg Quad-copter pilot-photographer Ian Wood is back with another breathtaking video of Los Angeles from the air -- including of the Bullock's Wilshire tower.

Cantor's call of Carli Lloyd's long goal (video)

uswnt-locker-room-fifa.jpg On Telemundo, Andres Cantor took a couple of breaths to draw out for 38 seconds his call of the midfield goooooal! in the U.S. rout of Japan.

Motorcycle head-on with fire truck in Angeles Forest on GoPro

glendora-ridge-motorcycle-grab.jpg A motorcycle rider named Jesse Lopez was cruising with friends on Glendora Ridge Road in the Angeles National Forest when he collided head-on with a fire truck. The GoPro...

Found video: Downtown LA in color in 1946

Screen Shot 2015-05-08 at 12.23.42 PM.jpg Fun stock footage posted on the Internet Archive. Clifton's, the Golden Gopher, the Rialto and other theaters make appearances.
beyond-cover.jpg The video is not only safe for work, it's safe for children. "Can I get a little censorship outrage here?" the publisher of Pasadena's Prospect Park Books asks.

Susannah Hoffs of the Bangles sings karaoke in DTLA bar (video)

hoffs-karaoke.jpg Oh why not? Compliments of New York Magazine's Vulture site.

No blurred lines: Marvin Gaye and friends in 60s videos

marvin-gaye-grab.jpg Choose your poison: the Hullabaloo Dancers or the Gazzarri Dancers?

Michael Milken pitches Latinos as economic force (video)

milken-grab-lamag.jpg "The future of California is tied to the future of the Latino community in California," he tells Los Angeles Magazine. "If we don't make capital available to people with ability...our country is poorer."

Vin Scully offers career advice to Zev Yaroslavsky (video)

scully-zev-grab.jpg Here is the video I mentioned the other day of Vin Scully's amusing send-off to termed-out county Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky. Also: A longer video celebrating Yaroslavsky.

Derek Jeter walks off in final at-bat at Yankee Stadium (video)

jeter-at-ss.jpg A blown save let Derek Jeter come up in the bottom of the ninth inning with the winning run on base. One pitch later, the Yankees have the win and the Jeter legend adds a final paragraph.

Original, intact model of Garden of Allah located in the Valley*

garden-of-allah-model.jpg Alison Martino's Vintage LA community on Facebook has turned up another gem. It has been seen before, but check out the video.

John Lennon for Tower Records on the strip (video)

tower-records-circa-1988.jpg Lennon taped a promotional spot for the Tower Records store on Sunset Strip in 1974, reportedly while in studio at KHJ radio.
krenwinkel-nyt-videograb.jpg Krenwinkel, now 66, has been in prison for 45 years for her part in the Manson family murders. She appears on video for the first time since 1994.

30 years ago: Joan Benoit enters the Coliseum (video)

joan-benoit-chinn.jpg My favorite moment of the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics came on the first Sunday of the games. Turn up the sound and listen to the roar of the crowd. Plus: Who can forget Gabriela Andersen-Schiess finishing the women's marathon.

30 years ago today: 'Rhapsody in Blue' in the Coliseum

1984-opening-ceremony.jpg During the opening ceremony of the Los Angeles Olympic Games, a dramatic moment came when 84 grand pianos appeared in the peristyle of the Coliseum and began to play George Gershwin.

Kings fans greet team at airport (video)

kings-lax-grab.jpg The Kings clinching win last night was stirring enough to the fan base that a lot of them were on the Imperial Highway side of LAX when the Kings got back from San Jose this morning.

Italian fashion models base-jump from cliffs (video)

base-jumping-models.jpg "This is probably one of the coolest videos you’ll see all week: ridiculously attractive people jumping from ridiculously dangerous heights," says website.

Sid Caesar and Carl Reiner: 'This is Your Story' (video)

Caesar and Reiner spoof another popular staple of 1950s TV, "This is Your Life."

KNBC says farewell to Burbank with backstage looks (videos)

colan-knbc-newsroom.jpg Conan Nolan, the host of "News Conference" on NBC 4, goes behind the scenes with a camera on the final show before the station moves a few miles onto the lot at Universal City.

Seth Meyers signs off 'SNL' with the help of some friends (video)

poehler-meyers-snl.jpg Amy Poehler: "Seth, we are here to take you to the other side."

Oahu's Pipeline observed by drone (video)

pipeline-grab-sterman.jpg This might be the most beautiful surfing video you have seen (and heard.) Meanwhile, the National Weather Service warns of very big waves on all of Hawaii's islands this week.

Dave McCoy and the quick story of Mammoth Mountain (video)

Thumbnail image for MammothNov. 4 .jpg Dave McCoy, the former city of Los Angeles hydrographer in the Sierras who founded the Mammoth Mountain ski area, is now 98 years old.

3-minute Rose Parade (time lapse)

rose-parade-time-lapse.jpg Los Angeles News Group photographer Dean Musgrove mounted his iPhone in front of the Star-News building in Pasadena and shot the passing Rose Parade. Quickly.

TV reporter faints on the air - but keeps on reporting! (video)

brooke-graham-faints-grab.jpg "This is not the first time I have passed out cold," KUTV's Brooke Graham blogs cheerily. "I am known to faint any time I am in high altitudes and get too cold. (So does my twin sister Britt)."

Elk versus photographer (video)

elk-photog.jpg "When he lowered his antlers to me, I wanted to keep my vitals protected and my head down."

David Folkenflik and me on Rupert Murdoch for Zócalo (video)

Folkenflik-and-Roderick-600x467.jpg The media correspondent for NPR calls Murdoch “the most influential and important media figure in the English-speaking world." We talk about Murdoch's motivations, the trial of his former executives in London and the LA Times.
county-fd-motorcycle.jpg It is what the headline says it is. County fire used to use motorcycles to get around.

Driving on Devonshire Street in the Valley 1940 (video)

Thumbnail image for oakie-house-dn.jpg Kinda cool if you know the west San Fernando Valley today as just suburban sprawl and Devonshire Street as a six-lane boulevard. Devonshire in 1940 was a rural state highway through the horse ranches of Northridge and Chatsworth.
moon-zappa-valley-girl-grab.jpg It's '80s night at LA Observed. Moon Zappa does the full version of her odd little hit with father Frank, "Valley Girl," on "Solid Gold." Yes, the Zappas were Valley people.

In honor of the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium (video)

Santa-Monica-Civic-Auditorium-oscars.jpg Oscars ceremonies, Roller Games, cat shows and school concerts are part of the auditorium's legacy, but it's the T.A.M.I Show in 1964 that might be the most enduring memory — at least on film. And no performance measures up to James Brown's.

Above the inversion layer on Mt. Wilson (video)

above-inversion-mt-wilson.jpg While the Mount Wilson web cam is out of service, you can get your fix of local mountain scenery with this video, "Above the Inversion Layer."

History of the Eagles released on disc (video)

eagles-grab.jpg The Eagles, started in Los Angeles in 1971 by Glenn Frey, Don Henley, Bernie Leadon, and Randy Meisner, grew out of the Linda Ronstadt, David Geffen, Troubadour club association that wrote several chapters of the future history of the music business. Capitol Record is releasing the "History of the Eagles" documentary that aired earlier this year on Showtime. Trailer inside.

Chloe Sevigny 'hates' LA like a New Yorker (video)

chloe-sevigny-moca-grab.jpg In this film made for MOCA TV, Chloe Sevigny bitches about everything in LA and pees in front of the camera — it's amusing and moreso when the twists occur at the end.

Boston hockey fans sing the national anthem (video) *

boston-national-anthem.jpg Wednesday night's Boston Bruins game, first since the Boston Marathon bombings. As the Hawaiians say, chicken skin.

Inside the Hall of Justice renovations (video)

hall-of-justice-019.jpg The county has produced a nice video showing the restoration work going on inside the long-vacant Hall of Justice in Downtown Los Angeles. The sheriff's department and the DA will move back in when work is done in 2014, assuming all goes well.

What became of Lindsey Jacobellis (video)

The American snowboardcross champion who fell at the Vancouver Olympics (and disappointed some in the media) is doing just fine. Jacobellis lives at the beach in Encinitas now.

Trailer for 'The Wrecking Crew' (video)

wreckingcrewlogo.jpg Here's the trailer for Danny Tedesco's 2008 documentary on the famed Hollywood session musicians dubbed The Wrecking Crew, screening on Saturday night at the Saban Theatre followed by a Q-A with musicians from the era.

Kimmel calls on America to pray for freezing LA (video)

Temperatures have plunged into the 40s and the local news is freaking out.

Beatles party in 1964: now more video *

beatles-color-beck-telegrap.jpg Raw news footage from 1964 shows the teenage frenzy and celebrity arrivals outside the private party held for the Beatles during their first trip to Los Angeles. Also: we have a new venue for the event.

Video: Exhibit of items newly found in Frida Kahlo's closet

In this Univision video in English, the curator of a new show at the Frida Kahlo Museum in Mexico City explains the colorful dresses, other clothing and body harnesses found 58 years after the artist's death.

Dog skateboards on Venice Beach boardwalk

Happy holidays from Venice Beach.

When the mob learned to love rock and roll

peppermint-twist-cover.jpg Los Angeles journalist John Johnson and his co-author, Joel Selvin, have finished "Peppermint Tiwst," their book on the nightclubs where the mob discovered through "The Twist" that there was money in rock and roll music. "The Sopranos meets American Bandstand," Ronnie Spector blurbs. With some fun video.

Video window: Leonard Cohen, 'Suzanne'

leonard-cohen-grab.jpg Leonard Cohen returns to Los Angeles Monday night for a show at the Nokia Theatre. Here's a taste from his London concert on July 17, 2008. I don't know who the bandmates are, but the voices of the angels are Sharon Robinson, Charley Webb and Hattie Webb.

Time travel video: Googie coffee shops of LA

Six-minute clip from Harry Pallenberg looks at the rise of Googie coffee shop architecture around Los Angeles. Included are old clips of Astro Burger, the old Carnation building on Wilshire Boulevard, a Van de Kamps drive-in, Ship's, Norm's, Pann's and an interview Googie architect Eldon Davis.

Time travel: Kelly Lange, Paul Moyer and Zzyzx

Young (OK, very young) versions of the former KNBC 4 stalwarts and a feature story on the Mojave Desert landmark.

Video: Does your Asian mom in the 626 vote?

A comedic message from the Fung Brothers urging Asian Americans in the San Gabriel Valley to vote.

Video: Eagle owl at 1,000 frames per second

eagle-owl-grab.jpgAn eagle owl flying toward a camera at 1,000 frames a second.

Before there was Art Walk there was the Young Turks

young-turks-logo.jpg In the late 1970s, performance artist Stephen Seemayer used an 8mm movie camera to film the artists who were starting to inhabit Downtown, "before skyscrapers, MOCA and loft living." His 1981 documentary, "Young Turks," has been re-cut with Pamela Wilson using found footage of Al's Bar, Pino's Tropical Paradise, the Atomic Cafe and other landmarks of the Downtown art scene that no longer exist. Watch the trailer inside.

Video time travel: Los Angeles circa 1969, in French

This three-minute video from French television "is almost haunting in its poetic but spare portrayal of what was then seen as the city of the future." Via The Atlantic Cities.

Video: Kittens invade KCRW


The pledge pitches in public radio are getting more creative all the time. Watch bigger.

Video: Filming location for 'The Office'

This is a few years old. But with producers announcing the end of "The Office" after next season, here's a look back at a clip of LA Observed video showing the filming location on Saticoy Street. A little taste of Scranton (and Dunder Mifflin) in industrial Van Nuys.

Video: Rosendahl thanks all for support on his cancer

"Millions of us have hit this obstacle over the last ten years," Councilman Bill Rosendahl says of his cancer. "We're optimistic about this." He also plans to make a video with the mayor candidates.

I Files: New investigative reporting YouTube channel

The Center for Investigative Reporting in Berkeley will curate the new YouTube channel, billed as "a hub of the best investigative reporting from around the world." It's funded by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. Video contributions are expected from ABC News, BBC, The New York Times, Al-Jazeera and others.

WSJ puts the bad in badminton

"NBC paid over $1 billion to broadcast the London Olympic Games. The Wall Street Journal paid...less than that."...

I'm sure Grand Park is nice, but let's not forget

zooey-grab.jpg The former park wasn't heavily used, but It was a nice spot for Joseph Gordon-Levitt's character to celebrate bedding Zooey Deschanel's Summer in "(500) Days of Summer."

Bunker Hill in 1965: Dick Clark and the Turtles

Dick Clark points out the DWP building and the new Music Center, then the Turtles play "You Baby" on the Grand Avenue sidewalk with City Hall in the background, in a clip from "Where the Action Is."

Rhino Records, the video, needs your help

rhino-popup-poster.jpg Keith Shapiro grew up in Pittsburgh listening to Dr. Demento talk about a magical place in LA's Westwood called Rhino Records. Now he's making a movie. Check out the video.

Time lapse of Levitated Mass installation

Just 48 seconds — kind of fun to watch the transformation of LACMA's back lawn into the city's newest outdoor gathering spot.

Stanley Cup glow continues in LA

cup-dodger-stadium.jpg Kings and the Cup at Dodger Stadium, the best video of the Kings celebrating the Cup, and more.

Kings captain Dustin Brown receives the Stanley Cup

By hockey tradition, the captain is the first to accept the Stanley Cup. Dustin Brown takes the Cup from National Hockey League Commissioner Gary Bettman. After skating with the Cup, Brown handed it to Willie Mitchell, the team's veteran defenseman and the survivor of a serious concussion.

Video for Kings: Now go out there and take it, boys

rizzo-screen-grab.jpg Coach Rizzo urges his team to win the biggest game of their hockey lives. Watch

LAO behind the scenes: Grauman's Chinese

Take a look backstage, in Sid Grauman's private VIP box and around the gorgeous auditorium of Hollywood's (and probably the world's) best-known movie palace. Public tours by the Los Angeles Historic Theatre Foundation continue on Sunday morning.

Fans greet Kings at LAX in the middle of the night

I understand the emotion of Kings nation, and the passion of hockey fans generally. Still, I'm surprised by this turnout. Click to watch.

Time lapse: Weekend at Staples Center

Between Thursday and Sunday, the Kings, Lakers and Clippers played six games in 72 hours before 110,000 fans at Staples Center. That's tough on the arena staff. Getty Images put together a time lapse of the weekend.

Runaway construction in Laurel Canyon

jackie-fox-video-grab.jpg Residents of Grand View Drive in Laurel Canyon are mad as hell about a "scofflaw" builder who has already mansionized one lot on the street and started work on two other parcels. They have banded together to make an effective and informative video — and have a little piece of local rock and roll history in their film.

Video: Sam Rubin on Dick Clark's memorial service

sam-rubin-screen-crop.jpgSam Rubin at KTLA Channel 5 says the private memorial service for Dick Clark yesterday in Malibu was amazing. "I found the whole thing so very moving, so heartfelt, that I asked the family if I could talk about it after the fact on TV. I did so on KTLA this morning."

Riding the Expo Line to USC 'just magical'

USC professor of physics and astronomy Clifford Johnson has been waiting for a train line to campus. He's been known to pedal his bike to USC and to ride transit all over Los Angeles. On Saturday he finally rode the Expo Line and shot a video.

Silver Lake Badminton and Adventurers Club solves the crime

fernando-fernando-clue.jpg "In a world full of secrets, lies, and depravity, there are some crimes that the police are just too mainstream to handle. Enter: The Silver Lake Badminton and Adventurers club. The heros Silver Lake deserves but hasn't necessarily heard of yet."

Video: Checking in on Libros Schmibros

libros-schmibros-mariachi-grab.jpg Journalist Steve Saldivar has posted a nice video story on David Kipen and his Boyle Heights lending library and pay-what-you-can used bookshop, newly relocated in a storefront at Mariachi Plaza on 1st Street.

Watch an iPad get made in the Chinese factory

foxconn-schmitz.JPGMarketplace Shanghai Bureau Rob Schmitz got inside the giant Foxconn complex in China where Apple's devices are made. First off, he says, don't call it a factory.

Investigative reporting comes to YouTube

The Center for Investigative Reporting in Berkeley just announced that it will be launching an investigative news channel on YouTube with $800,000 in support from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. "One of the goals of this partnership will be to raise the profile and visibility of high impact story telling through video," says CIR executive director Robert J. Rosenthal.

Video: Ron Paul wows 'em at UCLA

Paul attracted a healthy crowd of about 5,000 for Wednesday night's rally in the tennis stadium on campus.

Hitchcock's 'Rear Window' - the three-minute re-cut

Jeff Desom's time-lapse video uses only the actual footage from Alfred Hitchcock's classic "Rear Window," set to "Hungarian Dance No. 5" by Brahms.

Watch Lindsay Lohan age 25 years in 74 seconds

Drugs, partying and age — plus to be fair, the things she has seen in a few hours in jail and several weeks at the county morgue that most of us haven't — have taken a toll on Lindsay Lohan's face.

Leonard Cohen soundcheck *

Nice informal footage of Leonard Cohen rehearsing in Ghent, Belgium with his band and the angelic accompaniment of the tour's two backup singers from Ojai, Julie Christensen and Perla Batalla.

Video: Be careful who you give an iPad

German dad helps out with the cooking.

Video: A better day to be at the Apple store

Maybe it's just me, but I'd prefer to be there on the day the hula flash mob drops in.

Shout out to KCRW's music from unexpected source

LA Kings players like NPR and call out "Morning Becomes Eclectic" on KCRW.

Video: 'The biggest international motion picture of all time'

"Casa de mi Padre," starring Gael-Garcia Bernal, Diego Luna, Genesis Rodriguez "and introducing Will Ferrell"

Dujardin brings home his Oscar statuette

Video: Jean Dujardin arrives at Charles de Gaulle with his best actor Oscar for "The Artist," em português.

In love with the sound of vinyl at KCRW

Nice video piece by KCRW's Saul Gonzalez and Michael Garber on the resurgence of a market for vinyl records.

Video: How many ways can you say 'Joe Buscaino'?

For Los Angeles City Councilman Joe Buscaino's inaugural party in San Pedro on Saturday, the other members of the City Council butcher his name for fun on video.

KCRW launches YouTube video channel

KCRW music director Jason Bentley introduces The Cue, a channel that sounds like it will be used to curate videos from around the web.

Video: Car crash on live TV

The Florida newscasters don't seem cool under pressure as much as....oblivious? Not a bad line by the in-studio anchor about high gas prices.

Video: Fighting with LA's sidewalks

From the Daily News, an 80-year-old woman in a wheelchair tries to get over the hump caused by a street tree in Northridge.

Congratulations to Marlene Stewart, costume designer

Stewart was honored last night with an award for career achievement in film at the Costume Designers Guild Awards. So we reprise her LA Observed video on "Fashioning Fashion" at LACMA.

Video: Gary Carter tribute on ice in Montreal

The Montreal Canadiens of hockey crossed over the sports lines to put on a classy pre-game tribute to Gary Carter the other night.

Lana Del Rey fills up Amoeba Music

lana-del-rey-britvogue.jpg All those posters around town for Lana Del Rey worked. Pretty much everything she's doing seems to be working, including that bad turn on SNL.

Video: When Mayor Riordan was looking for a job

He shows up at the Lakers training gym going up against Rick Fox, and at the LAPD asking then-Chief Bernard Parks for a detective job, in this 2001 video spoof.

Redondo Beach firefighters want a new kitchen real bad

They want your vote to win a kitchen makeover from Ikea. So they had some video fun.

Honda's Ferris Bueller commercial for the Super Bowl

The Natural History Museum, downtown, Santa Monica Pier and Pacific Coast Highway are among the Los Angeles-area scenery in this new video pitch for the 2012 CR-V, featuring Matthew Broderick.

Video: Olvera Street in 1937 reflects the times

Every Anglo L.A. cliche of local history and Mexican-American culture you could want, with some quaint pronunciations.

Kings players give shoutout to the Easy Reader

Los Angeles Kings players Jarrett Stoll and Matt Greene let a video camera ride along as they drove from Hermosa Beach to a game at Staples Center.

Brian Williams sends off George Lewis on 'Nightly News'

After 42 years (28 of them in Los Angeles), George Lewis' last day at work at NBC was today, not yesterday.

Bratton says LAPD coordinated with CIA on terrorism

Former LAPD chief William Bratton was on "The Young Turks" on Current TV when he talked about the department's interactions with the Central Intelligence Agency.

Yosemite time lapse

Two men who met through Vimeo made a stunning video from time lapse photos of Yosemite National Park.

'Yoga Girl' videomaker says he didn't sell out: just the opposite

David Wittman, the DJ Dave who made a hit YouTube music video spoof last year about getting real in the Whole Foods parking lot (on Lincoln Boulevard), and followed it up with a new satire of yoga studio culture, gets "noticed" in this past weekend's New York Times Sunday Styles section.

Chief Beck loves him some Supercross

Video: LAPD Chief Charlie Beck at Dodger Stadium talking about his fandom of motorbikes.

Video: Sheriff shows off new high-tech patrol car at CES

Capt. Mike Parker of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department is in Las Vegas talking up the electronic features of a black-and-white developed for the county by Raytheon.

LAPD vet doesn't stray far for his first CBS story

john+miller+lax+story.jpg
john+miller+lax+story.jpg
John Miller, the TV reporter who came into the LAPD with William Bratton and left to work in counter-terrorism in Washington, is now at CBS News. He does a story on bomb-sniffing dogs at LAX.

Los Angeles plays itself: 'Video Games'

lana+del+rey+logo.jpg
Lots of L.A. in the video for Lana Del Rey's first hit.

This might be my favorite L.A. video of the year

Ink and Paper spends nine lovely minutes at adjacent shops out of another time in the Westlake district, near MacArthur Park.

Now it's Christmas: Darlene Love returns to Letterman

Love, from Hawthorne, was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame this year as "popular music’s greatest session vocalist and backup singer."

On the work and lives of Ray and Charles Eames *

EamesXmas-682x1024.jpg American Masters on PBS on Monday night aired "Charles and Ray Eames: the Architect and the Painter," about the famed Los Angeles design team and couple.

L.A. celebrates la Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe

Family-guadalupe-mccollister.jpg Kevin McCollister, the photographer whose book and blog are both called "East of West L.A.," was out Sunday and Monday nights for the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe.

Reason's take on L.A. light rail: too expensive, too slow *

The libertarians at Reason.tv made an entertaining video on traveling by rail from LAX to Burbank, accompanied by their research on how much the public subsidizes the transit system.

Video: Orcas making their way down the coast

The pod of 12 killer whales logged previously in British Columbia was spotted off Ventura on Friday, off Rancho Palos Verdes on Saturday and off Newport Beach today.

Alec Baldwin gets even with American Airlines (on SNL)

Guest spot on 'Weekend Update' as the pilot that threw him off his AA flight at LAX.

ESPN Films does Todd Marinovich story

The producers of the documentary on the troubled life of USC football phenom Todd Marinovich premiering tonight on ESPN write that "for six months we tried to track him down and were greeted with radio silence."

Watch for a red moon late tonight

Tonight's total lunar eclipse begins at 4:45 a.m., reaches its peak about 6 a.m., and is expected to create a deep red shade on the moon with a hint of turquoise. NASA explains in the video.

Video of shooter at Sunset and Vine

Twitter video from above shows the gunman in the Hollywood intersection and cars jamming on the brakes and making u-turns to escape. The gunman was later killed by police....
The amateur musical groups selected to perform in the free holiday concert at the Music Center on Christmas Eve get 20 minutes each to rehearse — in one day-long marathon on the fourth floor of the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion. LA Observed was there Saturday.

Hitler outraged at pepper spray cop going viral

"I'd like to be in a scene with Yoda! Or Princess Leia for god's sake!!! "

Wim Wenders on living the unreality of Los Angeles

The director recalled that when he lived in Los Angeles the life and things that happened were so fantastical and divorced from the rest of the world that when he went back to Germany, he couldn't talk about L.A. — because no one would believe him.

Videos of the events at UC Davis

The national focus of the Occupy activities has suddenly become the University of California at Davis, showing the massive power (once again) of YouTube to capture relatively unfiltered events and disseminate them widely to great effect.

Inside the Occupy L.A. 'microhood'

Curbed LA made this video on life inside the Occupy L.A. camp on the lawns around City Hall.

Politics video: Villaraigosa on CNN

Mayor Antonio Villaraiogsa got a nice long chunk of free time on CNN's "State of the Union" with Candy Crowley Sunday and said, among other things, that the number...

Jan Perry: Council getting too much like Sacramento

City Councilwoman Jan Perry talks with Conan Nolan on NBC 4's News Conference about the city's redistricting process being tainted by politics.

SNL video: Rick Perry and the debate

In the cold open from "Saturday Night Live," Gov. Perry has a bit of trouble finishing his points.

Jordan Farmar on playing hoops in Israel

Jordan Farmar, the former Laker and UCLA Bruin, is one of a only a few NBA players who are Jewish.

Heavy D, hip-hopper was 44

The singer known as Heavy D collapsed this morning outside his home in Beverly Hills, and was pronounced dead at Cedars-Sinai.

Demolishing the 405's Sunset Boulevard bridge

Time-lapse video of the tear-down work on the north side of the Sunset bridge.

Colbert makes a few Cain ads of his own

Stephen Colbert offers up alternatives to the campaign ad showing Herman Cain's campaign manager smoking.

Video: The latest CicLAvia

Rob Adams' video of the scene at the Oct. 9 CicLAvia on L.A. streets.

Real Housewives of Westchester, the spoof

KCET producer Karen Foshay Kolesnikow and friends made this video as a school fundraiser.

Would you line up to get a seat at the Murray trial?

Every day a whole bunch of people queue up outside the Criminal Courts building for the 7:30 a.m. lottery to hand out seats at the trial of Dr. Conrad Murray.

Place: Saturday on Santee Alley

santee-male-faces.jpg If you've never shopped on Santee Alley in the downtown Fashion District, here's a short LA Observed video showing what the scene is like.

Video: Robert Redford in Westwood Village in 1965

Robert Redford romps on the roof and inside the Village movie theatre in Westwood in a 1965 clip shot by actor Roddy McDowall.

Celebrity division brainstorms ideas for Clinton foundation

New spoof from Funny or Die.

Laurel and Hardy dance to Santana

I guess there are many variations of the Laurel and Hardy dance meme on YouTube, but this was new to me until Facebook this morning.

Video: Insufferable coffee snobs

Shot at Cognoscenti Coffee at Proof Bakery in Atwater, apparently.

CicLAvia route in time-lapse photos

USC professor and Asymptotia blogger Cllifford V. Johnson rode from Heliotrope and Melrose, the western end of Sunday's CicLAvia route, to the eastern end at Hollenbeck Park.

Blake Griffin gets naked for ESPN

gretchen-bleiler-espn-grab.jpg Clippers fans get a treat in the Body Issue of ESPN the Magazine: Blake Griffin nude, along with more than a dozen other sculpted athletes, including snowboarder Gretchen Bleiler at the Chateau Marmont.

Ever seen under a hockey arena?

The Los Angeles Kings opened their regular season a long ways from L.A., with games Friday in Stockholm (they beat the New York Rangers) and today in Berlin (they lost...

Steve Jobs' 2005 commencement speech at Stanford

On life and death, among other topics.

Code 3 in Hollywood on Tuesday

Old police cars and other emergency vehicles, many from TV shows and movies, will be on parade Tuesday starting at 11:30 a.m.

LAO video: Inside peek at LACMA's 'California Design'

calif-design-jg.jpg See the Eames living room, furniture by Neutra and Schindler, Dick Van Dyke's Studebaker Avanti and more.

Jason Schwartzman and John Baldessari make PST video

Taped at LACMA for Pacific Standard Time.

Fire truck and imagery in McOsker ad for cable

Pat McOsker became the first candidate in the 15th city council district to put a video ad on the local cable channels. Watch.

Two minutes of Zen: the Honeybees of Gilligan's Island

Mary Ann, Ginger, Lovey and The Castaways.

UCLA kid back from Libya, has home movies

Chris Jeon shows video he shot with the Libya rebels and reveals them to be fans of Justin Bieber.

Video: Great white shark rescue at Venice Beach

Locals saved a juvenile shark that became tangled in fishing line over the weekend.

Diana Nyad is back in the water again

Extreme swimmer and KCRW host Diana Nyad is trying again tonight to swim from Havana to the coast of Florida.

R.E.M. and 'My So-Called Life'

With the news that R.E.M. is breaking up, James Poniewozik warns: "For the next day or two, those of us who attended college in the '80s and '90s are going to be insufferable."

Frogtown, the movie

Cassie spent her adolescence on the streets of L.A. then got herself together, only to slip back into the rabbit hole of urchins, dealers and characters in...Frogtown.

Migrating Vaux's swifts have arrived

swifts-dtla-2010.jpg The Vaux's swifts that come down the coast from Alaska every fall are roosting again in the chimney of the Chester Williams building at 5th and Broadway.

You were wondering about 'Pacific Standard Time'?

The video that explains Pacific Standard Time in less than two minutes and why the museums in L.A. are so excited.

Comedy in the age of terrorism

Patt Morrison's Comedy Congress group talks about 9/11 and telling jokes about tragedy.

Video: Air Force flies over Santa Monica Bay *

Four fighters, apparently F-16s, and an AC-130 gunship flew over the coast of Santa Monica Bay on Saturday afternoon.

Artest, other NBA players in pickup games at UCLA

The Lakers' Ron Artest and former Clippers star Elton Brand are among the NBA players taking part in informal workouts this summer.

Now that was a girl group *

Before the Ronettes, the Supremes or the The Shangri-Las were The Exciters.

Disabled activist goes for a vigorous hike

James Farkus Cohan says he has end-stage emphysema and, according to Channel 7, he has filed at least 161 lawsuits against small businesses claiming they violate his rights under the Americans with Disabilities Act. But the camera doesn't lie.

Hurricane Irene from space

irene-nasa-826.jpg The view from NASA's Terra satellite at 12:30 eastern time. Also, video on Thursday from the International Space Station.

Video: female engineer on Big Tujunga Dam

Michele Chimienti is a Los Angeles County civil engineer who oversaw upgrades of the flood control dam in Big Tujunga Canyon — and she's a world-class fencer.

Art Walk spreads out a bit

The effect of moving the vendors and food trucks out of the crowded core of Downtown's Art Walk was, predictably, to steer some of the people to other blocks.

Video: The light of Los Angeles

Photographer Colin Rich worked for months on this time lapse study of Los Angeles at night.

Video: Venice canals by paddleboard

Riding the canals, in still frames from Yo! Venice.

Politics notes *

Villaraigosa spokeswoman Sarah Hamilton heads home to Chicago, the mayor cuts a transportation video and more.

Pre-Carmageddon traffic report

It's not bad out there. I came over Sepulveda Pass about 2 o'clock, and except for what seemed to be a bit of lookie-loo slowdown on both sides approaching the...

Dog bites shark, comes up smiling

From Xeni Jardin at BoingBoing....

Countdown to Carmageddon, the trailer

I'm the reporter-narrator on a UCLA-produced program on the 405 closure that's airing as a special edition of "SoCal Connected" on KCET, Wednesday at 8 p.m. and Friday at 9:30 p.m. Here's the trailer.

Video: The new Dinosaur Hall at NHMLA

The Natural History Museum of Los Angeles looks to have a hit on its hands.

Video: moving neon art

See the Museum of Neon Art begin its move out of Downtown to Glendale.

Sunday night video: Chelsea Hotel, 1988

This popped up tonight on Facebook: Leonard Cohen, Perla Batalla and Julie Christensen in San Sebastian in 1988, singing about Janis Joplin.

You think kids don't care about teacher layoffs?

I don't know what's going on at Roy Romer Middle School in North Hollywood, but after watching this video posted today at YouTube, if I were on the school board or a news assignment desk, I'd get somebody out there tomorrow.

Video: One minute on the 405

Here's one minute of Sunday afternoon traffic looks and sounds like on the 405 freeway in Sepulveda Pass. No wonder there's talk of carmageddon.

It's getting real in the Whole Foods parking lot

"It's how we live on the Westside of L.A....pay my 80 bucks for six things and get the heck out."

Naked Bike Ride from Saturday

Here's 54 seconds of video from the Los Angeles entry in World Naked Bike Ride on Saturday. Looks like about 100 riders in different stages of nudity turning off...

Flying through Venice Beach

Flying and filming over the beach and skate park.

Video: Meet UCLA Live's new director

Kristy Edmunds, who comes to UCLA from Australia, talks about programming the performing arts and how she intends to get to know what Los Angeles audiences want.

Video: riding up Angeles Crest

Ted Soqui checks out the seven-mile stretch of Angeles Crest Highway above La Cañada-Flintridge that reopened Friday

Mike Brown: Lakers are still Kobe's team

Bryant is "one of the best ever" and his role will not change under the Lakers new offense, coach Mike Brown said at his introductory presser today in El Segundo.

Trailer posted for 'Girl with a Dragon Tattoo' *

Marketing slogan: "The Feel Bad Movie of Christmas." Tag line: "She's coming." Watch the video.

Conan wants an L.A. street named after him

Inspired by Oprah Winfrey's street in Chicago, Conan O'Brien calls on Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa to get it done. Video.

Lovely downtown Canoga Park, not

A YouTube videomaker who doesn't care for the grittier realities of life in the Valley has made a series of "tourism" videos on Canoga Park and Van Nuys.
A snippet from the press conference in Cannes where the director of "Melancholia" admits that Hitler "was not one of the good guys," but someone he understands and sympathizes with.

Hunting for Osama in the Hollywood Hills

Funny, I didn't realize Pakistan's terrain is chapparal.

Chris Matthews in Exposition Park

MSNBC's lineup much of the day has been beamed from a stage set up in Exposition Park. Here's a clip.

Checking in on L.A. parrots

A contributor at Leimert Park Beat posted a brief video of the parrots in his coral tree.
When you're local, you know where the best hot weather ski run lets you get wet at the bottpm.

Panetta details what happened in bin Laden compound

CIA chief Leon Panetta is interviewed by Jim Lehrer tonight on PBS NewsHour.

Pasta making 101, courtesy of L.A. journo

Greg Critser is a Pasadena author who, in his magazine days, edited several top L.A. journalists. He's also enough of a cook that Science 2.0 put up some instructional videos of Critser making pasta.

Another music video in the Fred Harvey room

The Brian Setzer Orchestra with "Jump Jive An' Wail" in the old Fred Harvey diner at Union Station.

Fiona Apple at the Fred Harvey coffee shop

After yesterday's posts on the Fred Harvey cafe at Union Station, blogger Scott Lowe stumbled across a Fiona Apple video shot there.

A day in the life of L.A. County's giant scissors

A KPCC video crew follows around the ceremonial props we told you about last month.

Pacific Ocean Park in 1967, with dancers and Nancy Sinatra

If you never saw the short-lived but very popular amusement park that was at the Ocean Park end of Santa Monica Beach — or want to see it again — check out this Nancy Sinatra video.

LAT's newsroom celebration for Pulitzers

Video shot by a staffer, plus my KCRW column for tonight congratulates the paper on getting past the Sam Zell era's talk of demise.

Jimmy Wong as Internet savior

jimmy-wong-grab.jpg Jimmy Wong is the 24-year-old Los Angeles performer whose amusing video answer to UCLA student Alexandra Wallace's anti-Asian rant set a high bar for video responses and helped defuse an...

Liz Taylor, uncredited, in 'Jane Eyre'

A young Elizabeth Taylor plays Helen Burns in this 1943 rendition of "Jane Eyre," and shows up in the first scene (and others) in this YouTube clip.

RFK on the street in L.A., hours before the Ambassador

RFK-paul-jacobs.jpg Never-published photo shows Sen. Robert F. Kennedy greeting well-wishers outside the Biltmore on election day in June 1968, hours before he was shot across town at the Ambassador Hotel.

Thinking about home in Japan

The folks at Southern California Public Radio made a nice video with Tony Tsukui, one of the Japanese businessmen and women who were here when the earthquake and tsunami struck Japan.

Talk of the web: UCLA student's video slams Asians

Video goes viral and sparks angry comments, death threats, official denunciations and mocking remixes.

What a tsunami looks like on the ground

This clip catches the start of Friday's tsunami flooding into the streets of Kesennuma, in Miyagi Prefecture, and watches up close for six astounding, frightening minutes.

Crescent City tsunami in time lapse

Sped-up video of the tsunami surge entering and leaving Crescent City's harbor on Friday morning, leaving extensive damage behind.

Scenes from Japan

japan-tsunami-natori-kyodo.jpg Tsunami coming ashore at Natori in Miyagi prefecture. From Kyodo News Service at New York Times. Wave inundating Sendai airport on closed-circuit video....

Plastic sheeting from strawberry field rides dust devil

Another great find by Boing Boing: a mesmerizing video of plastic sheeting from a Bavarian strawberry field dancing in the sky on thermal air currents. Just watch it.

LAFD film on the 1961 Bel-Air 'conflagration'

In November it will be 50 years since one of the city's scariest wind-whipped fire storms burned through Brentwood and Bel Air.

Center Theatre Group joins 'It Gets Better'

Staff members of L.A.'s leading live theater organization tell their personal stories from childhood for the It Gets Better Project.

Citizen photojournalism after Rodney King, Dallas and Neda *

Upon the 20th anniversary of the Rodney King beating by LAPD officers in 1991, media analyst Dan Gilmoor looks at how photojournalism has changed since the video by George Holliday went viral.

Your Oscar presenters for this weekend

oscar-presenters-2011.jpg Javier Bardem, Helen Mirren and Matthew McConaughey have been newly added to the list of Oscar presenters at Sunday's ceremony. Mo’Nique and Christoph Waltz, winners last year and thus invited...

Earthquakes make a lot of noise

Video: Never underestimate how loud an earthquake can be as it pummels your home.

Serene Branson goes national

The KCBS reporter who suffered the on-air "complex migraine" was on CBS' The Early Show today, again saying she's fine.

Sam Rubin loses it on air over 'Crusty Buttocks'

sam-rubin-laughing.jpg On today's "KTLA's Morning News," Sam Rubin couldn't get all the way through a report on the new paper towel dispensers in the Channel 5 mens room without cracking up. Click the link to watch the video over there. Tribune's vertical video player doesn't embed well here.

Trailer: 'East LA Interchange' and Boyle Heights

Boyle Heights, established east of the river in 1875, by the 1920s had become "a working-class, multiethnic neighborhood far more diverse than any U.S. city; Mexicans, Japanese, African-Americans, Russian...

Dominic and Maria, a video love story for Valentine's Day

In this WSJ video, Dominic Ehrler talks about how the conection began between him and Maria the goose that follows him around Echo Park lake every day.

A time-lapse view of Los Angeles (and Santa Monica)

Orange County photographer Matthew Givot renders parts of the city beautifully in his time lapse videos.

Live feeds from Cairo

Al Jazeera anchor, observing the scene in the square: "It's quite something, isn't it?"

Leiweke: 'It’s easy to take shots'

AEG chief Tim Leiweke kept to the us versus them message in remarks today to reporters asking him about public doubts over his company's NFL stadium plans for Downtown.

How big is new Starbucks cup? Big enough

Video of an entire bottle of red wine being poured into the new Trenta size cup, with room for cream. Watch...

Americans to be flown out of Egypt

Charter flights to begin Monday. New AP video.

Tonight in Egypt

"The sight of its people losing their fear of the police state will inspire others across the Middle East," reports the BBC's Jeremy Bowen.

Dear NYC: don't worry baby

nyc-snow-cunningham.jpg Really, snow in January? That's so unfair. To our New York friends, here's an early valentine from the Coast.

L.A. Noire, the video game

A preview of the L.A.-centric game from Rockstar, coming later this year.

Somebody loves Neil Diamond

Singer Neil Diamond's 70th birthday is Monday. On Sunday afternoon, five skywriters spelled out a birthday greeting over the Bel-Air hills.

How many BBC reporters does it take to start a car?

Two, apparently, when one of them is David Willis of the BBC's Los Angeles bureau.

Just dancin' and singin' in the rain

Gene Kelly on the backlot at MGM. Hat tip to Eric Spillman.

In praise of Long Beach Poly football

Current TV has a new docu-series coming next year called "4th and Forever," on the football program at Long Beach Poly — the U.S. high school that has sent...

'Tis the season for a Hallelujah chorus

Flash mob takes over a Canadian food court. Views on YouTube in under a month: 19 million and counting.

Mariachi fire victims get help from Red Cross

A house fire last week in Boyle Heights claimed all of the musical instruments and clothing of 19 mariachi musicians. On Friday night, a benefit at Mariachi Plaza on 1st Street raised some money.

Hooping through Downtown

Today's Sunday Styles section of the New York Times profiles Philo Hagen, a Los Angeles writer and blogger who is the founder of Hooping.org — and whose video of hooping (and stripping) through Downtown inspired the story.

Most randomly weird celebrity video you'll see today *

Where else can you see Roger Moore, Glenn Close, Huey Lewis, Jason Alexander and other actors from 1980s and '90s TV shows, plus Olympic skaters Katarina Witt and Tonya Harding — and many others — lip-syncing to "Let it Be" in front of a giant screen to promote a Norwegian program?

Reporter watches parking cops impound his car

The Santa Monica Mirror's Slav Kandyba found out the hard way that unpaid parking tickets can be a bummer in Los Angeles.

Natalie Portman talks about 'Black Swan'

David Poland at Movie City News talks with Natalie Portman at length about "Black Swan," her new movie.

LA Observed goes to the museum

In the video, LA Observed's Judy Graeme goes through LACMA's exhibit on fashions of the 1700's and 1800's with Marlene Stewart, a costume designer on films such as "Ali," "The Doors" and "Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian."

Video: Hail pummels backyard in Georgia

Here's video Mark Frauenfelder posted at BoingBoing of an impressive hailstorm last week in Georgia.

Michaels and Abrams, the Hitler spoof

Hitler finds out that Randy Michaels and Lee Abrams are out at Tribune over some naked breasts, after surviving much worse in radio...including the Macarena

At home with Jeffrey Deitch

The latest L.A. centric video from Nowness goes inside the Los Feliz home of Jeffrey Deitch, the New York art dealer who took over this year as director of...

When Fernando owned L.A.

Here's the trailer for ESPN's Fernando Nation, the 30 for 30 documentary directed by Cruz Angeles that debuted tonight.

Abrams' 'sluts' video

Here's the The Onion's "sluts spill" spoof that Tribune's Lee Abrams called "pretty inspirational or at least interesting."

L.A weekend scenes

zocalo-funder-10910.jpg CicLAvia on Sunday, Zocalo on Saturday, Liz Phair on Friday.

Gliding over the Santa Monicas in high-def

Great scenery from a hang glider soaring over the mountains.

Optical illusion of a girl tried for pedestrian safety

The image of a girl painted on the pavement is being tried in lieu of speed bumps, or humps if you prefer.

Full clip of Fallon's Emmy opening goes up

Sure, it's already Thursday and the Emmys were Sunday. But now, Bruce Springsteen has apparently given NBC the OK to post the full video of Jimmy Fallon's "Glee" spoof.

Video discussion: the LAT's teacher stats

Just came across this piece with NBC 4 News Conference host Conan Nolan talking in some depth with Doug Smith, the data analysis editor who led the Los Angeles...

New San Andreas study: Yeah, Big One still coming

quake-sim-82010.jpg A detailed and long-awaited study of the fault found that earthquakes along the fault were more numerous than previously believed, adding to evidence that we are overdue for a very, very large and potentially catastrophic event.

Video: Man rescued from burning car in Valley

Good Samaritans on Burbank Boulevard in Van Nuys used a crowbar and guts to free an older man trapped in his burning 1932 Ford after a four-car accident on Sunday. Watch the video.

Ray Bradbury on living to be 90

Ray Bradbury tells fans about his upcoming 90th birthday in a series of exclusive videos shot in his home for UCLA, where he wrote "Fahrenheit 451."

View from the announcer's booth

courtney-twitpic.jpg Angel Stadium announcer David Courtney just posted this photo.

Stieg Larsson's girlfriend on Lisbeth Salander

Before we leave the subject of Lisbeth Salander, this video from ABC's Nightline: author Stieg Larsson's girlfriend talks about how the character came to be introduced in "Girl With the Dragon Tattoo."

Joe Hicks signs on to Pajamas Media

joe-hicks-pjtv-grab.jpg Joe Hicks, the former ACLU spokesman and executive director of the L.A. Human Rights Commission who's made a new career of dinging the left, is taking his lefty-turns-right shtick to a new show he's hosting called The Minority Report at Pajamas Media's video channel.

Bunker Hill video deleted from Vimeo *

melrose-hotel-bunker-hill-lapl.jpg A whole lot of you watched — and by the sound of your emails, tweets and Facebook comments really enjoyed — the USC student film of 1956 Bunker Hill by Kent MacKenzie.

Paul Rudd DJs '92 bat mitzvah in the Valley

As the video says, before "Dinner for Schmucks, " "I Love You Man" or even "Clueless" Paul Rudd did the bat mitzvah for Gabrielle Birkner.

Bobby Hebb, musician was 72 *

Bobby Hebb, who wrote the 1966 hit "Sunny," died today in Nashville at age 72.

2 random minutes at Brooklyn & Soto

Blogger El Chavo at LA Eastside has started a series of short videos just showing an ordinary two minutes at an ordinary corner in Los Angeles. And it works.

Weekend viewing: Bunker Hill, 1956 *

angels-flight-sheets-crop.jpg Five years before Kent MacKenzie made The Exiles, about Native Americans in Downtown Los Angeles, he made a 17-minute student film at USC showing everyday life in the Bunker Hill neighborhood in 1956.

One singer's view of Rihanna

ashleigh-haney.jpg L.A. musician Ashleigh Haney, who I've mentioned here a couple of times, is back on tour as a backup singer for Rihanna, living the strange life of world traveler and stage-view witness to a pop culture phenomenon. She blogs about it.

See Los Angeles circa 1961

This Disney-made video on the origin of the California Institute of the Arts was made when the Music Center and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art were still being talked about and designed.

Bringing the Expo Line to life *

Mark posted this earlier at LA Biz Observed, but everybody I've shown it to loved it so much here it is again.

OK, one more Mel Gibson video edit

The trailer for "What Women Want," with new dialogue from Mad Mel. Er, allegedly from Mel Gibson.

Downtown L.A., the punk years

L.A. journalist Anthea Raymond narrates interviews with players from the early Downtown music and arts scene.

Phone fight: Mad Mel and Christian Bale

You knew somebody had to do mash up Mel Gibson's and Christian Bale's rants. Now somebody did.

Mad Mel owns the rights to 'Fahrenheit 451'

Ray Bradury says Mel Gibson is too busy with "that Russian girl" right now to move ahead with a film remake of his classic book.

'Today' show gets the access to Abby

NBC's "Today" show packaged footage of Abby Sunderland at home in Thousand Oaks with a lengthy interview this morning at the studios in New York.

PR stunt o' the week: In the Heights flash mob at Citywalk

I caught In the Heights last night at the Pantages and saw what all the fuss is about, both for the 2008 Tony winner for best musical and the fans'...

My favorite of the Michael Jackson hoax videos

This one at least is a little creative. The fabricated paramedic calls were OK too. In the end, though, you have to ask: why? Check the image box in...

Faye Dunaway peels and eats a hard-boiled egg

Just because. It's a commercial by Japanese photographer Kazumi Kurigami.

Lakers fans versus taxicab

This unedited and graphic video released by the Los Angeles Fire Department shows the crowd in Downtown attacking that taxi after the Lakers championship victory.

City Hall layoffs plan moves ahead

Officials and union officials were unable to come to any agreement Wednesday that would avert layoffs of about 278 city workers on July 1. Video of Mayor Villaraigosa's remarks to the media.

Gustavo Arellano's graduation speech at UCLA

The author and OC Weekly "Ask a Mexican!" columnist gave the keynote address at tonight's main UCLA commencement ceremony.

Things that aren't here anymore 3

Tonight at 8 p.m. is the debut on KCET of "Things That Aren't Here Anymore 3," the reprise I've mentioned a couple of times of the station's popular Ralph Story shows on vanishing Los Angeles (well, really SoCal.)

Fiorina's unguarded moment: open mic on CNN

Carly Fiorina was caught on an open microphone laughing at Sen. Barbara Boxer's hair — "so yesterday" — and voicing surprise that Fiorina's fellow Republican, Meg Whitman, began the general election campaign today by going on Sean Hannity.

Susanna Hoffs helps a friend

susana-hoffs-fb.jpg Susanna Hoffs, the throaty former lead singer and guitarist of the Bangles by way of Palisades High School, is raising money for a friend in need of a liver transplant by selling her costumes from the band's heyday on eBay.

John Wooden, 1910-2010

UCLA's legendary coach dies of natural causes at age 99.

Another officer behaving badly on video

The YouTube video poster at Discarted is something of a photographer-activist, mostly in a good way, though you could read that as troublemaker too.

Happy Birthday, Mister President

monroe-jfk-rfk.jpg One still photograph survives from that night in 1962 when Marilyn Monroe famously sang a seductive "Happy Birthday" to President John F. Kennedy. It's now for sale in West Hollywood.

Jerry Brown finally gets into the ad game

Jerry Brown's first TV ad of the governor's race says it's all about excessive partisanship and Sacramento not working

If nothing else Kaus is having some fun

Blogger-turned-fringe candidate Mickey Kaus has posted a couple of video spots on YouTube. Unions and Democrats are the bogeymen, but his mother and his alma mater Beverly Hills High School...

Protest over Gaza raid outside Israeli consulate

Reaction to the Israeli raid on a flotilla of ships headed to Gaza, leading to nine deaths, was sufficiently strong that Jacob Dayan, Israel's consul general in Los Angeles, held a Monday afternoon news conference at his home.

LA Observed on KCRW: Memorial Day

This Memorial Day I have Paul Neubauer to remember.

LAPD clash with bike riders on video under investigation

Email from the Los Angeles Police Protective League asking the community to "refrain from a rush to judgment" usually means one thing: there's some new video or eyewitness report suggesting misconduct by an LAPD officer.

(500) Days of Fatal Attraction, plus where's Nikki Finke?

"(500) Days of Summer" re-envisioned as a thriller.

Santa Monica writes on-air parking tickets for Channel 5 *

Gayle Anderson's segment at Santa Monica beach went on despite a parking officer scribbling out tickets, perhaps not knowing she was on live across Southern California.

Los Angeles roots of Asian American journalists' group

The Asian American Journalists Association was started in Los Angeles in 1981 by Tritia Toyota and Frank Kwan of KNBC, Bill Sing, Nancy Yoshihara and David Kishiyama of the Los Angeles Times, and Dwight Chuman of Rafu Shimpo.

An outpost of El Sistema in South Los Angeles

YOLA Expo Center Youth Orchestra in South Los Angeles is the first youth orchestra program established by the L.A. Philharmonic, inspired by El Sistema, the Venezuelan program that spawned Gustavo Dudamel.

Lena Horne, singer was 92

Lena Horne was the first black performer signed to a long-term contract by a major Hollywood studio — MGM, for whom she appeared in “Panama Hattie” in 1942 — and by the end of World War II was being called the country's top black entertainer.

What Conan was really thinking on '60 Minutes'

Video from the folks at Funny or Die.

Can you spot Huell Howser?

Huell-&-Baker.jpg Guess which one of these young men is Huell Howser circa 1966, and which one is the Tennessee senator Howard Baker.

Mahony goes to bat for immigrants

Cardinal Roger Mahony is ramping up his advocacy for immigrants, with an address scheduled for Monday at Fordham University in New York called "Immigration Reform: A Moral Imperative" and a new website launched today by the archdiocese.

Video clip: 'The Garden'

four-minute clip from "The Garden," Scott Hamilton Kennedy's Oscar-nominated documentary about the South Central Farm saga, is today's featured pick at Telegraph 21, a new video magazine for documentary films out of New York and Barcelona.

You knew this was coming

Hitler reacts to news that YouTube is taking down the Hitler parodies. "Before people started making fun of this scene, there were only a few people outside Germany who knew...

Say it ain't so: YouTube pulling Hitler spoofs

Regarding all those web parodies using footage of the Adolf Hitler character from the film "Downfall," the German production company that owns the film has asked YouTube to yank them all.

Dodger Stadium tailgate toll: 132 arrests

The Dodgers and the LAPD decided to crack down on parking lot partiers at yesterday's home opener. L.A. Times staff writer Carla Hall commits the story to video:...

Dodgers open at home today *

Jamie McCourt will be staying away from Dodger Stadium today, though she claims to be part owner. David Kipen has a fun Op-Ed piece on the origins of the interlaced...

Jackie Johnson set to music

In honor of the rain blowing into Los Angeles tonight, here's YouTube songster Parry Gripp's recent ditty devoted to Channel 2/9 weathercaster Jackie Johnson.

Kings clinch a spot in the Stanley Cup playoffs

For the first time since 2002, the Los Angeles Kings will play in the post-season.

Video: pillow fight in Pershing Square

Take 50 seconds and enjoy Saturday's celebration Downtown of National Pillow Fight Day, uploaded to YouTube by rhivanz.

Blessing of the Animals at the plaza

Today was the annual Blessing of the Animals procession, in which a long line of pets with their owners line up to be received by Cardinal Roger Mahony just off the Old Plaza. If you have never been and want to catch the flavor of the event, here's our LA Observed video from last year.

Happy anniversary to the Valley

annex-map-1918-raremaps-com-200.jpg On this day in 1915, the voters of the San Fernando Valley chose to join the city of Los Angeles — and nothing here was ever the same

Exene Cervenka in the news

exene-orange-coast.jpg Now 54, the doyenne of Los Angeles punk band X — called by Robert Hilburn "not just one of the greatest female rockers, but one of the greatest musical figures, period" — still does shows and lives quietly in Orange County. Scott Martelle profiles Cervenka in Orange Coast magazine's April issue.

Exercise echoes a scary night in Los Angeles

interstate.GIF At 2:30 this afternoon, the Los Angeles Fire Department will supervise the full evacuation of the Aon Building, the 62-story tower at Wilshire and Hope that was known as the First Interstate Tower when a fire broke out on the 12th floor in 1988.

Los Angeles magazine's eight Get L.A. film finalists

The finalists reflect a pretty rich selection of points of view about the city. See who the finalists are, and the panel of judges.

John McPhee, plus DWP on KCET *

Prize-winning author John McPhee is Michael Silverblatt's guest today at 2:30 p.m. on KCRW's Bookworm. McPhee's most recent book is "Silk Parachute." Tonight at 8 p.m. on KCET's SoCal Connected,...

Creator of Deitch-Broad Hitler video comes forward

Last month's pretty funny and creative spoof of Jeffrey Deitch's selection to run MOCA (with some great insider references to the L.A. arts scene and digs at Eli Broad's power)...

Angels Flight in popular culture

angels-flight-eels.jpg Today's observation du jour regarding Angels Flight: the Downtown funicular, in a scene evoking its authentic pre-1969 setting, makes an appearance in a You Tube video for the End Times album by the band EELS.

L.A. vets — that's veterinarians — in Afghanistan

"Nightline" did a nice feature last night on the 40th Infantry Division Agribusiness Development Team from the California National Guard, on duty in Afghanistan helping the locals keep their goats, sheep and cows — and even a monkey — healthy.

Will Los Angeles go broke?

CNBC's Jane Wells talks to Mayor Villaraigosa and author Joel Kotkin about the city's self-inflicted budget crisis and whether Los Angeles should, perhaps, go bankrupt. Villaraigosa vows there is no...

The Hot Blog turns 5,000

bigelow-video-dp30.png David Poland's Hollywood blog debuted Sept. 5, 2004 and with this entry today has reached 5,000 posts — with more than 140,000 amassed comments. In post number 4,999, he observes and elaborates that Hollywood killed Corey Haim.

Enjoy a little Beethoven with your afternoon

Video of the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, which performs at UCLA's Royce Hall on Wednesday night, traveling and playing at the Auditorio de Madrid, set to the second movement of Beethoven's Symphony No. 7.

Burned dancer speaks about sentence, her life

Roberta Busby, the exotic dancer who was severely burned outside a Tarzana club, testified today at the sentencing of one her attackers to life in prison. She also talked on camera about her life, including that she and her two children are about to lose their home.

Trutanich explains felony-level bail for supergraphic

City Attorney Carmen Trutanich tells KTLA's Eric Spillman that the $1 million bail he got for that sign misdemeanor at Hollywood and Highland was based on the public safety threat...

Oops, Janice Hahn may have a copyright issue

sam-cooke-cover.jpg The lawyer-blogger at Copyrights & Campaigns says the candidate may well face a lawsuit for using Sam Cooke's "Wonderful World" in her video slam on Gavin Newsom.

How Neda video got to the world

neda-video-thumb.jpg Brian Stelter of the NYT summarizes neatly how the video of Neda Agha-Soltan's shooting death last summer got from a Tehran cellphone to YouTube, winning a Polk Award last week.

Neda video wins Polk Award

Neda-Agha-Soltan-wp.jpg The keepers of the prestigious Polk Award call the anonymous, raw clip of a young woman's killing in Tehran "an iconic image of the Iranian resistance" and the award a recognition that "in today's world, a brave bystander with a cell phone camera can use video-sharing and social networking sites to deliver news."

Best local location for a Super Bowl commercial

Former inmates at the Daily News' offices in Woodland Hills recognized the dark, old newsroom — cleaned up for Career Builder.com.

Video: Boulders tumbling down street

From this morning in La Cañada Flintridge, via Channel 7.

Inside KCRW's pledge drive central

Video from the KCRW studios at Santa Monica College, showing the station in its pledge drive mode. My weekly Friday segment doesn't air today so the pledge drive can continue....

Demon sheep creator says response split 50-50

demon-sheep-grab.jpg “My goal is to get things noticed,” Republican media consultant Fred Davis tells Mark Z. Barabak of the L.A. Times, discussing his instant cult classic ad for Carly Fiorina's Senate...

Fiorina's demon sheep hit piece on Tom Campbell

The talk of politics from coast to coast. Video link And now with Pink Floyd soundtrack....

Relive 25 years of Spirit Awards

Film Independent has put up two decades of opening monologues and dozens of acceptance speeches and other clips from the show on Babelgum.

Late Night War as seen by 'Ken Burns,' via Jimmy Kimmel

Jimmy Kimmel envisions how Ken Burns would tell the story of the great late night TV wars.

Video: Tornado touches down in Riverside County

A Channel 7 viewer sent the station this clip of a tornado funnel touching down near Riverside

Another LACFD rescue, Haitians chant 'U.S.A'

The Los Angeles County Fire Department urban search and rescue team in Port-Au-Prince pulled another woman from the earthquake rubble. In this one, you can hear the crowd applauding and chanting "U.S.A!"

Promoting movies is tough work, Gibson finds

Promoting movies is tough work, Gibson finds

Storm gate is open...just ask the foothills

'Rocks the size of frozen turkeys' tumbled down Canyonside Road in La Crescenta during Monday's storm, says the father of Dashel Dupuy, the 13-year-old who shot this amazing video. It's...

Politics video: Get to know Paul Krekorian

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, Sheriff Lee Baca, Speaker Karen Bass, City Council President Eric Garcetti, Assemblyman Mike Feuer and former Controller Laura Chick spoke Sunday at a swearing-in ceremony for new City Council member Paul Krekorian in the Van Nuys City Hall.

Conan's hanging in there

His last 'Tonight Show' may be Jan. 22, but Conan O'Brien had it rocking in last night's monologue.

Dock Ellis and his no-hitter on acid going to Sundance

L.A. journalists Donnell Alexander and Neille Ilel helped co-produce an animated short on the amazing feat turned in by Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Dock Ellis in 1970.

Letterman gives NBC a way out of Leno mess

Dave suggests a new program NBC can put on a 10 p.m. Video.

Ducks fan breaks silence on fight in stands

Professional skateboarder Mike Vallely was involved in that post-game fracas in the stands at the Honda Center in Anaheim after a Ducks match in November.

'Biggie and Tupac' together again

The 2002 Nick Broomfield documentary on the killing in Los Angeles of Biggie Smalls, and the earlier murder in Las Vegas of Tupac Shakur — "a story of great friends...

Amanda, only sometimes real

amandacongdonscreen.jpg When Amanda Congdon, the host of web show Sometimes Daily, got married in June, I linked to video of her apparently skateboarding down the hill on Ocean Park Boulevard to...

Demolished buildings of the '00s

Before we get too far away from New Year's, here's Curbed LA's look at some of the buildings that Los Angeles lost (or discarded) during the decade just past.

Johnny Hallyday in induced coma here

hallydayinblack.jpg French rock icon Johnny Hallyday, called by many the French Elvis, has been placed in a medically induced coma to assist his recovery from back surgery at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center....

'Glee' star to LAUSD: shut up!

"Glee" star Chris Colfer is 19, gay and without children. So why does the Los Angeles Unified School District's auto-call robot keep phoning him at home to say his daughter...

Oceanside, Afghanistan & the FT

semperfi.jpg Today's Financial Times carries a story from Oceanside, Calif. on the differences in opinion in town over sending more Marines from Camp Pendleton to Afghanistan. The story, by Los Angeles...

Janice Hahn, on the stump

Now that City Council member Janice Hahn is running for Lieutenant Governor, the pace of press releases is creeping up inexorably toward one a day. The latest introduces the new...

Gold Line culinary tour

The blogger known as the 99-Cent Chef rode the new Gold Line extension to East Los Angeles for Sunday's opening. Squash blossom quesadillas at Taqueria Las Cabañas were the gustatory...

Man. Elephant. Wedding. Santa Monica

Sean Roderick was on busy Ocean Avenue in Santa Monica on Saturday night when she encountered a wedding procession, apparently Indian, with the groom riding atop an elephant. The video...

LAO on KCRW: Optimistic about Beck

My take on the Charlie Beck selection — I hope he's the guy to finish off the old, unprofessional LAPD culture once and for all — airs at 4:44 p.m....

Adam Goldberg hates things about L.A.

As part of the promotion for his new movie, actor Adam Goldberg drives around Los Angeles pointing out some of the things he dislikes. Among them are the food,...

L.A. Archives Bazaar returns Saturday

The fourth annual gathering at USC of local historical organizations and archives is Saturday at the Davidson Center. The featured panelists this year include authors Alex Moreno Areyan, Jenny Cho,...

Freak out and run — it's raining

Posted in May, but apt today. What happens in L.A. when it rains, the spoof — with some good lines and extensive UCLA scenery....

Do you believe in miracles? *

After last night's flurry of hockey posts, a friend sent along this paean to the locker room speech given to the U.S. Olympic team in 1980, before the kids went...

Firefighters hold moment of silence

fftribute9409.jpg At the morning shift change at the Hansen Dam command post, more than 1,000 firefighters paused to remember Capt. Tedmund Hall and Arnaldo Quinones, the County Fire veterans who died...

Blogger turns tables on paper

Fishbowl LA's Tina Dupuy takes to YouTube to demand $75 she feels owed by the Tampa Tribune, which ran a funny piece she sent in....

New time-lapse contender

Where Eric Spiegelman's weekend fire film has drama and altitude, Dan Finnerty's has flame. Lots of flame....

LAO video: Sunday night's fire briefing

What begins as a behind-the-scenes video of the fire camp and media swarm at Hansen Dam turns into an emotional briefing on the deaths of two Los Angeles County firefighters....

Stan Chambers celebrates 86th birthday

Video of the newsroom celebration from reporter Eric Spillman's blog at the KTLA website....

Vintage street scene: The Go-Gos

gogosfountain.jpg The Go-Gos tool around early '80s Los Angeles in a convertible, vamp outside Trashy Lingerie on La Cienega and frolic in the electric fountain at Wilshire & Santa Monica in...

Huell Howser tripping, the video

Yesterday on Twitter I re-tweeted this affectionate parody of Huell Howser on a road trip of another sort, but forgot to post it here. The creator calls it California's gold...

Bukowski tours Hollywood & Western

Charles Bukowski narrates a tour of the Hollywood and Western area, highlighting his favorite bars, hangouts, hookers and dope-dealers. From "The Charles Bukowski Tapes" (1985), by Barbet Schroeder, via...

Little piece of Canada in July

Four minute LAO video: Young (mostly 17-20) not-yet-pro players in the Los Angeles Kings system came to L.A. this weekend for the team's summer prospects camp. They worked with the...

Nomar returns to Fenway Park

Ex-Dodger Nomar Garciaparra took the field today in Boston for the first time since the 2004 trade that broke off one of the great sports love affairs. The Red Sox...

If you watch one Iran video

From BBC Persian, protesters throw tear gas cannisters back at police then send them running. Raw: Video Ten other "significant" Iran videos via Boing Boing Added but extremely graphic: If...

Maher & Huffington at Press Club awards

Bill Maher's talk at Sunday night's L.A. Press Club awards dinner. Here, by the way, is the list of winners, which included the Bloomberg News bureau's David Evans, who won...

Chatting with Trutanich

trutanichfox.jpg At last Friday's LA Observed rooftop party at the Formosa in Hollywood, city attorney-elect Carmen Trutanich stuck around for some fairly extended conversations with revelers. Celeste Fremon reports on hers,...

Memorial Day flags

This was the morning when Los Angeles-area Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts and others placed something like 80,000 American flags on the graves at Los Angeles National Cemetery. The grounds undergo...

Howser & Soboroff, together again

jacobhuell.jpg No, it's not a law firm. It's Huell Howser and Jacob Soboroff meeting for coffee at Intelligenstia 2½ years after they first circled each other on video at the Cornfield...

Blessing of the animals

Dogs, horses, rabbits, cats, turtles, birds — even a few lizards and a snake — got along famously at Saturday's traditional Blessing of the Animals at Olvera Street and...

Opening Day

For those of us who are baseball fans, the first day of the major league season is an unofficial holiday. To help celebrate, here's a roundup of news, previews and...

Manny: 'I'm in a happy place' *

Manny Ramirez reported to spring training on Thursday in a good mood, laughing easily with teammates and reporters and professing to be in a happy place. With that infectious giggle,...

Where 'The Office' exteriors are filmed

Dunder Mifflin's office, parking lot and hedge are located on Saticoy Street in an industrial part of Van Nuys. In case you suspected Scranton looked eerily like the San Fernando...

One minute video: 16-car pileup in the Valley

It's not what you think — perhaps, though, it's the logical Darwinian outcome of car culture? Observed Sunday on Reseda Boulevard in Northridge. Video link More LA Observed video: Downtown...

2-minute video: December afternoon in Los Angeles

Snow-capped peaks, sailboats and sea lions: just another winter day in L.A. The video features the Marina Peninsula and Marina del Rey, Ballona Lagoon, Santa Monica Bay and Santa Catalina...

Obama's first rally in Los Angeles

From the LA Observed video archive, Sen. Barack Obama came to Los Angeles in February 2007 and drew an excited crowd long before he pulled ahead of Sen. Hillary Clinton....

Chicano rock and the first Eastside

I put together a four-minute video from the weekend's Los Angeles Archives Bazaar at USC on the two documentaries I caught up with — "Chicano Rock" and "The Eastsiders" —...

One-minute video: Kagel Canyon post-fire

Kagel Canyon looked scorched but almost serene over the weekend. The locals had put up signs thanking the firefighters who knocked down last week's wildfire. Here's a one-minute video of...

West Hollywood Book Fair video

Just for kicks, before and after my "Noir of Politics" panel at Sunday's West Hollywood Book Fair I shot some video of other panels and did interviews with author...
New at LA Observed
Clinton fundraises in LA
kermit-la-brea-closer.jpg Jim Henson Studios on La Brea became a presidential campaign stop on Thursday.
Brown declares disaster area
porter-ranch-sign.jpgThe natural gas leak above Porter Ranch now qualifies for various government actions. Story
Wet coyote
wet-coyote-vdt.jpgSpotted between the storms at Here in Malibu.
Performing arts with cheer
guys-dolls-kevin-parry.jpgDonna Perlmutter closes out 2015 with productions downtown and on the Westside.
Junkyard down
upick-firetruck-560.jpgAfter 53 years, Sun Valley's Aadlen Brothers and U-Pick Parts cleans out. Photos