Santa Monica's Pacific Park ferris wheel has a new owner, thanks to an eBay auction that ended at noon yesterday. The winner is Grant Humphreys of Oklahoma City, who came in as the highest bidder with $132,400 for the solar powered heavyweight carnival ride that arrived on the Pier in 1996. According to the Daily Breeze, Humphreys "beat out five others in a bidding war that went back and forth through 35 offers." The wheel......

Photo by Jonathan Alcorn (sundogg) via LAist Featured Photos on Flickr You can find all kinds of stuff on eBay, from trash to treasure, and so long as you are the highest bidder and can cough up the shipping fee, it's yours. How'd you like to be the proud new owner of a piece of local history, in the form of the nine-story ferris wheel from Santa Monica's Pacific Park? And, hey, cool factor:......

One of L.A.'s most unique and important centers for poetry, literature, and art, the non-profit center Beyond Baroque, may be in danger of losing its lease. According to an email sent out by the group's Board of Trustees, City Attorney Rocky Delgadillo would like to begin the auction process for the building, offering it up for other non-profits to bid on. City Councilman Bill Rosendahl had promised to extend Beyond Baroque's lease for another......

"Welcome to NoHo," by ~db~ via LAist Featured Photos Pool on Flickr Happy 5th Birthday Gothamist!! A "possible" security breach at the Department of Water and Power Monday may result in more than 8,300 employees wondering, why are there two me's? The lifted information included stats on active DWP employee's names, Social Security numbers and dates of birth and could result in a massive case of stolen identity. The gig is up for all......

Online book retailer Amazon.com announced today that they have purchased an original, hand-written and hand-bound copy of J.K. Rowling's "The Tales of Beedle the Bard," a book of children's stories that plays a major role in the plot of "The Deathly Hallows." The book, one of only seven made, was auctioned off in London at Sotheby's for 1.95 million pounds. Proceeds from the auction are going to The Children's Voice Campaign, a charity that benefits......

Neither Lindsay Lohan, Paris Hilton, Nicole Richie, or even Britney Spears know how to get themselves into more ridiculous trouble than OJ Simpson who seems to be bent on getting himself thrown in jail. In a bizarre and breaking story, the former USC Trojan is currently being questioned by the Las Vegas Police for an alleged armed robbery in a locked hotel room involving OJ Simpson collectibles. Simpson is claiming that the team of......

The Dimebag Darrell Art Tribute & Auction, featuring The Little Kids Rock Band, Aaron Lewis, Brent & Jasin, Nick Bowcott, Black Tooth Jam @ The House of Blues Mickey Avalon, Dirt Nasty @ Key Club Ben Gibbard, David Bazan @ Royce Hall The Blasters, Lady Dottie & the Diamonds, Creepy Creeps @ Viper Room Ozma, William Tell, Kaddisfly, New Year's Day @ The Troubadour King Kong @ Spaceland Whitestarr, Poets & Pornstars @ Roxy......

O.J. to Auction Book Rights After a long string of controversies and cancellations, rights to O.J. Simpson’s If I Did It will be auctioned off on April 17, according to Los Angeles authorities. Freeing the slaves - in Los Angeles Tales of modern day slavery, in LA. And none of these people work for Disney. Benefit Concert For the Midnight Mission The Malibu Performing Arts Center (MPAC) was the place to be on March......

Any ladies looking for a little do-gooding adventure tomorrow night? Men on the prowl looking to pick up those ladies? LAist suggests heading over to the Air Conditioned Supper Club in Venice (the one on Lincoln not the one on Pico) tomorrow night for a Bachelor Auction. Eligible bachelors are being auctioned off to raise money for the Westside Tri and Marathon Team in Training teams benefitting the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. Who are......

1/31: Update: Click here to read our exclusive, updated interview with Sarah the Bears fan Super Bowl tickets are expensive. So are airplane tickets. So are rooms in Miami next weekend. So what's a pretty 26-year-old on the West Side to do when her favorite team makes it to the Super Bowl? Auction herself off on eBay, of course. Meanwhile, there are single, successful gentlemen everywhere who occasionally find themselves with an extra Super......

If you happen to be in the area of the Greystone Mansion tonight, looking for something to do and have $75 burning in your pocket, check out the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank’s Wine Tasting and Silent Auction. Great wines are being featured from boutique wineries around California and there will also be (according to the press release) “fine chocolates and gourmet cheeses” too. Now, here at LAist, we are all for doing good......

MONDAY: Never The Girl Next Door Gretchen Mol plays Bettie Page in the upcoming movie, The Notorious Bettie Page that opens April 14. Join Mol and director Mary Harron at Reel Talk with Stephen Farber at the Wadsworth Theatre in Brentwood. Tuesday: Decruited “We [in show business] are experts in the field of rejection.” It began in L.A. when Annabelle Gurwitch collected stories from comedian friends to produce an event called Fired. Now, it’s......

Share our Strength's Taste of the Nation is an annual event aimed at raising money to fight hunger. With over 60 cities in the U.S. and Canada participating, the event uses the power of sponsorship and the generous donations of participating chefs and restaurants to ensure that 100% of the ticket price goes to the cause. The Los Angeles event is Sunday June 5th, and has two levels of support aimed at giving donors......