Back in June 2002, a crime drama from the minds of former Baltimore Sun writer David Simon (who spoke at USC earlier this week) and former Baltimore police officer Ed Burns made its debut on HBO. The Wire was more than just another cop show, it was an examination of both sides of the Baltimore drug trade - the organization profiting off of the projects' heroine addiction and the police department trying to stop them. The gritty, realism and complexity of the show helped the show win over critics coast-to-coast. However, that very same gritty, realism and complexity that won over the press might be the reason why nobody outside of the people who were being paid to watch television were watching the show. The American public, including myself, didn't want to jump into a fictional world that was as depressing and bleak as our actual world. more ›

Definitely, I have enjoyed this journey. more ›

Sunday marks the return of HBO's The Wire. To get you ready for the premiere of the fifth and final season of a show that TIME, Entertainment Weekly, Slate and the San Francisco Chronicle have all called "The best on television" LAist has lined up interviews with three members of the show's incredible cast. Be sure to check back tomorrow and Friday. more ›

I know I’m about as consistent as the Lakers in doing these things. So here are my quick takes of all of the Sunday games. more ›

To prepare for this interview, I scoured my closet for my pair of unwashed lucky socks, put on some Dog the Bounty Hunter ondemand, and tried to ignore the fact that his girlfriend is "shnacky", as I like to say. Yucko the Clown is a regular guest on "The Howard Stern Show", a stand-up comic, and the co-creator of The Damn Show later 'ported' to MTV2 as Stankervision. Currently he's touring with the Killers... more ›

Whitney Bedford is a truly unique artist. Her subjects- shipwrecks, pirates, and impending disaster, are far from the norm of what L.A based painters are doing these days. more ›

The Art Dump wants you to send them a zine you've made and they'll send you one that they've made back. more ›

Angels 18, Orioles 6 - Anaheim and Baltimore have combined for a whopping 39 runs in the past two game. The Halos had 18 last night, thanks to 13 walks and 3 errors given to them by the Orioles. Baltimore was so bad on defense that their offense hammered Kelvim Escobar for 6 earned runs in 5.1 innings and he still got the W. Vladimir Guerrero went yard, as did Brandon Wood -- for the... more ›

As ugly as the Monday night games were, they sure did get exciting at the end. The Ravens had eight plays inside the Bengal’s five-yard line with just over two minutes left in their game and failed to score. The 49ers whose offense struggled most of the game drove 86 yards in their final drive for a game-winning touchdown with 16 seconds left in the game. Cincinnati over Baltimore 27-20. One of the cardinal... more ›

That opening game of the NFL was a kick in the nuts, wasn’t it? The Indianapolis Colts proved their defense wasn’t a mere fluke in last season’s playoff by only allowing the New Orleans Saints offense to only score a field goal in their 41-10 blowout. At least I was right about the Saints having a pretty porous defense. With the exception of the Reggie Wayne fumble that was taken for a touchdown, no... more ›

Photo by S:U:P:E:R:M:O:D via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr more ›

The Dodgers have a certain way of making me look like a complete asshole. Just when I proclaim that it would take a miracle for the Dodgers to make the postseason, the offense explodes as if some saintly being was guiding them in the outfield. You know, they should make a movie about that. Against the Phillies on Wednesday the Dodgers scored 15 runs in an obvious show of laziness since a horrible Texas... more ›

Dodgers 5, Pirates 4 - Brad Penny was taxed for four runs in six innings, but Los Angeles cashed in with three runs in the seventh and two in the eighth to keep his record at 7-1. Andre Ethier hit the two-run shot that put the Dodgers ahead for good. Grady Little watched most of the game from the clubhouse after arguing with the ump in the fourth. He's the fifth major league manager to... more ›

Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist David Halberstam died yesterday in a car crash in Menlo Park, CA. He was 73. Halberstam’s work as a journalist ranges wide and delves deep. He covered the Korean War, the Vietnam War and civil rights but he was also fascinated with the humanity and spectacle of sports. He did not simply document the history he lived through – he explained complex societal constructs and cultural shifts in a way that anyone could easily understand. He was one of the only journalists who questioned the Vietnam War early on and it was this same questioning – throughout his life and his work – that allowed him to uncover facts that other journalists side-stepped. more ›

Today - Thursday - March 1st, 2007 Ducks @ Kings (Fox Sports, 7:30 p.m.) College Basketball: UCLA @ Washington State (PRIME, 7:30 p.m.) Survivor: Fiji (CBS, 8:00 p.m.) Someone has a tantrum on the island. Swinging (ABC, 9:00 p.m.) Series premiere Scrubs/30 Rock (NBC, 8-9:00 p.m.) New episodes. Larry King Live (CNN, 9:00 p.m.) Reporter Bob Woodruff Ace of Cakes (Food Network, 10:30 p.m.) Off to Baltimore. If only this show had the balls... more ›

- Robert Adler died this week at 93 years old. He invented the wireless tv remote a little over 50 years ago, finally giving men an important responsibility around the house - AP - When Britney Spears shaved off all her hair yesterday, did she do it because of all the constant attention from the paparazzi? And if so, why didn't she move back to Louisiana for a spell? - Celebrity Baby Blog -... more ›

It’s Tuesday night, which means you better “Check Yo’Ponytail” at Safari Sam’s. They knocked us out with their Los Angeles debut at Spaceland this summer, and with a bigger fanbase and nastier lyrics, we’re sure Spank Rock, Baltimore’s raunchy street brats, will do it once again. Bringing Miami booty bass, dirty east coast beats, and lottsa dirty words, Spank Rock’s mind bending hip-hop will show Los Angeles how to do it right. Check Yo’... more ›

- The Simpsons have their Tire Fire, LA has its Tire Store Fire - LAFD blog - Some Hollywood women too Busy to shave their armpits? Say it ain't so! - Reuters - Martini Republic asks "who's the bigger idiot, Instapundit or Bill Kristol?" Which makes us finally understand that IT WAS A CONTEST ALL ALONG! - Martini Republic - Mom calls cops on her 12-year-old son for opening his videogame before Christmas -... more ›

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- Late Late Show's Craig Ferguson has a MySpace - MySpace - South Central's The Game finds long-lost sister thru MySpace - Spin - TBS to use MySpace to host an online Comedy Contest - TV Week - "The OC" season premiere to appear on MySpace before TV - Monsters & Critics - Alleged MD rapist identified using MySpace - Baltimore Sun - 13 yr old girl uses MySpace to pretend she's a teacher.... more ›

As the Pogues ramble through the US on their current tour (hopefully not their last), they bring THE perfect band to open for them: Murder By Death, who are out of Baltimore. more ›

On this day in 1814, Francis Scott Key watched a failed British Navy attack on Fort McHenry during the War of 1812. Due to heavy storms and crappy equipment on both sides, neither the Americans defending the fort nor the Brits trying to attack it so they could continue sailing into Baltimore Harbor did much damage on each other, but Key was inspired when he saw a huge flag rise from the US fort... more ›

We -ists are an eclectic bunch, but there's a couple of things we all love: famous people, social causes, and wacky local facts. Join us as we starf**k, get virtuous, and learn across the -ist network! more ›

LAist has so much fun this week! They go to E3, where they overhear the timeless remark "Man, this is where nerdy girls get laid." Is that a promise? They also give us this week's best CDs and make us realize that LA is the best place to use Zillow. more ›

Here are a few live music options for the old and jaded, desert-averse people. more ›

Gram Rabbit Cultivation (Stinky) – They’ve got a unique sound (kind of like Calexico mixed with trip-hop) and they’re from Joshua Tree. This is their second release and they’re performing live at Tower Sunset on 4/20 at 6:00 PM and the Echo on 4/21. Listen to some tracks on MYSPACE. more ›

Terrace seating at last night's Minimalist Jukebox concert was like bleacher seats at a baseball game - a bit unruly. Well, unruly as a classical concert can get these days at least. Terry Jennings' (1940 - 1981, born in Eagle Rock) String Quartet begat another piece in the audience. The "drone-inspired, modal, repetitive," extremely quiet and delicate work gave room for a chorus of antiphonal coughs, throat clearing and shuffling feet. These small, but constant sounds foreign to the piece, made it even more beautiful in that sort of "you are a noise nerd" way. more ›

Men's Fitness magazine announced the top 25 fittest and fattest cities in America. Baltimore (huh?) beat out cities like Honolulu, Colorado Springs, Tucson, San Francisco and Seattle to claim the top spot. more ›

Based on reports from last week's NFL owners meetings, it looks like we'll have to wait longer. more ›

Today's edition in the series, is about former 49ers and Browns executive Carmen Policy, and how he might be the savior LA has been looking for to bring us back a team. Come on! Enough already! How many more saviors can we take? Add Carmen Policy to a list that includes Jerry Jones, John Elway, Larry Ellison, Eli Broad, Ron Burkle, Ed Roski, Tim Leiweke, Casey Wasserman, Mike Ovitz, Michael Eisner, Peter O'Malley, Mark Ridley-Thomas, Al Davis (again), Ken Behring, Alex Spanos, John Moag, Jim Irsay, and countless others as people who supposedly could have brought the NFL back to LA at some point. It hasn't happened yet. more ›