The man who tried to sneak 55 live turtles and tortoises packed in snack food boxes into the U.S. via Los Angeles International Airport last year will now get to pack himself into a federal prison cell. more ›

If you've got a restaurant and you come close to simulating the red and yellow logos or the cherished burgers of In-N-Out, the SoCal institution will send their lawyers after you. So news of the chain doing a one-day-only pop-up location in Japan might seem as suspicious as that 2010 April Fools' Day prank about the restaurant opening up in NYC. more ›

An empty Japanese fishing vessel discovered March 20 drifting off the coast of western Canada has prompted officials to reexamine the mass of tsunami debris heading toward North America. The ghost ship was spotted just after the one-year anniversary of Japan's devastating 75-foot tsunami in March 11, 2011. It is now believed that pieces of the wreckage will arrive sooner than expected, and it remains unclear whether or not SoCal beaches will be in its path. more ›

We're coming up on the one-year anniversary of the tsunami in Japan this Sunday. In anticipation of the anniversary, Heal the Bay says it has been fielding a lot of questions about what has happened to the estimated 20-25 million tons of debris that flooded into the ocean that day. more ›

Are things heating up on your favorite television show? Or, is it your television set that's heating up so much it could catch on fire? Sony has announced a recall of their 40" Bravia LCD HDTV sets after learning that a component inside the TV "may overheat and at times ignite inside." more ›

Huntington Beach's Ocean View Little League All-Stars team is tearing up the world of children's baseball. After beating Montana-Billings Big Sky in an 11-2 victory yesterday, they're now headed to the Little League World Series Championship, reports NBC LA. Yesterday's game was a comeback from earlier in the week: "OVLL avenged a 1-0 extra-inning loss to Billings on Wednesday with power from the plate and a dominating pitching performance from starter Nick Pratto." more ›

Norihide Ushirozako, a Japanese man who plead guilty on May 23 to smuggling live turtles and tortoises into the United States via LAX, will be released from federal custody after being sentenced to time served, as reported by CBS LA. more ›

The man thought to be behind a series of fires in North Hollywood is Kurt K. Bille, a 34-year-old ex-Marine who was convicted for setting a rash of high-profile fires in Japan a decade ago, reports L.A. Now. more ›

Atsushi Yamagami, a 39-year old Japanese national, plead guilty on Monday to one felony count of smuggling turtles and tortoises into the United States. Concealed in snack food boxes in a suitcase, a live shipment containing 55 of the reptiles was discovered at LAX in January 2011. more ›

The dance-theater experience Burn the Floor opens tonight at the Pantages Theatre for a two-week run. The show features 20 dancers who take the audience through dance history from the waltz to the paso doble to swing. Choreographed by Jason Gilkison, a guest choreographer for So You Think You Can Dance in the US & Australia. Tonight at 8 pm. Tickets: $25-$78. more ›

The 9.0 magnitude Japanese earthquake and tsunami that hit Northern Japan last month has left the media's collective memory and most front-page headlines, but help and assistance is still needed. A number of local benefits tonight and on Tuesday aim to help the Japanese people—all we have to do is listen to music or eat, drink, shop and be merry. more ›

A 7.1-magnitude aftershock struck off northeast coast of Japan this morning, roughly 50 miles east of Sendai, Honshu, the same area that was devastated in last month's 9.0 earthquake and ensuing tsunami, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. Earlier this morning a 6.5-magnitude earthquake struck Southern Mexico, in the state of Veracruz. There were no immediate reports of injuries or damage. more ›

Barbies, dinosaurs, roses, leather, skulls and bows collide at Joyrich on Melrose. The brand new store space celebrates pop culture from Hollywood to Tokyo. Last Friday, after months of transformation, Joyrich unveiled their new interiors filled with brightly colored apparel, toys collections, and accessories all vibrantly reflecting in mirrors and lights. more ›

An oceanographer who collects flotsam on Washington's Pacific Coast predicts that flotsam and debris from last month's tsunami in Japan could be hitting our shores within a year. "If you put a major city through a trash grinder and sprinkle it on the water, that's what you're dealing with," Curt Ebbesmeyer, a retired oceanographer and Seattle-based consultant for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration explained. more ›

There's radiation in our milk!!! But unlike earlier this month the media is declaring it unquestionably non-threatening, as opposed to shocking viewers to induce vomiting and feverishly turn to adult breastfeeding in fallout shelters. The fact is, there's always radiation... everywhere. Likely more so if you take your milk from a paper or plastic carton rather than one of those fancy glass bottles. more ›

Should the radiation cloud over Los Angeles actually come to pass, some hippies will be well-prepared, after having bought all the sea kelp off the shelves at Whole Foods. West Hollywood Patch reports that the product, which comes in the form of tablets, contains iodine, a chemical that helps stave off the effects of radiation, and has flown off the shelves at local health food markets: more ›

The largest travel show in the West has brought exotic lands to our backyard, and this morning LAist got in on the action (though we must admit we only looked at the scuba tank) during Day 1 of the Los Angeles Times Travel & Adventure Show featuring a full slate of adventures throughout California and around the globe. more ›

Hey, you guys out there who are worrying about a deadly mushroom cloud making its way across the Pacific -- you can all just calm down, because we have it on good authority that radiation is good for you. What authority? None other than Ann "PhD" Coulter. As people in Japan panic and workers risk their lives at the country's Fukushima Nuclear Plant, Coulter went ahead and published a column called "A Glowing Report on Radiation. more ›

Volunteers raised money for the Japanese Red Cross' earthquake and tsunami relief efforts outside City Hall on Thursday. And if the flashing "Tsunami Relief Effort" sign in front of the building wasn't enough to get passerbys to crack open their wallets, Darin Furukawa was there in full superhero Red Cross samurai garb. more ›

It is a scientific fact: The plume of radiation generated from the Fukushima Nuclear Plant in Japan is moving towards the U.S. West Coast. That plume is expected to reach California by Friday, however, "experts said they were confident that the amount of radiation would be well within safe limits," reports the LA Times. more ›

U.S. residents concerned about airborne fallout from Japan, have sharply increased demand for potassium iodide (KI), an inexpensive drug that can protect against one type of radiation damage, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, by preventing the thyroid from absorbing radioactive iodine. more ›

Jokes about the recent earthquake and tsunami in Japan? Too soon, and, for one prominent insurer, far enough out of line to cost one of their pitchmen his job. Aflac, the insurance company whose U.S. commercials have starred Gottfried as the voice of its iconic duck since 2000, does a large percentage of its business in Japan, and is the nation's top insurer "in terms of individual policies in force and the largest foreign insurer in Japan in terms of premium income." more ›

The San Diego-based aircraft carrier Ronald Reagan was sent to the waters off Japan as part of the U.S.'s humanitarian aid effort, however now the vessel has been ordered to re-position itself because of a safety threat to those on board. Following the first explosion at Japan's Fukushima nuclear power plant, "low levels of radiation were detected in the air and flight deck," according to LA Now. more ›

In Crescent City, where damage is estimated to top $25 million, repeated surges, some nearing eight feet, tossed boats and left one person dead. The man swept out to sea while photographing the waves has been identified as Dustin Weber, 25, believed to be from Bend, Oregon, reports KTLA. more ›

Today at Heath Ceramics an exhibition and sale of Japanese master potter Akio Nukaga's most recent hand-thrown pots and vessels is scheduled to open. The artist was headed to the opening when the devastating 8.9 magnitude earthquake and tsunami hit Japan this week. He is reportedly en route to Los Angeles from Kasama. more ›

The cast of the upcoming installment of the "Twilight" trilogy (er, tetralogy?) were forced off Vancouver Island early this morning due to the tsunami warning triggered by the magnitude 8.9 earthquake in Japan. But the evacuation of cast members, which included Kristen Stewart and Taylor Lautner did not go down without drama. more ›

The Los Angeles County Urban Search and Rescue team is headed to Japan following one of the biggest earthquakes in recorded history. Hundreds are feared dead after an 8.9 earthquake and tsunami generating powerful waves as high as 23 feet rattled northeastern Japan (our full coverage here and here. more ›

Dodgers pitcher Hiroki Kuroda, one of 14 Japanese baseball players on 2010 Major League rosters, still hasn't heard from his brother. His wife and children live with him in L.A. but he is concerned about several friends from Sendai, where hundreds of bodies are reported to have washed ashore following the tsunami. more ›