We don't get much snow here, so most of the cheesy "snow globes" tourist-centric shops sell are filled with sparkly glitter instead of that frosty white stuff that falls from the sky. This video, however, is a photographic take on a snow globe, with over 4,000 still images shot on a custom rig of various locations in Los Angeles. more ›

Windowpanes "frosted" with painted greetings, all-weather lights and trees bedecked with colorful baubles, Santa and his sleigh, trees awaiting adoption at lots, some stripped down carolers, and gift-wrapped buildings ("For me? You shouldn't have!") say rain be damned, it's Christmastime in Los Angeles. Here's a look at some recent images decking the halls of our LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr.
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When LAist interviewed songstress/comic book aficionado/World of Warcraft enthusiast LIGHTS last year, she had just finished traversing the country on the Warped Tour. Earlier this month, she came back through town with gigs at the Fox Theater and Club Nokia in support of Owl City (who just remixed her song "Saviour"--see below for the video). more ›

Forget regular old lit up Christmas Trees or other signs of this festive time of year; it's pretty tough to compete with this local legend of a home and its row of David statues all dolled up for the holidays. It's Norrywood, decked out for Christmas 2009! more ›

If only there could be more pop stars like LIGHTS. The Toronto-based 22-year-old is a refreshing change in an industry where young singers are often better known for their exploits than for their talents. Not only does she make synth-driven "intergalactic music," but she has also created an alter ego called "Captain LIGHTS." The character first appeared in a comic book series on LIGHTS' website, and she has recently taken it to the next level with a short animated series on MTV called "Audio Quest: A Captain LIGHTS Adventure." more ›

With a big smile on her face, North Hollywood resident Marta Duron has spent the last two evenings at North Hollywood Park. It's a first for her to be there after dark, but with newly installed solar lighting poles along the jogging path, she plans on taking advantage more often. "It makes it safer and more people are out at nighttime, even late at night" she said. "It's a major difference." more ›

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This weekend, some neighbors in Beverly Hills called in the cops and broke out the video camera to tell the tale of the thieves who helped themselves to items from their outdoor Christmas displays. Expressing dismay at the theft of things from $1000-elves, the Baby Jesus in his humble manger, and a wreath, the real 90210-ers were horrified that they would now have to chain down their lit-up snowmen and reindeer, and hoped that the public knew about their plight. LAist photographer Tom Andrews took a trip to the home of Peter and Shera Falk, whose pricey decorations were swiped. Is their holiday display less than it could--and should--be? more ›

Last night was the first night of Hanukkah and was observed accordingly by Jews all over Los Angeles by the lighting of the first of eight candles on the menorah. But the "Festival of Lights" this year might be casting a greenish glow on its observers as the move to make the ancient holiday more "eco-friendly" takes motion. more ›

During the UFO waves of the 1940s and '50s a new type of peculiar, possibly extraterrestrial or covert machine was mentioned, and often sighted in the murky oceans of the world. The USO, or Unidentified Submarine Object, just like the flying saucers and mystery airships of before, had begun to cause panic. more ›

On April 2nd 2005 at 11:00 am a witness contacted various UFO groups to report several strange objects over Hollywood. The first unidentified flying object was a geometrical black orb hovering in the sky days previous, the following day, a Sunday, the witness returned to the area and viewed another black sphere and then for several consecutive days noticed several white and black objects often firing strange laser-like lights from their under-carriage, whilst also performing spiral manouvres in the sky. more ›

So can fans really make a difference? Word has it that enough fans got through to NBC for them to keep the high school football-romance-drama "Friday Night Lights" on the air through a partnership with DirecTV. This gives one hope that a group of people can make a difference but then disappointment that truly great shows like "Arrested Development" couldn't make the cut. Speaking of which, Will Arnett is on Jimmy Kimmel tonight - Arnett mentioned on Conan a couple weeks ago that perhaps there is an "Arrested Development" movie in the works, wouldn't that be something? more ›

Prior to his 1993 death, legendary guitarist Albert Collins played a rare second show at Montreaux and yesterday--after a 15 year wait--that show (Collins' last recorded concert) finally came to DVD. Despite his poor health, the Master of the Telecaster plays a loose, fun show as he burns through "Iceman", "Honey Hush", "Lights Are On (But Nobody's Home)", "If You Love Me Like You Say", "Too Many Dirty Dishes", "Put The Shoe On The Other Foot" and "Frosty". more ›

PaleyFest08 announced today that they’re hosting an X-Files retrospective with series creator Chris Carter and executive producer Frank Spotnitz on March 26. But if that doesn’t bust out your inner Mulder or Scully, then how’s this? Attendees will also get a sneak peek at The X-Files sequel planned for a summer release. more ›

If you cannot make it to hear the amazing jazz vocalist, Julia Fordham, at The Roxy tonight, opening up at Hotel Cafe tonight is Tiffany Randol, who we caught at one of <strong>Alex & Sam's Tangier shows. The front woman of NYC based glam rock band, Valeze, has now gone solo singer/songwriter style, making Los Angeles her second home, and is bringing out a new sound that is more folk-acoustic-pop than anything. The LA newbie can belt out her lyrics like a pro and her body and hips swing as if the music has seduced her in some kind of trance. Later at the Hotel Cafe, one of acoustic favs plays his last night of the Hotel Cafe residency -- stay for Brian Wright and the Waco Tragedies. ~ Z.B. more ›

Many LAist staffers, contributors and readers were deeply troubled by the news of Dutton's closure. We all have a favorite memory of Dutton's - a particular book we discovered there, an admired author we met at a reading, a certain afternoon spent browsing. We'd like to honor the many unique memories of Dutton's that we all share with a series of posts about what Dutton's meant to us and what it meant to you. Our first post in this series is from LAist reader Laura Hertzfeld: more ›

I'm one of those paranoid, overly dramatic people who convince themselves that the entire world is out to get them. A lot of my paranoid delusions revolve around driving, of course: that dude slowed down just to piss me off! Every time I change lanes traffic gets worse! (Also known as the "Office Space" rule.) These lights are timed badly just to slow me down! more ›

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There are usually only two things to talk about at the Sundance Film Festival: the movies and the parties. Last night was unique, though, because everybody was talking about...the blackout! That's right. Around 9:30 last night the whole town just went completely dark for at least half on hour. Periodic blackouts continued for the next hour or so before everything finally returned to normal. It was a surreal scene. Thousands of people were just standing out in the cold on Main Street in utter darkness. more ›

The Mars Volta, not that I'm some kind of outraged fan, had terrible terrible sound on Letterman last night. I've noticed this over the last few years, yeah I'm slow, that the sound production on the live band performances (not "the CBS Orchestra") is always sub par on Letterman. All the other late night shows have better live sound, Late Night needs to figure this out. more ›

Tonight at the Jazz Bakery is the The Alternative String Group, an ensemble of students from Robert Anderson and Jacob Szekely's music school in West Hollywood, The String Project | Los Angeles. Both studio musicians who have worked with the likes of the Dakah Hip-Hop Orchestra and SuperNova, the two have put together a conservatory that is pretty high tech with their interactive music lessons, recording and filming them for student's personal analysis... Finally, the viola gets some respect. The concert will feature solo and small group performances of music by legends such as The Grateful Dead, Jay-Z, Thelonious Monk, Carlos Santana, U2, Jimi Hendrix, James Brown, and more. Video above: Allie Performs Sunrise by Nora Jones withe the String Project Los Angeles Alternative String Group at the Jazz Bakery in Los Angeles, November 2007. more ›

Hey, even though there might not be much newly written TV on tonight (that's worth watching) tomorrow you are cordially invited to see acclaimed TV show creator and writer David Milch (creator of Deadwood, NYPD Blue) host: "The Idea of the Writer: A Writing Discussion with David Milch" tomorrow from 2:15-4:00pm at the WGA Theater at 135 S. Doheny Drive in Beverly Hills. This event is FREE and all are welcome on a first come,... more ›

What's the holiday season without one of the most popular and famous works in Western choral literature -- George Frideric Handel's "Messiah"? And who doesn't like sing-alongs? (Remember our love for The Sound of Music Sing-A-Long at the Hollywood Bowl?) So many questions, so many... Los Angeles Master Chorale: Messiah Sing-Along Monday, December 10 & Sunday, December 16 @ 7:30 pm Walt Disney Concert Hall Angeles Chorale: George Frideric Handel Messiah December 15 @... more ›

Earlier this week on LAist we passed on a treasured recipe for latkes, and two Hanukkahs ago we ran the closest thing to my late Grandpa (AKA "The Latke King")'s recipe. Latkes (potato pancakes) are a tasty and traditional food long associated with the holiday of Hanukkah, which rocks its halfway point at sundown tonight. But soaking up the oil that is at the core of the holiday isn't just something for members of the... more ›

I hope you've got a bunch of stuff Tivo'd because there's nothing on until Sunday. You tell me that there is stuff on tonight? What, you mean Friday Night Lights, NUMB3RS, or Las Vegas? Please. Tomorrow, there's no reason to turn on prime time TV unless it's for Citizen Kane on TCM at 8:30. The Big Story is Sunday, check it: Sunday 8:00pm Mr. Warmth: The Don Rickles Project HBO - Special. Don Rickles is... more ›

1. The Obvious- My parents and sister are the most important people in the world to me. They support me in every boneheaded endeavor I partake in, and believe me, there are tons. It's astonishing how many, actually. 2. My friends. Once again, totally obvious. Once again, they're totally awesome. Much love to Porter House, SLC, Shalhevet, AU, and everyone who fits into all, some, or none of those categories. World rockers, each and every... more ›

Who would have known? This summer I went around the apartment, systematically, room by room, replacing my regular light bulbs with compact fluorescents lights (CFLs) at the recommendation of councilman Eric Garcetti. In the end, I replaced nine. The effects on our next two electricity bills we're amazing, yet confusing. Why was it considerably less? It really should be costlier in the summer due to our not-so-well insulated 1960's apartment when the AC must... more ›

Last night came and went, but we know a select bunch of aware Angelenos turned off their lights last night for Lights Out LA, a program in San Francisco and Los Angeles asking residents to turn off lights for one-hour in the name of conserving energy. Alisa Pugha in Koreatown participated and she spoke to LAist last night. "So just as Light Out LA starts, my power starts dimming. What the fuck?" The anonymous blogger,... more ›

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