If you're grabbing your guilty pleasure gossip rag from the rack of a local newsstand, better make sure it's not one of TrustoCorp's faux mags. The NYC-based artists collective, whose guerrilla street signs went on display at Gallery 1988 in L.A. in October, have slipped their fake mags in locations in Hollywood and LAX, as well as on their home turf in NY. more ›

There's no doubt that Nadya "Octomom" Suleman has her hands full with a brood of 14 children, including toddler octuplets. But a recent article claiming the harried single mother "hates" her children has the La Habra, California resident "furious," says TMZ. more ›

One of the founders of Los Angeles magazine, Geoff Miller, died last night at his home in L.A., according to the Hollywood Reporter. Miller was 73. Miller, along with co-founder David Brown, are considered the creators of the "city magazine" genre, having began with the local publication "The Southern California Prompter," in 1960, nearly a decade ahead of "New York" magazine on the East Coast. more ›

Gentlemen (and ladies), the Burger of the Year is LA's own Umami, says GQ Magazine in their December issue. Food writer Alan Richman says the magical "fifth taste" burger from Adam Fleischman's burger emporiums is "half beef and half beyond belief." You know that burger: It's small, it's rich, and it's something just next-door to salty (that's the umami flavor, yo!). You don't know that burger? For shame, meat eaters. more ›

Although the Hollywood & Highland area lost the Knitting Factory, it will soon gain a new club, of sorts. Rolling Stone Magazine this summer will open a two-tiered nightclub and restaurant. It won't be a music venue, however, as it will be more DJ-based (though they say live events will happen time to time). How will the 10,000 square-foot space work? The top floor, which will open up into the Hollywood & Highland outdoor mall will be a bar and restaurant, meant for tourists and locals a like. On the street level, the vibe gets more exclusive and will include heftier prices and the like. more ›

Now here's not a fun way to start your second term in office. The June cover of Los Angeles Magazine will hit homes and newsstands with a cover story, actually an open letter, perhaps to put Mayor Villaraigosa back on track to serve Los Angeles and not his political career when his new term begins on July 1st. more ›

He may not be quite the household name of such iconic magazine personalities as Tina Brown, Graydon Carter and Anna Wintour, but Tyler Brûlé is without a doubt flying in the same airspace. The jet-setting editor and entrepreneur started his career as a reporter for the BBC before launching the popular design and travel magazine, , an ambitious global publication that covers everything from business and culture, to design and travel. There’s even a Japanese manga comic in every issue. As a close friend said when I described the hefty publication to him, “Jeez, does it also come with pie?” more ›

This past week, Food & Wine magazine announced their selections for the Best New Chefs in America for 2009. Said Editor in Chief Dana Cowin: "We sought out great chefs in every corner of America, from Memphis, Tennessee to Portland, Oregon, and found some extraordinary cooking. Some of our winners are in seriously elegant restaurants. Others are in small, quirky, casual spots. But they’re all immensely talented, creative and driven.” more ›

Back then, he was known as Barry. After graduating high school in Hawaii, Barack Obama headed off to college where he spent two years, from 1979 to 1981, at Occidental College in Eagle Rock. His times there is said to have where his public service mindedness began, especially in his sophomore year, "growing increasingly aware of harsh inequities like apartheid and poverty in the third world." Then he wanted a wider urban experience and applied to Columbia, moving himself East. In this week's TIME magazine, a new and very young-looking photo set from his Oxy years appear. The aspiring photographer, Lisa Jack, had no idea she would be digging those photos up again years later. more ›

Echo Park artist Shepard Fairey was always widely known in Los Angeles for his ubiquitous OBEY images illegally plastered on walls in the streets and commissioned in clubs. But once his poster became the defining image of Barack Obama's bid for president, it also became Fairey's. "[It] might be the defining image of my life," he told TIME in a video interview. The magazine is on newsstands now, so if you're a proud eastsider like Jesus Sanchez over at The Eastsider LA, you'll probably want to pick this one up. more ›

She's single, plays flag football in Valley parks weekly and her book was on the New York Times bestselling list for a year. In fact, the vegan activist author of Skinny Bitch (LAist Review) has penned two guest posts for LAist. In the just released December issue of VegNews, writer Rory Freedman earned the top prize in the 2008 Veggie Awards--Person of the Year. In an interview with the magazine, Freedman, who has convinced thousands of women to turn vegetarian in her book, announces that a major network TV sitcom is in development and that Skinny Bastard (watch out meat eatin' guys) is due in bookstores in June (she says she's in search of a skinny bastard herself). more ›

It was obvious when Travel + Leisure Magazine put New York City up against Minneapolis that the big apple would win. It was an easy choice when you had to choose between San Francisco and Phoenix. But when we saw Los Angeles in competition with Honolulu, we knew the fate that was to come. more ›

Remember that crazy list from Travel + Leisure where we were ranked as the rudest and dumbest city earlier this month (and not to mention last year, too)? Well, the magazine has a little online bracketed game where you can vote for the best cities. more ›

The Sunday LA Times has a new addition--well, an old addition reinvented, sort of. It's LA, the new Los Angeles Times Magazine, but it's only available in print. more ›

Reviews of Jay Babcock's review of Los Angeles didn't go so well in the comments section yesterday. Babcock, the man behind Arthur Magazine, left Los Angeles for Brooklyn earlier this month. Soundboard on LA Times caught up with him and quizzed him about his move and Babcock went off on Los Angeles. more ›

The man behind Arthur Magazine, Jay Babcock, recently took the indie rag's operation to Brooklyn where he decided to resettle. Soundboard, the LA Times music blog, got a hold of him for a short interview. His answer to the first question, "what prompted the move to Brooklyn?", is quite a read: more ›

The newest and hottest trends in new modern design and eco-friendly building are hitting the Los Angeles Convention Center this weekend at Dwell on Design. Over 200 exhibitors will display their outdoor, indoor and prefab wares including new products being launched this weekend. Additionally, there will be displays (ex., the Nomad yurt), sixteen private home tours and after hours parties. more ›

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Exclusive parties are thrown all the time at the Playboy Mansion, but yesterday's luncheon was a bigger event for Playboy -- Playmate of the Year. This time around, the annual event's honoree is January 2007's model, the 22-year-old Jayde Nicole. She is the first Canadian Playmate of the Year in 26 years. more ›

LAist is proud to begin offering a weekly, chart roundup of Billboard Magazine’s most coveted rankings. Join us as we revel in the conventional standard of musical success. Let us cross our fingers, hoist our lighters, and dream together of the supreme resurrection of artist-driven recordings that will forever eclipse the dark cloud of big label greed, A&R sleaze and disposable audio. Amen. Here are this week’s chart toppers. Behold the #1’s. Billboard Charts... more ›