Gentlemen, start your engines. A new gentlemen's club opens tomorrow in Downtown Los Angeles, promising class and a return to the days of real gentlemen. Now, we wouldn't quite call any man who ogles scantily clad or naked women and pays them to strip (or to perform other services, ahem) a gentleman, but we digress. more ›

The Los Angeles Police Department needs your help, but we're going to warn you: You might not want to admit you know this guy. A local preschool has surveillance tapes from earlier this month showing a naked man inside the facility. On the tapes, the nude intruder "is shown parading around for several minutes while engaging in strange behavior of a sexual nature," describe the LAPD. more ›

Before Venice Beach became the tourist hot spot it's known as today, it was one of L.A.'s secrets. Actually, it was a topless secret. Before 1974, Venice Beach was a nude mecca and apparently pretty private. But thanks to some media attention, a gubernatorial candidate campaigning in the nude and word spreading throughout town, people started to come and check out the spectacle. Controversy, of course, came to a head and the city banned nudity. But that didn't stop people from coming to Venice. "... it was too late to turn back the clock," wrote historian Jeffrey Stanton wrote in Venice California: Coney Island of the Pacific. "For people had discovered that Venice still existed and was actually a relatively safe place to visit during the day." more ›

As part of closing week for Jonathan Yeo's naughty and edgy show at David Lazarides' gallery in Beverly Hills, UK hairstylist to the stars (Justin Timberlake, Natalie Portman, Brad Pitt, Sienna Miller, Jude Law, etc.) Johnnie Sapong this afternoon is cutting a nude model's hair in the gallery's storefront window. It's expected to continue until 6 p.m. or until it's broken up by authorities. Sapong has been in Beverly Hills running a pop-up hair studio since Monday and will continue through tomorrow. more ›

For one, it's been hot. But another reason could be this: July 5th through 11th was Nude Recreation Week. Who knew?! Perhaps that's why there has been a random rash of nudeness recently (that link has some funny photos) or perhaps not. But talk about random from all angles. And if you were taking Amtrak or Metrolink last Saturday, you may have been mooned. more ›

Is this the summer of nudity or what? From naked PETA protests in Orange County to random and criminal instances of nudity on the 405 Freeway, Azusa and Temecula (and let's not forget the drunk teen in Simi Valley who went to his former house -- the keys still worked! -- and went asleep in a bed nude). more ›

Authorities in Southern California had their hands full this week by way of cases of men in various stages of undress at the wrong place and time. more ›

Oh, that 405 Freeway, it gets a lot of action. From a skateboarder to a large group of cyclists, from a family of ducks to mountain lions, there's been much craziness. The latest freeway encounter was during the Thursday afternoon rush hour when the California Highway Patrol was flooded with calls about a nude man on the center divider in the Long Beach area. Twitter user GMoney310 snapped a photo (see right) and wrote "WTF someone naked in the middle of the 405 by Cherry ave." Police arrested a 21-year-old Auburn man and charged him with misdemeanor indecent exposure. more ›

The Illinois man accused of taking nude videos of ESPN reporter Erin Andrews and uploading them to the web will have to appear in a Los Angeles U.S. District Court later this month. Michael David Barrett, 48, was arrested Friday night at Chicago's O'Hare Airport for allegedly taking video of Andrews in the nude through a peephole in a Nashville hotel room and then posting it on the internet after failing to sell the footage to TMZ. more ›

Warning: Many of these images are NSFW, or Not Safe for Work.

If you've enjoyed legally walking topless around the streets of New York City (yes, it is legal there and if you do get busted, you can take the police to court and win), then you might be interested in protesting for the equal opportunity to go topless in California, too. Tomorrow is National Go Topless Protest Day (with one protest at the Democratic National Convention next week) where those in support of this constitutional cause will march clad in nothing or slightly more. The Venice Beach protest begins at noon on the boardwalk at Navy St. As the neighborhood blog Yo Venice says, "CA Ladies, if you want the same rights as your NY sisters…be at the beach this Saturday." more ›

Someone trying to kidnap you is never a fun memory. At least when the alleged kidnapper was nude, it's a good story to tell in years to come. more ›

Is your jump shot lacking? Are your rebound skills not up to par? Well never you fear, Coach Wiener is here! Honor Student (an up-and-coming Los Angeles sketch/short-film troupe) brings you the latest installment of the Peabody-winning* sports series, "PE With Coach Wiener." more ›

More photos from last night's Undie Run here. Strathmore Tunnel Photos by Contributing Writer Henry David. Photos in the thick of it by Sports Editor Adam Rose and LAist Editor Zach Behrens.... more ›

LAist has been sending undercover reporters to UCLA's undie run for the past few quarters and trust us, there's no better place to be embedded than in a throng of thongs. Try as they might to duplicate our coverage (we're looking at you, KTLA ... and the creepy dude with a camera lens that was a lil' too long, if you know what we mean), nobody can uncover a story like we can. Thanks... more ›

The and wonder why James Taylor didn't become a famous actor. more ›

Atonement hits theaters this weekend as one of the few, definite contenders for an Academy Award. It bears all the traditional hallmarks of an Oscar-caliber film: lavish period piece (check), excellent source novel (check), epic scope (check), high-powered English cast (check), nude scene from Keira Knightley (double check). Those critics who've already seen it have been generous with praise, so I'm expecting nothing less than a winner. It's virtually certain that The Golden Compass... more ›

Perspective - The question around town is clear ... "Who's going to upstage everybody next?" Tuesday night should have been about the Laker's season opener. Or was it about Kobe possibly leaving the team? Nope, the Dodgers stole the headlines when manager Grady Little resigned. Could Joe Torre and Alex Rodriguez be reunited in Blue? Or could A-Rod go to LAnaheim? Curt Schilling has expressed interest in both teams. If baseball isn't providing the big... more ›

I never claimed to be mature therefore it's ok for me to be a massive fan of Pale Force, as featured on Late Night With Conan O'Brien. The animated series is voiced and concepted by comedian extraordinaire, Jim Gaffigan, and features both himself and an extremely wussified Conan in all of their sickly pale and semi-nude glory. Other than the TV airings you can watch the series online to be fully up to speed -... more ›

more ›

The party is over in apartment 269 after Irvine cops acting on complaints from neighbors discovered a small brothel in the OC. One woman was charged with pimping and two were popped for whoring via Craigslist - at bare bottom rates.

The three woman, all Los Angeles residents, allegedly advertised their services on Craigslist.com, and met the men in a two-bedroom unit at the Villa Coronado apartment homes in Irvine, authorities said. more ›

This week, Phillyist saw the waters of a landmark fountain run red for a Showtime marketing stunt, the Phils pull ahead, and some serious nostalgia. They also got a chance to review an awesome tribute album, reminded folks to see the King, and appreciated their beautiful skyline. more ›

I have a neighbor named Zac. He's always pleasant and holds the elevator door open for me when he doesn't have to. Young, unassuming, and a generally-likable guy. Little did I know that my neighbor became one of young Hollywood's breakout stars virtually overnight. I noticed that he was on the cover of People magazine one day with this young girl I sometimes saw him hanging out with. Little did I know that my neighbor was Zac Efron. I sometimes wondered if the paparazzi would ever show up to my house, especially after the whole nude picture fiasco concerning his girlfriend came to light, but I always thought, no, I live in a quiet neighborhood, far from Hollywood. The paparazzi would never come to my house. more ›

As if Wes Anderson didn't already have the undying respect of fanboys across the world for directing Bottle Rocket, Rushmore, The Royal Tenenbaums and The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, he has now done the ultimate: convinced Natalie Portman to do her first nude scene for his short, The Hotel Chevalier. The film is a companion piece to Anderson's forthcoming The Darjeeling Limited and stars Portman and Jason Schwartzman. They are ex-lovers who meet... more ›

So is anyone NOT buying Knocked Up this week? There's something like 5 different versions in Amazon's top 25 bestsellers right now. Wow. The TV Set is a great movie that about 400 people saw when it was in theaters. I had a near-private screening one afternoon at the Santa Monica Laemmle. Next is really only interesting if you're a Nicholas Cage hairpiece connoisseur (like myself). Evening has an incredibly raunchy nude scene with... more ›

Photo by Christine Kelly via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr more ›

Not since Magritte was in town at the beginning of this year have so many people talked about an art show. Featuring dozens of controversial pieces from a variety of artists like Jackie Beat, Angus Oblong, Plastic God, Mad Puppeteer, Jim Winters, Austin Young, Selene Luna, Jtodd Irby, Chris McKim, Garilyn Brune and Gay Bigfoot, who knew that a topless painting of Bea Arthur that was bought off eBay for a little over $100... more ›

One of Indie rock's rising stars, Ferraby Lionheart, is out with his new full length eleven song album Catch the Brass Ring and is playing Hotel Cafe tomorrow night. Before we go see this folksy pop singer songwriter, LAist interviewed Ferraby about his name, his love for Judy Garland, and where he hangs out in LA. more ›

In the opening scene of The Real Dirt on Farmer John, the eponymous farmer, John Peterson, kneels down in a plowed field and chews on a good-sized clod of dirt. It's exactly the sort of thing you might expect a true farmer to do when gauging the quality of his soil. Soon enough, though, John is riding his tractor dressed in a feather boa and being followed by a nude woman who appears to be channeling a zombie from Dawn of the Dead. It's that dichotomy of character and action that lies at the heart of this fascinating and odd documentary. more ›

Two extortionists have been arrested for trying to blackmail Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes. more ›