Say what you will about Los Feliz, but having another high-quality food option is something locals and visitors alike will welcome. This June, Mess Hall is set to open in the former Louise's space, bringing with it thoughtful cocktails, and lively comfort classics. more ›

As temperatures climb outside the cinema, it's high time to relax with one of the coolest actors out of the past. For those unfamiliar, Robert Mitchum excelled at icy antiheroes & haunting psychodrama over a 50 year career that included Night of the Hunter, Cape Fear & Jim Jarmusch's Dead Man more ›

Ah, Los Angeles, home of the abundant drive-through window. From Starbucks lattes, super-sized burger combos, we can eat plenty--if not well--without leaving the comfort of our cars. This week, QuarryGirl tipped readers off to something pretty exciting for the meat-free eaters: An all-vegan drive-through restaurant is opening in Highland Park. more ›

Paramount partnered with Twitter to offer not-so-secret screenings of "Super 8" in over 300 theaters nationwide this Thursday -- one day before its official release. Fueled by the promoted trend #Super8Movie (i.e. ad) on Twitter, anyone who wishes to see the J.J. Abrams and Steven Spielberg flick on Thursday can purchase advance tickets now. The movie officially opens nationwide Friday. more ›

Initially conceived as a gift for a child, Violet Valen decided to develop her own line of custom teddy bear-themed one-of-a-kind sweatshirts after the adults went batty for the designs. Since forming Buddy Society in 2004, she's expanded into all manner of items to adorn yourself with, including denim jackets, jeans, and t-shirts. more ›

Phone Booth Gallery's current collection of dark humored art, Oh,You Are Sick... is a group exhibition featuring 34 pieces inspired by the iconic, penetrating, jewel-toned surrealism of David Lynch's films. Nestled among the Victorian-era craftsman bungalows of Bluff Heights in Long Beach, Phone Booth is a modest, unpretentious, and welcoming space frequented by... more ›

The Facebook-based The Social Network, brought to us by Aaron Sorkin ("West Wing"), is due in theatres October 1st. And with such a great preview, released last month, it was only a matter of time before it was mocked. And no better to do with via The Twit Network. more ›

Roky Erickson, one of the most crucial contributors to the American canon of garage rock, pyschedelia and proto-punk, will be in Los Angeles this week for two rare appearances. Tuesday night he’ll be at the Music Box (moved from the Mayan), and Wednesday, in what promises to be a supremely unique experience, will be playing an afternoon set at the Eagle Rock Center For The Arts, a free show and ice cream party at which all adults must be accompanied by a child. This trip to California is in support of his excellent new album True Love Cast Out All Evil (read our full review here.) He’ll be backed by Austin band Okkervil River, whose leader Will Sheff produced the album and selected the material from Roky’s entire history of un-released or under-released material, dating back to the mid-1960s. While much of Erickson’s work following his departure from the 13th Floor Elevators in 1969 was deliberately fearsome and disturbing, True Love brings out a side of his music that has been under-represented till now: his ability to be hauntingly beautiful. more ›

The Federal trial challenging Prop 8, which banned gay marriage in California, is already in session this morning. Here's some of what happened yesterday, via the plaintiff's legal team: more ›

For those who are handier with a Wiimote than a spatula, the Food Network and Namco Bandai have an upcoming release for the Wii that might be of interest. "Cook or Be Cooked!" is a game designed to closely mimic real-life cooking actions (minus the tasty results...we're not that Jetsons yet!) using Food Network-approved recipes you can duplicate in your kitchen once you've mastered the game. more ›

With the AFI Festival recently over, and the holiday media blitz still a few weeks away, you may be looking for some under-the-radar films to fend off your all-too-inevitable turkey-induced football coma. At least, the hard-working, agrarian folks from Bel Air certainly hope so. Somewhere between standing in line at the soup kitchen and picking up extra night shifts at the local Big 5 Sporting Goods, these hardscrabble film lovers decided to put up the first ever Bel Air Film Festival. more ›

Is the onslaught of the holiday season making you a bit nostalgic? Then head down to the Egyptian Theater in Hollywood on Wednesday the 12th for a 40th anniversary commemorative screening of the The Monkees’ feature film, Head. It may not be hot cider and snowball fights, but original Monkees Davy Jones and Peter Tork will be there! more ›

We were lucky enough to attend a sneak preview screening of HBO's new show Little Britain USA at the Original Penguin Store in West Hollywood last week. Those not familiar with the British hit show, Little Britain, LBUSA is the American spinoff. more ›

As everyone says, you probably didn't know his name but you knew his voice. The man with the deep classic voice guiding moviegoers through trailers (he did over 5,000!) and heard in commercials (and he did over 350,000, wow) died yesterday at the age of 68. more ›

COMIC BOOK ART more ›

At the end of each month LAist attempts to review some of the music and musicians that were covered over that four week period. Below is a mix of just some of the month's musical moments: more ›

It's a dream date for fans of Canadian songstress Feist and Austin's Spoon. Feist is just now making her break on the world stage, with a little help from Uncle Steve. But anyone with an ear to the Toronto indie rock scene could hear her coming ever since her solo debut, Monarch, was released on the heels of By Divine Right's "Bless This Mess" Tour (she was their rhythm guitarist). For most of this... more ›

For this belated Season Preview of the USC football team I haven’t concerned myself with typical journalistic staples like accuracy, objectivity, or integrity. I am not a sports writer or blogger (I’ll leave the heavy lifting to guys like Scott Wolf and Ben Malcolmson). What I am is a USC graduate with an extremely biased view of Trojan football and semi-regular Internet access. In the exhaustive research I put into writing this, I have... more ›

The big story this past week was New England Patriot’s head coach Bill Belichick. After having one of his coaches illegally videotape the New York Jets’ defensive coaches giving signals, he tried his best to sidestep the issue. We all know that as great of a coach as he is, Belichick is an asshole. In a written statement apologizing for the incident on Wednesday, he said the he misinterpreted the rule. The rule clearly... more ›

LA’s theatre scene is packed with good stuff this week: Dolly Parton serves as muse; a Korean family’s road trip goes wrong; and a bunch of people sing about chess at the Ford. So without further ado, here are LAist’s five theater picks for this week: Journey to Dollywood Jolene is a small-town waitress who idolizes obsesses over Dolly Parton. When a stranger’s car breaks down in town, her life, a rival co-worker’s, and their... 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 ›

I know our city hasn’t had an NFL team in over a decade, but that doesn’t mean the NFL is dead in this city. Since most of us Angelinos come from other parts of the country, we still hold on to our hometown football teams. Even though I grew up in Baton Rouge, LA until I was eight, I am a huge Chicago Bears fan. My first recollection of football was Superbowl XX which... more ›

Lately, being a UCLA football fan has required an extraordinary amount of patience and persistence. Every year, the Bruin faithful summon up the courage to believe that this year will be the breakthrough that we’ve been waiting for. And for most of the past ten years, we’ve been teased. Like a Michael Bay movie, we keep buying a ticket foolishly holding out hope that this time it will be good, even though deep down we... more ›

There will be a benefit concert tonight at Safari Sam's for Glen Wood, horn player for the Los Angeles band Bottom 12, who has been diagnosed with terminal cancer. All funds raised will be donated directly to Wood in order to help him with mounting medical bills. The benefit concert will feature sets by Bottom 12 - who have temporarily reformed for this show (11:00 pm set time); Horny Toad (10:00 pm set time)... more ›

There's only one network that would dare give you the raspberry: and that's G4TV, who will be premiering episodes of an animated "Spaceballs" this fall - you know, that Star Wars Mel Brooks parody you watched about seventy-six times in the 80's? Variety says: Encompassing a one-hour pilot and 13 half-hour episodes, project represents the first scripted series greenlit by the new TV division at MGM, led by Jim Packer, president of the worldwide... more ›

Viral marketing, when done right, can be an absolute blast. Case in point, a pre-Transformers preview for a new J.J. Abrams film, tentatively titled "Cloverfield". What starts out as an innocent, hand-held video of a going-away party quickly descends into front-row footage of the apocalypse, with people running through the streets of New York City dodging flying cars hurled by an unknown source... not to mention a closing shot that already has people talking... more ›

LA celebrates Cinco de Mayo - CBS2 City of LA is only using 1/4 of the Federal money earmarked for the homeless within the year that it's required. Frisco only wastes 12% - LAT Activists question whether LAPD instigated violence at immigration rally - Sign On San Diego LAT journalist apologizes for contacting a person believed to be a Phil Spector juror - CBS2 Preview of Paris' summer in jail - CBS2 Judge blocks... more ›

Welcome to the latest edition of 'Ask the MACist', the column where I answer your Macintosh and other technology questions. Our question this week comes from Jim in Santa Monica. He asks: I have a bunch of PDF files that I need to combine into one document. How do I do that? That's a good question that I get asked frequently. In fact, I had to do this just the other day with several... more ›

Grindhouse The week begins with a pair of 70s actions flicks. The Lady in Red, which has one of my favorite taglines of all time "She's made of bullets, sin & bathtub gin!" is a gangster film starring Robert Conrad as John Dillinger and Pamela Sue Martin as his moll. (Bonus: it was written by John Sayles.) In Bare Knuckles a Los Angeles bounty hunter tracks a psychopath who murders women by using kung-fu. Then... more ›