Twenty years ago the city erupted into riots after four police officers were found not guilty in the beating of Rodney King. By fall networks had worked to incorporate the riots into the plots of their television shows—even their fall premieres. more ›

While we’ve talked at length about the unfair reputation our city still bears as a ‘literary lightweight,’ witnessing the LATFoB is seriously (and pardon the hyperbole) magnificent. Masses—literally—descended on USC’s campus for a weekend of thoughtful literary discourse, intellectual enlightenment, and book-minded pursuits. more ›

Where were you 20 years ago this week? For those of us who were in Los Angeles, we might remember tense times as the jury began deliberations in the controversial Rodney King beating trial. On April 29, 1992, shortly after the verdict was read, the city erupted in riots bred from anger and frustration. more ›

Rodney King has decided to take time off from his busy DUI schedule to promote his new book and address the Trayvon Martin case in the days leading up to the 20th anniversary of the L.A. riots. The 47-year-old beating victim co-penned a memoir, "The Riot Within: My Journey From Rebellion to Redemption," which he discussed this past weekend at the LA Times Festival of Books. more ›

Onetime "Celebrity Rehab" participant Rodney King won't be doing any jail time for a DUI arrest last summer in Riverside County. TMZ reports the headline-maker made infamous by another encounter with the law twenty years ago has struck a plea deal that lets him avoid time behind bars, "despite the fact he has a prior DUI conviction on his record." more ›

Apparently "Celebrity Rehab" had little effect on Rodney King. He was pulled over and arrested on Tuesday in Riverside County on suspicion of drunk driving. more ›

Los Angeles, where were you 19 years ago today? If you were in Los Angeles, you might remember this day well. Today's video lunch comes courtesy Sublime, whose song immortalizes April 29th, 1992 and its part in our local history. There is no official video, but this is among the amateur efforts using footage from the riots and surrounding events to illustrate Sublime's song. more ›

A powerful advocate for peace during the Clinton Administration and a key force behind LAPD reforms following the Rodney King beating, former Secretary of State Warren Christopher died of complications from bladder and kidney cancer late Friday night at his home in Los Angeles. He was 85. more ›

Just one day ahead of the 20th anniversary of his infamous and incendiary videotaped beating by Los Angeles Police Department officers, Rodney King found himself being pulled over and cited. The story was first reported late yesterday by gossip site TMZ, who say police in Arcadia "received a complaint about a man driving recklessly in a green Mitsubishi Tuesday afternoon ... and when they located the vehicle, they saw King behind the wheel." more ›

These days we grab our cellphones and digital cameras out of our pockets, purses, or bags and take a quick video of babies, art, meals, friends, or quirky moments. We post it to our Facebook pages, Twitter accounts, or sites like YouTube where these personal videos have a welcome home. 20 years ago, though, making a quick video was a little more laborious and the equipment more unwieldy. Imagine testing out your new camera on a subject that would go down in history: LAPD officers beating a black, male motorist. more ›

Rodney King is reportedly engaged to a juror who awarded him $3.9 million in a civil case, reports the New York Daily News. "King and Cynthia Kelley said they first felt a romantic spark when they met in a Newport Beach pizzeria the day after the controversial 1994 jury award," the newspaper said. "Both were married at the time, which complicated the blossoming relationship." They split up before King's appearance on "Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew," but reunited after. King became a household name in 1991 when a video of LAPD officers beating him went to the media. The criminal case against the officers ended in an acquittal, sparking the 1992 Los Angeles riots. LAist's Caleb Bacon interviewed King in 2009. more ›

Last night at around 9 p.m., LAPD Detective Susan Clemmer, 41, waked into the Santa Clarita sheriff's station at 23740 Magic Mountain Parkway in Valencia, "placed a box of personal items on the counter," then ended her life with a single gunshot, according to the LA Weekly. more ›

Rodney King’s near-death plunge to infamy began with a twelve-pack of malt liquor. King’s intoxicated, high-speed driving on March 3, 1991 united him a group of Los Angeles Police Department officers. Their boots, billy clubs, and Taser, would beat the 25 year-old King into the history books. more ›

At first glance, VH1'a Sober House, like its predecessor, Celebrity Rehab, appears to be exploitative reality TV at it's worst -- stars hitting their bottoms and relapsing, going on drama-fueled drug binges. more ›

Imagine MTV’s “The Real World” on crack. Now imagine “The Real World” with a crack hangover. That’s almost VH1’s “Sober House,” the “Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew” follow-up. more ›

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Rodney King, whose videotaped beating by LAPD officers (and their subsequent acquittal) sparked the Los Angeles riots in 1992, was shot late last night, according to San Bernardino police. King was shot in the face and arm with a pellet gun (LA Times) or perhaps a shotgun (KNX, USA Today) while riding his bike home to Rialto. King, the 42-year-old man who gained national fame when his 1991 beating by Los Angeles police was caught... more ›

Today marks the fifteen year anniversary of one of the darkest chapters in Los Angeles history: the 1992 LA Riots. On April 29, 1992, four police officers charged in the controversial 1991 beating of motorist Rodney King were acquitted, sending shockwaves through a community already in unrest. Anger had been rising over perceived racism by LAPD, poor economic conditions, and friction between minority groups in South Central. Nevertheless, no one could have anticipated the... more ›

The Golden Globes came and went, all while many, if not more, watched the second two hours of Los Angeles being terrorized in 24 on FOX. It was still brisk for the stars on the Red Carpet and the weather is expected to continue in the 60's throughout the week with the lows in the 40's. Luckily, the fire department has determined that the Red Flag will be lifted this morning. People celebrated Martin... more ›

Yesterday, Sean Bonner of Metroblogging Los Angeles, who helped the LAPD birth a blog of their own, caught wind of a video taken on August 11 and posted on YouTube on October 18, showing a splice of an arrest with an officer punching a man in the face. Immediately, LAist wrote Council District 13, requesting a response. They were not aware of it and said they would let us know of any details to... more ›

With all the recent local talk here and elsewhere about gentrification bitterness, racial disharmony, and general loathing of entire communities, one might get the idea that Los Angeles is nothing but a disjointed, angry sprawl of warring factions ready for another major meltdown. Well sir, that's simply not true. We shan't pull out Rodney King's once-powerful but now-cliched chestnut, but instead ask you to direct your attention to a stretch of Rowena Avenue in... more ›

Say what you want about the so-called "idiot box", but the advent of the television is one of the most powerful creations mankind has ever invented. Common, in everyday use, not just for entertainment but for news, weather, and education. Doctors and dentists use monitors for health care, police for surveillance, pilots for direction. more ›

Snoop Dogg's latest apparently opens next Friday, 8/11, at Laemmle Sunset 5. Is it wrong to admit that it looks hilarious?... more ›

LA Voice is paying attention to one of those little things that could mean a lot: more ›

Our weekend editor probably won't agree with such a sentiment but with Burbank now on fire and our rooftops and cars covered in ash and an incredible desire to make s'mores, we might just be locked inside with the windows closed and the AC up this weekend. more ›