The earthquake attraction at Universal Studios is where calamity and disaster is part of the show, but it's supposed to be under control and repeated with every tram visit. A small fire that broke out in the attraction late last night, however, was definitely not part of the entertainment. That fire started at around 11:20 p.m. in a sound stage, according to LA Now, and was out within about half an hour. The studio's sprinkler system kept the small blaze tamed. more ›

Following an alleged altercation, a gunman opened fire in the parking garage of the BLVD Hotel & Spa on the 10700 block of Ventura Blvd near Universal Studios, striking a hotel customer around 3:00 a.m. Sunday, according to authorities, reports KTLA. more ›

Unless you are the nicest host to out of towners ever, or have someone in the middle-school and under set in your life, you probably haven't ridden the tour tram at Universal Studios anytime lately. Millions of people ride the tram up through backlot of the theme park-slash-movie studio, and soon those riders will be faced with a new host: Jimmy Fallon. more ›

Back to the Future at Universal Studios was the backdrop for the announcement on Monday by the California Plug-In Electric Vehicle Collaborative about its plan to make the state ready for 1 million plug-in hybrid and battery-powered cars by the year 2020. more ›

Considered one of the premiere culinary events in the nation, the American Wine and Food Festival, held Saturday on the Universal Studios Back Lot, was a feast for the senses. Among the pantheon of American food and drink stars were a host of local chefs who shone while representing the dining landscape of Los Angeles. more ›

To some, Wolfgang Puck is the "big poppa" of the Los Angeles food scene, with his decades of restaurant success and international profile. It's only fitting, then, that the festival he has organized for the past 28 years is considered the "big poppa" of food and wine events. more ›

Photographer Jonathan Alcorn shares Universal Studio's latest publicity stunt, which is actually pretty cool: huge footprints left in the sand on Santa Monica Beach, complete with a crushed lifeguard vehicle. It's all for the new King Kong 3-D attraction, which opens at the theme park this summer. The previous King Kong was destroyed in a fire in 2008. Also destroyed was the backlot, which just reopened. more ›

It was almost two years ago to the day when a fire broke out on the backlot of Universal Studios in Hollywood that tore through historic sets used in countless productions and seen by millions of tourists over decades. more ›

This isn't exactly the kind of "movie magic" spectacle Universal Studios is known for: The Los Angeles DWP had a second significant water main break on their hands this morning after a line "that feeds Universal Studios sent torrents of water into the Los Angeles River," according to LA Now. It was a passerby who reported seeing the water gushing over an embankment, which alerted a response crew to go to the scene at the 3700 block of Barham Blvd. near Lakeside Plaza Drive [map]. A fire department spokesperson says no homes were threatened by the line break and flowing water. Earlier this morning the DWP dealt with a line break in the Fairfax Village area. more ›

Around three to four hundred hardcore Conan O'Brien fans braved the drenching rain to rally for the Tonight Show outside Universal Studios this afternoon. "Jay Leno sucks!" the crowd chanted in between screaming at passing by cars as horns were honked. Packed to capacity, people spilled out onto Lankershim Boulevard before police calmed and spread the crowd out. more ›

It's raining cats and dogs, but some 1,575 people are confirmed as a "Yes" to attending the Rally for CoCo!--as in Conan O'Brien--on Facebook via the I'm With COCO Facebook page, which has quickly garnered over 300,000 fans internationally. more ›

From 8 p.m. to 3 a.m., the LAPD will be holding a DUI checkpoint at Lankershim and Campo de Cahuenga. It's actually a genius spot because that's the entrance and exit to Universal Studios and CityWalk. It's also home to the Metro Red Line Subway Station. The North Hollywood police division, which covers the Universal City area, has experienced 166 driving under the influence-related and 1,058 hit and run traffic collisions so far in 2009. more ›

On Saturday October 3rd, celebrated chefs and vintners/spirit-makers from all over the nation gathered on the backlot of Universal Studios here in Los Angeles to showcase their best bites and sips as part of the popular 27th annual American Wine and Food Festival (AWFF), hosted by Wolfgang Puck and Barbara Lazaroff. The event is a big draw for food and wine lovers of all calibers, and offers an astonishing quantity of quality eats and drinks for the ticket price; although the pricetag is hefty ($300 advance, $350 at the door), the event is not merely a showcase for food and wine, but rather a wildly successful fundraiser for Meals on Wheels. more ›

Last Friday Universal Studios premiered its Halloween Horror Nights which will run from 7pm to 1am on weekends and the occasional weeknight. It is a special after-dark event that requires separate tickets than the daytime entry. The regular rides and attractions, including The Simpsons Ride will remain open. Check out the schedule here. more ›

Last week Universal Studios unveiled its newest attraction, The Creature from the Black Lagoon: A Raging Rocking Show". The show is a "Broadway-level contemporary musical adaptation" of the original Universal horror film. It features an original score and will be featured exclusively at the Hollywood Universal Studios. more ›

Conan O'Brien isn't only The Tonight Show's new host (as of last night,) he's also the best tram guide in the history of Universal Studios (and North Hollywood.) more ›

Tired of the same old movie for Christmas? A traditional white Christmas and an encounter with the not-so-traditional green Grinch await guests at Universal Studios. “Grinchmas” is included in the entry fee, with "tons of powder-fresh snow, meetings with The Grinch, Cindy-Lou Who and Max the Dog and a “Whoville” jubilation at the original movie sets where the classic “Dr Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas” was filmed." Hours of operation Christmas day are 10:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Check out the video of opening festivities with none other than Mayor Villaragosa, who I'm beginning to think will be cutting the ribbon at shopping malls and judging cat shows if he keeps going like this. more ›

It's Christmas and hey, not everything is closed. So here are some options of what you can do today... more ›

It was Friday night, it had been a long work week and happy hour was over. What next? We found Halloween Horror at Universal Studios to be an excellent choice--a blast as you can see from the ghoulish photos. There's only have six more nights to get in on the action if you want to see it. It's well worth the price of admission, which you can even get cheap tickets still at Vons or Pavilions with a coke can discount. The event runs from October 24-26, 30-31, November 1. more ›

The Simpson's Ride at Universal Studios takes up a large section of the park, almost making it Simpsons-land. The exterior section is carnival-barker-themed, and as Sideshow Bob warns, "Silly Simpsons. Don't you know every ride has to end by the gift shop?" The Kwik E Mart gift shop sadly does not sell Squishees (or those hideous pink donuts) but it is fun to browse around in anyways. more ›

TMZ got hold of the 911 call when the fire Universal Studios was reported. It's amazing how calm everything sounds. more ›

The fire at Universal Studios on Sunday that ripped through two "city blocks" was deemed an accident yesterday, but was not clarified until later. Now officials are saying a welders' blowtorch started the fire: more ›

The gates of Universal Studios opened back up today after yesterday's fire, which burned a two-block area of film sets for more than 12 hours. The incident forced them to close the doors for the day at the theme park and CityWalk. Areas destroyed or damaged included New York Street, a part of Back to the Future's set and the King Kong attraction. more ›

Universal Music Group's audio masters were not damaged in Sunday's fire at the Universal Studios backlot, contrary to one report, according to a UMG spokesperson.

"We had no loss, thankfully," said Peter Lofrumento, Universal Music Group’s Senior Vice President of Corporate Communications. "We moved most of what was formerly stored there earlier this year to our other facilities. Of the small amount that was still there and awaiting to be moved, it had already been digitized so the music will still be around for many years." -- Billboard

Yesterday's all-day fire at Universal Studios, which engulfed two city movie-set blocks (destroying a part of the King Kong tour and one of the Back to the Future sets), was finally knocked down late in the afternoon. An investigation will be going into what caused the blaze, but also one is being called to look into the low-pressure water system that ultimately hindered firefighters in battling the flames. more ›

As of shortly before 4 p.m. Sunday, no knockdown of the massive fire at Universal Studios had been announced. "We expect containment in about a half hour," explained Los Angeles County Fire Inspector Ron Haralson. "We are concentrating on one sructure, the film vault." more ›

Universal Studios opened to the public early this afternoon, is expected to open tomorrow despite the blaze that destroyed portions of the local landmark and darkened the skies with thick smoke. With concern for the well-being of many iconic and well-known parts of the decades-old theme park on the forefront of many minds, others also have voiced concern about whether the MTV Movie Awards, slated to take place in the Studios' Gibson Ampitheatre this evening, will happen. more ›

For residents of the South East San Fernando Valley and adjacent environs, the stench and sight of smoke from the fire that broke out in the early morning hours on the backlot of Universal Studios has dominated the skies today; for most everyone else in Los Angeles this story has dominated the news. more ›

The fire that broke out early this morning continues to burn on the Universal Studios backlot in Universal City. more ›

It was a fun-filled day Saturday at Universal Studios in spite of the relentless heat. Stars posed on the yellow carpet, stiltwalkers danced, fireworks exploded, kids feasted on cupcakes and cotton candy, and a human cannonball shot out over the crowd. And all this before the ride even opened! more ›