Topline:
Capturing the stars as they arrive on the red carpet for tonight's Oscars.
What to know: Conan O'Brien is hosting, and Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo are set to perform.
Keep reading... for photos from the red carpet.
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The most important stories for you to know today
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Stars arrive for Hollywood's biggest night
Cynthia Erivo(Mike Coppola/Getty Images)Stars are arriving on the red carpet for Sunday night's Oscars. The 97th Academy Awards ceremony starts at 7 p.m. EST, 4 p.m. PST, airing live on ABC and streaming on Hulu.
Conan O'Brien is hosting, and Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo are set to perform.
Netflix's musical Emilia Pérez enters the evening with 13 nominations, followed by The Brutalist and Wicked, which both have 10 each, including for best picture.
Here are the stars as they head into the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood.
Michelle Yeoh(Angela Weiss/AFP via Getty Images)
Halle Berry(Angela Weiss/AFP via Getty Images)
Jazz Charton and Kieran Culkin(Monica Schipper/Getty Images)
Emma Stone(Angela Weiss/AFP via Getty Images)
Zoe Saldana and Marco Perego-Saldana(Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
Demi Moore(Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times via Getty Imag/Los Angeles Times)
Ralph Fiennes(Monica Schipper/Getty Images)
Colman Domingo(Savion Washington/Getty Images)
Cynthia Erivo(Mike Coppola/Getty Images)
Timothée Chalamet(Christina House/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
Omar Apollo(Robyn Beck/AFP via Getty Images)
Fernanda Torres(Robyn Beck/AFP via Getty Images)
Jeff Goldblum(Monica Schipper/Getty Images)
Storm Reid(Robyn Beck/AFP via Getty Images)
Julianne Hough(Savion Washington/Getty Images)
Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang(Monica Schipper/Getty Images)
Anok Yai(Robyn Beck/AFP via Getty Images)
Amelia Dimoldenberg(Lexie Moreland/WWD via Getty Images)
Joe Alwyn(Mike Coppola/Getty Images)
Rachel Sennott(Angela Weiss/AFP via Getty Images)
Joe Locke(Mike Coppola/Getty Images)
Charlotte Lawrence(Mike Coppola/Getty Images)
Archie Coleman(Savion Washington/Getty Images)Copyright 2025 NPR
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Angelenos cast their ballot at the Arroyo Seco Regional Library in Los Angeles, California on Nov. 5, 2024.(Zaydee Sanchez/LAist)Topline:
Large support from Latino voters helped President Donald Trump win the 2024 election. But according to recent numbers from the Associated Press, about 6 in 10 Hispanic voters disapprove of Trump’s handling of the presidency and more than 7 in 10 disapprove of his performance on the economy.
The economy: Latino support for Trump in 2024 was largely driven by economic concerns. That's still the case now, according to Mike Madrid, Republican political consultant and author of The Latino Century: How America's Largest Minority is Transforming Democracy. He joined AirTalk, LAist 89.3's daily news show, to discuss what's driving voting behavior this time around.“ One hundred percent of Latinos are affected by the economic crisis that's afflicting everybody right now, especially working-class people, of which Latinos make up the largest share,” he said.
Party dealignment: The Latino shift away from Trump and the Republican Party does not mean a shift towards Democrats. “Latinos really do not have confidence in either party, and it's manifesting in wider and wider swings in how they're voting,” Madrid said. “They're rejecting the parties in power, they're rejecting establishment politics, and we're witnessing the rise of an emergent Latino populism."
Immigration enforcement isn't a top priority: Madrid pointed out that even with increased ICE raids, immigration only comes in as the fifth most concerning issue for Latino voters, and a third of those Latino voters are in favor of deportations.
Listen to the full conversation:
Listen 10:54Latino voters helped put Trump back in the White House. What’s their next move? -
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Installation photo from "Home of the Future, 1925–1985: Designing Domestic Utopias"(Jonathan J. Urban/Courtesy LACMA)The exhibit:
LACMA’s new exhibit, "Home of the Future, 1925–1985: Designing Domestic Utopias," explores visions of how designers imagined technologies would transform life in American homes. Some of these predictions, like rooms centered around television sets, would come to pass while ideas like self-cleaning kitchens remain tantalizingly out of reach.
Why it's interesting: “For the past 30 years, I've been inspired by a quote from the historian Marshall Berman, who defined modernity as a struggle to make ourselves at home in a constantly changing world,” curator Wendy Kaplan said during a conversation on AirTalk, LAist 89.3's daily news show. "The reason our exhibition starts in 1925 is that you have this post-World War I optimism and also a need to apply the technologies that were developed during World War I by the military."
Don’t miss: the Kohler electric sink from 1926 on display, which promised better living through electric dishwashing but did not catch on at the time.
When to see it: The exhibit runs through March 14, 2027, in LACMA's Resnick Pavilion, located at 5905 Wilshire Blvd.
Listen to the conversation with the curator:
Listen 10:06New LACMA exhibit looks at past visions of the future homes -
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The protected bike lanes are just one part of a longer-term project to increase mobility on Fountain Avenue, including sidewalk widening.(The city of West Hollywood)Topline:
The West Hollywood City Council will consider a motion Monday evening that thwarts long-planned and nearly shovel-ready protected bike lanes along Fountain Avenue out of concerns that the cyclist improvements will eliminate too much street parking.
The motion: The motion was introduced by West Hollywood City Councilmember Lauren Meister. If passed, it would direct city staff to evaluate an alternative design for Fountain Avenue, one that maintains the road’s existing parking capacity and adds a center turn lane — but doesn’t include protected bike lanes.
Participate in Monday's meeting: The West Hollywood City Council meeting begins at 6 p.m. October 19. The meeting will be held in the City Council Chambers located at 625 N. San Vicente Boulevard. You can also watch online at www.weho.org/wehotv. The agenda, which includes instructions on in-person and remote public comment, is available here.
Read on ... to learn more about the plan West Hollywood City Council approved last year.
The West Hollywood City Council will consider a motion Monday evening that thwarts long-planned and nearly shovel-ready protected bike lanes along Fountain Avenue out of concerns that the cyclist improvements will eliminate too much street parking.
The motion was introduced by West Hollywood City Councilmember Lauren Meister. If passed, it would direct staff to evaluate an alternative design for Fountain Avenue, one that maintains the road’s existing parking capacity, reduces the road to one travel lane in each direction and adds a center turn lane — but doesn’t include protected bike lanes.
“Continued investment in bicycle infrastructure elsewhere would remain a separate consideration,” according to a copy of the motion.
Meister did not respond to LAist’s requests for comment about her motion.
How to participate on Monday
When: The West Hollywood City Council meeting begins at 6 p.m. October 19.
Where: City Council Chambers, 625 N. San Vicente Boulevard.
Watch online: www.weho.org/wehotv.
Agenda: The agenda, which includes instructions on in-person and remote public comment, is available here.The project
Introducing protected bike lanes to Fountain Avenue was approved by City Council in 2025 as part of the first phase of the Fountain Avenue Streetscape Project.
The approved designs include reducing the road to one travel lane in each direction, installing pedestrian improvements and creating a bike lane separated from vehicular traffic by concrete curbs.
The goal of the road redesign is to increase safety. Between 2013 and 2024, there were 35 collisions resulting in severe injuries and five fatal collisions, according to the city. Last year, Blake Ackerman, a 27-year-old attorney, died while biking on Fountain Avenue in a hit-and-run collision.
But to make room for the reimagined Fountain Avenue, city staff said they would need to remove 60% of the road’s street parking. To mitigate that loss, city staff has suggested allowing residents with parking permits to use nearby parking lots.
Although it was ultimately approved, the issue caused disagreement among the five members of the City Council. Two voted against it — Meister and West Hollywood Mayor John Heilman.
The election
The future of Fountain Avenue has been a political issue at play in recent city elections, and this year is no different.
Meister and Heilman are termed out, and there are three seats on West Hollywood City Council up for grabs. 14 candidates are vying for a spot, and their views on the bike lane debate are front and center.
Incumbent Chelsea Byers, who is an advocate for the protected bike lanes, is running to retain her seat.
Several candidates have spoken out against Fountain Avenue’s planned bike lanes, including Kyle Brazeal.
Brazeal has earned the endorsements of Meister and Heilman. He told LAist he isn’t against bike lanes and believes there are other West Hollywood streets that are better candidates for cycling infrastructure.
The timeline
West Hollywood officials said construction for the first phase, including the protected bike lanes, is scheduled to begin before the end of 2026. That schedule would change if the City Council decides to pursue an alternative design.
Officials said in a report that changing the project’s scope could “jeopardize” the nearly $5 million in state grant funding it’s planned to use for construction.
City staff said in the report that if the motion is approved, it would seek clarity on how any design changes would impact grant funding and if the city would need to find alternative funding sources.
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West Hollywood has been a hub of the LGBTQ+ community in Los Angeles for decades.(Samanta Helou Hernandez/LAist)Topline:
Over the last century, Southern California’s gay and lesbian bar scene has helped build cultural hubs throughout the region. From the Coast Inn’s historic Boom Boom Room in Laguna Beach to The Boulevard in Pasadena, many historic venues have since shut down due to a sharp decline in standalone gay and lesbian bars.
Joseph Hawkins, former director of ONE Archives at the USC Libraries, the largest LGBTQ+ repository, joined AirTalk, LAist’s daily news program, to talk about the legacy and current state of these spaces.
Economic woes: As the story goes with a lot of local businesses right now, gay and lesbian bars are suffering the same economic challenges due to rising costs and a decline in alcohol consumption.
“Masses of people who can go to a bar and sustain it over a long period of time has become more and more difficult,” Hawkins said. "Some bars don't have the clientele that they used to because of the internet.
Tony in Anaheim called into AirTalk and shared a funny story about showing up embarrassingly early (8 p.m.) for a night out at the Abbey in West Hollywood, but ultimately remembered it as a safe place to make friends after moving to Los Angeles.
Jeff in Palm Springs called in to say bars in his city seem to be thriving thanks to an older population and tourists.
Hawkins said there may be a silver lining in the shift we're seeing.
"Maybe we're not losing gay bars; what we're doing is opening up other spaces where gay people can be included," he said.
Listen to the full conversation for more history and insight.
Listen 20:25The economic downfall of gay and lesbian barsTopline:
Over the last century, Southern California’s gay and lesbian bar scene has helped build cultural hubs throughout the region. From the Coast Inn’s historic Boom Boom Room in Laguna Beach to The Boulevard in Pasadena, many historic venues have since shut down due to a sharp decline in standalone gay and lesbian bars.
Joseph Hawkins, former director of ONE Archives at the USC Libraries, the largest LGBTQ+ repository, joined AirTalk, LAist’s daily news program, to talk about the legacy and current state of these spaces.
Economic woes: As the story goes with a lot of local businesses right now, gay and lesbian bars are suffering the same economic challenges due to rising costs and a decline in alcohol consumption.
“Masses of people who can go to a bar and sustain it over a long period of time has become more and more difficult,” Hawkins said. "Some bars don't have the clientele that they used to because of the internet."
Tony in Anaheim called into AirTalk and shared a funny story about showing up embarrassingly early (8 p.m.) for a night out at the Abbey in West Hollywood, but ultimately remembered it as a safe place to make friends after moving to Los Angeles.
Jeff in Palm Springs called in to say bars in his city seem to be thriving thanks to an older population and tourists.
Hawkins said there may be a silver lining in the shift we're seeing.
"Maybe we're not losing gay bars; what we're doing is opening up other spaces where gay people can be included," he said.
Listen to the full conversation above for more history and insight.
