Topline:
Every year, NPR remembers some of the writers, actors, musicians, filmmakers and performers who died over the past year, and whose lifetime of creative work helped shape our world.
Who's on the list: From well known musicians, a groundbreaking poet, acting legends to a humanitarian ballerina — this year's list is just sampling of those we lost in 2024.
Read on... for more about their lives and legacies.
Every year, we remember some of the writers, actors, musicians, filmmakers and performers who died over the past year, and whose lifetime of creative work helped shape our world. Here are just a few of them, listed chronologically below by the dates of their deaths. (You can find a tribute to many more musicians here.)
Beloved for the roles she created in such musicals as West Side Story, Bye Bye Birdie, Chicago and Kiss of the Spiderwoman, Rivera carved out space for herself on stages that did not then easily accept Latina leading ladies. Her prowess as a dancer became apparent in childhood, during ballet classes in Washington D.C. Over a six-decade-ong career, Rivera won multiple Tony awards, the Presidential Medal of Freedom and was the first Latina to receive the Kennedy Center Honors. One of the great performers of her era, Rivera was never interested in making television or movies – until the end of her long life, she was a Broadway baby. Read Jeff Lunden's remembrance.
Born in China to Japanese parents, Ozawa shook up the classical music establishment when he was appointed to lead a top American orchestra in 1973. Young, hip and unorthodox, he represented a radical departure from an artistic tradition that rarely placed men of color (or any women) on prestigious podiums. He was a protege of Leonard Bernstein, with whom he shared an adventurousness and dynamism that captivated fans beyond the world of classical music. Ozawa also championed cross-cultural exchange; notably, he brought the BSO to China in 1979. Read Andrea Shea and Tom Huizenga's remembrance.
Ultimately, Apfel was best known for her look: owlish round glasses, heaps of clanking jewelry, and cropped grey hair. All of it, fashion. Apfel was an early example of what we'd now call an influencer. She insisted on being seen. Her career stretched from the 1950s until the late 2010s. It included stints as a White House designer, Home Shopping Network entrepreneur, writer, socialite and professor. At age 97, she signed with a top-tier modeling firm. She was the subject of a celebrated documentary and a retrospective at the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute. And Apfel was the oldest person with a Barbie doll made by Mattel in her image. Read Neda Ulaby's remembrance.
While probably best known for vibrant, pictorial quilts that summoned various aspects of Black American history and representation, Ringgold was a classically trained painter who bridged arts and crafts in deeply feminist multimedia work that, over a decades-long career, included cloth dolls, mosaic murals and picture books for children. A leading American artist who fought for increased diversity, her work is included in the permanent collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the Studio Museum in Harlem and many others. Read Andrew Limbong's remembrance.
He was dubbed "the patron saint of literary Brooklyn" by The New York Times, where Auster regularly appeared on the bestseller list for works such as The New York Trilogy that included his breakthrough novel, 1985's City of Glass. A prolific postwar writer who deftly swirled the surreal into such familiar genres as the detective novel and memoir, Auster also dabbled in filmmaking, writing scripts for a few art-house hits. Read Tom Vitale's remembrance.
If you were a Hollywood executive who wanted an off-kilter authority figure, you would call Donald Sutherland. The Canadian-born actor appeared in more than 200 films and TV shows. He played doctors, like the wiseacre lead in the 1970 movie M*A*S*H, and paranoid government figures, as in Oliver Stone's film JFK. He was excellent as a fascist, whether it be in Bernardo Bertolucci's 1900 or as President Snow in the wildly successful The Hunger Games franchise. But in films such as Ordinary People and Don't Look Now, Sutherland brought vulnerability to playing fathers. In real life, he was the father of five, including actor Kiefer Sutherland. Read Mansee Khurana's remembrance.
With his curly mop of hair, winsome attitude and candy-striped shorts, Simmons set out to encourage people to get fit, even those whose body types did not reflect the punishing standards of perfection at the time. He included all kinds of bodies in the bracingly upbeat VHS tapes that became foundational to his empire in the 1980s. Sweatin' to the Oldies sold more than 20 million copies alone. While Simmons received some criticism for fat-shaming, and later mystified fans by withdrawing from the public, he was a transformative figure in the nascent exercise industry, encouraging consumers to see exercise as playful, rather than painful. Read Kyle Norris' remembrance here.
A former accountant, Newhart's dour but deeply loveable persona was first established in a series of hit comedy records in the 1960s. Their success essentially invented a genre. Newhart moved seamlessly to television, hosting his own variety show, then starred in not one, but two eponymous sitcoms throughout the 1970s and '80s, Newhart and The Bob Newhart Show, in which he played a psychologist and a Vermont innkeeper respectively. Read Eric Deggans' remembrance here.
Donahue is credited with inventing the audience participation talk show. His topics were thoughtful – abortion, atheism, racism – and his tone was measured. He never talked down to his predominantly female audience. The Phil Donahue Show ran for nearly 30 years, and after 6,000 episodes, he stepped down from a television landscape that, aside from Oprah Winfrey, was populated by much more sensational and scandal-seeking imitators. Read Eric Deggans' remembrance here.
His stentorian tones enriched classic films ranging from Star Wars to The Lion King. "I am your father" and "You are my son" are two of his most immortal lines, but James Earl Jones grew up without his birth parents. He was abandoned as a child. The traumatized little boy with a stutter became one of the most in-demand actors in Hollywood and on Broadway. A boundary-shattering Black actor, whose early career included playing a doctor on daytime TV in the 1960s, his accolades included Tonys, Emmys, a lifetime achievement Oscar and a National Medal of the Arts. Read Allison Keyes' remembrance here.
DePrince was only 29 when she died of undisclosed causes earlier this year, but the celebrated ballerina's life was packed with inspiring accomplishments. The youngest principal dancer at the Dance Theatre of Harlem, DePrince also found fans through TV's Dancing With the Stars and Beyonce's Lemonade music videos. She recounted her journey from an orphanage in Sierra Leone to international acclaim in her 2014 memoir Taking Flight: From War Orphan to Star Ballerina. Read Clare Marie Schneider and Elizabeth Blair's remembrance.
You might know her as the tart-tongued Dowager Countess on Downton Abbey or as Professor Minerva McGonagall in the Harry Potter movies, but Maggie Smith's illustrious stage career began decades earlier, as a teenage star of Shakespeare at the Oxford Playhouse in England. Her work on screen included indelible performances in such films as The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, A Room With A View and Gosford Park. Read Bob Mondello's remembrance.
A once-in-a-generation talent, Kristofferson was a Rhodes scholar from Brownsville, Texas. who wrote his first country song at age 11. A celebrated college athlete, he enlisted in the U.S. Army after studying literature at the University of Oxford. Then he broke into the Nashville music scene, first working as a janitor before being discovered by Johnny Cash, writing songs for the likes of Janis Joplin and recording hits of his own. Musical stardom led to the movies. Kristofferson acted in dozens of them, from the legendary flop Heaven's Gate to the vampire classic Blade. Read Melissa Block's remembrance here.
Back in the days of liner notes, Adam Abeshouse's name would be instantly recognizable to classical music fans. He produced hundreds of records with such stars as violinist Joshua Bell and pianist Lara Downes. Shortly before Abeshouse's death from bile duct cancer at the age of 63, many of the musicians whose talents he'd burnished in the studio flew to his home in upstate New York to play one final concert for their beloved producer. Read Tom Vitale's remembrance.
Jones dominated pop music charts for decades. A charismatic musical savant whose career as a jazz trumpeter began in his teens, the composer, arranger, performer, producer and record-label executive helped orchestrate the careers of numerous stars, including Miles Davis, Frank Sinatra and Lesley Gore. None dazzled quite as brightly as Michael Jackson, with whom he created Thriller, the bestselling album of all time. Jones was nominated for 80 Grammy awards and won 28. Read Stephen Thompson's remembrance.
A centenarian and civil rights activist as well as a revered singer and instrumentalist, Jenkins recorded dozens of albums for Smithsonian Folkways Recordings,. She was the label's best-selling artist, outselling even Pete Seeger. Her music for children included original compositions such as "You'll Sing a Song and I'll Sing a Song." Other songs celebrated cultural traditions from around the world. Read Andrew Limbong's remembrance.
Jamison's celebrated collaboration with Alvin Ailey began in the 1960s as a star member of his troupe. Her lithe elegance transfixed audiences; her interpretation of his piece "Cry" made Jamison an immediate modern dance icon when it premiered in 1971. Eventually, Jamison moved into a different kind of role, as artistic director of the company, which she led for more than two decades. Read Andrew Limbong's remembrance.
Over a celebrated literary career that started in 1968 with her first published poetry collection, Giovanni wrote prolifically about Black pride and power, and about love and the sensual pleasures of everyday life. The longtime Virginia Tech professor authored more than 30 books, including many for children, racked up dozens of honorary degrees, and was the sort of celebrity poet who drew thousands of fans to her readings. Read Andrew Limbong's remembrance.
Copyright 2024 NPR. To see more, visit npr.org.
In this edition:
O.C. Japan Fest, corgi beach day, the grunions are back, a new play festival, a talk with Sen. Cory Booker and more of the best things to do this weekend.
Highlights:
I hope you had luck in securing the first round of LA28 Olympics tickets — and that you’re not still waiting for page refreshes this morning! We’ve got all the info on how to get your tickets and why you shouldn’t fret if it doesn’t work out on this first try.
LAist’s Mariana Dale went to Hollywood High School this week to see how students and teachers felt about Mitski bringing a concert to the historic space. Seems like no one was missing class since perfect attendance meant a shot at tickets.
No matter your music taste, there’s a show for you this weekend. It may not be the height of summer yet, but things will be heating up at the Hollywood Bowl as Ben Platt and Rachel Zegler reunite for their concert performance of Broadway hit The Last Five Years. Plus, Licorice Pizza recommends Mercury Prize-winning London rapper Dave at the Palladium, St. Paul & the Broken Bones are at the Belasco, Calum Scott plays the Wiltern, and there’s a really cool First Fridays night at the Natural History Museum with dub legend Adrian Sherwood. Saturday has pop trio LANY at the Intuit Dome, Lamb of God slaughtering the YouTube Theater, SoundCloud rapper Rich Amiri at the Fonda, post-hardcore band Hail the Sun at the Wiltern, pop sensation Nessa Barrett at the Masonic Lodge, and another rising pop star, Alexander Stewart, at Chinatown’s cool new venue, Pacific Electric.
Explore more from LAist: Check out the latest L.A. chefs who are nominated for a James Beard award, or follow the space trail if you were inspired by the new Ryan Gosling film, Project Hail Mary.
April 3-5
O.C. Fair & Event Center
88 Fair Drive, Costa Mesa
COST: FROM $16.78; MORE INFO
Experience sakura season without leaving the area at the O.C. Japan Fair, featuring 250 vendors, craftspeople, food booths, art activities and more, all celebrating Japanese culture. From sake tastings to sushi-making workshops to musical performances and kimono try-ons, the annual event is one of the largest Japanese cultural fairs in California.
April 3-4
Greenway Court Theatre
544 North Fairfax Ave., Mid-City
COST: FREE, MORE INFO
Check out readings of five new plays — all for free! — at the Play L.A. New Works Festival, put on by Stage Raw and the Greenway Arts Alliance, along with a number of L.A. indie theater powerhouses. This year’s plays are Stonewall’s Bouncer by Louisa Hill, produced by The Victory Theatre; At Olduvai Gorge by India Kotis, produced by The Odyssey Theatre Company; Ghost Play by Mathew Scott Montgomery, produced by InHouse Theatre; The Incident by Rachel Borders, produced by The Road Theatre Ensemble; and Three Dates by Erica Wachs, produced by IAMA Theatre Company. Go see one, or go see them all!
Saturday, April 4, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
21351 California 1, Huntington Beach
COST: FREE; MORE INFO
Head to Huntington Beach for the cutest event of the year, the annual SoCal Corgi Beach Day. This year’s theme is "Tiki Beach Pawty," because of course it is. Honor Queen Elizabeth II’s favorite pets and spend the day at the beach with these short, stout, snuggly friends while they frolic and compete in events like — I am not making this up – Corgi Limbo.
Sunday, April 5, 12:00 p.m. to 4 p.m.
3100 E. Imperial Highway, Lynwood
COST: FREE; MORE INFO
You have your pick of Easter Bunny photo ops and egg hunts around town, and Plaza Mexico would be a great one with the family. Meet and take a picture with the Easter bunny, enjoy kids' arts & crafts, family activities, vendors and sweet treats.
Friday, April 3, 7:30 p.m.
John Adams Middle School (JAMS) Performing Arts Center
2425 16th St., Santa Monica
COST: $33; MORE INFO
Spend Friday night with New Jersey Senator Cory Booker, whose new book, Stand, tells stories from his political life that aim to share "actionable insights" to help preserve democracy in these challenging times. The conversation with Writers Bloc will be hosted by Sean Bailey, the former head of Walt Disney Studios Motion Picture Production for 14 years and the current CEO of the new multi-platform production company B5 Studios. The event is sold out, but there is a waitlist available.
Saturday, April 4, 11 a.m.
Ebell of Los Angeles
741 S. Lucerne Blvd., Mid-Wilshire
COST: FREE; MORE INFO
Have coffee and doughnuts with the curators of the Ebell’s Women’s History Month exhibit, "A Woman’s Place: Framing the Future." You can catch the show before it closes and see work from women artists exploring new interpretations of womanhood, feminism and art.
Saturday, April 4, starting at 10:30 p.m.
Venice Breakwater
Ocean Front Walk, Venice
COST: FREE; MORE INFO
I have lived in Venice for more than 20 years and never actually seen a grunion, despite efforts, but that doesn’t mean it’s not fun to see all your neighbors scouring the beach by moonlight on a Saturday night. The Venice Oceanarium folks always organize an educational tent with lessons on how these unique fish show up on our shores to reproduce, and maybe you’ll luck out and time it right this year.
Saturday, April 4, 7 p.m.
Broad Stage
1310 11th St., Santa Monica
COST: FROM $40; MORE INFO
L.A. native Mythili Prakash takes the Tamil dance form Bharatanatyam to new heights as a choreographer and performer. Her short dance film Mollika, commissioned by Sadler’s Wells Digital Stage in London, was nominated for a 2025 National Dance Award for Best Short Dance Film. She’s Auspicious, her latest production, "blurs the line between goddess and woman, exploring the dichotomy between celebration of the goddess versus the treatment of women in society." It was nominated for an Olivier Award in the category Best New Dance Performance in the U.K., and lucky for us, is on for one performance only at the Broad Stage in Santa Monica.
Topline:
The California Public Employment Relations Board (has issued a formal complaint against California State University trustees over the system’s alleged refusal to give raises to trades workers. The complaint follows a statewide strike earlier this year, in which workers at every campus walked off the job.
Why it matters: Teamsters Local 2010 represents 1,100 plumbers, electricians, HVAC techs, locksmiths and other building maintenance staff who work across the CSU system. A formal complaint from the Public Employment Relations Board means the two parties must resolve the dispute in a formal hearing process.
The backstory: According to Teamsters Local 2010, union members won wage increases in 2024 “after nearly three decades of stagnation.” That year, the union was on the verge of striking alongside the system's faculty, but it reached a last-minute deal with the CSU. The union has filed an unfair labor practice charge against the system, arguing that the CSU refused to honor contractually obligated raises and step increases for its members.
What the CSU says: The CSU maintains that conditions described in its collective bargaining agreement with the union — which “tied certain salary increases to the receipt of new, unallocated, ongoing state budget funding” — were not met.
What’s next: In an emailed statement, spokesperson Amy Bentley-Smith said the CSU welcomes “the opportunity to present the facts of this case before an administrative law judge.” After the formal hearing, the state board will propose a resolution to the dispute.
Go deeper: Trades worker union says CSU backtracked on contract, authorizes strike
What to expect: A mostly sunny afternoon with temperatures sticking to the low to mid 70s for most of Southern California. Breezy conditions will pick up in the afternoon for some valleys and mountain communities.
Read on ... for more details.
The cool weather continues for one more day in Southern California. Later this evening, strong winds will kick in for some mountains and highway corridors ahead of a Santa Ana wind event slated for Friday.
Temperatures at the beaches are going to stick around the mid to upper 60s, and around 70 degrees more inland.
Coachella Valley, San Bernardino and Riverside County mountains will continue to see gusty winds until tonight.
At noon, the Antelope Valley will be under a wind advisory, with winds expected to reach 20 to 30 mph, and some gusts up to 50 mph. Wind advisories will also kick in for the 5 Freeway corridor, Ventura County mountains and the Santa Susana mountains, where gusts could reach 45 mph.
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One or two line overview of the story, should be sharp and to the point. If it's the only thing they read it should still give them good info.
{ERASE ME — some possible lead ins, please change/add/delete what makes sense for story}
Why it matters:
Why now:
The backstory:
What's next:
Go deeper: {if you have stories you want to link add them here}
A key agreement outlining what city services Los Angeles will provide for the 2028 Olympic Games and how the cash-strapped city will be reimbursed for its extra work is now six months late.
High-stakes talks over that agreement between the city and the private Olympics organizing committee LA28 have dragged far past an Oct. 1 deadline, sparking concern from city officials and observers that taxpayer dollars could be on the line.
City Controller Kenneth Mejia, who audits and scrutinizes city finances, called the delay "deeply troubling."
"The City needs a guarantee from LA28 that they will not go over budget and will pay for all of the additional security, sanitation, transportation, administrative, and any other costs associated with the Games," Mejia said in a statement to LAist. "The preparation and execution of these events should not come at any cost to Los Angeles taxpayers."
The 2028 Olympics are intended to be privately financed, and an existing city agreement with LA28 states that the Olympics organizers, not L.A., will pay for extra costs for public services in support of the Games – like policing and traffic control.
But the nuts and bolts of that arrangement have not been finalized, and if the agreement leaves L.A. exposed to unexpected or additional expenses, taxpayers could end up paying many millions.
Hosting the Games is already an enormous financial risk for Los Angeles. The city is the financial backstop for the Olympic Games, meaning if the organizing committee runs into the red, L.A. will pick up the bill, along with the state of California.
The extra staff and resources the city will dedicate to the Games represents another area where L.A. may end up with surprise costs.
Neither the city nor LA28 have shared publicly what's holding up the deal.
Past public meetings and comments indicate that the two sides may disagree over the scope of LA28's obligation to cover city expenses.
At a December city council meeting, the city administrative officer and council members discussed the boundaries of where LA28's responsibility for a service like traffic control ends and the city's responsibility begins.
The city's Chief Legislative Analyst Sharon Tso, who is leading negotiations with LA28 along with the City Administrative Officer, told LAist in an email Wednesday that the city is still discussing the terms for things like cost estimates, service levels, and timelines for repayment.
"We continue to work diligently with LA28 to finalize the agreement," Tso wrote. "I do not have an anticipated completion date at this time."
Jacie Prieto Lopez, Vice President of Communications and Public Affairs for LA28, said in a statement provided to LAist that the organizing committee was working with city leadership to finalize the agreement.
"We remain engaged in good faith negotiations and look forward to our continued partnership with the City of Los Angeles," she said.
Once the agreement is completed, it will be submitted to the city council and mayor.
LA28 isn't the only entity expected to pay L.A. for Olympics-related costs. The city also is banking on money from the federal government, which has allocated $1 billion for security costs.
The city administrative officer told the council last year that city spending on security at the Olympic venues, like for local police, should be covered by those funds.
But exactly how much federal money the city of Los Angeles will actually get is yet to be determined. And it's possible that money could face delays – a problem World Cup host cities including Los Angeles encountered in the run-up to this summer's tournament.
