Millie Bobby Brown as Eleven in the new season of "Stranger Things."
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Courtesy Netflix
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Topline:
Apex Surplus is a scrap metal recycling shop that’s become a destination for Hollywood productions, from the newest season of "Stranger Things" to science fiction classics like "Star Wars" and "Star Trek."
The origins: Opened in 1958 by a Holocaust survivor as an aerospace liquidation business and surplus store, the Sun Valley obsolete and recycled electronics business has attracted more and more Hollywood productions and special effects designers over the years.
Read on … to find out how a nearly seven-decade-old recycling business became a coveted destination for Hollywood designers.
When he was looking for ‘80s tech inspiration and equipment for the fifth and final season of Stranger Things, special effects designer Shane Dzicek knew exactly where to go: Apex Surplus, a scrap metal recycling and industrial surplus business in Sun Valley.
“They're well known in the industry for being a place to rent a lot of hard-to-find electronics,” Dzicek said. “Imagine walking into a shop that would be in the world of Harry Potter, and there's just racks that go to the ceiling with everything that you can think of … military and airplane supplies to electronics … vintage microphones and knife switches.”
In addition to various knobs that he repurposed for the show, Dzicek also found an FM signal generator from the ‘80s, which served as a model for a decibel-reading device used by the character Steve Harrington, as seen in the teaser trailer:
Dzicek isn’t the only special effects designer who’s walked the halls of Apex Surplus. The shop’s co-owner, Adam Isaacs, estimates their credits span 5,000 different productions, including sci-fi classics like Back to the Future, Mad Max, Star Wars, Star Trek and 2001: A Space Odyssey.
A hallway at Apex Surplus.
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Courtesy Apex Surplus
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So how did a nearly 70-year-old recycling business become a go-to destination for Hollywood designers?
The origins: A Holocaust survivor meets the SoCal aerospace industry
Apex Surplus is a third-generation family-owned business, first opened in 1958 by husband and wife Bill and Charlotte Slater.
Bill Slater was a Holocaust survivor who fled Austria in the 1940s and served in the U.S. army during World War II. After the war, he moved to Southern California, which was at the height of the aerospace industry boom.
With the space race raging, aerospace companies like Boeing, Northrop Grumman and Bendix Company were building at a rapid rate, with lots of materials left over. Slater decided to leverage his military connections and open an aerospace liquidation business and surplus front.
Bill Slater standing in Apex Surplus in the 1960s.
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Courtesy Apex Surplus
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“ My grandpa would drive around with a semi-truck in the ‘60s and ‘70s and essentially recycle all of their old scrap metal,” according to Isaacs, who said subsidiaries of the aerospace hub in San Fernando Valley would then come to Apex to shop for secondary parts.
As Apex’s inventory grew in the 1960s, Isaacs said the business expanded and started catching the eye of set decorators and production designers in the TV and film industry.
Apex today: From oddball artist haven to film prop shop
After Bill and Charlotte Slater’s death, Apex was passed down to their children, Melissa and Don Slater.
Melissa now co-owns Apex Surplus with her son, Adam Isaacs, who said customers today range from folks outside the film industry, like electricians, plumbers, sculptors and artists, to set and production designers who work on films — anyone with a practical, aesthetic or historical interest in vintage or obsolete electronics.
Outdoor yard of Apex Surplus.
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Courtesy Apex Surplus
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Isaacs said, at heart, Apex still is a scrap metal, electronics and aerospace recycling and surplus business, though its also has embraced its role as a film prop and rental house.
More recently, its products have been featured in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., 13 Reasons Why, A.P. Bio and Avatar.
“Our close proximity to Hollywood has allowed us to open up this prop division and work with a lot of talented people,” Isaacs said. “There's so much creativity and artistry being produced in L.A. … We're very fortunate that we were able to reinvent ourselves as a production hub.”
Check out LAist host Julia Paskin's interview with Stranger Things special effects designer Shane Dzicek here:
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - OCTOBER 14: Max Muncy #13, Tommy Edman #25, Mookie Betts #50, Freddie Freeman #5 of the Los Angeles Dodgers look on during a pitching change during the eighth inning against the Milwaukee Brewers in game three of the National League Championship Series at Dodger Stadium on October 14, 2026 in Los Angeles, California.
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Sean M. Haffey
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Getty Images North America
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Topline:
Milwaukee’s brilliant bullpen slammed the door late and the Brewers rallied past the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-4 on Thursday in Game 4 of the National League Championship Series to earn their first trip to the World Series since 1982.
What happened: Shohei Ohtani’s first home run this postseason helped put the Dodgers ahead 4-0 in the second inning before the Brewers came back to complete a four-game sweep of the two-time defending World Series champions a year after getting swept by Los Angeles in the NLCS.
Garrett Mitchell hit a go-ahead homer in the sixth inning, Milwaukee’s brilliant bullpen slammed the door late and the Brewers rallied past the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-4 on Thursday in Game 4 of the National League Championship Series to earn their first trip to the World Series since 1982.
No. 9 hitter David Hamilton’s two-out solo shot off Edwin Díaz gave the Brewers a two-run cushion in the ninth. Hamilton had just four homers in the regular season.
“We got down early tonight and we were like, it’s going to be a great story,” Brewers captain Christian Yelich said. “We’re going to come back and win this. Like, stay together, start chipping away. And that’s exactly what they did.”
Shohei Ohtani’s first home run this postseason helped put the Dodgers ahead 4-0 in the second inning before the Brewers came back to complete a four-game sweep of the two-time defending World Series champions a year after getting swept by Los Angeles in the NLCS.
Milwaukee became the first major league club to complete a postseason sweep after getting swept by that same opponent in the previous postseason.
“Playing with that chip on our shoulder,” Brewers reliever Aaron Ashby said. “You don’t ever know what to expect going into a series like that last year. You don’t know how bad it can be, and then it was as bad as it was. And we came out and we survived, and we came back this year, and those guys played their tails off.”
The Brewers lost to the St. Louis Cardinals in seven games in their only other World Series appearance, when Milwaukee played in the American League.
With the score tied 4-all, Mitchell fell behind 0-2 before reliever Tanner Scott threw three straight balls for a full count. Mitchell’s 409-foot leadoff drive to center field — the first homer of his career on an 0-2 count — put the Brewers ahead for the first time. Mitchell also homered in their 6-2 victory Wednesday.null
“I’ve always dreamt of moments like these as a kid,” Mitchell said.
The Brewers’ bullpen coolly turned away multiple threats when the Dodgers had the potential tying run on base.
Winning pitcher JoJo Romero struck out Max Muncy with Kyle Tucker at third to end the sixth.
Ashby, who worked three scoreless innings for a save, struck out Ohtani swinging before Mookie Betts grounded out with Andy Pages at third to end the seventh. Will Smith doubled to right with one out in the eighth and was safe at third when the ball got away from Sal Frelick for an error before Ashby got Tucker to fly out and Teoscar Hernández to strike out.
The Brewers tied it in the fifth, when the Dodgers bullpen issued four walks and Milwaukee stole two bases. Hamilton’s single chased starter Tyler Glasnow and scored Frelick, who walked and stole second, to pull Milwaukee to 4-3.
Alex Vesia came in and promptly walked Brice Turang and William Contreras to load the bases. Vesia then walked NLCS MVP Jake Bauers with two outs to force in Hamilton with the tying run.
Glasnow retired his first 10 batters — six on strikeouts — before the Brewers got to him in the fourth. Turang walked, Contreras hit a ground-rule double and Bauers followed with another ground-rule double that closed Milwaukee to 4-2.
Ohtani broke out of his postseason slump with a three-run homer after Pages’ RBI single in the second. The four-time MVP released weeks of pent-up frustration by raising his arms and yelling and the crowd of 49,104 joined him in celebration.
Matthew Ballinger
is the senior editor for climate and environment coverage at LAist.
Published October 15, 2026 5:52 PM
The Henderson Fire sparked Thursday afternoon at Camp Pendleton.
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Alert California
/
UC San Diego
)
Topline:
Parts of Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton have been ordered to evacuate, and the 5 Freeway has been closed in both directions as a wildfire burns in the area. The Henderson Fire had charred more than 1,100 acres as of 4:40 p.m.
What we know so far: The 5 Freeway was closed between Harbor Drive, near Oceanside, and Basilone Road, near the Orange County line. The Camp Pendleton Fire Department was fighting the fire, according to Cal Fire.
Read on ... for more on evacuations and weather conditions.
This is a developing story. For the most up-to-date information about the fire you can check:
Parts of Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton have been ordered to evacuate, and the 5 Freeway was briefly closed in both directions due to a wildfire in the area. The Henderson Fire had charred more than 1,118 acres as of 7 p.m.
CHP closed the 5 Freeway between Harbor Drive, near Oceanside, and Basilone Road, near the Orange County line, but began reopening the interstate just before 6 p.m.
The Camp Pendleton Fire Department was fighting the fire, according to Cal Fire.
The basics
Acreage: 1,118 acres as of Thursday afternoon
Containment: 0%
Structures destroyed: None reported
Deaths: None reported
Injuries: None reported
Evacuation orders
According to Cal Fire: "An evacuation order has been published for the Las Flores (41 Area). All affected personnel, please evacuate to Paige Field House, located in the 11 Area." A secondary evacuation point was set up at 21 Area gym, according to the Camp Pendleton Facebook page.
Road closures
5 Freeway between Basilone Road and Harbor Drive, but it was being reopened.
Listen to LAist's Big Burn podcast
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39:42
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Jacob Margolis, LAist's science reporter, examines the new normal of big fires in California.
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Destiny Torres
covers all things SoCal, from breaking news to local government, with a focus on Orange County.
Published October 15, 2026 4:19 PM
A Costa Mesa woman who pleaded guilty earlier this year for registering her dog to vote and casting ballots in two elections has had her case dismissed
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Tiffany Ujiiye
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LAist
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Topline:
A Costa Mesa woman who pleaded guilty earlier this year for registering her dog to vote and casting ballots in two elections has had her case dismissed, according to the district attorney’s office Thursday. She won’t serve time but will have to pay for four anti-voter fraud billboards that feature her dog’s image.
Background: Laura Lee Yourex, 64, was charged with five felonies in 2025 for illegally registering her dog and casting ballots on its behalf. Yourex was facing up to six years in prison. In April, Yourex pleaded guilty to one misdemeanor charge of knowingly registering a “non-existent person to vote,” and the DA’s office dismissed the remaining four felony charges against her. LAist did not immediately hear from Yourex’s lawyer.
More on the billboards:As part of the plea deal, Yourex was required to pay $1,500 for four anti-voter fraud billboards along the 55 and 22 freeways in Orange County for the Nov. 3 General Election. The billboards read, “Don’t be a dog. Voter Fraud is a Crime. If you can’t legally vote, don’t vote. The Orange County District Attorney’s Office will prosecute.”
Laura Lee Yourex was required to pay $1,500 for four anti-voter fraud billboards along the 55 and 22 freeways in Orange County.
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Courtesy of the OC District Attorney's Office.
)
Why this matters: The dog incident comes at a time of heightened debate over voter ID. In the General Election, Californians will be asked whether to require voters to show proof of ID at polling places and provide identification numbers on mail-in ballots. Currently, voters only need to provide an ID and Social Security number when they register to vote.
Wine sales have decreased by more than 20% over a five-year period.
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Kelsey Knight
/
Unsplash
)
Topline:
California’s wine industry is still trying to figure out how to adapt to a world with fewer alcohol drinkers, where even the most high-end wineries are fighting a losing battle. Because the state has more wine than people want to drink, some wineries are quietly selling their premium bottles under generic retail home brands like Costco’s Kirkland Signature or Kroger and Aldi labels.
Sales: Wine sales have decreased by more than 20% over a five-year period, causing grape prices to drop and prompting California growers to take roughly a quarter of the state’s vineyards out of production.
“They have way too much of it, and they haven’t been able to sell it the last few years,” said Jess Lander, wine reporter for the San Francisco Chronicle, during a conversation on AirTalk, LAist 89.3’s daily news show.
Listen
15:51
How California wineries are dealing with a high-end bottle surplus
Bargain bottles: Lander has reported that bottles that typically cost around $150 are now, in some cases, going for less than $30 under a different brand label.
How to take advantage: Lander says if you’re looking to take advantage of the surplus bargain, look at the region on the bottle and then do a little experimenting with your palate.
Listen to the full conversation above: To learn more about the wine industry’s outlook and the effects on consumers.
Topline:
California’s wine industry is still trying to figure out how to adapt to a world with fewer alcohol drinkers, where even the most high-end wineries are fighting a losing battle. Because the state has more wine than people want to drink, some wineries are quietly selling their premium bottles under generic retail home brands like Costco’s Kirkland Signature or Kroger and Aldi labels.
Sales: Wine sales have decreased by more than 20% over a five-year period, causing grape prices to drop and prompting California growers to take roughly a quarter of the state’s vineyards out of production.
“They have way too much of it, and they haven’t been able to sell it the last few years,” said Jess Lander, wine reporter for the San Francisco Chronicle, during a conversation on AirTalk, LAist 89.3’s daily news show.
Bargain bottles: Lander has reported that bottles that typically cost around $150 are now, in some cases, going for less than $30 under a different label.
How to take advantage: Lander says if you’re looking to take advantage of the surplus bargain, look at the region on the bottle and then do a little experimenting with your palate.
Listen to the full conversation above: To learn more about the wine industry’s outlook and the effects on consumers.
