The Brief

The influential investor Charlie Munger, longtime vice chairman of the conglomerate Berkshire Hathaway, has died. He was 99 years old.

With Warren Buffett, Munger built Berkshire Hathaway into a multi-billion dollar behemoth.

"They complemented each other in their approach to investments in a very nice way," says David Kass, a finance professor at the University of Maryland.

Munger was a "value investor," who liked to buy stocks when a company's share price was low relative to its fundamental value. But he also believed in the power of trusted brands — and in valuing growth.

Over the years, Berkshire Hathaway made large investments in dozens of household names, including Kraft Heinz, Bank of America, and Coca-Cola. Its portfolio included car companies, grocery stores, and insurers.

"Berkshire Hathaway could not have been built to its present status without Charlie's inspiration, wisdom and participation," Buffett said, in a statement.

For Munger, simplicity was a guiding principle.

"I can't think of a single example in my whole life where keeping it simple has worked against us," he told Yahoo! Finance in an interview. "We've made mistakes, but they weren't because we kept it simple."

With Warren Buffett, Charlie Munger built Berkshire Hathaway into a multibillion-dollar behemoth.

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Johannes Eisele

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Munger grew up in Omaha, Neb., not far from Buffett's childhood home. According to Kass, a local physician introduced them to each other, and "they hit it off immediately."

After serving in the U.S. Army, Munger attended Harvard Law School, and he went on to found Munger, Tolles & Olson, a law firm headquartered in Los Angeles.

Today, Buffett may be better known, but Kass says Munger played a big role in what was a really unique business partnership.

'The Abominable No Man'

Munger was a straight shooter, with a dry sense of humor, and Berkshire Hathaway shareholders saw his personality on display at the company's annual meetings in Omaha, where he and Buffett fielded questions for hours on end.

Often, Buffett answered questions at length. Then, Munger chimed in with something pithy or a perfect one-liner. The audience roared.

According to Lawrence Cunningham, a law professor at The George Washington University, Munger was more than a sounding board for Buffett. He pushed him to consider companies that had potential to grow, and he pushed back on ideas he considered to be half-baked.

"I think Charlie's biggest contribution — besides being a good friend, and that stuff — was knowing when Warren needed to be told not to do something," he says, noting Buffett gave Munger the nickname "The Abominable No Man."

Renaissance man

Munger spent much of his life in California, where he pursued a few side projects. He bought and ran another company, called The Daily Journal. He was a philanthropist. And he dabbled in architecture.

In 2021, a dormitory Munger designed at the University of California, Santa Barbara, faced a lot of blowback. It would have thousands of bedrooms, but most of them wouldn't have windows. Munger suggested that would encourage students to congregate in common spaces.

When Munger was well into his nineties, he told CNBC he lived by a handful of "simple rules."

"You don't have a lot of resentment," he said. "You don't overspend your income. You stay charitable in spite of your troubles. You deal with reliable people, and you do what you're supposed to do."

For him, that was staying away from fads, and being a careful, cautious investor.

In the wake of the Eaton Fire, Altadena and Pasadena’s music community have really shown up to support fire survivors, especially fellow musicians who lost instruments and record collections.

That effort continues this weekend with a special donation concert at a Pasadena record store, with the aim of getting vinyl records back in the hands of survivors who lost their collections.

“You know, our name is Healing Force of the Universe, and I think that gives me a pretty clear direction… especially after the fires,” said Austin Manuel, founder of Pasadena record store, where Sunday’s show will be held.

The record donation effort is the brainchild of musician Brandon Jay, who founded the nonprofit Altadena Musicians after losing his home and almost all of his family’s instruments in the Eaton Fire. Through Altadena Musicians’s donation and registry platform, Jay said he and his partners have helped some 1,200 fire survivors get their music instruments back.

Brandon Jay.

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Robert Garrova

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LAist

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Now, that effort has fanned out to restoring vinyl record collections.

“All of that stuff evaporated for thousands of people,” Jay said. “Look at your own record collection and be like, ‘Wow, what if that whole thing disappeared?’”

You might know Jay from several bands over the years, including Lutefisk, a 1990s alt-rock band based in Los Angeles. He and his wife, Gwendolyn Sanford, composed music for TV shows, including Orange is the New Black and Weeds.

Jay plans to play some holiday tunes at Sunday's record donation show (which LAist is the media sponsor), along with fellow musician Daniel Brummel of Sanglorians. Brummel, who was also a founding member of Pasadena’s indie-rock sensation Ozma, said he was grateful to Jay for his fire recovery work and to Manuel for making Healing Force available for shows like this.

Brummel, who came close to losing his own home in the Eaton Fire, recalled a show he played at Healing Force back in March.

Ryen Slegr (left) and Daniel Brummel perform with their band, Ozma, on the 2014 Weezer Cruise.

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Even Keel Imagery

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“The trauma of the fires was still really fresh,” Brummel said. After playing a cover of Rufus Wainwright’s “Going to a Town,” that night — which includes the lyrics “I’m going to a town that has already been burnt down” — Brummel said his neighbors in the audience told him the rendition hit them hard. “It felt really powerful. And without that space, it just wouldn’t have occurred.”

Details

Healing Force of the Universe Record Donation Show
Featuring: Quasar (aka Brandon Jay), Sanglorians (Daniel Brummel) and The Acrylic.
Sunday, Dec. 14; 2 to 5 p.m.
1200 E. Walnut St., Pasadena
Tickets are $15 or you can donate 5 or more records at the door. More info here.

Topline:

The case: In September, the city settled a lawsuit brought forward by two brothers in their 70s who said they suffered serious injuries after an LAPD officer crashed into their car. Days before the $18 million settlement was reached, lawyers for the brothers said Feldstein Soto called an expert witness testifying for the plaintiffs and “attempted to ingratiate herself with him and asked him to make a contribution to her political campaign,” according to a sworn declaration to the court by the plaintiffs’ attorney, Robert Glassman.

The response: Feldstein Soto did not respond to an interview request. Her spokesperson said the settlement “had nothing to do” with the expert witness. Her campaign manager told LAist the city attorney had been making a routine fundraising call and did not know the person had a role in the case, nor that there were pending requests for her office to pay him fees.

What Jurado says: In a statement to LAist, Jurado said she wants to “make sure that the city’s legal leadership is guided by integrity and accountability, especially when their choices affect public trust, civic rights and the city’s limited resources."

What’s next: The motion needs to go through a few committees before reaching the full City Council. If it passes, the motion calls for the city attorney to “report to council in closed session within 45 days regarding the ethics breach violation and give updates to the City Council."

Every year in Santa Ana, Luis Cantabrana turns the front of his home into an elaborate altar in honor of La Virgen de Guadalupe that draws hundreds of visitors.

Along the front of the house, the multi-colored altar is filled with lights, flowers and a stained-glass tapestry behind a sculpture of the Lady of Guadalupe. Cantabrana’s roof also is lit up with the green, white and red lights that spell out “Virgen de Guadalupe” and a cross.

Visitors are welcomed with music and the smell of roses as they celebrate the saint, but this year’s gathering comes after a dark year for immigrant communities.

Luis Cantabrana stands in front of the stunning altar he built in front of his home in honor of La Virgen de Guadalupe. Every year, his display draws hundreds of visitors.

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Destiny Torres

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Why do they celebrate? 

In 1513, the Virgin Mary appeared before St. Juan Diego between Dec. 9 and Dec. 12, asking him to build a church in her honor. Her image — a brown-skinned woman wearing a green veil with her hands together in prayer and an angel at her feet — miraculously appeared on his cloak.

To celebrate in Santa Ana, worshippers gathered late-night Wednesday and in the very early hours Dec. 12 to pray the rosary, sing hymns and celebrate the saint.

Cantabrana has hosted worshippers at his home for 27 years — 17 in Santa Ana.

The altar started out small, he said, and over the years, he added a fabric background, more lights and flowers (lots and lots of flowers).

“It started with me making a promise to la Virgen de Guadalupe that while I had life and a home to build an altar, that I would do it,” Cantabrana said. “Everything you see in photos and videos is pretty, but when you come and see it live, it's more than pretty. It's beautiful.”

The Santa Ana home's elaborate altar in honor of La Virgen de Guadalupe draws hundreds of visitors each year.

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Destiny Torres

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LAist

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Gathering in a time of turmoil 

Many also look to the Lady of Guadalupe for protection, especially at a time when federal enforcement has rattled immigrant communities.

“People don’t want to go to work, they don’t want to take their kids to school, but the love we have for our Virgen de Guadalupe,” Cantabrana said. “We see that la Virgen de Guadalupe has a lot of power, and so we know immigration [enforcement] won’t come here.”

Margarita Lopez of Garden Grove has been visiting the altar for three years with her husband. She’s been celebrating the Virgencita since she was a young girl. Honoring the saint is as important now as ever, she said.

“We ask, and she performs miracles,” Lopez said.

Claudia Tapia, a lifelong Santa Ana resident, said the Virgin Mary represents strength.

“Right now, with everything going on, a lot of our families [have] turned and prayed to the Virgen for strength during these times,” Tapia said. “She's a very strong symbol of Mexican culture, of unity, of faith and of resilience.”

See it for yourself

The shrine will stay up into the new year on the corner of Broadway and Camile Street.