The Brief

In the 1960’s, a raven-haired and svelte drag performer was one of the hottest acts in L.A.’s nightclub scene.

Sir Lady Java, an openly trans woman of color, had a popular dance and comedy routine that drew stars like Sammy Davis Jr. and Richard Pryor. When she showed up in the 1976 cult film “The Human Tornado,” she played herself with effortless charisma.

But behind her swishy gowns and tongue-in-cheek humor was a steely resolve that led to her becoming one of the country’s earliest activists for trans rights.

Sir Lady Java was a star attraction on L.A.'s nightclub circuit during the 1960's.

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MS Thr 1777, Harvard Theatre Collection, Houghton Library, Harvard University

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Java died on November 16 at age 82. Nearly six decades ago, she took on the LAPD when they went after her for performing in drag without police permission as was then required by law.

Actor Hailie Sahar with Sir Lady Java.

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Courtesy Hailie Sahar

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She brought a lawsuit with the help of the ACLU, becoming their first-ever trans client.

Those familiar with Java’s story are hoping she gets her roses even after her passing.

“She was being extremely brave trying to fight this fight,” said Amanda Goad of ACLU Southern California. “There has been a pattern of trans women of color leading the way in almost every area of LGBTQ progress, and that's not always understood and appreciated.”

Destined for the stage

Java’s story began in New Orleans, where she was born to a family with Black, Native American and European heritage.

As a young child, she moved with her family to Riverside, said Hailie Sahar, a longtime friend of Java’s who starred in the series “Pose.”

By Java’s late teens, she was waiting tables at an L.A. nightclub. Soon she was plucked to be on stage.

Skilled at costume design, Sir Lady Java wore elaborate outfits of feathers and sequins in her act.

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MS Thr 1777, Harvard Theatre Collection, Houghton Library, Harvard University

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“She was so stunning, so sexy, so beautiful,” Sahar said.

Her audiences were primarily straight people who experienced a “certain level of sort of voyeurism in imagining this person that they know is born male, that to them, looks like a woman,” said Trevor Ladner, director of Education Programs at One Institute, the oldest LGBTQ+ group in the country.

But “for many trans performers like Lady Java, female impersonation gave them an opportunity to have financial stability, to have a job and to also be able to express their gender and be affirmed in their gender, in the way that they perceive themselves,” Ladner said.

Java booked clubs like the Redd Foxx on La Cienega Boulevard, which took the stage name of the owner, actor-comedian John Elroy Sanford. Java recalled performances alongside James Brown and Etta James, Sahar said.

“The shows would be lined up around the block, limousines pulling up to see Java,” Sahar said. “People would come from all over town, all over the country to fly in to see Lady Java because they had never seen someone like her from that era.”

Sir Lady Java took on the LAPD in the 1960s when the department tried to shut down her performances.

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Courtesy Hailie Sahar

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She was gossiped over in Jet and Sepia magazines. Her appearances around the country, from San Francisco to Atlanta, attracted headlines.

Her 1967 performances at Le Bistro in Milwaukee inspired the opening of a cabaret that showcased trans talent, according to the Wisconsin LGBTQ History Project.

But with fame came scrutiny.

Rule No. 9

In the 60‘s, L.A. police began enforcing a city ordinance called Rule No. 9 which said it was illegal for a venue to hire someone to perform “by means of costume or dress a person of the opposite sex.” To do so required a special permit issued by the L.A. Board of Police Commissioners.

The rule was introduced during the “lavender scare” of the 1950s, but the LAPD was using it to target drag performers and in 1967 attempted to shut down Java’s show at Redd Foxx Club, said ACLU SoCal’s Goad who directs the group’s LGBTQ, Gender & Reproductive Justice Project.

“They ran everybody out,” Goad said. “They took photos of Java, treating her outfit as evidence of her wrongdoing.”

But Java was determined to challenge the city establishment. She picketed the club over Foxx’s protests, according to a November 1967 edition of Jet Magazine.

In an interview posted in 2016 by her filmmaker friend Tom Porter, she explained why.

“I didn't so much need the money because I was working, but my sisters after me needed it, and I had to make a way for the drag queens to be able to work in the city of Los Angeles, and that was important to me,” Java said.

Sir Lady Java drew attention and acclaim in her appearances in and out of L.A.

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MS Thr 1777, Harvard Theatre Collection, Houghton Library, Harvard University

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After the ACLU took Java's case, they bumped up against what Goad called a technicality: the club owner was the one being harmed, not Java. So the ACLU looked for owners who’d be willing to file their own suits.

“But that didn't work out, probably because club owners were invested in keeping a good relationship with the LAPD,” Goad said.

Goad says the case was dismissed, but Java didn’t give up. She led protests in L.A. that widened awareness about Rule No. 9.

After being the target of separate legal action, the rule was no longer in effect in 1969. Performers could wear whatever they want — a big win that resonates to this day with younger generations.

“She was not ashamed, which I love,” said Bailey Linares, a 17-year-old from Wilmington who has been studying LGBTQ+ history through a teen program with One Institute.

It boggles her mind to imagine what Java went through.

Sir Lady Java was written about in Sepia and Jet magazines.

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MS Thr 1777, Harvard Theatre Collection, Houghton Library, Harvard University

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“You go outside and you get arrested for — I don't know — wearing just something that doesn't correlate to your gender, which is crazy to think of,” Linares said. ”And now we don't even think of that.”

But with progress comes new challenges for the LGBTQ+ community. ACLU SoCal's Goad cites recent attempts to ban drag performances around the country.

“They're really not that different from Rule No. 9 in terms of prohibiting certain kinds of entertainment performance that's perceived as gender bending and somehow harmful,” Goad said.

Goad says she’s reminding herself of pioneers like Java who have fought this battle before.

Taking stock of her impact

Java’s friend Hailie Sahar said the performer stayed humble, even after she was featured in a Hollywood mural and museum exhibit and chosen to lead L.A. Pride as community grand marshal in 2022.

“I would say, ‘Java, do you realize that you laid the groundwork to ignite this community?’” Sahar recalled. “And she would take a beat, and she would say, ‘You know what? I don't think about it that way, but I did.’

Java, in an interview several years ago, expressed joy at how the LGBTQ+ community had grown in strength over her lifetime — a stark contrast to when she was young.

“There was nothing to help us,” she said. “No one cared. So I had to care, and I kept on, kept on and kept on.”

Java’s long life, which saw her suffer two strokes, is itself a testament to her resiliency in a world where trans people, especially those of color, face heightened threats of violence and discrimination, says Rory Hayes, One Institute’s public programs manager.

“It is something powerful as a young trans person to see the length of her life,” said Hayes, who is 25. “It's a relief to know that she was loved and cared for up until her last day.”

A Hollywood mural commissioned by the city of L.A. features, from left, Sir Lady Java, Jewel Thais-Williams, Tim Dang, Alan Bell, Mia Yamamoto and Katrina Samala.

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Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times via Getty Image

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Los Angeles Times

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Sahar hopes more people will learn about Java in the near future.

The actor is working on bringing Java’s story to life onscreen in a project she said is in pre-production.

Sahar would play the Java, having been coached for the role for years by none other than the pro herself.

The autonomous ride-hailing service Waymo plans to file a voluntarily software recall after several reports that its self-driving taxis illegally passed stopped school buses.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) opened an investigation in October in response to "a media report involving a Waymo AV [autonomous vehicle] that failed to remain stopped when approaching a school bus that was stopped with its red lights flashing, stop arm deployed, and crossing control arm deployed."

WXIA-TV in Atlanta aired video in September that showed a Waymo vehicle driving around a school bus.

The NHTSA website also includes a letter from the Austin Independent School District, saying the district has documented 19 instances of Waymo vehicles "illegally and dangerously" passing the district's school buses. The letter, signed by the district's senior counsel, says in one instance the Waymo vehicle drove past the stopped bus "only moments after a student crossed in front of the vehicle, and while the student was still in the road."

In a statement emailed to NPR, Waymo Chief Safety Officer Mauricio Peña said that while the company is proud of its safety record, "holding the highest safety standards means recognizing when our behavior should be better." Peña wrote that Waymo plans "to file a voluntary software recall with NHTSA" and it "will continue analyzing our vehicles performance and making necessary fixes."

The company says it identified a software issue that contributed to the incidents and it believes subsequent updates will fix the problem. Waymo says it plans to file the voluntary recall early next week and it points out that no injuries have occurred because of this problem.

Waymo is a subsidiary of Alphabet, the parent company of Google. It has focused on safety in public statements, showing that driverless Waymo cars have a lot fewer crashes than those with human drivers. In the cities where the company operates, it says there have been 91% fewer crashes with serious injuries and 92% fewer crashes with pedestrian injuries.

Independent analyses from technology news website Ars Technica and the newsletter Understanding AI support Waymo's claim that its AVs are safer than human drivers. Still, federal regulators are asking the company to provide a lot more information about these incidents.

According to NHTSA, Waymo's AVs surpassed 100 million miles of driving last July and continue to accumulate 2 million miles a week. Given that and discussions with Waymo, the agency says "the likelihood of other prior similar incidents is high."

Earlier this week, NHTSA investigators sent a list of detailed questions about the incidents to Waymo as part of its inquiry. The agency asked Waymo to document similar incidents and provide more information about how it has responded. NHTSA set a deadline of Jan. 20, 2026, for Waymo to respond.

Editor's note: Google is a financial supporter of NPR.

Copyright 2025 NPR

"3... 2... 1..."

Voices rang out in unison until the nearly mile-long row of cedar trees along Santa Rosa Avenue burst with color.

The Christmas Tree Lane lighting is Altadena’s kickoff to the holidays, a 105-year-old tradition that attracts tens of thousands of visitors every year.

And it was all that on Saturday night.

After the Eaton Fire, though, the celebration was more for many who attended. Many things about the lighting remained the same: speeches by dignitaries, a performance by the high school drumline.

But so much was different. A tree just off the lane was lit in white with 19 green lights honoring every person who died in the fire.

A tree off the Christmas Tree Lane was lit in white with 19 green lights honoring every person who died in the fire.

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Josie Huang

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And during the ceremony, a minute and 19 seconds of silence was observed, led by the night’s emcee, actor Edward James Olmos.

LAist was at Saturday night's lighting event.

Megan Murdock

Longtime Altadena resident Megan Murdock and her partner Steven Valle.

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Fiona Ng

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Saturday marked longtime Altadena resident Megan Murdock's very first outing.

"I love Christmas Tree Lane, but I've never been to the lighting event," she said. " This felt like the year to show up and represent."

As the first anniversary of the Eaton Fire approaches, Murdock said it's been amazing to see the community rebuild, even though the scars are still raw.

"Through the rebuilding, there were really hard days, there's going be more really hard days," she said. "But today's a good day."

Seamus Bozeman

Seamus Bozeman and his family lost their home in Altadena.

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Fiona Ng

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Seamus Bozeman will always call Altadena home.

He and his family lost their house in the Eaton Fire. But every chance he gets, Bozeman (a former LAist intern) can be found hanging out in his old haunts.

"I come back and shop at the shops as much as I can, eat from the restaurants here," he said. "I love this place so much."

Christmas Tree Lane lighting ceremony on Saturday.

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He said the tree-lighting ceremony he grew up knowing was a quaint, neighborhood affair.

" With this whole festival and everything because of the fire, I don't know, it's not the same for me," he said.

But change, he knows, is inevitable.

" I'm hoping it's for the better," Bozeman said. "But one thing I do know is that we'll be closer as a community because of this fire."

Patricia Valencia

Patricia Valencia (R) and her friend at the Christmas Tree Lane lighting ceremony.

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Josie Huang

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For Patricia Valencia, who lost her home in the fire, Saturday night's event was a reunion.

"I saw my neighbor for the first time since we evacuated," she said. "It was emotional! I gave him a hug, and I was like, I think I'm gonna cry because I haven't seen you since that night that we left."

Greg Demus

Christmas Tree Lane resident Greg Demus.

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Fiona Ng

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LAist

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Greg Demus lives right on Christmas Tree Lane. For him, the event is an annual ritual.

" I've been coming here all my life," he said.

But after the fire, few things are a given.

" I wasn't quite sure what to expect," Demus said of this year's ceremony. "But it's good to see so many people come back to try to celebrate Altadena and keep Altadena strong."

Howard and Linella Raff

Howard Raff and his wife Linella at Saturday's Christmas Tree Lane lighting ceremony.

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Josie Huang

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Howard Raff and his wife Linella are renting outside of Altadena while their home is being remediated.

"Coming back, you just want it to be what it was, and you don't know what it's going to be like. So having this was kind of an anchor of something that you knew was going to be there," Linella said.

Marguerite Lockwood de Jauregui

Marguerite Lockwood de Jauregui holds up a photocopy of the house in Altadena she lived in for three years, at the corner of Santa Rosa Avenue and East Mariposa Street where she is standing.

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Fiona Ng

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Marguerite Lockwood de Jauregui and her husband arrived at Christmas Tree Lane on Saturday in the early afternoon.

As soon as they were able to enter the area, the two set up their chairs at the corner of Santa Rosa Avenue and Mariposa Street.

The intersection of Mariposa Street and Santa Rosa Avenue at Christmas Tree Lane

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Fiona Ng

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The lot on that corner now sits razed and empty. But before the fire, it was the house where de Jauregui had lived for three years after college. A place where she built lifelong friendships with her roommates.

"It was such great memories and a great camaraderie," she said.

Altadena, she remembered, was vibrant and free-spirited.

 "It was a really close-knit community," she said. "When you go further down Fair Oaks, you could go to the movies and dinner. You get together with friends in their historical homes, and we'd all sit around and play music."

Marguerite Lockwood de Jauregui brought with her a photocopy of the Altadena house she stayed at.

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Fiona Ng

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She returned to Christmas Tree Lane on Saturday to honor those formative years — and brought along images and drawings of the house that burned down.

"It was almost like claiming a bit of my own personal history back," she said.

The FIFA World Cup is just a few months away, and some national soccer teams, like Cape Verde, Curacao and Uzbekistan are competing for the first time. Their fans — and those of the other 45 countries — will probably look for something familiar when they land in L.A.

• Read: Your essential guide to the 2026 World Cup in Los Angeles

Whether it’s a fast food logo or a restaurant serving regional dishes from home, that sense of familiarity can be the first stepping stone before you start discovering the delights of where you are now.

When I arrived in Los Angeles from England, I was soon directed to Ye Olde King's Head in Santa Monica. Judging by the dozens of photographs on the wall, it has been a kind of entry checkpoint for newly arrived British Isles celebrities and regulars alike since the 1970s. They do afternoon tea, of course, plus their bar will open early to show UK soccer matches. Their store has snacks and candy for the homesick.

It was, of course, reassuring for me to hear familiar accents and recognize the beers on tap and even some of the crisps — sorry, chips — behind the bar. Asking whether any “football” matches were going to be shown didn’t raise any eyebrows either, even though that could mean having to arrive soon after sunrise because of the time difference in the UK.

British comfort food at Ye Olde King's Head in Santa Monica.

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Donal Tavey

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Even if I had been living locally, I don’t think it would have become my “local” (as it were) because I thought it was important to try to get to know my new home, rather than hold on too tight to what I had just left behind.

That said, I did occasionally return to watch football matches and even for a couple of New Year’s Eves, which happen here at 4 p.m. to coincide with midnight in England. Then I could call home and hear the singing of “Auld Lang Syne” while we in the pub were singing it at the same time.

Here's a select list of pubs where you can sample the drinks, eats and even watch the sports from several European countries.

Ireland

• The Auld Fella (Culver City & Brentwood)
  9375 Culver Blvd., Culver City

Auld Fella in Culver City

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Kevin Kearns

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Courtesy Auld Fella

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Owned by an actual Irishman, Kevin Kearns from Inishowen, they pour an excellent Guinness (don’t ask any Irish person about the importance of that, nor how hard it is to find that in L.A.) and have a good selection of savory pies. Kevin’s also an actor and appeared in blockbuster Battleship.

• Tom Bergin’s (Mid-Town/Fairfax)
  840 S. Fairfax Ave., Los Angeles

Tom Bergin's in the Fairfax District.

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An L.A. staple since 1936, it’s the center of celebrations on St. Patrick’s Day. Stapled to the ceiling and walls around the horseshoe bar are shamrocks with the names of past patrons: try to find Cary Grant, Kiefer Sutherland, Ronald Reagan and Bing Crosby. A short menu, but you can get shepherd’s pie (steak, carrots, celery, caramelized onions, under mashed potatoes), and it’s said to have invented Irish coffee. Choose that or a good Guinness.

• Molly Malone’s (Mid-Town/Fairfax)
  575 S. Fairfax Ave., Los Angeles
  

Molly Malone's in the Fairfax District.

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James Bartlett

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LAist

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Owned by Irish family the Hanlons since 1969, Molly’s was damaged by a fire last year but bounced right back with its dark interior and original mission as a place where Irish troubadours and traditional musicians could get together. It’s long been a respected music venue and occasionally gets some bigger names on stage. You’ll get a good pour here, too, though the menu is just a few items long.

Scotland

• The Tam O’Shanter (Los Feliz)
  2980 Los Feliz Blvd., Los Angeles
  

The Tam O'Shanter in Los Feliz.

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James Bartlett

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LAist

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The Tam O'Shanter's main dining room.

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Jakob Layman

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Courtesy The Tam O'Shanter

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Named after a bonnet worn by Scotsmen, the “Tam” looks like a castle crossed with a witch’s house, in part because the original fairytale European look wasn’t a hit for owners Van de Kamp bakeries when they opened in 1922, so they pivoted to kilts, flags and bagpipes. Actors came in from the nearby studios, and famously, Walt Disney and his companions were regulars. A steakhouse, it also offers Scottish rarebit (cheddar, Scottish ale, cayenne pepper on sourdough) and, as you see when you enter, a large selection of scotch whiskeys. It even has resident ghosts!

Germany

• Wirsthaus Restaurant & Beer Garden (Mid-City/Hancock Park)
  345 N. La Brea Ave., Los Angeles
  

Wirstshaus in Hancock Park.

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David Marano

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Courtesy Wirsthaus

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Interior of Wirsthaus.

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Courtesy Wirsthaus

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Head to Wirsthaus to experience the best of Bavaria with steins of German beers, giant pretzels, schnitzel (boneless, thin slices of meat that are pounded, breaded and pan-fried until golden and crispy), bratwurst (sausages), plenty of oompah music and staff dressed in traditional dirndls and lederhosen — the Hollywood movie go-to for scenes of beer debauchery.

• Red Lion Tavern (Silver Lake)
  2366 Glendale Blvd., Los Angeles
  

  

  Red Lion in Los Feliz.

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  Trashingetc

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  Courtesy Red Lion

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Originally an “Olde English” pub opened by the then-owners of Cole’s in downtown, it always had some German beers on draft, and in 1963, new owners fully embraced that. The German wife of one of them reportedly taught her home recipes to the chef, and it was German-owned until 2004, when Aidas Mattis and family, longtime patrons, took over. They kept up the style at this small, maze-like local favorite: flags, German signs, memorabilia and the back-patio beer garden. Schnitzel, spaetzle (doughy noodles), goulash and bratwurst are on the menu, as well as many beers and ciders. Oktoberfest runs Oct. 14, 15, 21 and 22. Try a four-liter boot of beer.

England

• The Cat & Fiddle (West Hollywood)
  742 Highland Ave., West Hollywood
  

  

  The Cat & Fiddle in West Hollywood.

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  James Bartlett

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  LAist

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Located on Sunset Boulevard for several decades, “The Cat” has long been an expat hangout, especially for musicians. Now on Highland Avenue, the Gardner children carry on offering a friendly face and a familiar meal to all visitors. Their Sunday roasts are a real taste of home, and they have other classic British dishes like shepherd’s pie, a ploughman’s lunch (Gloucester, brie, scotch egg, grapes, cornichons, Branston pickle and baguette), Scotch egg and sticky toffee pudding. Want to know what those last two are? Go visit!

• The Canaby (in the works)

Soon, ex-pats will be able to try Gordon Ramsay at the Carnaby, a recently announced 175-seat British gastropub that will open at Downtown Disney and bring 1960s London to Anaheim. Live bands will play music from that fab era, and dishes will include beef Wellington, fish and chips and sticky toffee pudding. No word yet on an opening date.

The Trump administration has removed Martin Luther King Jr. Day and Juneteenth from next year's calendar of entrance fee-free days for national parks and added President Trump's birthday to the list, according to the National Park Service, as the administration continues to push back against a reckoning of the country's racist history on federal lands.

In addition to Trump's birthday — which coincides with Flag Day (June 14) — the updated calendar of fee-free dates includes the 110th anniversary of the NPS (August 25), Constitution Day (September 17) and President Teddy Roosevelt's birthday (October 27). The changes will take effect starting January 1.

Non-U.S. residents will still be required to pay entrance fees on those dates under the new "America-first pricing" policy. At 11 of some of the country's most popular national parks, international visitors will be charged an extra $100, on top of the standard entrance fee, and the annual pass for non-residents will go up to $250. The annual pass for residents will be $80.

The move follows a July executive order from the White House that called to increase fees applied to non-American visitors to national parks and grant citizens and residents "preferential treatment with respect to any remaining recreational access rules, including permitting or lottery rules."

The Department of the Interior, which oversees NPS, called the new fee-exempted dates "patriotic fee-free days," in an announcement that lauded the changes as "Trump's commitment to making national parks more accessible, more affordable and more efficient for the American people."

The Interior Department did not immediately respond to NPR's request for comment.

Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum said in a statement: "These policies ensure that U.S. taxpayers, who already support the National Park System, continue to enjoy affordable access, while international visitors contribute their fair share to maintaining and improving our parks for future generations."

The new calendar follows the Trump administration's previous moves to reshape U.S. history by asking patrons of national parks to flag any signs at sites deemed to cast a negative light on past or living Americans.
Copyright 2025 NPR