LACMA marks the 500th anniversary of the Reformation with a huge show, but leaves out one important fact: Martin Luther was a horrible anti-Semite ... The LA Zoo marks its 50th birthday with a 1966 cocktail party. So, just what cocktails were people drinking then (You don't want to know)? ... We’ll take you to a racetrack where the cars do thousand-foot laps in 17-seconds, cost 4-thousand dollars, and are as big as a shoebox ... We go to Newport Beach to see possibly the most awesome Christmas light display you’ll ever see. The man who did the work says he started planning it this summer. There will be penguins.
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• 4:40
The art the Reformation inspired is glorious, and LACMA's show is a mighty production, but Luther was the most prominent anti-Semite of the 1500's, and inspired the centuries of bigotry against Jewish people that culminated in Hitler.
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• 6:05
When Balboa Island resident Shirley Pepy walks outside her door around the holidays, she's met with awe and gratitude from passersby. "Thank you for doing this!" remarks a woman in a furry hooded coat.
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• 6:05
The annual holiday light show is back at the L.A. Zoo, and they're celebrating the zoo's 50th birthday with a 1966 cocktail night. So, what were people drinking 50 years ago?
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• 6:26
Tim Cogshell, film critic for KPCC's Filmweek and Alt Film Guide, has joined Off-Ramp's team of commentators. Cogshell blogs at CinemaInMind.
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• 4:47
We visit a racetrack where the cars do thousand-foot laps in 17-seconds, cost $4,000, and are as big as a shoebox.
This week's song of the week comes from soul singers El Chicano with the their cover of "Viva Tirado."
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• 7:32
KPCC's Program Director and Classical Music aficionado Craig Curtis explains what happened to Alex North's unused score for 2001: A Space Odyssey.
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• 9:53
John Musker and Ron Clements are a part of your life — a part of your world — even if you don’t know their names. If you love Disney, you probably love their work.