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Dodgers won tonight, despite a no-hitter by the Angels. How does that work? Check the story for details. And here's shot a reader got a while back, of a security guard walking across left field in Dodger Stadium.
--Veronique de Turenne
Photo: curator / Your Scene.
 If you've never been to see the Derby Dolls in downtown L.A., you can't say you know the city. Just finding your way to the events where the roller queens extraordinaire rule is an education. And when you get there, you've entered another world, as our roving reporter, Scott Gold, recently learned:
The crowd, in overalls and bustiers, some with purple hair, some with no hair at all, is feverish. It's so loud you can barely hear yourself drink. One woman is in a full Mardi Gras headdress; her date is wearing a Cookie Monster costume. The VIP section is cordoned off with yellow police tape.
The heroes here are all women. Their uniforms are ripped stockings and knee socks. Their names are Eva Destruction and Tara Armov. Their passion is roller derby, which -- long after being swept into the dustbin of kitsch, alongside Evel Knievel and that movie where Clint Eastwood is pals with an orangutan -- is back.
Go back more than once (guilty), and you'll find the people-watching as much a grabber as the action on the rink. Punked-out couples mingle with the retro crowd, meticulously dressed in a '50s homage with skinny jeans and muscle shirts for the men, and edgy little skirts and dresses Donna Reed might find familiar. (Well, except for the peek-a-boo Technicolor tattoos.)
More about the game and the Dolls in Scott's full story here. And while you're on the page, check out the slide show by Francine Orr.
--Veronique de Turenne
Photo: Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times
 If you can stand to read about how the Lakers blew the biggest first-quarter lead in NBA Finals history, then wrote their names in the record books with the biggest breakdown in the NBA Finals in the last 37 years, and how Kobe Bryant walked off the court with time on the clock, then by all means, read our coverage. Bill Plaschke's righteous rage will actually make you feel better. T.J. Simers blames Phil Jackson. The game story pulls no punches. The photos, well, they'll just break your heart. Thank God it's Friday.
And now onto the real world:
L.A.'s top cops have a turf war of their own going. L.A. County Sheriff Lee Baca says race plays a big role in gang violence, while LAPD Chief Bill Bratton says it's actually about drugs and money.
Manson acolyte Susan Atkins may be released from prison because she has brain cancer.
Judge Alex Kozinski wants you to look at some porn -- his own. Specifically, he's called for an investigation into the fact that he kept hard-core images on his website to determine whether he's considered fit to judge obscenity cases.
The Japanese gangster who wanted a liver transplant at UCLA tried to pay $1 million for a U.S. visa.
Got a Q about same-sex marriage in California? Chances are, we've got the A.
Meanwhile, the Kern County clerk says she's hurt by the criticism at her decision to halt all civil marriage ceremonies.
Feeling a particularly vicious pinch in your wallet? You're not dreaming: May's jump in inflation was the biggest in six months.
Check out our coverage of the "Georgia O'Keeffe and the Women of the Stieglitz Circle" exhibit now in the San Diego Museum of Art. What's Hillary Clinton got to do with it? Ironic, in light of today's piece in the NYT.
-- Veronique de Turenne
Photo: Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times
 That's what the San Gabriel Valley Tribune is reporting after league officials sat down with the billionaire for football talks earlier this week. Roski, you may recall, is the developer who wants to build the "Los Angeles Stadium" on a 600-acre parcel he owns in the City of Industry. Here's more from the Trib:
National Football League officials, who initially had little reaction to Roski's proposal, now call the plan "an interesting possibility" after a sit-down meeting earlier this week with officials from Roski's Majestic Realty Co.
"At their request, the Roski group provided us an update on their stadium project," wrote NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy in an email to this paper. "Mr. Roski's site certainly seems to present an interesting possibility. The permitting and construction processes seem to be more defined than other sites we have seen."
Majestic proposed the stadium in April, and McCarthy at the time said NFL staffers are "monitoring all stadium-related developments at this time."
Majestic Realty Co. Vice President John Semcken, who is the lead for the project, said the NFL brass are now showing a little enthusiasm.
"They have seen the plan now," he said of a meeting he had Monday at the NFL headquarters in New York. "They're very impressed."
Out in the real world, the plan has as many skeptics as supporters. Online though, several thousand football-starved fans have already signed up for tickets. The full story from the SGV Trib is here.
—Veronique de Turenne
Photo: AP
 Surfing already seems challenging enough for those of us who can barely stay balanced on an air mattress in a swimming pool (a cup holder and waterproof magazine storage would probably help). So imagine the additional challenges and risks of surfing in the dark. Here's a first-person account in the OC Register about what night surfing is like near the Huntington Beach Pier:
And here, in the water, my friend Mike and I sit on our boards and chat, basking in the buttery glow of the pier lights. Suddenly, everything turns dark. A massive wave has risen to block what little light we have. Instantly, we turn and try to duck-dive under the beast. But we're too late. A wall of water flashes its foamy smile, crashes upon our heads and sweeps us back to shore. At night, everything about surfing is amplified. The waves seem bigger, faster, stronger ... sneakier.
One land lover's concern: Do sharks swim at night?
-- Jesus Sanchez
Photo: Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times
 Sure, Craigslist has tickets for sale in LA and in Boston, and you can also bid for them on EBay. They're going for tens of thousands of dollars, which already seems kind of nutty. But $112,000 for a pair? That's what The Daily Breeze is reporting:
At numerous online brokers such as Stubhub.com, prices for Tuesday's or Thursday's Lakers home games have listed from $400 for nosebleed seats at the top of the arena to $29,000 courtside, with a great midcourt seat commanding $7,000.
Brokers say the prices to get into a potential Game 5 Father's Day contest Sunday are expected to run even higher -- especially if the Lakers lead.
The two seats next to the Lakers bench that listed for $56,000 each -- minimum two -- were posted on Ticketturbo.com, with other sites selling them for slightly less.
"The prices are unprecedented," said Brad Schy, owner of Musical Chairs Ticket Service in Brentwood.
Even seen-it-all old hands in the sports ticket business are being taken by surprise. Now if only the Lakers could surprise everyone and start winning.
--Veronique de Turenne
Photo: Getty Images That's Lou Adler, Jack Nicholson and Lorraine Nicholson watching the Lakers play the Utah Jazz at Staples Center on May 14.
The last professional sumo wrestling matching in L.A. was in 1981. But that will change this weekend when the Grand Sumo Tournament 2008 comes to the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena with 40 top wrestlers. Times reporter Teresa Watanabe followed around the wrestlers this week as they did L.A. -- including Universal Studios and the Hollywood Walk of Fame. They even went to a Dodgers game. We'll have a feature story on their big visit to L.A. soon.
-- Shelby Grad
Photo: Sumotour.com
The upcoming Lakers-Celtics duel has already sparked one of the first tongue-and-cheek bets by civic leaders. Here's what L.A. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa proposed this afternoon to his Boston counterpart, Thomas Menino: "If the Celtics win, we will send you the best professional football team L.A. has to offer: The Arena League's Los Angeles Avengers. If the Lakers win, we get the Patriots."
I think we can safely wager that Mayor Menino will pass on this bet.
-- Jesus Sanchez, with thanks to the Times' Joel Rubin.
 L.A. is the second-greenest big city in the U.S.? Depends on whether you believe the Brookings Institution, which delivers this startling bit of news, or the naysayers who scoff at fuzzy data. Margot Roosevelt tries to clear things up.
Does L.A. lead in school sex scandals, too? Another teacher suspected of having sex with a student is arrested. Andrew Blankstein has the story.
Ever since the new owner took over Centinela Hospital Medical Center in South L.A., services have been shrinking. Most private insurance contracts have been canceled and 13% of the staff laid off. Is this the way to serve a community? Daniel Costello looks for answers.
A first in the O.C. -- all the candidates running for office in the 1st District are Vietnamese. My-Thuan Tran reports on the new political landscape.
Too many hands-off caches of cash are a big reason for California's current money crisis. Plain speaking from George Skelton.
 It wouldn't be a playoff series without a brouhaha, and ours is here. The NBA says the Lakers' Derek Fisher fouled the Spurs' Brent Barry in the last seconds of the game, and the Spurs should have gotten two free throws. (Hey, didn't NBA honchos read Plaschke's great two-fouls means no-fouls column yesterday?) Yeah, the Lakers won Game 4 by 2 points. Commiserate with Steve Springer.
The B of A/Countrywide deal is still on, but the players are changing. E. Scott Reckard and Kathy M. Kristof explain.
Mary McNamara takes her kids to the Hollywood Bowl to see the Police. Shares her music, learns some lessons, makes you laugh.
-- Veronique de Turenne
Photos: Jerry Lara / San Antonio Express-News; cgee / Your Scene
Just like we told you earlier this week, Bud Selig is making the announcement this morning that Angel Stadium will play host to the All-Star game in 2010. Major League Baseball is first out of the gate with today's update: It will be the fourth time the game will be played in the Los Angeles area since the Dodgers moved from Brooklyn to Los Angeles in 1958, and the first time it's to be played in Southern California since San Diego hosted in 1992. The 2010 game is scheduled to be played on July 13.
I like the confusion about where, exactly, the 2010 game will be played. Though they've taken to calling themselves the Los Angeles Angels, the team is based in Anaheim, the other side of the Orange Curtain.
Despite what the MLB story says, this won't be the fourth time the game was held in the L.A. area. It'll be the third time it's been held in the O.C.
-- Veronique de Turenne
GOP senators say no to the $7-billion plan to improve healthcare in state prisons. Just one problem -- the feds might take that $7 billion from the state anyway. More on this latest impasse from Michael Rothfeld.
The biggest drop in home prices in 20 years, with L.A. County and the O.C. really taking it on the chin. Peter Y. Hong has the latest numbers.
There's a bounty on teen popster Miley Cyrus' first kiss. Rachel Abramowitz explains.
Done deal: The American Federation of Television and Radio Artists and the studios agree on a new three-year contract. AP via LAT.
The Lakers win! The best-of-seven series is now 3-1 and moves to Staples Center on Thursday night. Mike Bresnahan's game story, plus lots of pix and links to more Lakers stories here.
They like him, they really like him. David Beckham's critics sing a different tune.
A new James Bond novel is out and ... wait, isn't Ian Fleming dead? Yeah, and his impersonators don't exactly bring the Bond legacy back to life. Read along with Tim Rutten.
 Earle H. Hagen, the Emmy Award-winning TV composer who wrote -- and whistled -- the theme song for “The Andy Griffith Show” has died. Dennis McLellan writes about his life.
Remember the Olympic skater who was slipped a date-rape drug during dinner? An arrest in the case has been made, Kim Christensen reports.
A teensy bit of good news amid the housing debacle -- lower property tax bills for some of us. Garrett Therolf explains.
-- Veronique de Turenne
Photos: Associated Press, BMI
 If you grew up skateboarding in north San Diego County during the 1970s, you will get a kick out of an upcoming exhibit in Encinitas looking at the sport's roots in the region. You may not be so thrilled, however, by the fact that you and your childhood pastime are now considered historic. The show, which opens Saturday at the San Dieguito Heritage Museum, was organized to generate interest in recent history, says the North County Times.
"We wanted to have an exhibit that kids can relate to and to use skateboarding as a lens to learn more about local history in the '70s and '80s," said graduate history student Alex Moddejonge.
Bring your old skateboard. And your health insurance.
-- Jesus Sanchez
Photo: Ralph Starkweather / Concrete Wave
Memorial Day weekend means Indy. To people around LA, that's one daring archaeologist. To the rest of America, it's 33 daring drivers.
The Indianapolis 500 starts at 10 a.m. (Pacific) this morning in the world's largest spectator sporting facility. With over 250,000 seats, the track has almost triple the capacity of the Coliseum or Rose Bowl. Expectations are high this weekend thanks to the unification of two rival auto racing series. LA Times columnist Bill Dwyre calls it "the first real running of the Indianapolis 500 in 12 years."
This Angelino decided to check one off the bucket list and sojourn to the Brickyard. Toto, I've got a feeling we're not in Calabasas anymore. Wheatgrass? Pinkberry? Pilates? Ha. A real Indy experience means camping on the grass, downing a few corndogs, and racing go carts.
I'll be sharing more about the roadtrip once the checkered flag waves. Until then, flip on ABC (channel 7 is KABC-Los Angeles) at 9 a.m. Pacific for the Pre-Race show. An hour later, Scott Dixon, Dan Wheldon, Helio Castroneves, Tony Kanaan, and fan favorite Danica Patrick will see the green flag.
For more on the race's top story lines, check out Dwyre's column on Roger Penske's quest for win #300 and the Skip Myslenski's profile of Danica Patrick. Lonnie White has your Vegas odds.
-- Adam Rose from Indy
Photo by Shawn Payne / Courtesy Indianapolis Motor Speedway
 Fourteen people were injured, five of them critically, after a massive gas explosion at a waterfront San Diego hotel that is under construction. Richard Marosi and Tony Perry explain what happened.
Rehab services and community jails for low-risk offenders -- that's the gist of a proposal to settle the federal lawsuit brought against California's overcrowded prisons. It took six months of talks to get here, and still needs the OK of lots of different groups and agencies before it's a done deal. The upside -- no early release. But where's the money going to come from? Michael Rothfeld has the details.
Snooping into celeb medical files is a decades-old cottage industry, says Andrew Blankstein.
Ex-LAPD officer gets a 102-year sentence for his role in a robbery ring. Scott Glover was there.
Police and witnesses continue to argue over the events leading up to the shooting of an unarmed man in Long Beach on Sunday. The latest news -- the city's mental health team wasn't called to the scene. Deborah Schoch has the story.
Turns out even luxury home prices are heading south -- one Newport Beach enclave sees a drop of 34%. Peter Y. Hong runs the numbers.
It'll be the San Antonio Spurs against the Lakers tomorrow night in Game One of the Western Conference finals. AP via LAT.
 Film directing -- still a man's world, says Patrick Goldstein. (And a white man's world, at that.)
Now that the state Supreme Court has ruled to make same-sex marriage legal in California, religious congregations are wrestling with the issue.
James Frey, "the most notorious writer in America", talks to Scott Timberg.
-- Veronique de Turenne
Photos: Associated Press
 This week's Surf Summit, the annual gathering for the surfing industry in Cabo San Lucas, brings together some of the industry's most successful and knowledgeable players. What better place to learn how to surf? Well, this is some of the advice Mandy Johnson, a spokeswoman for the Aliso Viejo-based Surf Industry Manufacturers Assn., and other beginners received from instructors and others during one morning at the beach:
"The key is to not trip on your [ankle] leash. That's a sure way to make yourself look not as cool as you want to.... Don't run into people, that's bad.... No. 1, don't freak out. Nothing's going to hurt you in the water out here."
A few minutes later, as Johnson was paddling offshore, a man emerged from the water with his head bleeding. The Times' Leslie Earnest, who was covering the convention, spotted the man, who was taken to get some stitches. Johnson later rode back to the hotel with a rash on her stomach, which generated even more sage advice from the back of the van: "Spit on it."
*An earlier version of this post got a few things wrong (but, hey, this was about a class, so we're learning too). The bleeding man was seen Earnest, not Johnson, as reported earlier. The Surfing Industry Manufacturers Assn. is in Aliso Viejo, not La Jolla. And that rash was not "mysterious," as we described it earlier. Longtime surfers know it's one of those things that can happen when you paddle on a board.
-- Jesus Sanchez
Those two LAUSD honchos who did nothing when a student reported
she was sexually abused by a substitute teacher are back on the
job. That's right: They've been criminally charged, yet they're back at the school. Richard Winton and Howard Blume explain what on Earth is going on.
Why did Inglewood police shoot and kill an unarmed man on Sunday? The cops involved say they heard gunshots, but neither weapons nor bullets were found. Police search for reasons but the community demands answers. Molly Hennessy-Fiske and Hector Becerra have the story.
Game 5 of the series is tomorrow and Kobe says he'll be ready. To do what? Mike Bresnahan visits with the Lakers' injured MVP.
The UCLA snooping scandal -- still growing. Sixty-eight current and former workers, including four doctors, pried into medical records that were none of their business. Lawanda J. Jackson, the employee indicted by a grand jury last month, looked at 61 separate files, including those of celebs and her fellow employees. More details from Charles Ornstein.
LAX to Florida for $18? Great travel deals are out there, if you know where to look, says Peter Pae.
Visions of the Virgin Mary in the Mojave Desert, where the faithful
have headed for 20 years for Our Lady of the Rock gatherings. The
Catholic Church isn't thrilled, but attendees say they find solace. Paloma Esquivel makes a visit. (And a photo gallery -- Virgin Mary in a sandwich, anyone? -- here.)
Jimmy Fallon's going to take over for Conan when the time comes. Oh -- and a new "90210" series, a "Boston Legal" pickup, and a "Family Guy" spin-off. Matea Gold and Maria Elena Fernandez have details of NBC's fall lineup.
Fabulist James Frey ("A Million Little Pieces") writes a crummy novel. David Ulin has the review.
--Veronique de Turenne
Photos: Los Angeles Times
Which sport is fast and tough and bruising enough to grab the attentions and affections of kids in Hawaiian Gardens being wooed by gangs? Would you believe rugby? Sam Quinones has the details:
They liked the relentless tackling and physical contact. It was football without pads.
The Hawaiian Gardens Eagles youth rugby team was born.
"After
that, everybody started changing," said Rios, now 16. "Everybody
stopped banging. We liked the sport so much that we didn't have time
for that no more."
That was in 2006.
Since then, Hawaiian
Gardens -- one of the smallest and poorest towns in Los Angeles County
-- has emerged as a Southern California youth rugby powerhouse.
The
city's program now has three teams and 45 players under 16, including a
team of girls who protested when the city seemed willing to fund only
boys teams. Many players have family members who are in gangs.
They share cleats and jerseys and they're beating wealthier teams from bigger cities. (Steven Spielberg, are you listening?) More on the details of this gang-kids-make-good story here.
--Veronique de Turenne
Photo: Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times
That school sex scandal just keeps getting worse. Now LAPD detectives are investigating a dean who they think may have hidden photos, a scrapbook and notes about an affair between a girl at the Foshay Learning Center and accused molester Stephen Thomas Rooney, an administrator there at the time. Richard Winton digs deeper into the story.
A spate of attacks by coyotes in the Inland Empire has parents worried and officials warning to steer clear of the bold and wily animals. David Kelly explains.
What are the odds? Back-to-back fouls caught by two guys sitting side-by-side. Yes, it's Bob Pool with the story.
It's a $500-million payday for "Grand Theft Auto IV" in its first week on the market, says Alex Pham.
Ummm -- never mind. Don Perata, the Democratic leader of the state Senate, says he'll stop his campaign to recall Jeff Denham, a GOP senator from Atwater, who ticked off Perata when he refused to vote for a state budget proposal. Details of the spat from Patrick McGreevy.
 An animal control officer in Lakewood was on a routine call when a pit bull attacked him, leaving him with wounds and bites on his arms and hands, and a broken knuckle. Rong-Gong Lin II has the full story.
Contract talks failed, so janitors say they're going to strike. Andrea Chang talks to the union.
Blonds do have more fun, when they're Cameron Diaz and Mae West, says Susan King.
-- Veronique de Turenne
Photos: Associated Press, Los Angeles Times
Two honchos in the LAUSD who first failed to look into allegations that an assistant principal had sex with students, and then cleared him to work at the Watts middle school where he was accused of molesting more students, have been removed from their jobs. Howard Blume has the details.
Meanwhile, a Santa Monica middle school teacher was charged with multiple counts of molesting five girls at Lincoln Middle School, where he had worked for 20 years. Tami Abdollah has more on that one.
All of which leads Steve Lopez to weigh in and ask about the LAUSD -- is anybody home? More of Steve's
take on the molestation scandal here.
Now for some good news: It's official -- Kobe's the MVP. Mike Bresnahan has the play-by-play, and our hard-working photog, Lori Shepler, has pix.
SAG talks end without a contract. Richard Verrier and Claudia Eller tell what's next.
Bill Gates says it's over -- Microsoft won't pursue Yahoo any more. AP via LAT.
Turns out that while LAX chief Gina Marie Lindsey was in charge of Seattle's airport, an audit turned up nearly $100 million in
taxpayer funds that were wasted, a slew of state law violations, and some questionable contract awards. Dan Weikel checks the similarities between the past and the present.
Robert Blake goes to court to challenge a $15-million damage award to the kids of his slain wife, Bonnie Lee Bakely. AP via LAT.
Everybody's talking about it -- Hillary and Obama. Has he nailed it? Should she quit? And did John McCain vote against George Bush?
--Veronique de Turenne
Photo: Los Angeles Times
 How's Joe Torre adjusting to L.A. and the Dodgers? He's off the pages of screaming N.Y. tabs, in Walter Alston's old office. Oh, and the Dodgers are winning. Helene Elliott visits with the ex-New Yorker.
He doesn't need a big office to feed his ego. He's sure of who he is and is gradually becoming more comfortable as he settles into his new surroundings.
"Looking at the Dodgers' history and growing up with them in Brooklyn, I was just curious if managing could be fun again," he said.
"It's been fun so far."
He was reminded how enjoyable it is when the New York Mets visited Dodger Stadium on Monday. With them came a troop of reporters with familiar faces and eager questions about Torre's exit from the New York Yankees and cross-country migration.
They asked him whether managing here is different than in New York, where his every move was second-guessed a million times a day on every subway line and any phone call could signal a tirade from owner George Steinbrenner.
More on the adjustments and challenges of moving to L.A., and why he'll never go native, in Helene's full Torre story.
--Veronique de Turenne
Photo: Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times
With movies, eateries and great indie shopping (OK, some chains too) Westwood Village is ready to make a comeback, says Martha Groves.
Enjoy that $3.90 gas while you can -- prices at the pump will continue to climb. Ronald D. White explains.
On another painful topic -- how low will real estate go? Sit down before you click.
Turns out officials knew about sex abuse allegations against Steve Rooney, months before they transferred the assistant principal to a middle school in Watts. Richard Winton and Howard Blume have the details.
The takeover fight between Yahoo and Microsoft is over -- who won? Google. Our staffers explain the outcome.
Another bookstore -- Libraria Martinez in Santa Ana -- is in trouble. Tony Barboza visits and finds the place could have just six months to live. | |
