Nathan’s may be synonymous for the East Coast Hot Dog, but Pink’s is the place to be if you are looking for a star-studded West Coast Hot Dog eating adventure.
Below is a link to just one type of star-sightings you might encounter:
If you are in the mood for a frightfully freaky evening, there is nothing quite like a party in the Hollywood Hills during Halloween weekend. Although it may take a few contacts here and there to pull off the invite, it is well worth the show.
Depending on the party, you may run into a model, an actor or both. However, if you are feeling adventurous, you might end up at a party thrown by a Middle Eastern Real Estate tycoon. There may have been models and actors when I ventured there on Saturday night, but the real focus was the music and dancing. These people were off their rockers till the sun rose.
Pull off the PCH on your cruise to Malibu and make a pit-stop at Topanga Canyon State Park for awe-inspiring views that provide perspective.
This picture is from an outlook at the end of a 6-mile trail I went on today. Plan on spending three hours for hiking and more importantly, viewing.
Blessed be the Liberty Grill; a new establishment in the Downtown LA region - where the Chief of Police can be seen schmoozing and the bartender could tell you ten different ways to get a little extra break on your curveball.
Located a free throw away from STAPLES Center, the Liberty Grill may be serving Hot Dogs on their menu, but you would be foolish to think City Council memebers are hobnobbing over franks and beans - a clever way to camouflage an important business meeting or mistress rendezvous.
1037 Flower Street
Prior to 2000, Downtown Los Angeles was one of the last places you would consider visiting when heading into town. Now, you can spend a week in this city and not venture outside the ring of high-rises and attractions.
With restaurants, bars, clubs, and sports, the Downtown LA stock is rising as fast as tomorrow’s condo project. From the Kings to the Lakers and the Sparks to the Clippers, STAPLES Center is where you will get your fill on athletic action.
I had the chance to go see the Clippers play yesterday (thanks to a friendly gift), and although concession stand prices do not vary from stadium to stadium, the experience was memorable. Beating the Trailblazers 97-89, the Clippers seemed to save the climactic show for the end and it was definitely worth the wait.
In a city that at one time seemed impossible to traverse without a vehicle, foot traffic is slowly picking up steam. And the Clippers are within walking distance of the Metro.
Tomorrow, I will give you the low down on a couple of restaurants and bars in the area that will turn an evening game into an early afternoon adventure.
The issue of Urban Renewal is spoken through a megaphone nowadays in Los Angeles and the commoner can be seen fleeing their once financially reasonable homes.
From LA’s most notable homeless burrow, Skid Row, to neighborhoods surrounding Dodger Stadium in Echo Park, individuals and families are facing an increased fiscal burden that is leading many to basically evacuate the city.
Call it a “wife swap” on a grandiose stage, the rich outlying suburbanites are funneling into the poor man’s home and pouncing on their prized possession – their home.
According to the LA Times today, “tenants have some protection under the city’s Rent Stabilization Ordinance, which limits annual rent increases to about 3% as long as the same tenants are in the unit. But it applies only to housing built before the law took effect in 1979 and thus covers an ever-shrinking share of the city’s housing stock.”
http://www.latimes.com/la-me-apartment24oct24,0,4057227.story?track=mostviewed-storylevel
Get your mind and Zoot Suit out of the gutter.
Popularized by Harlem jazz in the 30’s and despised by soldiers in the 40’s, the Zoot Suit makes a healthy return in Swingers at a bar called The Derby.
You probably remember the ending scene - when Favreau swoops in on a “bunny” (Heather Graham) and acts like a “bear” on the dance floor.
From Swing to Burlesque, The Derby is not only one of LA’s hot dance clubs, it is also a historical landmark (voted in by the LA city council in May).
4500 Los Feliz Blvd., Hollywood
If you’ve never seen the movie or need to refresh your memory, here a few lines from the film:
Mikey: For some reason the cool bars in Hollywood have to be hard to find and have no sign. It’s kind a like a speak easy kind a thing. It’s kind a cool it’s like you’re in on some kind a secret, you know. You tell a chick you been some place it’s like bragging you know how to find it.
—
Trent: When you go up to talk to her man, I don’t want you to be the guy in the PG-13 movie everyone’s *really* hopping makes it happen. I want you to be like the guy in the rated R movie, you know, the guy your not sure whether or not you like yet.
—
Trent: Yeah, man just kinda… you know, you got these claws and you’re staring at these claws and your thinking to yourself, and with these claws you’re thinking, “How am I supposed to kill this bunny, how am I supposed to kill this bunny?”
Sue: And you’re poking at it, you’re poking at it…
Trent: Yeah, you’re not hurting it. You’re just kinda gently batting the bunny around, you know what I mean? And the bunny’s scared Mike, the bunny’s scared of you, shivering.
Sue: And you got these fucking claws and these fangs…
Trent: And you got these fucking claws and these fangs, man! And you’re looking at your claws and you’re looking at your fangs. And you’re thinking to yourself, you don’t know what to do, man. “I don’t know how to kill the bunny.” With *this* you don’t know how to kill the bunny, do you know what I mean?
Sue: You’re like a big bear, man.
Mike: So you’re not just like fucking with me?
Trent: No I’m not fucking with you.
Sue: Honestly, man.
You might recognize this picture from the iconic scene in Swingers, when the modern Rat Pack led by Vince Vaughn smoothly enter the bland, yet chill bar.
The Dresden is located in Los Feliz and is cozy during early hours of the night. When Marty and Elayne get on the jazz instruments, try finding room at the bar. Packed with socialites, hipsters and Swingers fanatics, The Dresden is a less expensive hangout in a popular L.A. region.
1760 N Vermont Avenue Los Feliz
Tomorrow,I will be taking you on a “Swingers” tour of Los Angeles. No, I will not carry you through bedrooms of the rich and infamous. I will be giving you the low down on two bars featured in the movie.
Here’s some trivia about the film:
-The “Bear” monologue that Trent delivers to Mike is almost verbatim something actor Vince Vaughn told Jon Favreau one night at a bar. Favreau liked it a lot and incorporated it into the script.
-Some of the bar scenes were shot in actual bars during business hours. A sign was posted near where they were shooting warning patrons that if they came any closer, they would be unpaid extras in the film (The Derby and The Dresden).
-Trent, Mikey, Sue, Rob, and Charles represent the five members of the original Rat Pack: Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Peter Lawford, ‘Joey Bishop’ , and ‘Sammy Davis Jr’.
-Some of the film’s casino scenes were filmed without a permit. At one point, they were asked to leave the casino by a police officer, who let them finish filming the scene before they left. If you look at the left side of the screen during the scene where Mike is betting on the $100 table, a police officer can be seen in the distance watching the filming taking place.
-The exterior and interior of Mike Peter’s apartment was the actual building and room that Jon Favreau lived in at the time the film was filmed. Favreau’s downstairs neighbor was actor Adam Scott.
-The Word “Fuck” is used 95 times, “Bitch” is used 31 times and “Asshole” 13 times.
-Since the filmmakers couldn’t afford to pay extras, the scenes filmed at parties were filmed at actual parties that were taking place, with many Hollywood up-and-comers in attendance. Among the people in the crowd of the first party (who turn and look at the group as they enter): screenwriters Stephen Gaghan and Mike White.
This past weekend I found out an old High School baseball teammate had lost his life at a house party in North Hollywood. I knew his name but I could not picture his face.
Tonight, I met with a few HS friends I had not seen in quite some time and they were passing around a couple of pictures. It hit home as soon as I saw the first pic of Nevil holding a bat in uniform.
He was a rookie on the JV squad when I was a senior on Varsity, and I could remember it as though it was yesterday when I saw a distant arm hurl a ball from the outfield.
It was remembering that intersquad game (JV v. Varsity) that made me think about all the subsequent small-talk I had with Nevil. He was an amazing athlete and one of the most personable individuals I have ever met.
Nevil Vega was one of the many kids I grew up with who provided me with a perspective not many students in American high schools gets to see. And I can honestly say that growing up in this ethnically diverse city has played a pivotal role in the development of my character today.
After attending college in one of the least diverse states, Maine, I realized how much I appreciated my background and how much I owe to my community. Nevil will sorely be missed by many, but his soulful energy and charismatic personality will live on in this culturally rich environment.
