Greater LA

Since 1933, The Los Angeles Sentinel has been a voice for the city’s Black community, who felt ignored by mainstream outlets. Nine decades later, it’s still publishing, but the media landscape is shifting. The Long Beach Opera is having a world premiere of Kate Soper’s new opera “The Romance of the Rose,” but this isn’t your grandma’s idea of opera. Four art festivals are opening in LA bringing together global creators: Frieze in Santa Monica, Felix in Hollywood, LA Art Show in downtown, and SPRING/BREAK in Culver City.

A factory east of Los Angeles that recycles lead in old car batteries has been breaking pollution rules for years. Despite protests, they’re not going anywhere. Prospering Backyards is a group that studies lead and other metals in soil surrounding the former Exide plant. Members are cleaning up the area while pushing the government to do more. LA’s Al Fresco program allowed restaurants to quickly put up outdoor dining spaces during the pandemic. Now the city wants to revert to some of the old requirements.

Angelenos are getting hitched at the Cute Little Wedding Chapel in Long Beach. They’re taking advantage of the $14 Valentine’s Day special. Trashy Lingerie, the hot pink store on La Cienega, has made costumes for the likes of Madonna and Reese Witherspoon. Valentine’s Day is their busiest day of the year. Hollywood has a Museum of Death — and now a Love Museum. Its founder, a psychology professor, wants to help you understand love better.

With eviction cases on the rise, LA City Council is weighing a law that would guarantee legal representation for those fighting to stay housed. Over the weekend, the OC public defender who died in Mexico had a memorial service. The family disputes Mexican authorities' belief the death was an accident. The new conservative majority on Huntington Beach’s city council has passed an ordinance limiting the kinds of flags the city can fly. It doesn’t include the rainbow flag, which didn’t sit well with a lot of constituents.

KCRW follows a fish’s journey from the ocean in Japan to a plate on one of LA’s most exclusive tables. LAX is constructing a people mover that will whisk you to its terminals and transport hubs. Artists are producing video installations for selected stations. KCRW listeners share their stories of love and strife, including who is (and isn’t) worthy of making a journey to LAX for.

LA groups are pulling together money and supplies to send to people affected by the recent series of earthquakes in Turkey and Syria. Another big earthquake will hit Southern California someday, but many people are unprepared, and research shows why. Orly Israel wants to prove that everyone has the capacity to be a great communicator. So he sets up a table every Saturday, where he posts up and just listens.

Since 1959, the Navy has used marine mammals in aquatic missions such as identifying mines. Now their dolphins are resources for studies on aging. This weekend, the Academy Museum is planning to launch “Try a Little Tenderness,” a series focusing on movies that depict love and romance between Black characters. Hustler founder Larry Flynt’s vast array of 20th century paintings, glass lamps, statuettes, and other obscurities are up for auction. 

Because of “co-location,” a public school and a charter school in LA are sharing the same space. It’s happening district-wide, and few seem happy about it. CalOptima is a health care plan for low-income folks, serving almost 1 million Orange County residents. But a state investigation is asking who else it’s serving. LA has a lot of stairs hidden in hilly nooks and crannies. For many Angelenos, they can get you to where you need to be. They’re also a source of exercise and a fun way to see the city. 

Regenerative agriculture grows healthier food, captures carbon from the atmosphere, and fights climate change. So why isn’t every farmer doing it? After the recent storms, LA reservoirs in the San Gabriel Mountains are filling up, but not just with water — millions of cubic feet of mud and wilderness debris, too. Robot dogs made headlines in New York and San Francisco when those police departments added them to their forces. LA is next for the big debate.

Mayor Karen Bass has picked a new head of LA’s homeless services authority. Will a new regime make a difference in reducing the city’s unhoused population? Los Angeles’ universal basic income pilot program, BIG:LEAP, is about to wrap up after a year. How did their no-strings-attached income affect Angelenos’ lives?