Urban Ninja
I think all of LA has OD’d on the word CARMAGEDDON, aka the supposed mind blowing traffic that will encompass Los Angeles for the weekend of July 16-17. With all the fear mongering surrounding Car-mageddon, I thought I would give you a few ideas to avoid the crush.
If for some reason you are forced to brave the streets of LA or God forbid live in the soon-to-be-car-infested Westside, you might want to visit Lauren Horowitz’s art installation entitled “Road Rage Rest Stop.” It is premiering just in time for Carmageddon along the freeway closure detour route on Venice Blvd at the Helm’s Bakery “Eat Real” Festival which is also this weekend in Culver City.
The Road Rage Rest Stop features
While you’re there you can check out the Eat Real Festival, which focuses on local food, handcrafted beers, and the DIY lifestyle of food. Entry is FREE. There is plenty to eat, drink and learn.
Pasadena wants Angelinos to take a stay-cation. Stay in Pasadena & skip all the Westside madness. They have even created a great excuse for you. This weekend, the Rose Bowl hosts the LA Street Food Fest, which I posted about a few weeks back. Get a room for the weekend & “cab it” like you mean it. The Courtyard Marriot in Old Town Pasadena is even offering LA Street Food Fest attendees a special guaranteed discount rate of $119 per night! They have a free shuttle to the Rose Bowl & a pool. So, enjoy a night… or two in Pasadena. Mention the LA Street Food Fest when booking to secure the rate.
If you fancy yourself a Carmageddon Warrior, you can score some serious discounts if you venture outside your front door. The website CAR-MAGEDDON.COM has compiled all these deep discounts for you, complete with a map should you find yourself stranded far from home.
Truthfully, I think all our hype will result in perhaps the best traffic LA has ever seen. As I see it, this is a clear case of latent capacity, where Angelinos conserve their trip to yoga/botox/runyon for another date, as espoused in one of my favorite articles in LA Magazine by Dave Gardetta, or maybe that is just wishful thinking on my part.
On June 22, The Los Angeles Conservancy and Last Remaining Seats opened the doors of the Million Dollar Theater to bring us Zoot Suit in conjunction with the Latin American Cinemateca of Los Angeles.
Zoot Suit was celebrating its 30th Anniversary. On hand for this momentous occasion were Edward James Olmos, who made the El Pachuco character unforgettable, and Luis Valdez, the godfather of El Teatro Campesino and Zoot Suit’s director.
In a panel moderated by KCRW’s Betto Arcos, we were treated to a piece of history, made even more remarkable by the historic location.
Having been a long time fan of agit-prop theater, the Living Theater, Bertolt Brecht and Culture Clash (in addition to Teatro Campesino), this was a special night for me. Only in LA can you find history, architecture and culture collide in such spectacular fashion. So that you don’t miss another one of these quintessential Los Angeles evenings, mark your calendars for next year to catch one of the amazing films selected for Last Remaining Seats.
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Amidst the revamped warehouses of Old Pasadena is an architectural treasure known as Castle Green. Towering above Pasadena’s Central Park, Castle Green lets her residents enter and exit but you can not enter yourself. She is a building of mystery and intrigue with her Moorish turrets and bridges to nowhere. One of Pasadena’s historic buildings, Castle Green was built in 1898 as an annex to the resort Hotel Green.
Now that she is a collection of privately owned apartments, one must know one of the designers, collectors or musicians that inhabit this wondrous place to see the Turkish rooms or if the open cage elevator is haunted. That is, until this weekend, when Castle Green opens her doors to the public for the summer tour. LA’s historic buildings are one of the great treasures of this city. Just like Last Remaining Seats allows you entrée into the theaters that made old Hollywood, this tour will give you a glimpse into a moment frozen in time.
The non-profit group Friends of the Castle Green will be on hand to answer questions. No reservations are necessary. Public may pay at the gate. You can pre-purchase tickets for groups of 15 or more. All funds raised are dedicated to Castle Green’s preservation.
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Sunday, June 26, 2011
99 South Raymond Ave. Pasadena 91105
1:00pm to 5:00pm (rain or shine)
Cost: $20.00* adults, children under 12 are free.
Groups of less than 20, No Reservations necessary.
More Info: 626-577-6765 or 626-385-7774 (Information Line)
www.castlegreen.com