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In an op-ed last week in the Daily News, Paul Carnes of Woodland Hills objected to the banners hanging around town for "Orgasms," now being staged at Canoga Park's Madrid Theatre. He wrote:
For the past couple of weeks, I have been visually assaulted in my travels around the west San Fernando Valley by banners advertising a play called "Orgasms."It seems that the success of an earlier play that used another graphic term from Human Sexuality 101 in its title has lowered the degree of propriety once accorded public spaces. It also has ratcheted up the ante on what it takes to get one's work noticed in the theater world these days.
There's always something. Anyway, also on my weekend radar:
• The feds have joined the probe into alleged overbilling of the DWP by Fleishman-Hillard, the L.A. Business Journal reports in a free story. The LABJ's Amanda Bronstad also has a front page story on the quickening disappearance of feed stores and other equestrian services from the L.A. landscape.
• Los Angeles Magazine's August "Best of L.A." issue has a piece by Karen Wada on a remarkable but little-known stalwart of Democratic politics. Willie Campbell, 89, has been a mentor to Kathleen Brown, Diane Watson and Maxine Waters, a friend of Hillary Clinton, and "has changed American politics, one cup of tea at a time." There's also a piece on documentary maker Stacy Peralta. CityBeat has its "Best of L.A." issue out too, with a front page jab: $4.95 cheaper than 'L.A. Magazine'.
• Echo Park's landmark Pioneer Super Market closes for good tonight, destined to be converted into yet another Walgreen's. Nita Lelyveld visits in the Times.
• D.J.Waldie calls for "a new form of stewardship" over the city of Los Angeles's vast land holdings in the Owens Valley, in the Times' Sunday Opinion section.
• Kate Sullivan's unpleasant interview run-in with Pamela Anderson that we mentioned last week went national Sunday on Page Six in the New York Post. Sullivan's aghast the Post made no effort to confirm that she or the incident are real — and misspelled photographer David LaChapelle's name.
Actually, the landmark Pioneer Supermarket was the one that was in what's now the parking lot, which was torn down when the present one was built. It was the last grocery store with sawdust on the floor that I shopped in on a regular basis . . .
Posted by: Robert Fiore at August 1, 2004 06:01 PMEmmanuelle, I'm going to add that little nugget to the post.
Thanks, Robert.
Posted by: Kevin Roderick at August 1, 2004 08:42 PMWell, I guess it shouldn't come as a surprise. Page Six prints too many basic mistakes (mispellings, confused captions etc.) on a regular basis. Talking of which, this Los Angeles household subscribes to the NY Post: waking up with the Times alone would be just too sad. Need the fun and the screaming headlines and the outraged editorials (though their anti-French biais can go beyond entertaining and be truly annoying!)
Wouldn't be great to have a good L.A.-based tabloid?
I gotta ask, is there no sense of decency any more? No respect for others? I've got no problem with the word "orgasm" or even using it as the title of a play, if that's what floats your boat. But shoving a lesson in human sexuality down the throats of every 7-year-old in the Valley seems a bit improper. What is the answer... "if you don't want to explainthe birds and the bees to your toddler, don't leave the house?"
Posted by: Robert Parry at August 2, 2004 12:26 PMTheir radio commercials for the first run were absolutely abhorrent. I especially hated that psuedo-French guy saying "my geeeerrrrlfriend and I llllloved it!"
Posted by: Robert Chang at August 2, 2004 09:49 PMI'm with you on that, Emmanuelle. I guess it just isn't going to happen. It was always such fun, when I lived in NYC, comparing the wild headlines on the NY Daily News and the Post. "Headless Body In Topless Bar" is still my favorite, I think.
What's weird is that the LA Times runs only Liz Smith's column, but only about every third word. They must have made some pact with her syndicate years ago -- perhaps a deal that they had to carry it in order to get a cartoon or some other columnist. Only explanation I can think of.
Posted by: Amy Alkon at August 3, 2004 04:35 AMSexing it up is what it takes to get your play noticed these days . . .
Posted by: Jessica at August 3, 2004 08:53 AMSexing it up is what it takes to get your play noticed these days . . .
Posted by: Jessica at August 3, 2004 08:53 AM
of LA Observed
Regarding the Kate incident, she mentions something interesting on her blog today: "The NY Post didn't try to verify any of that information--at least not with me. I could have totally made it all up. Isn't that terrifying?"
Posted by: Emmanuelle at August 1, 2004 05:04 PM