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OC Sheriff Carona resigns
Facing corruption charges and plunging support, Mike Carona posts on the OC Sheriff's Department website that "it has become clear to me that the interests of the Orange County Sheriff's Department and the residents of Orange County would be best served if I am not distracted from my duties while defending the charges recently brought against me by the federal government." Effective today. LAT, Register
Screenwriter Roger Avary arrested in traffic death
The blogger and co-writer of "Pulp Fiction" is accused of being drunk in an Ojai crash that seriously injured his wife and killed a passenger. LAT
Steve Hymon comes off City Hall beat
He'll be writing about traffic for the Times, including a Monday column that will replace his chatty City Hall effort perhaps best known for the goldfish he kept in a bowl of L.A. River water. LAT
Mayor back on campaign trail
Villaraigosa is stumping for Clinton in Nevada and around California. Orlov
How sad were the Golden Globes?
Mary McNamara writes in the Times, "As Top 40 radio is fond of reminding us, you never realize how much you love something until you lose it....in the cold, bleak aftermath of a strike-stricken Golden Globes, we are left with the queasy anguish of regret -- how could we have ever taken the star-studded booze-fest at the Beverly Hilton for granted?" If you watched that thing, you have only yourself to blame. LAT
Finding a bed in Sundance
Only 23,000 pillows for 45,000 filmmakers and their entourages means "stragglers crash on couches, while assistants bicker over who takes up more space in a twin bed. Colleagues who never discuss weekend plans are suddenly complimenting each other's pajamas -- over bowls of Lucky Charms," writes Monica Corcoran in the LAT. She's heading there to blog about it. All the Rage
Neighborhood councils seek a little power
The City Council will take up on Tuesday whether to give them the power to introduce motions. DN
Mantle, Maris and Johnny Grant
The late "mayor of Hollywood" used to throw wild parties in the Hollywood Hills when the Yankees were in town, apparently. American Reporter
Howell Raines is back
The editor in chief during some stormy years at the New York Times will write a monthly media column for Portfolio. WashPost
Ken Baker departs US Weekly
The one-time head of the magazine's West Coast bureau (and multi-faceted author) emails friends that he didn't want to take an online job in New York and shows up sharing a credit on E Online's Christina Aguilera-had-a-C section story.
Car show in two languages
KNBC has launched "Whipnotic," a weekly show of automotive news and features, that airs in English on Channel 4 and Spanish on KVEA/52. Mario Solis hosts the English show, Toni Romero the Spanish. Fred Roggin and Kip Epps are the executive producers, and longtime L.A. car guy Steve Parker provides segments. Whipnotic
Press release of the weekend
It begins, "Rob Griffin's coffee table book of cannabis facts and photography, published by Goliath Books, contains hundreds of photos of naked girls smoking, praising, and beautifying cannabis. The message is highly progressive." OK then. PDF
Boyarsky urges Obama to be less vague
Our columnist writes, under his Truthdig hat, that "hopefully, the results of the New Hampshire primary will eliminate Barack Obama’s use of the vague and misleading words hope and change in his presidential campaign." Truthdig.com