Trutanich, who is running for reelection in Tuesday's election, has suspended campaign activities. His mother, Esther, died this afternoon at San Pedro Hospital from complications involving pneumonia.

A bird named Apollo has got a serious turkey vulture crush on a bearded, soft-spoken Los Angeles County animal keeper named Dave Stives. Check it out.

I only report this to finish the thought from earlier in the week. Paula Lopez, the news anchor at KEYT in Santa Barbara who was reported missing for several hours on Wednesday, was "experiencing a medical condition" that day, her family said in a statement.

SpaceX capsule in trouble, digital billboards ruling, California's dry winter, mayoral candidates and Hollywood, Pleitez still running, LA invites South Pasadena journo to vote, 99 essential LA restaurants and more.

Channel 7 political reporter John North talks with John Shallman, senior strategist for the Wendy Greuel campaign, at Greuel's Van Nuys headquarters on Thursday. North is scheduled to retire from ABC 7 on Friday after 34 years.

Author and New Yorker writer Susan Orlean has a deal with Simon & Schuster to write a nonfiction book about urban libraries, based around the Los Angeles Public Library downtown. Apparently her starting point is the 1986 fire.

Two years ago, when Los Angeles magazine themed its February special issue the "Hidden LA" issue without credit, W. Lynn Garrett wasn't amused. When it happened again this year, the founder of the wildly popular Hidden Los Angeles Facebook community and website sued in federal court.

KCRW joined with Writers Bloc tonight to pack a couple of hundred people in the new Moss Theater on the Westside. The draw was New Yorker writer Lawrence Wright talking with Kim Masters, host of "The Business" on KCRW, about "Going Clear," his new book that authoritatively gives further exposure to the unusualness of the Church of Scientology.

Wendy Greuel called the media to her Van Nuys Airport-adjacent headquarters this morning to attack Councilman Eric Garcetti for endangering children and profiting from oil drilling near Beverly Hills High School. Except it appears that no oil has been drilled for under Garcetti's property, no children have been endangered, and any profit has been extraordinarily slim.

The pope leaves Rome, Bradley Manning pleads guilty, LA asks for OK to remove homeless property in TB fight, who will buy the LA Times?, indie spending tops $3 million in mayoral race, Jan Perry's old tax liens and more from the campaign trail.

Paula Lopez, who was a staffer at KCAL 9 in Los Angeles for six years, co-anchors the 11 p.m. news on KEYT in Santa Barbara. She was reported missing this morning to the Santa Barbara County sheriff's department.

Tina Fey cuts Seth MacFarlane some major slack for disappointing many viewers of Sunday's Oscars show, telling Anne Thompson of IndieWire that "It's the hardest job there is. It's a tough room. Seth did great."

The Online Journalism Review fell off my radar, and I suspect that of other news types, a few years ago. Now USC Annenberg has given it a new look and a new view of its role.

Wendy Greuel goes negative, Kevin James goes noir, Boxer urges history, Linda Griego recalls history and a roundup of media coverage in the race for City Hall. Election is next Tuesday.

Nikki Finke's post this morning at Deadline on the changes at Variety almost dripped ice water, especially when she flat-out accused the boss she shares with Variety, Jay Penske, of lying to her. Never mind: sometime during the day, the phrase "Penske lied to me" disappeared.

The 405 freeway widening and upgrade project on the Westside and in Sepulveda Pass is about a year behind schedule. But if you haven't been through there in awhile, you might be surprised at the visuals. The skyline at the Wilshire Boulevard interchange is starting to look very different.

Nice farewell note to the Los Angeles Times newsroom from Claudia Eller, the entertainment news editor and veteran of the Hollywood scoop wars who was announced today as one of three new co-editors who will run Variety. She opens with praise for her current editor, John Corrigan, and confirms the Times counter-offered.

Damian Kevitt was riding a bicycle on Zoo Drive about 11:30 a.m. a week ago Sunday when the driver of an older gray Toyota Sienna minivan bolted out of traffic and made a sudden left turn. Witnesses told the CHP that the van accelerated after hitting Kevitt and dragged the biker for 600 feet, then sped away.

Colby Evett owned and operated Evett's Model Shop on Ocean Park Boulevard in Santa Monica. The store celebrated its 65th anniversary in January.

Channel 7's long-time political reporter, John North, is retiring at the end of this week. The newsroom in Glendale got a memo announcing North's departure from news director Cheryl Fair.

The other shoe fell today in the evolution of Hollywood trade Variety under new owner Jay Penske. One of the new co-editors is Claudia Eller, a 20-year veteran of movie coverage at the LA Times. Nikki Finke says Penske lied to her.

Baca's bad year gets him Sheriff of the Year, Trutanich likes Jan Perry, another corrupt Cudahy official goes away, Press Club to honor Bill Rosendahl and the LA Times drops TV grid and some sports pages today.

It's transition time at some of the local TV stations, if the drumbeats I'm hearing are accurate. One transition that's for sure is that of Al Naipo, the Orange County bureau chief for Fox 11. His classy farewell note went out to the Bundy Drive newsroom tonight.

How power works here, sobering wisdom on mayoral candidates from Mike Woo, a doctor spends $150K on Greuel, Jan Perry day in the media plus much more. Election Day is a week from today.

The bunch includes a new editor in San Francisco for the legal newspaper, which is based in downtown Los Angeles. There's a also a shift on the entertainment law beat, plus more. Memo from editor David Houston inside.

It's an internal hire: Geoff Mohan, who has recently been the editor for state bureaus and the immigration beat. He was previously the paper's environment editor, among other jobs. Memo to the newsroom inside.

Most (but by no means all) of the reviews for last night's Oscars show and host Seth MacFarlane have not been favorable. But the early ratings for the TV show are up about four percent over last year's show hosted Billy Crystal — and much younger. And that's entirely logical, says Richard Rushfield at BuzzFeed.

Yet another controversy over a mayoral campaign mailer by candidate Jan Perry. County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky released a statement this morning criticizing Perry's use of his name in a mailer. He does not endorse Perry.

The venerable but dated brand of the International Herald Tribune will be dropped and the paper re-christened as the International New York Times. Plus assorted other changes.

The new owner of the 1908 Pacific Mutual building facing Pershing Square plans to tear down a Verizon store and open up a pocket courtyard space facing the street that was there in the 1920s. It was later covered over to create a new storefront on the sidewalk.

LAPD shot and killed a suspect in North Hollywood, Nate Silver a bit better than half right on Oscars, a radio profile of Garcetti asks if he's tough enough, Cardinal Mahony answered questions, 43 years at the Hamburger Hamlet, plus saving the language of Okinawa.

Newton on Garcetti and UTLA, new union spending for Greuel, the Kevin James and Jennifer Aniston connection, Rick Orlov's Monday Tipoffs, the voters aren't voting, new endorsements and who the Socialists like (or don't like) for mayor — plus a roundup of more media coverage of the races.

The film academy voted the best picture Oscar to "Argo" and by extension to director Ben Affleck, who gave the final speech of the night and was emotional about the win. Jennifer Lawrence won the best actress Oscar for "Silver Linings Playbook," and at 22 is now a bona fide Hollywood star, if she wasn't before. Daniel Day-Lewis won his third best acting Oscar, for "Lincoln" — no actor has ever won more Oscars in the lead actor category. Complete list inside.

The media who parachute into Hollywood for the Oscars don't always get that, for the locals, the Academy Awards are something of a community event. It's not just that traffic sucks in Hollywood and officials shut down the Hollywood and Highland subway station. The week of the Oscars provides work, diversion and more.