Morning Buzz

Morning Buzz: Monday 4.22.13

Politics and Campaign 2013

Former Obama campaign manager David Plouffe tweeted over the weekend, possibly in response to Bill Clinton stumping here for Wendy Greuel: "Not an Angeleno but will never forget Eric Garcetti bundled up during frigid last days of Iowa, canvassing relentlessly for then Sen Obama." President Obama has not endorsed in the mayoral race.

Absentee ballots start to go out in LA today, which is one reason you're seeing and hearing new ads on TV and radio (including Greuel's personal attack on Garcetti.) Rick Orlov's Tipoff/DN

Eric Garcetti's 2009 e-mail to DWP union boss Brian D'Arcy shows a cozier relationship at the time. LA Weekly

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa will unveil his proposed $7.7 billion city budget for 2013-2014 at 9 a.m. at City Hall. It's expected to be based on a smaller deficit than previously feared.

Questions on budget for the mayoral candidates, from Jim Newton. LAT op-ed

Greuel and Garcetti debate tonight at USC's Health Campus sponsored by KPCC, NBC 4, Telemundo and USC.

That USC-LA Times poll over the weekend found that 53% of respondents had a favorable view of the mayor after eight years, compared to nearly 42% of voters said they viewed Villaraigosa unfavorably. Latinos drove the favorable number that high. LAT

Councilman Dennis Zine says his first job if elected controller would be to audit the LAPD's risk management division to find out why so many officers are involved in lawsuits. LAT

Expenditure ceilings to qualify for matching funds were lifted in the mayoral race and the three city council races on the May 21 ballot, due to independent spending in the contests.

Six candidates are vying to succeed City Councilman Tony Cardenas in the mid-San Fernando Valley’s 6th council district. DN

The LAPD apparently has stopped giving out advance notice of the locations of drunk driving checkpoints. LA Weekly


Media and books

SAG-AFTRA, the union representing Hollywood actors and other performers, said Sunday it is eliminating 60 positions from the organization as part of plan to balance its budget. LAT

NBC's sitcom "The New Normal," FX's thriller "American Horror Story: Asylum" and NBC's daytime drama "Days of Our Lives" took home top TV honors at the 24th annual GLAAD Media Awards Saturday night in Los Angeles. AP

David Carr on CNN's bombing coverage: the pressure to be the TV news leader tarnishes a big brand. NYT

amy-wallace-wellness.jpgLos Angeles magazine's editor who challenged herself to work out more, Amy Wallace, wins in-house kudos. LAMag

In the Twist, "one could see the seeds of everything that became the '60s — sexual liberation, civil rights, even the women's movement got a boost by allowing girls to operate as free agents on the dance floor instead of being attached to shambling males." LAT op-ed

Former LA Times Tokyo correspondent Leslie Helm is the author of "Yokohama Yankee," from Chin Music Press, "a memoir of a family intertwined with Japan..."

Author Jim Pauley will sign "The Three Stooges: Hollywood Filming Locations" on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. at Larry Edmunds Bookshop in Hollywood.

LA Weekly last week got hit by the Google malware warnings that prevent some browsers from going to the website. LAW

The Times ran its obituary of retired senior editor Noel Greenwood and said he was 75. LAT

More news, observations and reading

Los Angeles attorney David Chan has an Excel spreadsheet listing the 6,297 Chinese restaurants where he has eaten. LAT

MOCA's gala on Saturday "was one weird night, packed with preposterous events and odd gestures that never quite connected, except maybe through a reflexive sort of humor about the excesses of the contemporary art world and MOCA's recent struggles." Jori Finkel/LAT

Multibillionaire Patrick Soon-Shiong on giving and getting by in Los Angeles, and whether rich people here give enough. LA Mag

Ideas for Downtown LA: Implement road diets on our ultra-wide streets to encourage pedestrian activity. Brigham Yen

The Colorado River tops the newest "most endangered" list from American Rivers. Chance of Rain

Inside David Lee Roth's Pasadena rock and roll pad. BuzzFeed

Form and function merge in new Occidental College solar power plant. Solar Curator

In connection with Sunday's Ciclavia, the Los Angeles Tourism & Convention Board announced a campaign to encourage more "car-free tourism" to the city.

In LA sports, the top line you need to know: The Clippers won their first playoff game, the Lakers lost theirs, the Dodgers snapped a six-game losing streak but lost Chad Billingley to the injured list, and the Kings moved closer to home-ice advantage in the upcoming Stanley Cup playoffs.

Ramón Sanchez, a Southern California Mexican food icon as the owner of Ramón's Cactus Patch in Ontario, died at age 99. The eatery was around since 1938. OC Weekly, Inland Valley Bulletin


More by Kevin Roderick:
'In on merit' at USC
Read the memo: LA Times hires again
Read the memo: LA Times losing big on search traffic
Google taking over LA's deadest shopping mall
Gustavo Arellano, many others join LA Times staff
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Morning Buzz: Wednesday 4.16.14