Everything for the past week

Our weekly novelist was interviewed by Los Angeles magazine. Meanwhile, columnists Jon Christensen and Mark Gold were both on KPCC today talking about issues around the water main break that deluged part of UCLA.

Enough water to sustain 100 families for a year was lost in the pipeline break that flooded parts of UCLA. More than 900 cars are stranded in underground garages and half of those may have been submerged.

The Cossack had bought his property, as well as the house he lived in, with dirty money.

Sunrise: Beach: Wet dogs:...

No city of LA water main should be 90 years old. What other proof do we need that the city has to invest in its water infrastructure?

Quite a scene at UCLA on Tuesday. Plus Channel 7 falls for a fake DWP spokesman — but it takes a while.

Vin Scully and the Dodgers decided to head off the usual late summer speculation and announce during Tuesday night's game that he will come back next year.

Recap: Remodel sold quickly. (Too quickly.) So I packed. (Not quickly enough.) A month of visiting and yikes -- time...

The City Council returned this week from a summer recess, but the office of Mayor Eric Garcetti informed the media that "Mayor Garcetti will be traveling with his family out of the state from July 25 until August 4."

Capote purchased the Smith-Corona electric here in 1970 and kept it in his writing room at the Bel Air home of close friend Joanne Carson. It was used for Capote's last three books.

Well that was interesting. Sold the house, traveled and blogged, house hunted and didn't blog and now, voila. Back...

During the opening ceremony of the Los Angeles Olympic Games, a dramatic moment came when 84 grand pianos appeared in the peristyle of the Coliseum and began to play George Gershwin.

LA Times staffers are restless about halted delivery of bottled water in the newsroom. Plus a veteran NPR voice dies, a SoCal media voice gets married, and more on Mission & State.

Shelly Sterling is close to receiving the go-ahead on her sale of the Los Angeles Clippers to Steve Ballmer.

Richard Hilton guided his final walking tour of old Van Nuys on Saturday -- so I just had to go along.

NBC4's honors included for investigative reporting and for regularly scheduled daily evening newscast. Channel 4's Mary Harris also won the Emmy for news writing for the seventh time.

Lightning strikes at the water line are very rare here. Which is fortunate, because they are scary.

Our modern water systems have made it not only possible, but virtually inevitable, that we should forget where our water comes from and the responsibilities it carries. Myth and art may be our best ways back into that understanding.

Flint will be based in the LA bureau of the Journal. He covered media for the WSJ for seven years before joining the Times.

A judge's ruling that declares capital punishment unconstitutional in California causes Martinez to wonder if we are beginning to weary of the savagery and he hopes for the dawning of a new day of compassion.

Every familiar building, landmark, roofline and mural is photographed by Ian Wood. The challenge has been thrown down for quad-flying urban videographers.

The male gray wolf that walked around in far northern California for a year or so looking for a mate — unsuccessfully — has fathered puppies with the mate he found back in Oregon's Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest.

Between the Brentwood high-roller breakfast and Trade-Tech, President Obama made a stop on Fairfax to have lunch and swap some stories.

Advantage Garcetti: He posts a YouTube message to officers since the union doesn't want him to speak at stations.

Drought effects. Bobby Shriver gets an endorsement. Obamajam keeps woman in labor from the hospital. Colbert will keep Late Show in NYC. What happens when film and TV productions are denied California's subsidy. Plus media notes: Maria Russo, Chris Long, KCRW's drone and more.

Take My Picture Gary Leonard is a regular weekly feature of LA Observed.