LA Monthly
The National Magazine of Los Angeles
TRENDING
MY GRANDFATHER’S LAST CHRISTMAS
By TONY CASTRO The last Christmas gifts my grandfather gave me came early—sometime in the middle of summer when I was just four years old. They were simple: a stuffed lion and a bear. Yet for him, a poor, broken-down miner with bum legs, they...
‘THE POLAR EXPRESS’ CHRISTMAS EXPRESS NEARS 40
When I was a young boy growing up in the suburbs of southeast Houston, every Christmas Eve I would sneak out onto our screened front porch and stare into the night sky as I tried to spot Santa’s sleigh as it arrived from the North Pole. In our...
THE COWBOY EFFECT AND YELLOWSTONE’S CULTURAL STYLE SHIFT
Fashion analyst and influencer Livia Gueissaz, delves deeply into TV series Yellowstone's cultural resonance and stylistic influence. BY LIVIA GUEISSAZ The television series Yellowstone has captivated America as its most-watched show — and Livia...
THE CUR$E OF THE CHILDI$H GAMBINO THAT WILL NOW HAUNT THE YANKEE$
This isn’t just a win for the Mets — it’s a psychological blow to the Yankees. For a franchise that has long prided itself on being the preeminent power in baseball, losing Juan Soto to the team across town is a humbling moment. By TONY...
AN INTERVIEW WITH NOVELIST TONY CASTR0
Q. What made you decide to write this novel? Tony: I had forgotten about the very first column I ever wrote for the Los Angeles Herald Examiner in 1978. I think the reason I forgot about it is that it was never published. The executive editor who...
CAN MONEY BUY HAPPINESS? INFLUENCER PUTS IT TO A $1,000-A-DAY EXPERIMENT
Influencer Livia Gueissaz is turning heads with her latest personal experiment: spending a staggering $1,000 a day for 30 days to explore the connection between wealth and happiness. She reveals her insights on whether intentional luxury spending...
A FATHER’S LOVE, A PRESIDENT’S DILEMMA: ON JOE BIDEN’S PARDON OF HIS SON
By TONY CASTRO Fathers and Sons. And headaches and heartbreaks in between. Joe and Hunter Biden are like Turgenev's timeless depiction of generational conflict during social upheaval in another disturbing time in history. And in the end, it comes...
THE GHOSTS OF LUCY’S EL ADOBE: A LOVE STORY IN TACOS AND TEARS
Resurrecting Lucy's El Adobe Café, a beloved Hollywood landmark facing a hopeful revival, restaurateur heiress Patricia Casado fights to restore her father Frank's legacy. After years of decline, closure, and a bitter inheritance battle, her...
A 40-YEAR ANNIVERSARY, A SURPRISE MASS, AND A DASH TO DAN TANA’S
Thanksgiving isn’t just about turkey and pie—it’s about gratitude for the beautifully imperfect lives we lead, and for the people who walk beside us through it all. And this Thanksgiving, I am especially grateful for my wife: for her grace,...
THE SWING OF THE PENDULUM: IS AMERICA TILTING RIGHT—AND IS THAT A BAD THING?
By TONY CASTRO In American politics, the pendulum never stops swinging. It glides through eras of change, overcorrects, and arcs back again, propelled by public mood, cultural shifts, and the ceaseless churn of new crises. If the last two decades...
THE STUPIDITY OF THE DEMOCRATS’ ELITISM SELF-SABOTAGE
Democrats don’t lose presidential elections because they’re “too progressive.” They lose because they let the cultural left hijack the conversation, turning what should be a winning message—economic fairness—into a muddled mess that...
TAYLOR SWIFT’S WINTER WARDROBE, A MASTERCLASS IN COLD-WEATHER GLAMOUR
BY LIVIA GUEISSAZ As the seasons shift, so does Taylor Swift’s wardrobe. This winter, the global superstar embraces accessories as her standout style element. Fashion analyst and influencer Livia Gueissaz has explored Swift’s...
PENÉLOPE CRUZ & JAVIER BARDEM: A LOVE STORY WRITTEN IN THE STARS
FROM INTUITION TO FOREVER: HOW PENÉLOPE CRUZ AND JAVIER BARDEM BUILT A LOVE THAT THRIVES ON AND OFF THE SCREEN Hello, My Beautiful Friends, There’s something undeniably magical about the way Penélope Cruz and Javier Bardem have not only graced...
ALEJANDRA CAMPOVERDI’S ‘FIRST GEN’: A TALE OF STRIFE AND SUCCESS
NOW OUT IN PAPERBACK! Alejandra Campoverdi explores many things familiar to first-generation kids: the invisible inheritances passed onto us from our family, being a “parentified child,” imposter syndrome, balancing two cultural...
MY LIFE AS MARILYN, MY DEAD OLDER SISTER
The LA Monthly interview with actress Catherine Hicks, who portrayed Marilyn Monroe in the 1980 TV feature Marilyn: The Untold Story as well as in the Arthur Miller play After The Fall and also Bus Stop on the stage By Justin Bozung ACTRESS...
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
BEST THING IN L.A.
EDITORS' PICKS
RECOMMENDED FOR YOU
HOLLYWOOD
WELCOME TO L.A.
THE CUR$E OF THE CHILDI$H GAMBINO THAT WILL NOW HAUNT THE YANKEE$
This isn’t just a win for the Mets — it’s a psychological blow to the Yankees. For a franchise that has long prided itself on being the preeminent power in baseball, losing Juan Soto to the team across town is a humbling moment. By TONY...
Joe DiMaggio, Baseball Turns Its Lonely Eyes to You
Baseball doesn't need a halftime show. In fact, it doesn’t even have a halftime. And when you hear the national anthem, it’s supposed to be a clear transition from standing at attention to sitting back, relaxing, and letting the game happen. By...
Aaron Judge: A Season of Success, a Fall Classic of Heartbreak
By TONY CASTRO Aaron Judge stands as a behemoth on the baseball diamond, a towering figure whose reputation as a power hitter commands respect from fans and foes alike. Yet, in this 2024 postseason—especially in the World Series—the Yankees...
HOW FERNANDO WON THE HEARTS OF LA
The passing of Fernando Valenzuela marks the end of Fernandomania that began as a cultural phenomenon in 1980s Los Angeles as a young Mexican left-hander became the toast of the city and ultimately a Tinseltown icon as the Dodgers Spanish-Speaking...
RIP, PETE ROSE: MORE THAN JUST THE KING OF HITS
By TONY CASTRO It’s hard to believe that Pete Rose, baseball’s all-time hits leader, the man who turned more singles into doubles than most of us turn coffee into energy, has passed away at the age of 83 in Las Vegas. Pete wasn’t just a good...
