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LETTERS FROM L.A.: BATHING WITH JOAN
Separated by 50 years but united by Hollywood, wildfires, and the endless hum of ‘the deal,’ two writers share a bath in Los Angeles. On Monday I took a bath with Joan Didion. She was gracious, took the faucet end. She didn’t mind my nudity, carried on talking as if nothing unusual was going on,…
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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 identities, and guilt for breaking away from our families in some way. ALEJANDRA CAMPOVERDI HAS BEEN A CHILD on welfare, a White House aide to…
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HOW FERNANDO WON THE HEARTS OF LA
Fernandomania became a cultural phenomenon in 1980s Los Angeles as a young Mexican left-hander became the toast of the city and ultimately an icon as big as any matinee Idol.
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Flip-Flop or Flip-Forward?
What Kamala Harris needs to do to win and possibly win Pennsylvania, which is the Mecca of fracking.
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GAME, SET, MATCH, CHAMPIONSHIP, MR. TRUMP
Maybe it’s because I’d been vegging out watching every single moment of the previous fortnite of Wimbledon, that the instant I saw a bleeding, wounded Donald Trump rise up defiantly, waving a clenched fist and chanting “Fight! Fight!” that my first instinct was to say, “Game, Set & Championship. Mr. Trump.”
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If Marilyn Had Been the Ultimate Ferrari…
If Marilyn Had Been a Ferrari… Is the LA monthly.org story that one the 2024 Southern California Journalism prize for best entertainment feature writing for author Tony Castro.
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IS RICK CARUSO THE LAST BEST HOPE FOR SAVING LA?
Billionaire shopping mall magnate Rick Caruso is stepping out of the political shadows with a new plan to help swing-seat Democrats retake the House in 2024. Rick Caruso may not be the last best hope for saving Los Angeles, as some of his faithful followers insist, but he does offer a hope and a vision…
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‘PRESIDENT’ HARRIS… THE ULTIMATE POSSIBILITY
If He Wins, Joe Biden Will Soon Turn 82 Not long after leaving office, the 38th president of the United States imagined a scenario in which a future president might tragically die in office, creating the opportunity for his vice president — possibly a woman — to make history. Almost a decade after he had left…
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The Santa Anas
More than half a century after publishing the work that established her reputation as a gimlet-eyed cultural critic — Slouching Towards Bethlehem — Joan Didion continues to be an outsize influence and figure of fascination in the literary world and among Angelenos.
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Alatorre: ‘I Am Not The Apostle’
The Richard Alatorre I knew, the Richard Alatorre who said he had to change the world — and to a great degree, he did just that… that Richard Alatorre dramatically altered the political landscape for Latinos in California and ultimately became The Godfather of Latino Politics. By TONY CASTRO September 14, 2023 IT IS MEXICAN INDEPENDENCE DAY IN…
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Living in the Shadow of Ruben Salazar
On Aug. 29, 1970, the National Chicano Moratorium in East Los Angeles protested the disproportionately high casualties among Latinos in Vietnam — but led to the tragic police shooting death of acclaimed Los Angeles Times columnist Ruben Salazar.
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Hunter S. Thompson: A Remembrance
By HUCK THOMAS Hunter S. Thompson was a juvenile delinquent and stayed that way, suspended in the amber of drink and drugs, the rest of his days. He could be a squall of anti-social behavior, yes, but also a brilliant writer of live-wire prose that flagellated the rich, powerful and stupid. Plus he was funny…
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WHY DO ALL FRENCHMEN THINK THE’RE NAPOLEON BONAPARTE?
Watching Emilia Pérez as soon as it was available to stream. It felt like watching a root canal. I did not recognize the Mexico in the film and the cartel life depicted on screen seemed straight out of bad TV novela at best. The picture struck me as juvenile—maybe something Zoe Saldaña and Selena Gomez agreed to…
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AN INTERVIEW WITH NOVELIST TONY CASTR0
An interview with Tony Castro, author of the new novel thriller “THE BOOK OF MARILYN”
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IT’S A MIRACLE I’M A WRITER
Friends often marvel that I’ve built a life with words. They shake their heads and say, “It’s a miracle you’re a writer.” Honestly, they’re not wrong.
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GIVE ME YOUR TIRED, Y0UR POOR, YOUR BISEXUALS
Sometimes destiny draws you toward unexpected things. I have now become the Ellis Island for bisexuals. I tried to avoid it, but they are drawn to me. On a night when I was not performing standup, I headed over to the Laugh Factory comedy club on the Sunset Strip in Los Angeles. I go there…
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AMERICA’S HEALTHCARE SYSTEM: THE REAL SILENT KILLER
I’m not close to signing out just yet, but my new primary care doctor is so convinced that I’m teetering on the brink that he had me sign a contract relieving him of all responsibility if I die from taking oxycodone.
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HOW MOMS NEED RESOURCES DURING DISASTERS
During the recent fires, lawyer Melissa Saleh evacuated to a hotel and found herself realizing just how much mothers go through during times of disaster without any resources or even public awareness.
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MY LIFE IN THE PALISADES WITH ALI MACGRAW
My Life With Ali Then, just as quickly as she had entered my world, she vanished. The recent death of her ‘Love Story’ co-star Ryan O’Neal left us all with a nostalgic appreciation of the heartthrobs whose heartbreak ending sent the country out of theaters in tears to start the 1970s.
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APOCALYPSE LA: A CITY OF ANGELS & DREAMS GONE TO HELL
The city of dreams is under a nightmarish siege as than 1,000 homes, businesses and other buildings have burned and at least two people are dead in Santa Anas wind-fueled wildfires threatening to make this the worst fire in Southern California history.
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DEMI MOORE: HOLLYWOOD’S ULTIMATE SURVIVOR
Once derided as a “popcorn actress,” Demi Moore may have landed herself a spot in the Oscars’ best actress category with her rousing speech after winning a Golden Globe for The Substance, a role she got when she was at a low point in her career, thinking she was done.
LA Monthly
The National Magazine of Los Angeles