BOWIE IS DEAD AND KEITH RICHARD'S STILL ALIVE
— so much for clean living. (With a nod to cartoonist Harry Bliss.)
Next Monday, at the Roxy in Hollyweird: big Bowie tribute with lots of bands, a benefit to help save the landmark Max's Kansas City club in New York. Sounds like fun, and we need to preserve rock and roll history.
FROM LAST WEEK'S COLUMN subhed: “The Last I'll Need to Write about Alex('s Shoe Repair)” -- guess not! Silly, optimistic me.
His landlord, Jack Kotlar, sent him a new “30 Day Notice to Quit,” otherwise known as an eviction notice. Dated Jan. 26 - the day my column was written about Kotlar dropping the eviction proceeding. What took you so long, Jack? Are you going to keep filing them like Republicans going after Obamacare? Stay tuned. This may not mean anything.
SILLY, OPTIMISTIC, NAÏVE ME. I was thrilled when I heard that LA's own young culture-leaping maestro Gustavo Dudamel and his inner city Youth Orchestra Los Angeles were tapped for the Super Bowl 50 halftime show.
Amazing! What a cosmic shift, from Katy, Missy and Lenny last year (am I being snarky? or sharky?), what a boost for classical music! Especially for a less-than-predisposed 'murican football crowd. (Hey Charlie, look at this here bushy-haired rock star in a tux, ha ha, and those kids… hey, they're purty good, actually … dang!)
Alas, they are not the featured act as I first assumed, and will take not even second but fourth fiddle to Coldplay, Beyonce and Bruno Mars. I should've known. But, still a coup.
Man the DVR. I'll be out shooting hoops on empty courts that Sunday, thank you. I love the Super Bowl for that yearly gift, when everyone else is glued to TV and snacks and Santa Monica is mine for a few hours.
WHY US? OJ, now a Cosby hearing yesterday, not to mention Lindsay Lohan and Roman Polanski. Trainwrecks at the Santa Monica courthouse.
YES, THE CLIPPERS ARE CURSED. Hahahahaha. Things were going pretty well for them this season, they have maybe their strongest lineup ever. Then star Blake Griffin (6'10, 250) reacts to being called a name by his so-called buddy, assistant equipment manager Matias Testi (does not come up to Blake's shoulder), and Griffin punches him in the face in a Toronto restaurant. But that's not enough. They take it outside and he punches him in the face again. Griffin breaks his hand and won't play for maybe two months. If the NBA lets him back even then.
According to a sports website, former teammate Zach Randolph once called Griffin that same name, and nothing happened. Randolph is 6'9, 260.
I DON'T ATTEND nearly as many local meetings as I should. Especially considering my six-figure salary. Sure, it's torture sometimes, but like Blake Griffin I should just suck it up. But the Recreation and Parks Commission meeting two weeks ago was a delight. Packed with maybe 150 locals having fun.
LA County is holding a series of meetings with communities to find out where they would like to see their share of the considerable county budget spent, on parks. So people got to indulge their fantasies, knowing they had a much better chance of winning than on the lottery. There were a lot of great ideas and creative suggestions.
But we don't have to wait for the county decision. As Director of Community and Cultural Services Karen Ginsberg said that night, the City staff and City Council can look at these ideas and there may be some we can implement without the county. Hot dog!
Commission chair Phil Brock was dreaming when he suggested every commission meeting should be so well attended. Yeah, serve sandwiches, snacks and drinks and we'll consider it, Phil.
WILL THE CITY COUNCIL actually really seriously move forward next Tuesday with building the athletic field across from Samohi that they promised in the 2005 Civic Center Specific Plan? The one so many parents say is desperately needed? I have my doubts, since several Councils have been kicking this one down the road for so long without scoring a goal.
Build it now! It's 10 years overdue! But we don't have the money, we're told. A million or two. I say, how about we get a fair market lease for the ECEC site we're Santa Claus-renting for a buck a year? In four or five years it's paid for.
SOMETHING YOU DON'T KNOW ABOUT ME: I am a super supermarket shopper. I am looking at my last receipt from Vons. Spent $117, but saved $105. That's a 47 percent savings. And I don't use coupons, with few exceptions. But I know prices, and I pore over the weekly ads and mark them up and take them with me. It's my hobby. A guy with a six figure salary doesn't have to do this, you know.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK: “I'm afraid of Americans.” — David Bowie
Charles Andrews has lived in Santa Monica for 30 years and wouldn't live anywhere else in the world. Really. Send love and/or rebuke to him at therealmrmusic@gmail.com
