Los Angeles magazine - June 2020

YO U R E SS E N T I A L G U I D E TO S U M M E R I N T H E C I T Y

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KYLIE JENNER’S BLACKFISHING BLUES

KINGS AND QUEENS OF THE QUARANTINE

EXCLUSIVE

INSIDE THE BUNKER WITH ERIC GARCETTI

THE MAYOR’S EPIC BATTLE TO SAVE US FROM THE PLAGUE

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VISIONARY ANGELENOS ON POST-PANDEMIC LIFE IN L.A.

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Eric Garcetti’s Lonely War Mayor Eric Garcetti, often criticized as meek and risk averse, might have just saved L.A. from the pandemic. But now he faces an even bigger challenge—fixing the economy.

BY JON REGARDIE

58

Los Angeles After the Fall Los Angeles as we all knew it is history.

But its future begins today. We asked 35 of the city’s most visionary leaders to predict what L.A. will look like in the aftermath of the plague.

BY JEFF WEISS

66

The Secret Life of Robert Wagner An exclusive excerpt from the explosive new biography of Natalie Wood reveals she covered for her husband’s alleged bisexuality even as the knowledge nearly destroyed her.

B Y S U Z A N N E F I N S TA D

4 L A M AG . C O M

G E T T Y I M AG E S

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Buzz GOING VIRAL

JUNE 2020

» From the brothers Cuomo and Carole Baskin to tap water and trolls, a look at the unlikely people and products enjoying their COVID-19 minutes of fame.

BY PAUL SCHRODT PAGE 11

BYE-BYE BIRDIE?

» Just a year ago companies from Uber to Byrd were poised to take over the city. But the wheels are coming off L.A.’s scooter craze.

BY SUSAN CARPENTER PAGE 14

THE BRIEF

» White Kylie Jenner, quarantine porn, Lifestyles of the Rich and Shameless, and other news and notes from all over. PAGE 16

Columns TRADE SECRETS

» Over the past decade the Hollywood Reporter dug up some of the industry’s biggest scandals. Then a pair of movie producers took it over. What could possibly go wrong?

BY ALEX BHATTACHARJI PAGE 44

THE CHURCH LADY

» How a cranky septuagenarian communist from Nicaragua became the savior of the most radical church in L.A.

BY RICHARD MORGAN PAGE 48

Ask Chris

The Inside Guide » Blast the AC and enjoy life indoors with spicy hot sauces, awesome new TV shows, and virtual Pride celebrations.

Plus chic summer fashions (and masks) for venturing out.

PAG E 1 9

» Why is Hot Dog on a Stick tearing down its landmark Santa Monica store to put in a cheap replica? Our resident historian answers your burning questions.

BY CHRIS NICHOLS PAGE 84

ON THE COVER » Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti photographed in his office April 29 Photographed by Shayan Asgharnia

6 L A M AG . C O M

P H O T O G R A P H BY J O S H D I C K I NS O N

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community in need.

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See a list of participating restaurants at onemorehelping.com

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I L LU S T R AT I O N BY C H R I S M O R R I S

L A M AG . C O M 11

BUZZ

I

V I R A L S TA R S

“Safety Match”

T ’ S H A R D T O T H I N K of the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact as any-

thing other than a series of downturns: in global health, the economy, our cultural lifeblood, and moods. But as in any crisis, there are positives deserving praise. Dr. Anthony Fauci, unknown to many of us months ago, now has his own bobblehead—and deservedly so. But other experts and personalities—some with direct ties to the novel coronavirus, others who are delightful distractions—have captured our collective imagination. Here are 20.

Ina Garten

with her model-celebrity-spawn boyfriend Anwar Hadid. But how hard is that?

Ryan Heffington

Carole Baskin Netflix’s zeitgeist-defining docuseries Tiger King is teeming with wilder-thanthe-last characters, but one rises above the rest. Baskin—the 58-year-old former big-cat breeder turned conservationist and archrival/attempted murder victim of central subject Joe Exotic—sports an enviable feline-inspired wardrobe; coos her memed-around-the-world tagline, “Hey all you cool cats and kittens”; and prefers not to answer questions about her mysteriously missing ex-husband. A morally ambiguous figure for our uncertain times, she’s also sure to be one of Halloween’s most popular costumes—so stock up now on the fiercest tiger prints you can find.

Dua Lipa The British singer, 24, didn’t want to release her second album, Future Nostalgia, into a pandemic—she announced its arrival with tears on social media. But its neodisco bangers are exactly what a lockdown dance party demands, and the release is her first Top 10 LP in the U.S. She’s liberated the masses to move while (fabulously) self-quarantining 1 2 L A M AG . C O M

Heffington, 46, had already been motivating Angelenos to hone their hip shaking at his Silver Lake dance studio, the Sweat Spot, but the Grammy-nominated choreographer has turned his Joshua Tree house into a makeshift gym space. For his fiveday-a-week Sweatfest cardio class on Instagram Live, he coaches around 8,000 viewers at a time through unique moves. Fans are known to end sessions with a cathartic cry.

D-Nice Born Derrick Jones, D-Nice had a moment as a hip-hop artist in the ’90s that quickly faded. But the 49-year-old DJ reached newfound fame streaming his live Club Quarantine sets from his downtown L.A. apartment, drawing hundreds of thousands of stay-at-home revelers, including Rihanna, Oprah Winfrey, Bernie Sanders, Joe Biden, and Michelle Obama. The funkand-soul-heavy playlists are more than a sonic escape—they’re an act of communal transcendence against all odds.

Zoom

out of the way. Viewed roughly a million times, the contemporary art piece achieved what no government PSA could.

Ina Garten More than 3 million people on Instagram watched the tranquil Barefoot Contessa, 72, demonstrate how she keeps her “favorite tradition,” the cocktail hour, alive under desperate conditions. The Food Network star has been a rightfully beloved figure for nearly two decades, but her mixing a gigantic cosmo was a hilariously refreshing reminder of what a true treasure she is.

Zack Fox A previously undersung L.A. comedian and internet provocateur, Fox, 29, racked up more than 300,000 views with a stonefaced parody—which made perfect use of Three 6 Mafia’s “Slob on My Knob”—of Gal Gadot’s viral-for-all-the-wrong-reasons “Imagine” sing-along.

Juan Delcan and Valentina Izaguirre The local artist couple, based in View ParkWindsor Hills, illuminated the power of social distancing with their “Safety Match” viral video, in which animated matches light up in a row until one of them steps

Alison Roman The New York Times cooking writer (and native Angeleno), 34, had already achieved food-world stardom with two best-selling books before lockdown. Under quarantine, Roman’s simple yet flavor-packed recipes for dishes like caramelized shallot pasta—

Leslie Jordan H A R D Q U E ST I ONS

Jeremy Diamond and Weijia Jiang hold the president accountable

Trolls World Tour

G E T T Y I M AG E S ; E XC E P T FO R T E E : FA M O U S I N R E A L . L I F E ; M U G : E TSY.CO M / L I ST I N G /79 1 4 5 079 1 ; I N A G A RT E N A N D SA F E T Y M ATC H : YO U T U B E .CO M ; A L IS O N R O M A N : I N STAG R A M .CO M /A L I S O N E R O M A N ; T R O L LS WO R L D TO U R : CO U RT E SY D R E A M WO R KS A N I M AT I O N ; M Y Y E A R O F R E ST A N D R E L AXAT I O N : CO U RT E SY P E N G U I N G R O U P

Andrew (left) and Chris Cuomo

and her unfussy-but-particular Brooklyn boho banter—have become required reading and eating.

ty of shine when he tested positive for or COVID-19 and without missing a beat continued hosting his show in self-isolation -isolation from his basement. ment Despite regular potshots from right-wing critics, the younger Cuomo managed to come off as more sincere and urgent than ever. One NYC matchmaker says the duo are topping her “most wanted” list, beating out even the Jonas brothers.

Reply All’s “The Case of the Missing Hit” Podcast Reply All delivered a blockbuster with a mind-bending search for a song— which might not exist—that a man says got stuck in his head in the ’90s. A reflection of the unanswered questions inundating our lives, except with far lower stakes, the March episode has sparked a 35 percent increase in the show’s listenership.

Trolls World Tour L.A. tap water You’re not good, we never loved you, and yet without gallons of overpriced filtered alkaline H2O, we’re suddenly overjoyed to guzzle you.

Bidet attachments After hoarders cleared out the toilet paper aisles, the makers of bidet products began cleaning up with their water-jet-shooting self-cleaning devices. The brand Brondell saw a 300 percent spike in sales, while the cleverly marketed Tushy sold out entirely.

The future may be wipe free.

Zoom The video-conferencing platform—which has raised security concerns and provides the same service as FaceTime, Google Hangouts, and Facebook Messenger—has become a key part of life under quarantine.

Zoom stock has jumped more than 100 percent since January.

The brothers Cuomo New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, 62, has been lionized for leading his state through the darkness. But his cute younger brother, 49-year-old CNN anchor Chris, stole plen-

Universal’s Trolls sequel, with a bizarre rock-versus-pop premise and a message about cultural appropriation that will likely go over the heads of its intended audience (and perhaps that of star Justin Timberlake), set a record for the biggest debut for a digital release, topping every relevant platform during its opening weekend in April. The $20 two-day rental price seemed steep to some, but to parents with stir-crazy kids it was a bargain.

The Womanizer vibrator With Tinder hookups on hold, we’re turning inward—and reaching for sex toys.

This cheekily marketed device has seen a 152 percent year-over-year rise in U.S. sales thanks to quarantine orders. Its resonant new slogan for those hungry for pleasure: Stay home.

The new class of badass reporters Journa Journalism is never more important m than during a t national emergency o or the mass dissemination seminat of misinformation. W We happen to be living through h both. A young crop of reporters in the White House briefing room—including Weijia Jiang of CBS, Kaitlan Collins and Jeremy Diamond of CNN, Yamiche Alcindor of PBS, and Kristin Fisher of Fox News—has resisted President Trump’s theatrical boasting and mugging, pressing for straightforward information and fact-checking on the spot.

Leslie Jordan The 64-year-old veteran actor from Will & Grace and American Horror Story has amassed more than 3 million Instagram followers since March as a result of absurdist check-in videos in which he appears to be either very bored or very stoned.

Pointing to his DIY painted toenails, he shares: “I messed this one up.” Relatable.

My Year of Rest and Relaxation Ottessa Moshfegh’s 2018 best-selling novel, about a beautiful, lazy, pill-popping young woman who attempts a yearlong hibernation in a Manhattan apartment, had been celebrated at the time of its publication for its dark humor. Now its wit is hailed as beautifully horrific, as evidenced by the literary critics who are circling back to it. Vice declared of the book in one recent headline: “Blacking Out in a Juicy Couture Tracksuit Is a Lockdown Mood.”

The smart bike Sourdough bread It’s a cliche at this point, but making it ourselves is truly commforting, if not always Tartine level. No wonder more than 94,000 posts have been tagged with #crumbshot on Instagram.

A Already a cult obsession, Peloton’s $2,245 souped-up stationary bike has never been more covetable as gyms lie dormant. The company’s stock bounced 50 percent in March, leaving an offensive Christmasad debacle in the dust. Cheaper competitors are also racing ahead. Echelon, whose bikes start at $839, reported a tenfold increase in sales the same month.

L A M AG . C O M 13

T R A N S P O R TAT AT I O N

Bye-Bye Birdie?

AS DEMAND CRATERS AMID STAY-AT-HOME ORDERS AND COVID-19 CONTAGION FEARS, THE WHEELS ARE COMING OFF THE SCOOTER CRAZE

BY SUSAN CARPENTER

A

Y E A R A G O Los Angeles embarked upon the nation’s largest experiment in micromobility. Hoping to ease traffic and reduce emissions, the city’s Department of Transportation granted permits to Bird, Lime, Spin, and five other companies to operate 37,000 scooters on L.A.’s streets. Until early March the program seemed to be working and was on track to log 10 million rides in the project’s first year.

Then came COVID-19, stay-at-home orders, and Angelenos’ reluctance to touch anything anyone else had touched. As of mid-April just 700 scooters were operating within city limits, with rides hovering around 1,000 or fewer trips a day, according to LADOT. Lime and Wheels temporarily suspended operations, and Bird recently laid off 30 percent of its staff.

Santa Monica, home to Bird’s headquarters, and the city that started the scooter craze in September 2017, has seen a 90 percent decline in ridership and an 84 percent drop in deployed scooters, from 2,500 to 400, since the stay-at-home order went into effect in March. The fleet reduction is mostly a strategic response to reduced demand, but the move was also made “to help discourage non-critical mobility and to

14 L A M AG . C O M

help flatten the curve,” Bird said in a statement to Los Angeles, adding that it intends to “offer our full fleet as soon as possible.”

The scooter companies that remain in operation have stepped up their sanitization procedures and are offering free rides to frontline workers. The looming question is whether the industry will be able to return to its go-go days once the pandemic is under control. The health crisis “has exposed the business model,” says Juan Matute, deputy director of UCLA’s Institute for Transportation Studies.

Starting in early 2018 companies from Bird to Bolt drew investment with unit-economics-based plans to place scooters in areas where they would be used frequently enough to cover costs and turn a profit. For the math to work, Matute says, a scooter needs to be ridden at least three times a day for an average trip of 12 minutes. “The challenge, and why they haven’t been making money,” Matute says, “is that companies have invested extraordinary amounts expanding into areas where there’s not going to be as much demand.” In other words, cities out-

side of balmy Southern California.

Lime pulled out of all 100 markets in which it had been operating, except for two cities in South Korea, after the World Health Organization declared the coronavirus a global emergency. Now the company is looking to that country for clues about what the business might look like in a postquarantine world. “We continue to explore options as the new normal evolves,” says Katie Stevens, head of global policy for San Francisco-based Lime.

Stevens says ridership dropped in South Korea when confirmed cases were at their height, but the company is now seeing even higher usage as people look for transportation that allows for social distancing. Reports out of China indicate a similar trend of increased demand for micromobility as fewer people risk mass transit.

With the pandemic still active in L.A., it’s too early to tell how a scooter recovery could play out here. But with so many companies offering the same service, “the likelihood is that a number of companies will go under,” says Aaron Michel, a partner at the investment firm 1984 Ventures. “The ones with deep pockets will hibernate. And the companies that own them—the Fords, the Ubers, the Lyfts—will have to take a hard look at whether unit economics justify these businesses after this is all over.”

The companies that do survive will have to evolve. “The whole industry is undergoing a giant evolution,” says Kyle Kozar, a senior transportation planner for Santa Monica. What started as publicly funded and operated bike-share services turned into privately operated, venturecapital-funded scooters that companies like Bird dumped onto public streets by the thousands without consulting municipal governments. “Now I think it’s going to be pivoting back more toward [a] relationship with cities,” Kozar says, with scooters working more like a bike-share program administered through a public transit agency.

“This crisis has demonstrated that transportation is the connective tissue required to keep essential services running,” says LADOT spokesman Colin Sweeney.

We’re about to see exactly what that will look like.

Bird has seen a 90 percent decline in ridership since March.

I L LU S T R AT I O N BY PI X E L P U S H E R

G E T T Y I M AG E S

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A bare-faced Kylie Jenner was snapped looking quite pale compared to her usual done-up self

KYLIE JENNER’S BLACKFISH BLUES A SHOCKING VIRAL SNAPSHOT OF THE MAKEUP MOGUL REVEALS HER ACTUAL SKIN TONE— AND, SOME SAY, RACIAL INSENSITIVITY

BY IAN SPIEGELMAN

W E E K S O F lock-

down without access to stylists, fillers, manicurists, and masseuses have some of the beautiful people looking not quite like themselves. One frequently photographed Angeleno (um, Calabasasian?) has been rendered practically unrecognizable.

In April candid shots of Kylie Jenner, sans makeup and shoes and clutching a bag of Lays potato chips, surfaced as she eschewed the stay-athome guidelines to visit a pal in Beverly Hills. Twitter did a collective spit take: The billionaire mogul looked more like a washed-out basic college coed than a perennially tan cosmetics tycoon.

A post of the picture by a virtually unknown account, @BeyonceLeague, accumulated more than 56,000 retweets and 290,000 likes in two days. The caption?

“The way that Quarantine has turned Kylie Jenner back 16 L A M AG . C O M

into a white girl.”

Others responding to the tweet were less amused, pointing out that Jenner suddenly seemed to be several shades lighter than she usually is when appearing in public, reviving accusations that the 22-year-old is guilty of “blackfishing”—appropriating the appearance of darker-skinned races and ethnicities.

It’s hardly the first time that Jenner’s been called out.

In early March she released photos from a shoot in which she sported a green leopardprint hoodie gown by Tom Ford, curly blond extensions, and deeply bronzed skin. She captioned one image: “giving you mama drama honey.”

Black Twitter quickly took offense.

“WHY ARE YOU COSPLAYING AS BEYONCE?” wrote one user. “When will your family be done cosplaying Black women?” asked another.

Five years earlier Jenner

provoked a backlash when she posted a highly stylized, photo of herself, darkened, along with the caption: “What I wish I looked like all the time.” After an outcry, she changed it to read: “This is black light and neon lights people lets all calm down.”

Sister Kim Kardashian, who’s been known to wear her hair in long braids and even cornrows, has also been slammed for wearing styles originated by black women.

She responded to criticism in a 2018 Bustle article by saying, “I obviously know they’re called fulani braids [named after West Africa’s Fula people] ... and I’m totally respectful of that. I’m not tone deaf to where I don’t get it. I do get it.”

Reps for Jenner declined to comment for this article.

JOINING FORCES FOR NO GOOD IT WAS probably inevitable.

“Reopen California” demonstrators agitating against the nation’s stay-at-home policies have found common cause with an equally scienceskeptical ally. Anti-vax activists, who believe that vaccines cause autism and other ailments, have assumed a prominent role in the protests.

The antilockdown rallies in California feature many of the same slogans and the key players who promoted the anti-vax protests that shut down the Legislature last year. Prominent in the movement are the notorious Freedom Angels, who made headlines in the fall by demonstrating against a new state law cracking down on doctors who write sham exemptions for school children.

Extremists dumped human blood on state senators and assaulted the sponsor of the bill, a pediatrician.

More recently three of the Northern California-based group’s cofounders—Heidi Munoz Gleisner, Tara Thornton, and Denise Aguilar— have been exhorting their 10,000 Facebook followers to defy shelter-athome orders. On April 20 the trio helped organize a rally in Sacramento at which crowds threw blood and hoisted signs decrying Bill Gates, whose global health efforts have made him a target of both those against inoculations and those who are antiquarantine.

“People need to get back to work, get back to life, get back into contact with their loved ones who they’re isolated from. They need to be able

C O - S I G NS

On April 20 protesters around the State Capitol building carried placards denouncing both vaccines and shelter-at-home orders

KY L I E J E N N E R : C P R / D. SA N C H E Z / B AC KG R I D ; J E N N E R I N S E T: A L L E N B E R E ZOVS KY/G E T T Y I M AG E S ; P R OT E ST E R S : F R E D E R I C J. B R OW N /A F P V I A G E T T Y I M AG E S

The Brief

C RYSTA L LU ST: I N STAG R A M .CO M / _ I AC RYSTA L LU STO F F I C I A L ; CO R O N AV I R U S : G E T T Y I M AG E S ; P U N D I TS ’ H O M E S : T W I T T E R .CO M / R AT E M YS KY P E R O O M ; L I N DS E Y G R A H A M , A N T H O N Y FAU C I , J O N AT H A N SWA N CO M P O S I T E S BY M A RY F R A N Z

LENGTH OF TIME, IN MINUTES, ENFORCED BETWEEN THOSE HITTING THE SLOPES AT MT. BALDY RESORT. NO MORE THAN FOUR SKIERS AND/OR SNOWBOARDERS ARE CHECKED IN AND ALLOWED ON THE MOUNTAIN DURING EACH INTERVAL. THE SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY RESORT REOPENED IN LATE APRIL WITH SOCIAL-DISTANCING PRACTICES IN PLACE

to have a paycheck,” Thornton told The Sacramento Bee. “This is the grounds they will enslave us upon.”

The Freedom Angels aren’t the only anti-vaxxers to see political opportunity in the present moment. Children’s Health Defense, the Georgia-based anti-vax group led by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., has joined the lockdown protests with attacks on Dr. Anthony Fauci over the federal push to develop a vaccine against COVID19—a pursuit that Kennedy’s organization deems “risky and uncertain.” The anti-vax movement is anticipating a climactic showdown with government and Big Pharma if and when millions of novel coronavirus vaccines arrive.

As one user put it in a lament on the Facebook page of the Fully Reopen CA Now Movement, “[W]hat if mandatory vaccines for all people become a reality because not enough people are fighting back?”—JAS O N M CG A H A N

LOVE IS THE DRUG

According to data from the popular free site PornHub, there have been more than 17 million searches on the platform using the terms “corona” or “covid.”

The coronavirus genre has found its greatest footing in Washington, D.C., where searches for such material are 33 percent higher than the national average.

Californians are also hungry for “viral” content, searching for it 9 percent more than average.

10

A HOT NEW TOPIC FOR PUBLIC DEBATE: PUNDITS’ HOME DECOR

W

ith the country self-isolating and TV studios empty, talking heads have been forced to work from home, giving us a rare glimpse into their offices, living rooms, and other intimate settings. Naturally a new Twitter account is taking the opportunity to pass judgment on the personal spaces of anchors, politicians, and other media chatterboxes—and the internet loves it.

Room Rater (@ratemyskyperoom) has drawn more than 121,000 followers by posting screen captures of politicos’ residences and rating them on a scale of one to ten stars. The account was created by former Clinton White House director of volunteers Claude Taylor and his girlfriend, Jessie Bahrey.

“We were always snarking at each other about people’s Skype rooms,” Taylor tells Los Angeles. “It’s just meant as some lighter quarantine content.” Judge for yourself. — I A N S P I E G E L M A N

South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham’s digs get 0/10, due to “Bad art, shitty room, shitty human, fuck off” in a post that’s received more than 500 retweets and surpassed 4,600 likes.

San Joaquin Valley Representative Devin Nunes’s tractorand-flag setup receives 1/10 stars: “Hey is that where the horse you’re suing lives?”

Nunes himself is labeled: “Fake farmer. Real fraud.”

Meanwhile beleaguered infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci scores 9/10 and high praise for “Bright. Lovely light/colors” and the recommendation: “Put him in charge.”

Bill Maher’s Los Angeles backyard did well with 7/10 but lost points because his “garden gnome looks an awful lot like Mao.”

Also hitting it out of the park, 9/10, is Sean Penn’s spacious tent in Malibu.

Axios’s Jonathan Swan lamented, “This is rough stuff,” after learning of his 3/10 grade.

P L AY I NG G DO CTOR

Crystal Lust offers up an unorthodox treatment for COVID-19 in her popular PornHub video

“ YO U H AV E the coronavi-

rus, and I think my ass is the cure,” a bare-bottomed woman tells a bedridden man.

The actress, Crystal Lust, and her nameless costar proceed to “cure” the virus in a topical seven-minute PornHub video, which has more than 9 million views despite its dubious medical advice. (“I’m not aware of any evidence to suggest that is an effective treatment of COVID-19,” says UCLA professor of epidemiology Dr. Timothy Brewer.)

The pandemic has launched a new type of porn.

But it’s a boom time for all porn. PornHub says its traffic has been significantly higher since the shutdown began, peaking at the end of March at more than 40 percent above average.

Some video producers are packaging public service alongside the titillation.

In one clip a popular adult-film performer named Little Squirtles exclaims to her partner, “Wow, daddy ... we have to catch this early before it’s too hard to contain.” — SA M B R AS LOW

L A M AG . C O M 17

LOVE YOU, L.A. The people of this city are our family. You’ve shared your lives with us in so many ways, and we’ve never been more thankful for that than we are right now.

Wishing safety, love, and positivity to all. We’re thinking of you.

THE INTERSECTION OF LIFE X STYLE @FIGAT7TH

DOWNTOWN LA

FIGAT7TH.COM

06.20

E

AT

, PL A

THE

Y

& SHOP

Inside Guide

Blow It Up! > Blast the AC and enjoy life indoors with spicy hot sauces,

awesome new TV shows, and virtual Pride celebrations.

Plus chic summer fashions (and masks) for venturing out

P H O T O G R A P H BY C O R I NA M A R I E H OW E L L

L A M AG . C O M 19

DA R K A RT

Phoebe Bridgers’s new album deals with death and destruction

TV

KIDS

Hulu has two intriguing debuts: A well-meaning peasant finds himself thrust into the chaotic (and horny) world of monarchs when he becomes a squire at the royal castle in the animated Crossing Swords (June 12), while Padma Lakshmi

If your small ones are going stir crazy (or making you a little crazy), Santa Monica-based Cayton Children’s Museum (caytonmuseum.org) offers twice-each-weekday virtual recesses on IGTV that are sure to get children’s creative juices flowing. Summer Camp Online (summercamp online.com) provides classes—for about $100 a pop—on everything from improv to making video games. For your budding chef, L.A. couple Sean and Jessica Mickey are running the kid-friendly FoodSchool (foodschool .com), which in addition to teaching simple cooking techniques also looks at food’s historical, cultural, and nutritional aspects. On the podcastsfor-the-pint-size front, NPR’s Circle Round features fun retellings of folk tales from across the world.

CAN’T-MISS ENTERTAINMENT IN JUNE B Y Z O I E M AT T H E W

Taste the Nation

travels the U.S. learning about the food of indigenous and immigrant communities on Taste the Nation (June 19). Matthew Rhys stars in HBO’s gritty reboot of Perry Mason, which tells how the future famed defense lawyer worked as a low-rent private investigator in Depression-era L.A. (June 21).

Over on Netflix, Aussie comedian Hannah Gadsby’s innovative and divisive new stand-up special, Douglas, arrives.

Perry Mason

20 L A M AG . C O M

MUSIC

PODCASTS

Record Store Day, which was pushed to June 20, will usher in a bevy of releases. L.A. folk fave Phoebe Bridgers returns with Punisher, a followup to her 2017 debut, Stranger in the Alps, that she says includes apocalyptic themes and “lots of death.” Stranger Things costar Maya Hawke, who made her musical debut with two intimate singles last year, drops her first album, Blush, on the same day. And if you couldn’t get enough of Mac DeMarco’s breezy 2019 record, Here Comes the Cowboy, the local icon will be releasing a compilation of demos from the album as an RSD exclusive.

Cheryl Strayed, best-selling memoirist and “Dear Sugar” advice columnist, dials up literary inspirations like George Saunders and Pico Iyer on her new New York Times-produced show, Sugar Calling. On Scam Goddess, Laci Mosley teams up with comedians to dig into riveting rackets and rip-offs past and present, from teenage fake doctors to crooked carpet cleaners. For an odd but compelling use of investigative journalism, check

BOOKS Looking for something to restore your faith in humanity? Rutger Bregman examines the importance of innate altruism in Humankind: A Hopeful History (June 2). For your fiction fix, try Sam Lansky’s anticipated first effort, Broken People, about a neurotic New York transplant seeking guidance in L.A. from a shaman who claims to perform “open-soul surgery” on the emotionally damaged (June 9). Or snag Self Care, a novel by Out of the Binders and BinderCon cofounder Leigh Stein that delves into the behind-thescenes drama at a picture-perfect wellness startup (June 30).

out The Walkers Switch, which looks at how the British snack company Walkers altered the colors of its packaging and then denied the change ever happened. The delightfully diverting deep dive somehow manages to touch on the Illuminati, the Mandela effect, and political conspiracies.

EXPERT PICK

Clayton w Kershaw

Pitcher, L.A. A. Dodgerss

> “I’m getting into ESPN’s Chicago Bulls documentary series The Last Dance. The coolest thing for me is I remember the events as a kid. It’s déjà vu, seeing the highlights, then getting the backstory, and listening to Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippin, and Phil Jackson. I want to hear the crazy stories about Dennis Rodman. It’s been fun to see how Michael became Michael Jordan.”

TAST E T H E N AT I O N : D O M I N I C VA L E N T E / H U LU ; P E R RY M ASO N : M E R R I C K M O RTO N / H B O ; P H O E B E B R I D G E R S : O L I V E R WA L K E R /G E T T Y I M AG E S ; S E L F C A R E : CO U RT E SY P E N G U I N RA N D O M H O U S E WA L K E R S : C AT H E R I N E I V I L L /A M A /G E T T Y I M AG E S ; C L AY TO N K E R S H AW: C H R I ST I A N P E T E R S E N /G E T T Y I M AG E S

THE GUIDE

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shut down, and residents from Beverly Hills to WeHo to Los Feliz banished to their couches to endure endless streams of Tiger King, many of those nonessential businesses we knew and loved to patronize have been literally boarded up for the duration. But even as we stoically embrace quarantine life, many of us are still jonesing to shop. Thankfully online merchants have stepped up bigly, and Angelenos have been able to trade germ-ridden carts for virtual ones. From stockpiling grocery essentials to ordering products that jump-start new hobbies, L.A.’s digital commerce is alive and well. Immune-boosting supplements that fend off infection, seasoning blends for the solo diner, and free weights for the locked-out, lockeddown gym junkie top the list of these best-sellers that cater to life indoors.

PANCAKE MIX » Calabasas Erewhon market manager Sean Magalaon says King Arthur Flour pancake batter never lingers for long on the shelves, it was escaping almost as fast as toilet paper. “We sold out of that fast. Pancakes keep people sane,” Magalaon says. $6 at erewhonmarket.com, 818-857-3366 22 L A M AG . C O M

TACO SEASONING » Leaps beyond McCormick packets, Spice Station owner Peter Bahlawanian offers a more robust taco seasoning—the High Desert blend. Guajillo and New Mexico chiles bring the heat. “You can make tacos, fajitas, or guacamole with it,” Bahlawanian says. $3 an ounce at spice stationsilverlake.com, 323-660-2565

WHITE SAGE » “People are using it to make smudge sticks, hippie vibes, and all that,” says Plant Material manager David Godshall. Native to Southern California, Salvia apiana makes for soothing incense, teas, and even shampoo. $10 at plant-material.com, 323474-6842

PA R M I G I A NO R E G G I A NO » “We’re blowing through Parmigiano-Reggiano as people are making pasta and pizza at home,” says Milkfarm manager Leah Fierro. Aged two years, the Valserena Solo di Bruna edged out cheddar as Milkfa farm’s top-selling cheese. $32 a pound, milkfarmla $ .c .com, 323-892-1068

M A R G A R I TA S » Home State, a restaurant turned market, adds hand-squeezed citrus and zesty syrup to its margaritas.

Founder Briana Valdez says the drinks, topped off with Cimarron tequila, accompany nearly every order. “It gives you life because it’s so balanced and fresh,” she says. $20 at myhomestate.com, 323-906-1122

D I Y C U P CA K E K I T » This quarantine item brings the über-popular bakery Sprinkles into your kitchen with a travel-friendly box that contains four cupcakes, frosting, and toppings. “It’s a great activity with the kids that are stuck at home,” says store manager Hayley Roche. The kit comes with icing spatulas, but children will probably want to use their fingers instead. $25 at sprinkles.com, 213-228-2100

ACORN SQUASH PIZZA » Triple Beam Pizza makes a squash blend that’s piled onto a bed of fontina cheese and tops it with red pepper and honey for a vegetarian pizza that even carnivores will love.

“It’s something different. And people absolutely love the combination of sweet and spicy,” says manager Eric Levitt. $23 at triplebeampizza.com, 213-281-9753

CHICKEN TIKKA MASALA » Trader Joe’s is the king of frozen meals, and manager of the Sawtelle outpost Jim Bruce says its Indian fare, especially the chicken tikka masala, is in the spotlight. “It’s spicy and has some flavor to it so you’re not bored,” he says. There’s also a vegan version for the animal lovers. $3.69 at traderjoes .com, 310-477-5949

A L L I M AG E S CO U RT E SY O F B R A N DS

The Inside Guide

DUBLIN 1891 RED COLA » “There’s one thing about a soda pop you can always count on. It’s an inexpensive way to feel good,” says John Nese, Galco’s Soda Pop Stop store manager. Dublin’s 1981 Red Cola is made with pure cane sugar instead of artificial sweeteners and tastes just like a Dr. Pepper. $3.25 a bottle at sodapop shop.com, 323-255-7115

D U M B E L L S , F LO U R : G E T T Y I M AG E S

DUMBBELLS » It’s nearly impossible to avoid reminders to exercise these days. Manny Laynez, manager of the Burbank Big 5, says they’re selling out of dumbbells: “We had to limit one pair per person.”

Prices vary at big5sporting goods.com, 818-842-5479

THE FIFTH SEASON BY N.K. JEMISIN » “We’re finding that a lot of people just want to escape,” says Nicole Mira, the Last Bookstore manager.

N.K. Jemisin’s award-winning dystopian fantasy provides just that, whisking readers to a world rife with magic and conflict. $15.99 price at shopthelastbook storela.com, 213-488-0599

MIDNIGHT BLUEBERRY CAMINO GUMMIES » A pandemic is stressful, so a 20-mg tin of Kiva’s CBN-infused gummies is just what the doctor ordered.

Sweet Flower CMO Kiana Anvaripour says she’s had her best rest on CBN, a particularly potent sleep-inducing compound. “(Clients) need this as a tool for rest and relaxation,” she says. $21 at sweetflower.com, 818-794-6420

FLOUR » If there’s a time to become a pastry expert, it’s now. “Everyone is baking like a madman,” says Secret Lasagna founder Royce Burke. The restaurant partnered with Hatchery grains to offer flour varieties from Sonora and France to its shelves. $5 a pound at secretlasagna .com, 323-850-2355

VITAMIN C “Everyone’s been told to wear a mask and stay six feet apart. But you should also be taking supplements,” says N101 Nutrition manager Nick Cobian. Starting the day with this Country Life immunity kick couldn’t hurt. $23 for 250 tablets at n101nutrition.com, 323-467-6044

FA J I TA D E L R E Y 4 - PAC K » Tocaya Organica turned its fajita bowl into a meal-prep kit that’s ideal for a family of four. “By giving an option to order in bulk, people staying at home don’t have to do a lot of extra cooking,” says store manager Alex Tomkinson. So Fajita Friday at home anyone? $40 at tocayaorganica.com, 424-268-8219

CALIFORNIA SUN PRESSED JUICE » Moon Juice’s orangeand grapefruit-derived California Sun, blended with citrus varietals, is described as “192 mg of sunshine” on Postmates.

“It’s been totally flying off the shelves because it has 320% of our daily recommended intake of Vitamin C,” says sales associate Camilla Vergan. $10 for 16 ounces at moonjuice.com, 310-399-2929

DARK CHOCOLATE » The signature dark-chocolate collection from John Kelly Chocolates consists of eight delectable pieces in flavors like French gray sea salt, truffle fudge, and espresso packaged in an elegant box. “People will get one for themselves and two for someone else, wanting to share their favorites even though they’re far away,” says John Kelly social director Brittany Alders. $34.75 at johnkellychocolates.com, 800-609-4243

BLANTON’S BOURBON » Blanton’s is well-known in the whiskey game, with its single-barrel bourbon reserved for restaurant shelves. “It’s usually hard to get, but now people can come in and buy a bottle,” says Beverage Warehouse manager Greg Smith. It won’t replace the feel of being at a real bar, but this rare liquor could make that homemade cocktail bearable. $80 for a 750 ml bottle at beveragewarehouse .com, 310-306-2822

TERRES SECRETES LES PRÉLUDES BOURGOGNE CHARDONNAY » This fresh and fruity French Chardonnay pairs well with pasta, salmon, shellfish, soft cheeses, and cured meats. “It’s relatively inexpensive. It’s a killer deal,” says Andrew Whiteley, a buyer for K&L Wine Merchants. $13 at klwines .com, 323-464-9463 L A M AG . C O M 23

The Inside Guide

INTERIORS

Change Of Space WHEN YOU’RE HOME 24-7, STYLE TAKES A BACK SEAT TO COMFORT—EVEN FOR TOP DESIGNER EMILY HENDERSON AND HER MINIMALIST MOUNTAIN RETREAT

BY HAILEY EBER

L

D E S I G N BY E M I LY H E N D E R S O N D E S I G N ; P H OTOS BY SA R A L I G O R R I A-T R A M P

A S T Y E A R W H E N Los Feliz-based design expert Emily Henderson revealed the dramatic renovations to the 1960s Lake Arrowhead A-frame home that she and her husband, Brian, purchased in 2017, the millions of readers of her blog (stylebyemilyhenderson.com) were treated to images of a perfectly styled Scandinavian-minimalism-meets-rustic-chic getaway. Plants, vintage furnishings, and luxe throws were arranged just so to show off the dramatic white-oak-trimmed picture windows, the sprawling kitchen with cabinetry made from 200-year-old reclaimed beechwood, and the spa-like master bathroom. But Henderson, the best-selling author of Styled and Target’s home style expert, says the project is still a work in progress. That’s become quite clear to her in recent weeks as she, Brian, and their two young children have been living there 24-7 while we’re under stay-at-home orders. “I had to look around and figure out how we can make it the most livable for four full-time people and homeschooling,” says Henderson, who has worked on the homes of several industry players, including Glee and Hollywood producer Ian Brennan. “It’s been really interesting to see what shifts we needed to make it comfortable.”

24 L A M AG . C O M

RO OM S W I T H A V I E W

From left: Emily Henderson in the kitchen in her Lake Arrowhead home, featuring beechwood from an Ohio barn sourced through Ross Alan Reclaimed Lumber. A vintage sectional sofa purchased through Gallery L7 in Hollywood anchors the living room. The master bath features radiant floor heating, a freestanding tub, and oversize windows

S T Y L E - AT - H O M E O R D E R S EMILY HENDERSON shares tips for making your home more livable—but still keeping it chic—during quarantine.

BEAUTIFY YOUR BEDROOM

“For a lot of homes it’s the only room where somebody can actually get away and lock the door,” notes Henderson, who says now is the time to make your bedroom feel like a chic, relaxing retreat.

Splurge on new bedding and simplify your decorative touches. Henderson says the pillow of the moment—the long lumbar—quickly makes a bed feel pulled together without the bulk and annoyance of throw pillows galore.

Check out CB2 or Target for options.

a little bit of happiness and can make your home feel more special,” she says.

UP YOUR STORAGE

Doing more things at home means stuff needs to be more accessible, especially if you have children. If you’re buying larger pieces of furniture, Henderson favors benches and ottomans with storage spaces.

On the smaller side, stock up on baskets and trays to help maintain order. Stick to items in the same color palette to pull it all together.

WARM IT UP

EMBRACE THE PRACTICAL

“Because we’re spending so much more time than usual inside, people are looking around and realizing that the ambiance of their home isn’t as warm as it could be because the lighting is wrong,” says Henderson. Add lamps with paper or fabric shades to get a more pleasant glow.

It’s OK to stray from Pinterest perfection, says Henderson, who admits that she’s put away the heavy hand-thrown ceramics that look great in photos but aren’t practical when the family is eating three meals a day at home. “The plates that I’ve opted for are just white, hard to break, really lightweight, and very affordable,” Henderson says. The same goes for things like blankets. “I have so many beautiful throws,” she says, “and the only one I want right now is this microfiber one from Target that’s so soft and cuddly, but it’s not what you would style in a magazine.”

SMALL IS BEAUTIFUL

It can be hard to keep your entire home looking put together these days, so Henderson suggests taking comfort in small things—a nicely arranged display shelf, a great candle in the bathroom, a bar cart with beautiful bottles. “There are these little moments that bring you

L A M AG . C O M 25

MUSIC

Thunder Strikes

AFTER PLAYING SECOND FIDDLE TO JANELLE MONAE AND SNOOP DOGG, STEPHEN “THUNDERCAT” BRUNER IS ROARING WITH A BUZZY NEW SOLO ALBUM

BY HARDEEP PHULL

O N E N I G H T I N early September 2018, Stephen “Thundercat” Bruner was happily chatting with his close friend Mac Miller. The two had been tight for years, with Bruner playing bass on every one of the L.A. rapper’s albums. On this occasion the duo excitedly discussed Miller’s upcoming tour on which Bruner was slated to open. After they were done, they exchanged brotherly I love yous and went to sleep. When Bruner woke the next day, his phone was lit up with calls and messages that Miller was dead. Two months later the Los Angeles County coroner’s office reported that Miller had died of an accidental overdose of fentanyl, cocaine, and alcohol.

Bruner is funny and genial when speaking to Los Angeles, takk ing time out of his very open coronavirus lockdown schedule. But once talk turns to Miller, r, it’s clear that the death still haunts him.

“It’s difficult for me to process rocess to some degree,” he admits.

“Every once in a while, someone will say they learned of my music through ough Mac. I see the murals and tributes. They’ree all over town.”

The tragedy informed the overall philosophy of It Is What It Is, Bruner’s fourth ourth release as Thundercat, which dropped in n April. “It’s about love, loss, life, and the ups and downs,” he says.

It’s undoubtedly the he 35-year-old’s best work. Over his nearly two-decade wo-decade career, he’s lent his bass lines to everyone from Kendrick Lamar and Travis avis Scott to Kamasi Washington and Janelle Monae, collaborating on some of the most cut-ting-edge productions of the early 21st century. But his new record establishes Bruner as a major solo talent.

In early March, he de-buted several songs at the he Wiltern in front of a hometown metown audience that included Brad Pitt. The two have been cordial since meeting lastt year. “Brad didn’t know that I was Thundercat rcat at first, but he’d been listening to my music sic for a while,” says Bruner. “I told him my song ‘Seven’ [from Apocalypse] was named d after the movie he was in. He knew the song, g, but he hadn’t made the connection. He tripped ped out on that.”

26 L A M AG . C O M

Growing up in Compton, Bruner was steeped in music. His father, Ronald, was a drummer for the Temptations, Gladys Knight, and the Supremes. His older brother, Ronald Jr., played drums for legendary L.A. punks Suicidal Tendencies. In 2003, Bruner joined his brother in the band and got a crash course in life on the road.

“The first time I ever got into a bar fight was when we were on tour somewhere in Eastern Europe, and I guess some of the locals didn’t take kindly to us,” he recalls. “It just turned into a scene like a Burt Reynolds movie. At one point I had a chair in my hands, and someone threw a bike through a window. We all ran thinking the cops would come and arrest everyone, but then we realized we’d left some friends at the bar. We went back, and everyone is still there sitting getting drunk like it never happened.”

Bruner went on to do stints with Snoop Dogg and Erykah Badu, among many others, but it’s his playing on Kendrick Lamar’s To Pimp a Butterfly that has been Bruner’s most impactful work. His fellow Comptonite’s jazz-infused 2015 album features Thundercat’s imprint across several tracks, including “These Walls,” which earned a Grammy for Best Rap/Sung Performance in 2016. “I knew when we were recording that album that something was happening—that it would be bigger than the music,” he says. “Because of the way Kendrick was starting to use his voice at such a crucial time in American history, it’s kind of stuck to the ribs of the culture.”

The full scale of Bruner Bruner’ss collaborations and discography is remarkable, and yet his main muse continues continue to be his cat, Turbo Tron Over 9000 Baby Jesus Sally—or just Tron if you’re feeling familiar. She’s the subject of several Thundercat s songs, including “Tron Song Song” and “A Fan’s Mail (Tron Song Suite II),” and Bruner is more than B has grown stronger happy to report their bond h through the quarantine.

“I’m kissing her in the mouth more often,” he deadpans. “She can’t push me away because she doesn’t have thumbs.” th

“I knew when we were r recording that tha album that ssomething was happening.” ha THUNDERCAT TH ON WORKING WITH W KENDRICK LAMAR KEND

PA R K E R DAY

The Inside Guide

20/21 SEASON There’s nothing like the experience of live music.

Now more than ever, music’s ability to bring us together in a spirit of joy and community is vital. We’re planning another season of great music and look forward to sharing it with you.

CARLA MORRISON

GUSTAVO DUDAMEL

C E C E WINANS

HERBIE HANCOCK

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PINK MARTINI

Subscribe Today! laphil.com | 323 850 2000 Groups (10+) 323 850 2050 Programs, artists, prices, and dates subject to change.

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The Inside Guide

TECH

A Zoom With a View

@PATFREAK » Now you can chill at LACMA’s perpetually mobbed Urban Light installation without putting down your macchiato.

STUCK IN YOUR STUDIO? OUR DOWNLOADABLE CITY BACKGROUNDS WILL SPICE UP THE DULLEST VIDEO CHATS B Y L I N D A I M M E D I AT O

F I R S T T H E R E WA S S kype, then FaceTime, and now most

@DESPINOZA_PHOTOGRAPHY » Laker fans can fly their true colors backed by the late, great Kobe Bryant.

HOW TO GET THEM

> Download these Zoom backgrounds shared with LAMag.com by local shutterbugs—just scan the QR code at right with your smartphone.

28 L A M AG . C O M

@JUSTNICOLELAIRD » With PRIDE celebrations largely canceled this year, this rainblow-hued mise-en-scène offers hope for the future.

WO M A N : TO M W E R N E R /G E T T Y I M AG E S 0

of us are all too familiar with Zoom. The video chat app, initially known for hosting office meetings, has become the goto option for hanging out with family and friends while in isolation.

DJs use it to host all-night dance parties, chefs host virtual cooking classes, and yoga instructors and meditation gurus connect with classes online. Celebrities from Sean Penn to Pee-wee Herman have opened their homes to public scrutiny. In fact, a favorite new pastime for bored quarantiners is judging the houses and offices of famous people Zooming in on TV. But not everyone’s residence is ready for a close-up. While the lockdown endures, up your production values with these chat backgrounds we’ve curated that bring the best of L.A. to your next virtual cocktail hour.

Sharper Image NOW MORE THAN EVER, WE’RE TETHERED TO OUR PHONES AS THEY’VE BECOME LIFELINES TO FRIENDS AND FAMILY. SO PUT YOUR BEST FACE FORWARD WITH THESE COOL GADGETS TO ENHANCE YOUR LOOK B Y L I N D A I M M E D I AT O

@JDUBYAH_ » Don your Dodger cap, barbecue a foot long, make a michelada, and root, root, root for your home team.

SA N I T I Z E I T This PhoneSoap smartphone sanitizer uses UVC light technology to kill germs that liquid cleansers cannot (it can also disinfect anything that fits inside—credit cards, keys, and earbuds). Plus, it multitaks as a batter charger. $79.99 at phonesoap.com

@M_KIMAZ » Remember the insane crowds on the Venice Boardwalk?

Don’t worry, they’ll return soon. But for now you can enjoy it solo.

V E N I C E B E AC H B OA R DWA L K : M I C H A E L K I M A Z

@CLOUDDOTTIR » Channel this year’s postdrought poppy superbloom with this petals-pushing facsimile from the desert.

@CONEXAO.AMERICA » Spice up your night with some corn dogs and deep-fried Oreos at the L.A. County Fair.

STRIKE A POSE You took hours to make up your face, you blow-dried your hair, and you’re wearing your best man-eating minidress, but the light in your apartment isn’t doing you any favors. This ring light from Myriann promises Kardashian-level selfies with three settings to correct backlighting. $5.66 at lightinthebox.com

GET LIT The Lume Cube light kit comes with everything you need to take professional photos or videos—a mountable flash, diffuser, and multiple gels—so you always look your best. Want to get in touch with your inner Jacques Cousteau? It’s waterproof up to 100 feet—even if your phone is not. $119.95 at apple.com

POCKET DRONE Your photos and TikTok vids should garner lots of likes with dramatic aerial shots captured by the AEE Selfly smartphone drone. It’s lightweight and folds into a 10 mm carrying case so you can take it with you anywhere your essential-only travels take you. $89 at bhphotovideo.com

L A M AG . C O M 29

The Inside Guide

BOOKS VA L L E Y G I R L

Neely O’Hara (Patty Duke) desperately reaches for her meds in Valley of the Dolls

Darling Clementine, The Naked City, The Miracle Worker, and My Fair Lady. They’d amassed eight Academy Awards and an additional 22 nominations, and that’s just the tip of a very large iceberg that doesn’t even include young musical director John Williams, who would go on to become his own Oscar juggernaut for George Lucas and Steven Spielberg. In short these people were pros, and they had all the resources of 20th Century Fox at their disposal.

Sometimes Rebello’s research is a little too exhaustive. My eyes glazed over at the names of every luminary in Hollywood who wanted in on the picture, only to later thank their lucky stars they hadn’t been involved.

(Barbra Streisand, pursued avidly by the producers, was one of the few shrewd enough to say no thanks). But the book’s reportage and gossip are often irresistible and sometimes A NEW BOOK CHRONICLING THE DIVAS AND DRAMA INVOLVED jaw-dropping, from director Mark Robson IN THE VALLEY OF THE DOLLS MOVIE PROVES EVEN timing his takes with a stopwatch to GarMORE ENTERTAINING THAN THE SOURCE MATERIAL land, originally cast (and later replaced) in

BY STEVE ERICKSON a role based on Ethel Merman (with whom Susann had a torrid affair) playing opposite Duke in a role based on Garland. Let the T E P H E N R E B E L L O ’ S Dolls! presiding over the rest of the best-sellers mind mull awhile that tangled web.

Dolls! Dolls!: Deep Inside Vallist for the better part of a year. A movie Most interesting is the fact that Dolls, ley of the Dolls, the Most Beloved was in the works before the book was pubas Old Hollywood as could be with its abBad Book and Movie of All Time lished—when the filmmakers had no idea surd attempt at sanitizing (Penguin) is that rare film book that’s more what they even would have the very salaciousness that interesting than the film it’s about. More in their hands. made the novel a blockbustthan that, it’s more interesting than the Rebello writes with wit, er, opened four months afbook that the movie was based on. (At this insight, and the passion of ter Bonnie and Clyde and rate someone will eventually write somesomeone who believes Valley exactly one week before The thing about Rebello’s book more compelof the Dolls to be the “most Graduate—the two films of ling than Rebello’s book, though this rebeloved bad book and movie 1967 that heralded the arview probably isn’t it.) of all time.” I accept his ferrival of New Holly wood Valley of the Dolls, for anyone reading vor on its face even as the evand the groundbreaking this who’s younger than the sun, was a 1966 idence suggests otherwise. I cinema of the ’70s. Consider novel by ex-everything (-actress, -model, had never seen the movDolls! Dolls! Dolls! then as -playwright, -producer, -entrepreneur, -opie until I read Dolls! Dolls! part of a triptych that also portunist) Jacqueline Susann about women Dolls!, and what struck me includes Quentin Tarantion the way up and on the way down in the wasn’t simply that it’s virBarbra Streisand, no’s Once Upon a Time in entertainment business. The “dolls” referred tually unwatchable but how pursued avidly Hollywood and Sam Wasnot only to the characters but also the pills something so soul-corrosiveby the producers, son’s recent book, The Big that kept them thin, kept them calm, kept ly bad could result from the was one of the few Goodbye: Chinatown and them asleep, kept them awake, and eventutalent, effort, and dedicashrewd enough to the Last Years of Hollyally made them crazy. The story borrowed tion that went into it. Over say no thanks. wood. Taking in the works heavily from the lives of star-crossed divas the years the director, writtogether, one marvels at the and hot messes like Judy Garland and Mariers, cinematographer, editor, few scant degrees of separalyn Monroe. And for all my snark there’s no songwriters, and stars such tion between Dolls, Tate, Roman Polanski, getting around the fact that Susann knew as Patty Duke, Susan Hayward, Lee Grant, Chinatown, and Tarantino. The sea change the subject matter, and she knew how to and a touching if inept Sharon Tate, previhappened so fast that the shores of Vine tell a story that riveted the world. Valley of ously had been attached to films like Citizen Street could barely distinguish the adrift the Dolls wasn’t just huge, it was a phenomKane, The Magnificent Ambersons, Greed, from the drowned. enon of almost preposterous dimensions, Ninotchka, The Shop Around the Corner, My

Behind the Queens

30 L A M AG . C O M

I L LU S T R AT I O N BY PI X E L P U S H E R

I L LU ST R AT I O N S O U R C E M AT E R I A L : G E T T Y I M AG E S ; D O L LS ! D O L LS ! D O L LS ! : CO U RT E SY P E N G U I N R A N D O M H O U S E

S

The Inside Guide

ACC E S S O R I E S

DON KAKA » Don Kaka is killing it on TikTok. The designer was known for his bucolic patterned woven jackets, but since the pandemic his tapestry masks have stolen the spotlight. Fans say they build their outfits around them. $29 at donkaka.com

LE SUPERBE » The SoCal vibe of Jeannine Braden, founder and designer of Le Superbe, is expressed through colorful floral, tropical, animal, and camo prints in this season’s bright summer hues.

Some even feature her signature beaded trim. $15 at shoplesuperbe.com

BIJAN » Bijan, famous for overthe-top creations such as Paul Manafort’s blue ostrich jacket, donated these logo-emblazoned medicalgrade shields, made from recyclable plastic, to first responders and the homeless. $40 at bijan.com

DOLAN » Designer Jodie Dolan created masks with stripes, chevrons, and cheery sayings like “Today is full of possibilities” and “Live in the Sunshine.” The female-run company donated 50,000 masks to health care workers. $10 at shopdolan.com

AMIGA WILD » Venice shop Amiga Wild has whipped up masks for adults and kids. Check out its Art Deco dots, tiny hearts, and block prints.

Each one has an inside pocket to hold a filter and is machine washable and dryer safe. $15 at amigawild.com

Take Cover

LOCAL AND LUXURY FASHION DESIGNERS HAVE TRANSFORMED MEDICAL MASKS INTO MODES OF SELF-EXPRESSION

BY MERLE GINSBERG

» W H O WO U L D ’ V E I M AG I N E D that surgical masks would be this summer’s

RIPLEY RADER » Local designer Ripley Rader enlisted dozens of people to make a hundred masks in a single weekend.

Her Look Good, Do Good campaign donates two masks to medical professionals for every one purchased. $22 to $25 at ripleyrader.com 3 2 L A M AG . C O M

hottest accessory? But Governor Gavin Newsom warned that even when the seemingly endless stay-at-home order ends, Angelenos could be wearing masks into 2021. These days the whole city is in disguise, like characters in the sex-party scene in Eyes Wide Shut. Coronavirus coverings started out as basic protection for front liners, but now they’ve morphed into a plethora of styles to suit everyone from socialites to superhero fans. Dior and Louis Vuitton have gotten into the mask game. Norma Kamali posted instructions on how to turn her turbans into stylish masks. Meanwhile, bandannas work just fine for summer. We’ve curated the most decorative options—all of which can be purchased online.

BOA » Brad Thompson is the Jasper Johns of designers: He’s known for flag prints on his garments and—now—face coverings.

But BOA just wants to have fun: with banana prints, party goats, and crazy cat patterns. Three for $40 at boausa.com

KID’S DREAM » Whimsical rainbows, ice cream cones, stars and stripes, and fish faces work for every member of the family. Our favorite print is money.

Because money talks even when you can’t. $6.50 ($12 with filter) at kidsdreamus.com

SCALAMANDRE » The famed Italian fabric house, now headquartered in L.A., teamed with MaskClub to make über-chic masks in toile with rainforest motifs or animal images, like a red-and-black zebra print. $13.99 at maskclub.com

MASKCLUB » Here’s where you can find Batman, Betty Boop, Care Bears, and NASAthemed masks. Detroit’s Trevco Company, in partnership with First Responders Children’s Foundation, made masks with all of its licensees. $13.99 at maskclub.com

MATRUSHKA » Cats are known to break the internet. And feline fans will love these bright kitty wraps, which are 100 percent cotton and reversible and coordinate with matching dresses.

Matrushka also sells shark and alien prints. $13 at matrushka.com

A L L I M AG E S CO U RT E SY O F B R A N DS

JOHNNY WAS » The brand repurposed fabrics to create masks, delivering 10,000 to essential and health care workers. And others are for sale, with a percentage of the profits being donated to medical personnel.

Five for $25, 50 for $250 at johnnywas.com

The Inside Guide

E AT E M P T Y TA B L E S

Customers have yet to see inside the new Culver City Go Get Em Tiger (left) or Interstellar in Santa Monica

Closed for Business

After long dreaming of opening their own restaurant, Angie and Daniel Kim debuted their all-day Santa Monica café, Interstellar, on April 7. They had debated whether to go forward, but with an understanding landlord and supportive investors, they decided to go for it. “A really big concern for us was our employees,” says Angie, adding that they’ve been able to keep two kitchen staffers working.

“We’re not really trying to make a profit at this point.”

A HANDFUL OF NEW RESTAURANTS HAVE OPENED The Kims had to rapidly adjust the menu, adding items like a FOR TAKEOUT AND DELIVERY AMID THE COVID-19 DIY affogato kit, and figure out how to package dishes like seared SHUTDOWN—SOME WITH SURPRISING SUCCESS branzino with dashi broth to go.

BY HAILEY EBER “It’s really tricky. We didn’t think we’d be doing everything in takeout boxes,” says Angie.

They’ve also recalibrated their expectations. With the café near the beach and several hotels, the young couple had planned on H E B U I L D - O U T WA S complete. Staff had been heavy foot traffic to drive business. “Some days it’s really slow,” says hired and trained. The kitchen was stocked. The Angie. “It does make me feel a bit anxious.” opening party was on the calendar. Everything was For new businesses that always intended to be delivery-onin place for Go Get Em Tiger to debut its Culver City ly, the shutdown has been easier but not without its challenges. café in late March—until Los Angeles Mayor Eric After a year developing a special cauliflower rice for his sushi, Garcetti and his fellow local mayors ordered that all bars and resEi Hiroyoshi, former chef at Sasabune Beverly Hills, proceeded with taurants shutter for dine-in service in mid-March. the launch of his low-carb sushi ghost-kitchen concept, Skinny Fish, After considering their options, the company’s cofounders, Kyle in mid-April. His brand strategy partner Anna Drabik says they see Glanville and Charles Babinski, decided to open rather than lay off a market in the current moment. “We ultimately dethe workers. “It seemed like a very low-risk thing,” cided that people needed to step away from the pasta says Glanville. “I personally enjoy opportunities to so we wanted to give them the option,” she says. go against the flow of things.”

But Hiroyoshi admits business is “not booming Customers can order coffee drinks, salads, sandcrazy yet.” wiches, and pantry items via an app for contact-free Things are booming for Krispy Rice, another new pickup outside the shop. The Culver City location is delivery-only sushi concept, albeit with more carbs. bringing in roughly 30 percent less business than Chef Martin Heierling, who oversees culinary ophad been projected before the pandemic. Nevertheerations for Krispy Rice’s parent company, SBE, says less, “it’s actually doing pretty well and justifying its G OI NG F OR I T business is more than triple what they anticipated. existence,” says Glanville.

Go Get Em Tiger’s Kyle “It creates some issues because we did not plan for While many L.A.-area restaurants have closed Glanville says opening a café now “felt like a the amount of packaging we’d need,” he says. “We’re completely amid the quarantine, a few newbies have stronger way to operate.” not celebrating. ... Hopefully the shutdown is going opened during this trying time, joining the ranks of to end sooner than later.” older spots offering takeout and delivery.

3 4 L A M AG . C O M

A L L I M AG E S CO U RT E SY O F R E STAU R A N TS

T

I N T H E FA M I LY Mother-in-Law’s version of the fermented Korean chile sauce known as gochujang was inspired by the Garden Grove restaurant of founder Lauryn Chun’s mother. $38 for four jars at milkimchi.com

LEMON AID New York Shuk’s Harissa with Preserved Lemon adds a bright, citrusy twist to the always delicious Middle Eastern paste. $15.95 at nyshuk.com

Turn Up The Heat

TIRED OF WHATEVER’S FOR DINNER TONIGHT? THESE FIERY SAUCES, ALL AVAILABLE ONLINE, ARE A QUICK, EASY WAY TO ADD A LITTLE SPICE TO YOUR COOKING—AND LIFE INDOORS. BONUS: THEY ALSO MAKE GREAT GIFTS FOR DAD

BU Z Z Y S T U F F This chili-infused honey has a gentle heat that’s great on pepperoni pizza and fried chicken. $10 at mikeshothoney.com

BY HAILEY EBER

H AU T E S T U F F Truff’s beautifully packaged white-truffle-infused hot sauce instantly elevates scrambled eggs to something special. $34.99 at truffhotsauce.com

M I X I NG I T U P The Weak Knees combo of Thai sriracha and Korean gochujang is a bit spicy, a bit sweet, a little funky, and totally tasty. $9.99 at bushwickkitchen.com

V E G GI E-LICIOUS Carrots tame the heat of habaneros just enough in L.A.-based Fuego Spice Co.’s Zana sauce. $7.95 at fuegobox.com

EXPERT PICK

Adam Perry Lang

A L L I M AG E S CO U R T E SY O F B R A N DS

Chef, APL Restaurant

NO RT H E R N S TA R The Pique sauce from Puerto Rican restaurant Sol Food in San Rafael is delightfully tangy. $12 at solfoodsauce.com

LIFE IS SWEET—AND SPICY Tutto Calabria’s crushed hot chili peppers add a bellisimo kick to pizza and pasta. $6.28 at supermarketitaly.com

NICE CRISPIES Based in DTLA, Fly by Jing’s Sichuan Chili Crisp offers the same crunchy pleasures as classic condiments of this sort— but with natural ingredients. $15 at flybyjing.com

> “My absolute favorite is Cutino Sauce Co.’s habanero hot sauce.

It has a kick but not at the expense of losing the beautiful floral fruitiness of the peppers.

It has balance, maintains its character, isn’t irresponsibly scorching, and works well to balance out dishes.” $8 at cutinosauce.com

L A M AG . C O M 35

The Inside Guide

STYLE

8

Hot Enough For You?

1

EVERYTHING YOU NEED FOR AN EPIC SUMMER— WHETHER IT’S JUST TO IMPRESS ON A GROCERY RUN OR TO FINALLY BE OUT AND ABOUT

2

BY MERLE GINSBERG

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WOMEN 1. SUNGLASSES L.A.’s SAMA eyewear by founder Sheila Vance combines high design with luxe fabrications.

The Francesco frame, a fave of recent L.A. resident Meghan Markle, is a chic version of the 1940s intellectual look, which never goes out of style. It’s available in several variations, including: blush, olive, black, matte gray, and tortoise. $395 at samaeyewearshop.com

2. DRESS Eventually you will score that hot date or have to attend a friend’s wedding or a garden party. Or maybe you’ll just want to look stunning for your next remote digital meeting. This Prada dress has a green garden print, an on-trend puff sleeve, and a handkerchief hem. In oth36 L A M AG . C O M

er words: It checks all of the boxes. $2,680 at prada.com

3. SKIRT Requirements of any new summer skirt: It must be light, flowy, colorful, and comfortable—and sexy while not trying too hard.

It also must work with any tank top, camisole, cardigan, or Tshirt you own. And the garment must never wrinkle so you can pack it for your next vacation.

Rixo London’s sunset dip dye silk skirt will be your new go-to. $330 at rixo.co.uk

4. BLOUSE Made of pure cotton, this button-down shirt from COS is voluminous enough to keep you comfortable around the house on hot days but can also serve as a beach cover-up or pair with slim white cigarette pants and kitten heels when you head back to the office. $99 at cosstores.com

3 7 5. SHORTS Bermudas are the hot length this year. AG’s Nikki low-rise denim version is cooler than the styles your grandma wore and dressier than traditional Daisy Duke cutoffs. They easily go from day (flip-flops and a white tank) to night (strappy high heels and a silk cami). Try them with a bikini top for a sunset beach walk followed by margaritas. $168 at saksfifthavenue.com

6. PANTS Yeah, yeah, we’re all sick of slouching around in slacker sweats. For a more upscale look that you can wear long after the quarantine is lifted, these wide-leg silk drawstring pants from Max Mara look great with sandals or heels and are cozy enough to sleep in. $695 at maxmara.com

7. FOOTWEAR If you’re gonna go chunky funky,

these Marni sandals (in olive and pink!) are the footsie equivalent of pastel sweatpants. Wear for home hangouts or combine with sequins—and take them to Coachella in October. $690 at marni.com

8. HAT The bucket is back for the second summer in a row. After months of bad-hair days, it’s a welcome way to cover unwanted roots from sight or to protect your face from the sun. Ganni’s lime-green offering makes every look a statement. $85 at saksfifthavenue.com

9. SWIMSUIT We’ve all heard of the itsy-bitsy, teenie-weenie, yellow-polka-dot bikini, but this retro one-piece from Laguna Beach-based Mikoh is more au courant. If you’re into showing more skin, the same pattern comes in two-piece styles. $218 at shop.mikoh.com

A L L I M AG E S CO U RT E SY O F B R A N DS

I L L W E S TAY or will we go? This is the biggest question of summer 2020 after months of staring at walls, spouses, pets, unforgiving mirrors, and computer screens. Will we spring free of quarantine in time for some warm-weather socializing? And will we be able to shop in actual stores or will we still be relegated to online purchasing? This season’s wardrobe challenge is certainly novel given our binary lives: Zooming or swimming at the beach?

Cooking for one or barbecuing with friends? Whatever the immediate future holds, here’s a shopping list of items that will work whether we’re still social distancing or newly released social butterflies. Bonus: They’re classic enough to enter your permanent wardrobe rotation. After all, indoor-outdoor has always been the L.A. lifestyle—just not quite this extreme.

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MEN 10. SHIRT

D E N N I S Q UA I D : G E T T Y I M AG E S

Nothing says summer and warm weather like a loud patterned shirt. Just think of the throngs of tourists on Hollywood Boulevard—or ’80s sex symbol Tom Selleck as Magnum P.I. J. Crew partnered with U.K. fashion brand Liberty London, known for its whimsical floral fabrics, for a modern spin on the trusty Hawaiian shirt. It can be worn with cargo shorts for a casual vibe or with a suit for a playful polished look. To go full P.I. Just add a mustache. $118 at jcrew.com

many forced to work from home.

These from Get Rich, founded by Compton rapper Kee Riche$, come in many colors and styles.

You can definitely wear them to the gym, but you won’t get caught without your pants during your next Zoom meeting if you throw a pair of these on.

You can live in them. $30 at shopgetrich.bigcartel.com

12. DENIM JACKET Every man and every chilly L.A. summer night demands the perfect denim jacket. This one from Zara is a little longer, has a lapel collar and buttoned cuffs and comes in medium blue, light blue, and black. $49.90 at zara.com

11. SWEATPANTS

13. SWIM TRUNKS

Once mainly the wardrobe staple of gym rats, sweatpants have long since been co-opted by streetwear designers and their fans—and are now treasured by

Celebrated French swimwear brand Vilebrequin evokes the spirit of St. Tropez in the ’70s, where and when the label was founded. Famed for its fanciful,

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flattering prints (think lobsters and turtles) and bright shades, the company also makes subtle solids in great styles. $190 at vilebrequin.com

14. SHOES Office, home office, café, evening stroll: Zegna’s off-white calf-leather Tiziano sneakers are so slipper-soft, so comfy—but still hip as hell. Think Dickie Greenleaf (Matt Damon in The Talented Mr. Ripley) summering in Positano crossed with moon boots. $750 at zegna.us.com

SHADES

15. Oliver Peoples’s Cary Grant frame was created in collaboration with the late actor’s estate.

The iconic silhouette was inspired by the pair Mr. Grant wore in the 1959 thriller North

by Northwest. It’s available in dusty olive, carbon gray, Grant tortoise, black, and brown. $432 at oliverpeoples.com

EXPERT PICK

Dennis Quaid Actor

> “I’m reading the Ronald Reagan biography Bob Spitz’s Reagan: An American Journey in preparation to play Reagan in a feature film later this year. The book is an all-encompassing tome of Reagan’s life from childhood until after he left office and gives a very in-depth account of his principles, ideas, and philosophy and also the people and institutions that influenced him. I suggest reading the biography of someone you would like to pretend to be.” $18.49 at amazon.com

L A M AG . C O M 37

Go Global ...

The international organization InterPride is collaborating with the European Pride Organizers Association for Global Pride, a 24-hour livestreamed celebration with speeches, musical performances, and contributions from various regional Pride festivals.

June 27, globalpride2020 .org

Or Keep It Local Every year West Hollywood’s Arts Division organizes the One City One Pride LGBTQ Arts Festival, which runs from Harvey Milk Day (May 22) through the end of June.

This year the event will feature a variety of online programs, including a staged reading of Dear Harvey by Patricia Loughrey, the Alliance of Los Angeles Playwrights Pride Playreading Festival, and an interactive Pride Poetry event.

May 22-June 30, weho.org/pride

Shake It Off Lez Croix has been organizing alternative, queer-inclusive parties marking Pride weekend 38 L A M AG . C O M

PRIDE

Party Still On!

THOUGH JUNE’S PRIDE FESTIVITIES HAVE BEEN CANCELED OR POSTPONED, YOU CAN STILL CELEBRATE—VIRTUALLY B Y Z O I E M AT T H E W A N D S C H U Y L E R M I T C H E L L

since 2017, and this year it’ll be continuing that tradition—virtually. On June 12 at 8 p.m., it’s throwing an online dance party called Mask/Femme Friday, and on June 14 at 2 p.m., it’s hosting the We Are Essential Sunday soiree. @lezcroix on Instagram and Facebook

lifting speeches and messages, storytelling, and more. June 22, @them on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook

Feed Your Appetite The new cookbook Tasty Pride (available in hardcover and on Kindle) features 75 recipes and stories from those in the queer community, including Queer Eye favorite Antoni Porowski and Modern Family’s Jesse Tyler Ferguson. Out now from Penguin Random House

Hit the Pubs

Go to Your Zoom

Condé Nast’s LGBTQ brand, them, will feature some of its favorite performers, artists, and activists in Out Now Live, a virtual pride festival broadcast over the publication’s social media channels. The fest will include performances, up-

Get ready to turn your living room into a dance floor. Two of L.A.’s hottest events are teaming to throw a Zoom blowout called Gay Ass Divorce on June 13. Gay Asstrology will supply the dancepop music, while Bar Franca’s Divorce Party,

hosted by DJ Couples Therapy, will add ’90s hip-hop and R&B to the mix. It’ll kick off with a happy hour at 7 p.m. @divorce_partyla and @gayasstrology on Instagram

Get Kinky Dominatrix Mistress Justine Cross is putting together Los Angeles Kink Pride online. There will be virtual tours of Dungeon West and Dungeon East, BDSM classes, a guided meditation to get in touch with your proclivities, perverted arts and crafts, a leather social hosted by the fetish gear maker Deviant, and more. Starting June 8, LAKink pride.com

Get in the Pink Tune in to the inaugural edition of PinkNews’s online festival Pride for All to watch panel discussions, music sessions,

drag tutorials, and Q&As with LGBTQ notables.

June 4-7, pinknews.co.uk

Story Time While local drag queens have had to stop holding Drag Queen Story Hours at public libraries, the fabulous readings are still happening online several times a week with queens like Elecktra, Flame, and Panda Dulce. Facebook .com/dragqueenstory hour

Kick It Up Adidas’s annual Pride shoe collection features six silhouettes inspired by the rainbow flag. Priced from $30 to $180, the sneakers and slides will help you keep it colorful even though you can’t strut your stuff at the parade. adidas.com

And There’s More This year is the 50th anniversary of the L.A. Pride Parade and Festival; virtual plans are being solidified. See lapride.org for updates. Details are also still to come for the Abbey’s celebration. In the meantime catch its drag shows at facebook .com/abbeyweho.

A N TO N I P O R OWS K I , N I N A W E ST, L A PTO P : G E T T Y I M AG E S ; TAST Y P R I D E CO O K B O O K : CO U RT E SY P E N G U I N RA N D O M H O U S E ; J U ST I N E C R OSS : CO U RT E SY J U ST I N E C R OSS ; P R I D E FO R A L L P H O N E M O C K- U P : P I N K N E WS ; S N E A K E R : CO U RT E SY A D I DAS ; O U T N OW L I V E P OST E R : CO U RT E SY T H E M

The Inside Guide

PRIDE

Power Player

HOLLAND TAYLOR DISHES ON THE ROLE OF HER LIFETIME—TAKING THE STAGE AS LATE TEXAS GOVERNOR ANN RICHARDS—CELEBRATING PRIDE WITH SARAH PAULSON, AND WHEN WE’LL FINALLY HAVE A FEMALE PRESIDENT

BY JOR DA N R I E F E

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H E N I T C O M E S to Pride, Holland Taylor isn’t too worried about the lack of a parade and other big group festivities this year. “I celebrate with Sarah every day and am grateful we’re in a society which is growing up,” says the 77-year-old, whose partner is fellow actress Sarah Paulson.

Taylor, best known for playing serial-marrying mother Evelyn Harper on Two and a Half Men, has been keeping busy while homebound, using Marco Polo and FaceTime to stay in touch with friends and family.

“I’m much more mindful of my community than I usually am,” she says. “I’m trying to be very positive about it all.”

She’s also been preparing for the revival of her one-woman play, Ann, about celebrated Texas Governor Ann Richards, at the Pasadena Playhouse.

Originally set to open in late May, it’s T been KTKTR IN postponed indefinitely, but tktkah Citrin hopes to tktktk viewers watch Taylor in the part tktkttktkearncan Michtkt on PBS this month: A 2013 production of the play in Austin, Texas, will air June 19 as part of the channel’s Great Performances series.

“It’s the work of my career,” Taylor declares of the role that she wrote and first played in Galveston, Texas, in 2010. “The past 13 years of my life have been informed and shaped by it.”

Richards was a liberal who, after two terms as state treasurer, became governor of the Lone Star State in 1990, only the second woman in Texas history to do so. Known for her brassy personality, wicked wit, and down-home plain speech, her keynote address at the 1988 Democratic National 40 L A M AG . C O M

Convention catapulted her onto the national stage. At that event she derided then-Vice President George H.W. Bush, saying, “I’m delighted to be here with you this evening because, after listening to George Bush all these years, I figured you needed to know what a real Texas accent sounds like.” She then followed with: “Poor George, he can’t help it. He was born with a silver foot in his mouth.”

Taylor was a fan of Richards from afar, and met her only once in the early aughts when they were brought together by a mutual friend, New York Daily News gossip columnist and Texas native Liz Smith.

“She was exactly like one’s most beloved

aunt: wonderful, very salty, could be very tough on people, did not suffer fools, and was deliciously funny,” Taylor recalls of Richards. “I told her two jokes, a story that made her laugh and a joke that made her laugh, and I don’t think I’ve ever been so gratified in my life. If you did something that tickled Ann Richards, there was no reward greater on Earth.”

When the former governor died of cancer in 2006 at age 73, the actress was surprised at the degree of mourning and despondency she suffered, as if there was some deep personal connection. She decided to channel her feelings into telling Richards’s story on-screen. But while driving to work for Two and a Half Men, it struck her–this project is for the stage. She pulled over, and the scenario, structure, and time line came together in her imagination.

“I sat there on the service road by Barham [Boulevard], and it flooded my head,” she says. “Ten minutes later I started up the car again and went to work—never looked back.”

Instead of reupping on the hit CBS sitcom, she settled for occasional appearances and funneled her time and effort into Ann. After its Galveston premiere, the show went on to Austin, Chicago, and Washington, D.C., before hitting Broadway in 2013, though some had reservations about mounting such a seemingly political piece on the Great White Way. “A lot of Republicans and conservatives who were normally theater investors were not interested in investing for the stated reason they didn’t want to do a story about a liberal hero,” says Taylor, who received a Tony nomination for her performance. “[It’s] funny because if you see the play it’s not remotely political.”

Had Richards chosen to run for president, Taylor believes the governor might have had a pretty good shot at becoming the country’s first woman to win the White House. She thinks Stacey Abrams will be a serious contender in 2024 or 2028. “She’s an amazing person,” Taylor says of the 2018 Georgia gubernatorial candidate. “If you want something done, get a woman to do it.”

“If you did something that tickled Ann Richards, there was no reward greater on Earth.”

P L ATO N

The Inside Guide

LOS ANGELES MAGAZINE LAUNCHES NEW DIGITAL ADVERTISING SERVICES

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OUTINGS

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Garden Party FOLLOWING A YEARLONG, $24 MILLION CONSTRUCTION PROJECT, THE HUNTINGTON’S CHINESE GARDEN IS NOW A SPRAWLING 12 ACRES—AND ONE OF THE LARGEST OF ITS KIND IN THE WORLD

BY HAILEY EBER

T H E H U N T I N G T O N L I B RA RY, Art Museum, and Botanical

Gardens has long been a lovely place to spend an afternoon.

As we all start to get outside again, the institution is more vital than ever. After more than a year of construction, the final phase of the Chinese Garden is complete, expanding the attraction to 12 stunning acres from its initial three and a half. The garden’s curator, Phillip E. Bloom, says the expansion comes at a crucial time, with Asian Americans facing increased racism. “Anything that can inspire empathy for other cultures, particularly the culture of China, is important right now,” Bloom says. Here, he guides us through some of the key features.

4 2 L A M AG . C O M

1. STARGAZING TOWER Situated at the highest point on the property, this pavilion provides an unimpeded vantage point for visitors to take in everything. ”You get a view of the whole garden, and it also looks out on to the Mount Wilson Observatory,” says Bloom. The founder of the observatory, astronomer George Ellery Hale, was a friend of Henry Huntington and was the one who convinced him to turn his library into a public institution. The tower’s name pays homage to Hale and his fellow astronomer Edwin Powell Hubble, who was a neighbor of Huntington and whose papers are part of the library’s holdings in the history of science.

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2. PAVILION ENCIRCLED BY JADE This new café offers a more formal dining experience than the Chinese Garden’s everpopular dumpling and noodle house. “It will be very nice to have a full-service restaurant [with a] proper kitchen,” says Bloom.

3. REFLECTIONS IN THE STREAM AND FRAGRANCE OF ORCHIDS PAVILION “It’s one of the more tranquil spots in the

garden,” says Bloom. “It’s really quite beautiful, with all sorts of flowering fruit trees.”

poetry,” explains Bloom. Behind it will be an art gallery (not pictured) called the Studio for Lodging the Mind.

6. BRIDGE OF THE JOY OF FISH Walk over water on this structure, named for a story by Taoist philosopher Zhuangzi in which two men argue about whether one can really know the happiness of a fish without being one himself. Bloom says the question “has inspired several thousand years of debates in China.”

7. PAVILION OF THREE FRIENDS This area is named after the Three

4. GARDEN OF FALLING PETALS “There are two very, very large

California live oaks [200 to 300 years old] that have actually grown together into one huge tree,” says Bloom. “It’s a particularly beautiful spot.”

5. FLOWERY BRUSH LIBRARY This replica of a scholar’s studio in the Ming dynasty lets visitors try their hand at calligraphy. “This kind of garden would have been constructed by [a scholar]— someone who had gone through a series of exams to become a bureaucrat ... and did all sorts of calligraphy and painting and

Friends of Winter—a grouping of pine, flowering plum, and bamboo that is common in Chinese literature. “These are all plants that are seen as symbolizing resilience. Pine is evergreen; flowering plum is the first plant to bloom each spring,” often when it is snowy and other plants are still dormant; and “bamboo bends but never breaks,” says Bloom.

8. VERDANT MICROCOSM Here, visitors can enjoy tiny plants called

penjing, which are similar to Japanese bonsai but are often styled as part of elaborate miniature landscapes.

L A M AG . C O M 43

Media

A L E X B H AT TA C H A R J I

Trade Secrets OVER THE PAST DECADE THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER DUG UP SOME OF THE INDUSTRY’S BIGGEST SCANDALS. THEN A PAIR OF MOVIE PRODUCERS TOOK IT OVER. WHAT COULD POSSIBLY GO WRONG?

4 4 L A M AG . C O M

ecutive confronted THR editorial director Matt Belloni at the Globes. The complaint: THR shouldn’t have reported news about the possible sequel ahead of an official announcement.

The episode was regarded by THR editors as another sign that the top executives at Valence, the entertainment company that owns THR and MRC as well as music industry paper Billboard and Dick Clark Productions, was ignorant or disdainful of the most basic tenets of journalism. In an industry in which conflicts of interest abound, The Hollywood Reporter, once the least savory of the industry’s trade publications, had spent the better part of a decade—and many millions of dollars—building up a reputation for independence and propriety. But last April, after a series of incursions into the publication’s editorial affairs culminated in Belloni announcing his departure, its reputation was in doubt.

If anyone was aware that hard-hitting journalism could force a person out of a job, it was Belloni, a 14-year THR veteran who ascended to the top of the masthead in 2017. Under his leadership, the magazine published a piece

by Kim Masters detailing sexual harassment allegations against Amazon Studios chief Roy Price, who resigned five days later, and a sexfor-casting exposé, cowritten by Masters and Tatiana Siegel, that led to the resignation of Warner Bros. CEO Kevin Tsujihara. So when

the publication’s dogged reporting cost Belloni his own job, there were many Hollywood heavyweights who were happy to see him go.

As it turned out, the contretemps over Knives Out was not Belloni’s first battle with MRC’s brass. According to sources close to the situation, top executives at Valence repeatedly sought to soften or interdict THR’s coverage of the people and companies doing business with Valence. Modi Wiczyk and Asif Satchu, the co-CEOS of Valence, as well as Deanna Brown, a managing director, took issue with what they perceived as negative reporting on the company’s business partners, demanding to be alerted when there were stories about any entities doing business with any branch of Valence (an extensive “sensitivity list”). The executives sought to kill other stories outright.

When Belloni resisted, tensions mounted.

In a remarkable mid-March video conference call with the editorial team and a moderator from the journalism nonprofit the Poynter Institute, Belloni laid out a long list of incidents of Valence’s interference and alleged attempts to ax stories and called out the company’s vice president of communications for accessing a Slack channel meant for editorial eyes only (the VP has since said it was inadvertent). “People were pretty blown away,” says one source who was on the call. “While I

G E T T Y I M AG E S

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I O N S G AT E ’ S pre-Golden Globes party, held at the Chateau Marmont the night before the January awards ceremony, was an event designed to elicit maximum buzz. It succeeded: As the booze flowed and the smell of weed wafted through the air, actors, filmmakers, and execs mingled and made nice with the many members of the press. Among the stars in attendance were Daniel Craig, Ana de Armas, and Chris Evans, the stars of Knives Out, which Lionsgate had released with film and TV production house Media Rights Capital. MRC’s track record includes the Netflix series Ozark and House of Cards and the movies Ted and Baby Driver.

At one point during the evening, Knives Out director Rian Johnson told an editor for The Hollywood Reporter—the trade magazine that shares a parent company with MRC—that he was already working on a sequel. Ram Bergman, Johnson’s producing partner, chimed in, saying that Craig had a blast and “wants to do more.” The chairman of Lionsgate told THR he was eager to read a script. And why not? The 2019 film was a hit, grossing more than $250 million and was up for three Globes and would later earn an Oscar nomination for Best Original Screenplay.

In an exclusive posted online early the next day, THR reported: This “could be the beginning of a lucrative franchise.”

The title Knives Out was lifted from a Radiohead song about cannibalism. Soon after the THR story went public, the title took on new meaning as MRC eviscerated the paper’s editors for publishing the piece. A company ex-

G E T T Y I M AG E S

was aw aware off some of this stuff before, when I hung up it was like, ‘Wow, this is bad.’ Matt carried on a pretty good poker face.” A little more than three weeks later, Belloni was gone.

Through a spokesperson, Valence declined all interview requests for this story and forwarded the same statement it had sent to various news outlets: “We are committed to our publications and to journalistic integrity. We are, and have been for the past 18 months, in the process of working with the Poynter Institute to follow modern best practices and maintain optimal editorial independence. We have implemented many of Poynter’s recommended changes and recently opened up the discussion beyond our leadership teams to all editorial staff.” The company had engaged Poynter in 2018 after a business executive at Billboard suppressed stories about sexual misconduct.

Belloni declined to comment beyond an email he sent to his staff announcing his departure. In that missive he called his exit “the result of a series of conversations I’ve had for a few months with Modi about the direction at THR. Some may want to read into that, but I’ll just say that well-meaning, diligent, ambitious people can disagree about fundamental priorities and strategies.”

For Belloni, those priorities included a critical April 2019 feature about Louise Linton, the controversial actress and producer who is married to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin. With Valence reeling from losses of a reported $100 million to $125 million on its massive sci-fi flop Mortal Engines, it would seem to have been a precarious time

responded by turning to a risk management company which brought in Charles Glasser, a former reporter turned attorney and media ethicist. Glasser is best known as a columnist for The Daily Caller, the right-wing website founded by Tucker Carlson that has been cited for misleading and false stories and publishing articles by white supremacists. Insiders say a few staff members at the magazine confronted Satchu about Glasser’s Twitter feed— which they claimed contained sexist and racially insensitive comments (Glasser rejects that characterization). Soon after, Satchu fired Glasser and brought in the Poynter Institute’s T H E P L AY E R S senior vice president Kelly McBride.

From left: fo former Hollywood Shortly after the Linton piece was pubReporter editors Janice Reporte Belloni; Min and Matthew M lished in April 2019, Satchu and Wiczyk hired Modi Wiczyk Wiczy (left) and Asif Deanna Brown, a well-traveled media exec Satchu, Valence’s Vale co-CEOS; Deanna Brown, B Valence’s who has served at seven organizations in the managing director ma past ten years, to head up the Billboard-Hollywood Reporter Group (rebranded this April as MRC Media). Referred to by several sources to anger a powerful figure with so many conas a “hatchet woman,” the hard-driving execunections in Hollywood finance. When Satchu tive repeatedly clashed with Belloni over critiheard from sources close to Mnuchin about cal coverage. During the March conference call, the story, he contacted Belloni in an effort to Brown announced she was jumping off only kill it, Belloni claimed on the conference call. to chime in 45 minutes later after staff memThe editor said Satchu asked him how far bers had spoken candidly in the belief they along the piece was. Belloni told him it was were conferring only with their editorial colalready printed. Despite Satchu’s efforts, the leagues. That incident and the Slack incursions story ran as planned, reporting on numerous contributed to a general atmosphere of paraallegations of questionable commingling of noia among employees, some of whom insisted assets by Linton and Mnuchin, who financed on using encoded messaging apps and friend’s films in Hollywood before joining the Trump cellphones for sensitive calls. administration.

In multiple emails to BelSatchu and Wiczyk are loni, Brown lambasted the relative newcomers to jourValence’s top “ongoing negative coverage.” nalism. They were handed Late last year she was riled control of THR and Billexecutives tried to by the magazine’s roundup board in 2018 when billionkill some stories of the best and worst films of aire Todd Boehly, a minorioutright, insiders the decade, writing that “the ty owner of the Los Angeles say. When Belloni glib sort of ongoing negativDodgers and film distriburesisted, tensions ity here is exhausting and tor A24, reorganized his not part of our strategy.” Alholdings into Valence Memounted. though the various enterdia, in which Satchu and tainment roundups were Wiczyk have ownership some of THR’s most viewed stakes. The media-shy pair’s articles of the year, Belloni reluctantly agreed background is in finance—both attended to kill a companion package on the best and Harvard Business School, and together they worst television shows of the decade. In the founded MRC in 2006. same email Brown complained that negative Their first crisis of credibility at the new coverage threatened to overshadow a planned company came when Billboard CEO John event honoring Reese Witherspoon.

Amato exited the magazine in the wake of reBrown also took exception to a January ports that he engaged in sexual impropriety news article about Jennifer Lopez, who had in the workplace and attempted to shield rerecently returned as the face of Guess Jeans. cord executive Charlie Walk from allegations The story referenced sexual harassment alleof sexual harassment. (Amato did not respond gations made against Guess’s cofounder Paul to a request for comment.) Satchu and Wiczyk L A M AG . C O M 45

FOR MOST OF ITS 90-YEAR HISTORY, The Hollywood Reporter was a decidedly unglamorous five-time-a-week trade publication, stuffed with rehashed press re-

THE NEW REGIME

Nekesa Mumbi Moody was named The Hollywood Reporter’s new editorial director in late April

leases on the comings and goings of studio execs and the box-office tallies of various films. Overshadowed by long-established competitors like Variety and dish-laden upstarts like Nikki Finke’s Deadline and Sharon Waxman’s TheWrap, the publication seemed destined for the dustheap.

But its fortunes quickly improved in 2010 with the arrival of former-Us Weekly editor Janice Min. Bankrolled by a seemingly endless budget from private equity, Min added splashy visuals and embraced a buzzy editorial mandate that included stories on style and politics as well as real estate and restaurants. THR attracted top-

flight writers and reporters, at one point counting six former editors in chief among its staff and freelance team, including the editor of this magazine. (This reporter has worked for THR as a freelance editor and writer, most recently in 2017).

The company spent lavishly on photo shoots, travel, salaries, and extravagant events. Min’s compensation, before bonuses, was reported to be $2 million a year. By the time she departed the company had reportedly lost close to $80 million. But during her tenure and beyond THR wielded an outsize influence that belied its modest circulation (never more than 80,000 copies), winning two National Magazine Awards for general excellence and being twice named a finalist for Magazine of the Year by the American Society of Magazine Editors, alongside the likes of The Atlantic, New York, and The New Yorker. Starting with Min and continuing with Belloni, THR operated on the principle that the best way to serve the hand that feeds you is not to bite it but to show its reflection, warts and all. Because of—and not despite—THR’s symbiotic relationship with the entertainment business, maintaining a skeptical distance was critical. “The atmosphere was always go—if you have a big story to chase, you have support,” says one

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G E T T Y I M AG E S

Marciano. Citing Valence’s various business dealings with Lopez, Brown emailed Belloni: “We had an agreement that you would alert me to anything controversial — and this registers ... as in the multiple touch points to JLO in the company.”

In meetings with staff, Wiczyk praised THR’s hard-hitting reporting, especially its #MeToo coverage. While the co-owners profess to honor the magazine’s editorial independence, “I think they have always understood it in the abstract,” says Poynter’s McBride. “When it comes to execution, they are working to find the appropriate boundaries.

“Whenever they have approached that boundary and I have been involved, they have respected my recommendations,” McBride adds. She says she first heard of interference on the Linton story a year after the fact and was not asked to weigh in on the Lopez article. “I have advised MRC that it is ethical to influence editorial strategy,” McBride states. “It is not OK to advocate for MRC’s other business interests.”

former editor (who like most of the dozen current and former staff members contacted for this article agreed to speak on the condition of anonymity). “It was in that very elite fraternity and may be out of it now.”

A week after Belloni announced his departure, Valence conducted a massive round of layoffs across all its holdings, including THR. One of its axed employees, chief film critic Todd McCarthy, wrote a column for Deadline in which he lamented, “for a decade we had the best team of seasoned and skilled critics out there. Now it’s down to ground zero again, with owners of no journalistic background.”

(Reached for comment, Min would say only: “I have my fingers crossed that THR has another great decade ahead of it.”)

The troubles at THR exposed the reality faced by all media outlets that cover the industry. The publications survive thanks to the ad dollars of the companies they cover; their writers depend on show business executives as sources. Studios and the trades “need and feed each other—maintaining editorial integrity is a delicate balance,” says one high-ranking insider who’s worked at multiple trades. “An outsider coming into this can end up being a bull in a china shop. You have to appreciate the nuance.”

MRC’s recent staff cuts purged the magazine of some of its most prolific writers. Valence insists the cuts were spurred solely by bottom-line concerns. Aggressive reporting is time-consuming and costly. Complicating any reckoning, insiders say, is the fact Valence offered free advertising to MRC and partners—including numerous pages to Lionsgate during awards season to promote Knives Out. According to sources close to the company, MRC execs would dangle the promise of free advertising to help close production and distribution deals, like a gift with purchase (sources at MRC deny this.)

More troubling than their attempts to tame THR is the possibility its parent company might point the magazine’s fangs at its corporate rivals and foes. Wiczyk has previously pushed information to editors that could be seen as an effort to drive negative coverage. Notably he gave staff detailed, highly academic presentations about Netflix’s lack of transparency in the platform’s viewership reporting. It’s a legitimate issue, and one that’s been raised by THR and other outlets. However the effort seemed curious to editors, who were aware that Wiczyk bore an unspecified grudge against Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos dating back to the early days of the streamer’s House of Cards.

To find a precedent for that sort of strident yellow press, one need look no further than THR’s past and its leading role in one of the darkest chapters in Hollywood histo-

ry. In 1946, before the House Un-American Activities Committee and Senator Joe McCarthy railed against the Red Menace, THR’s founder, owner, and editor, William Wilkerson, began publishing names of alleged communists in Hollywood. He then actively helped prevent alleged communists and sympathizers from working in the industry.

The names of those people Wilkerson had identified were known as “Billy’s blacklist,” or just “Billy’s list” when the moniker was shortened. “THR’s own role in fomenting the blacklist has long been overlooked: obscured by scholars and, out of shame, for decades

never properly addressed in this publication’s pages,” THR wrote in a 2012 investigative feature into its painful past.

The unflinching article revealed that the publication’s journalistic misdeeds weren’t limited to the McCarthy era. Fifteen years earlier, in 1997, a reporter had written a long article detailing Wilkerson’s history and THR’s part in the Blacklist, but the story never ran. The editor in chief at the time, who also held the title of publisher and oversaw the business side, told the writer it was a good piece but would show the company in an unflattering light. The story was killed.

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L.A. Stories

RICHARD MORGAN

PAT RONA SAINT

Ligia Gonzalez at First Unitarian Universalist Church in Koreatown

The Church Lady HOW A CRANKY 77-YEAR-OLD COMMUNIST FROM NICARAGUA BECAME THE SAVIOR OF THE MOST UNCONVENTIONAL CHURCH IN L.A. 4 8 L A M AG . C O M

I N 2 017, A F T E R months of toxic infighting, the

congregation of Koreatown’s First Unitarian Universalist Church, one of the most radical and historic churches in Los Angeles—if not the nation—was faced with some of the most difficult questions in its 143-year existence: What would it become without a minister? Could the church be led by its laity? Could it even survive? The questions were not born of philosophy or mysticism or meditation. They were far more human than that. And, in the big scheme of things, frankly petty.

They were questions of money and property. A stagnant congregation with a shriveled endowment faced a daunting expense: the minister’s $80,000 salary. Back from a sabbatical, the minister had a proposal: Why not sell the church, a 16,000-square-foot edifice on 8th Street between Vermont and Westmoreland? He estimated the value of the land at roughly $7 million and figured that First Unitarian could build a smaller home with half that money while living off the rest. But the congregation was bitterly divided over the plan.

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doesn’t go out of his way to be pro immiIn August 2018 First Unitarian hosted grant. Gonzalez demanded more. an 800-person standing-room-only DemoGonzalez, who turned 77 in May, is no cratic Socialists of America address from stranger to such battles. As the debate Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, then a bartender raged over First Unitarian’s future, she had who was about to become America’s youngsecretly rallied the church’s congregants est woman elected to Congress. A rainbow and local immigrants to speak up against banner was mounted outside the church, the plan. After their sureach colored stripe declarprise victory, she turned ing a core value: “In this a congregant’s birthday congregation we believe: party into a raucous cellove is love; black lives mat“Some people ebration. “Maybe it was ter; climate change is real; called me the sugar from the cake or no human being is illegal; Yolanda,” Ligia the alcohol from the wine, all genders are whole, holy, but I was so emotional,” & good; women have agenGonzalez says. she recalls. Did she cry?

“When you’ve done cy over their bodies.” Ser“I screamed,” she says. “I vices are now trilingual in the things I’ve shouted, ‘La gente unida English, Korean, and Spandone in my life, it’s ish, and the musical choicnunca será vencida! (The not smart to use people united will neves range from “Bridge over er be defeated!)’ We celeTroubled Waters” to “Shalyour real name.” brated the salvation of the low.” In March, First Unichurch that day, its return tarian opened a stylish to the people.” meditation center and liWhat’s happened since could be called brary with entire book sections dedicated a minor miracle. After withering to just 20 to the antiwar movement, communism, the people after the schism, the congregation Israeli-Palestinian conflict, poetry, indigeboomed to more than 60 regulars. It connous faith, transcendentalism, and more. In tinues to expand every month. Without a February 11 new members joined, the largminister, the church is run like a cosmic est increase in five years. kibbutz—with a carousel of guest speakThe congregation—peppered with selfers. And it’s working. The church’s ledgers described “red diapers” (elderly folks raised moved into the black for the first time in rein communist homes in the 1940s and cent memory, and it plays an outsize role in 1950s)—suddenly won over enough young progressive politics and culture. people to sustain new programs with new energy (and funding). Among its new congregants were two improv comedians from Chicago, a polyamorous poetry instructor from Montana, a recovering alcoholic writer for HBO, and a hotshot lawyer from Hawaii. Like Unitarian essayist Ralph Waldo Emerson’s protégé Henry David Thoreau, they have gone confidently in the direction of their dreams, and it has led them to this church, which might as well be called Melrose Place Divinity School for the vibes of cool thoughtfulness it radiates, despite the new ukulele quintet. “I’ve been to a liberal church before,” says the institution’s new president, Keola Whittaker. “But this one is straight-up leftist.”

First Unitarian’s success is the latest victory in Gonzalez’s half-century battle for local economic, racial, sexual, and social justice. Acerbic and sometimes profane, she is not your average church lady.

Parishioners describe her as the secret patron saint of Koreatown. She descended from the clouds—albeit by plane—when she arrived in Los Angeles at age 15 in F E E D I NG T H E M U LT I T U D E 1959, she says, the same year Alaska and During the lockdown, volunteers at First Unitarian have distributed 1,600 bags of free groceries a week.

Hawaii joined the Union. Her family was “It’s not charity like at a Catholic church,” Ligia Gonzalez says. “When we do it, it’s solidarity”

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CO U RT E SY U R B A N PA RT N E R S LOS A N G E L E S

Over the next few months, as the argument turned increasingly ugly, the minister scolded his flock in a newsletter for not rushing to his side—“We showed disrespect.

We gave offense. We closed our minds. We closed our hearts.”—and asked: “Do we want to be a church, or not?”

He had been hired in 2008 to revive the church but now was saying growth was impossible for this quixotic derelict. Many congregants supported his plan. Who argues with a minister? But at a congregationwide meeting to decide the church’s fate, an enthusiastic band of local immigrants showed up to argue in favor of the status quo. Unlike most of First Unitarian’s members, the immigrants lived within walking distance of the church. To them it was their community center and lifeblood.

After a close vote the church stayed and the minister hit the road, along with half of the congregation.

The board was reduced to just one committed member: Ligia Gonzalez, a prickly septuagenarian communist from Nicaragua who lives off Social Security and sleeps in a nearby rent-controlled one-bedroom courtyard apartment surrounded by portraits of Che Guevara and Nicolás Maduro. This revolution was more than her moment—it was her specialty. The pastor, according to Gonzalez, had contributed to racial tension by only superficially caring about Latino congregants—the kind of person who isn’t anti-immigrant per se but

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fleeing the brutal rule of the Somoza family, whose patriarch was assassinated at gunpoint by a poet in 1956. Gonzalez says the regime had jailed her mother and tortured her brother. In 1961, then 17, she married José Vigil, a dashing 37-year-old Cuban-born Spaniard. The couple met while buying cigarettes at a liquor store.

Her family, unhappy with the age difference, disapproved of the union. Undaunted, the pair eloped to Tijuana. They would eventually raise two sons, José and Martín, but separated in 1979 over political differences. “He was too conservative,” Gonzalez says now, “like a grandfather even when he was young!”

By then she had become besotted with the liberal renaissance taking place throughout the country. It was the era of America’s Great Society, when the nation created public housing, the National Endowment for the Arts, the Peace Corps, and the Civil Rights acts of 1964 and 1968. It was a time of men in space and women of color in Congress.

She has never held a 9-to-5 job, Gonzalez says, because “I was too busy with the struggle.” Instead she devoted her time to decades of activism—against segregated school buses in the 1960s, for gay rights and the Iranian revolution in the 1970s, for Latino literacy in the 1980s and 1990s, for immigrant rights in the 2000s. “I became what I am here,” she says, “not Nicaragua.”

I ask her how she chooses her battles.

She laughs. “There is only one side worth defending in history,” Gonzalez says. “I stand on the side of the people. What other choice is there?” I ask if in all her fights she ever earned a nickname. “No,” she says softly after a lengthy pause. I ask again, and she relents: “Some people called me Yolanda.”

Why? “When you’ve done the things I’ve done in my life, it’s not smart to use your real name,” she says mysteriously.

A firebrand like Gonzalez would stick out like a sore thumb in a typical church— but First Unitarian is far from typical. The church was founded in 1877 by Caroline Severance, an abolitionist turned suffragette, in her living room. In 1923 the church opened Sunset Hall, a retirement home for progressives. By the 1940s and ’50s, First Unitarian had become a hotbed of left-wing ideology, counseling conscientious objectors during World War II, railing against Japanese American internment camps, and defending members of Hollywood blacklisted by McCarthyism (the Hollywood Ten were congregants). In 1952 it welcomed John Day, an anti-Franco Spanish Civil War veteran into its fold. In 1954 the church refused to sign

F I G H T I NG WOR DS

Over the years First Unitarian Universalist Church has played host to a long list of left-leaning icons, including Jane Fonda (left) and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez

a loyalty oath of allegiance to the United States enforced by the state of California, losing its nonprofit status and paying taxes while challenging the law in court, ending in a 1958 Supreme Court victory. During the long, hot summer of 1967, which saw race riots scorch 159 U.S. cities, the church created Black Unitarians for Radical Reform. From 1942 to 1974 both the FBI and the LAPD kept First Unitarian under constant surveillance.

Over the years First Unitarian has hosted sermons from left-wing icons such as Ed Asner, W.E.B. DuBois, Jane Fonda, Rita Moreno, Paul Robeson, and Pete Seeger. In 1979, decades ahead of its denomination, the church created a gay support group. In 1983 it became the first church in Los Angeles to promise sanctuary to Central American refugees (it helped that First Unitarian was already home to AMOR, a group of refugees named after Óscar Romero, a leftist priest assassinated in 1980).

In 1992, in the wake of the Rodney King riots, the church created Urban Partners, a nonprofit program that distributes bags of groceries to the needy every Saturday. The church’s hard-core activism was evident as recently as 2013, when it was the lead plaintiff in a lawsuit against the National Security Agency’s wiretapping programs—and again in 2014 when it converted its parking lot into an affordable housing complex.

Last year Gonzalez led a forum on Venezuela that was met with noisy protests from anti-Maduro activists. (The protesters’ permit was denied after the church told police the event was part of its religious service and therefore protected speech.)

Since the coronavirus descended on the city in March, the church has strived not to lose its social mission while maintaining the necessary distance. The congre-

gants now conduct services via Zoom. The church has increased its food services to meet growing need in the neighborhood. It was handing out 400 grocery bags a week until the lockdown—it now distributes 1,600, with L.A. County Supervisor Hilda Solis dropping off 50 pounds of candy. “It’s not charity like at a Catholic church,” says Gonzalez. “When we do it, it’s solidarity!”

“Inter religión y revolución, no hay contradicción,” Gonzalez tells me, adding: “Después del primero paso, no pararemos de andar jamás. (After the first step, you never stop walking.)” When she sees me writing her quote down in English, she clucks her tongue and asks, “What are you doing? I didn’t say that.” I explain it is for people who don’t know Spanish. “Déjales aprender,” she replies with an impish smile: Let them learn.

“She’s mean as hell in the best possible way,” says Sara Pinho, a congregant. “She fancies herself a fancy lady, and she is a fucking sexy lady. She’s all for community and social justice without the phoniness and the evangelism.” Certainly, she’s not quite a saint.

“There was a little Christmas party, and Ligia told me we needed to turn it into a Latin dance party. With wine. At noon!” says Pinho laughing. “I just look at her and the other elders and realize the palpable possibility of my own future. I’m not fated to be stodgy or grouchy or conservative.

There’s a thing people say: If you’re not a Democrat when you’re young, you have no heart. And if you’re not a Republican when you’re old, you have no brain. Ligia tears that thinking apart by having a soul. I want to be her—be that—when I grow up.”

L A M AG . C O M 5 1

B AT T L E S TAT I O N

Mayor Eric Garcetti (far right) at City Hall’s war room in April

The mayor often criticized as risk averse might have just saved L.A. from the pandemic. Now he must forestall a looming ďŹ nancial disaster. Jon Regardie spent a month with Eric Garcetti as he navigated the unprecedented crisis

INSIDE THE BUNKER

PHOTOGRAPHED BY SHAYAN ASGHARNIA

L A M AG . C O M 53

T The mayor is crying.

I can’t see the tears because I can’t see the mayor—in the coronavirus era very few people get in the room with him—but I can hear the anguish in his voice on the other end of the phone. Eric Garcetti, chief executive of a city of 4 million people, sounds like he’s dissolved into a chasm of grief.

It’s early in the morning of March 27, and all across America COVID-19-related fatalities are continuing to explode. In Los Angeles County, 253 people have been hospitalized with related illnesses and 1,216 have tested positive for the disease. Twenty-one have died.

In a couple of hours Garcetti will visit the Port of Los Angeles, where he and Governor Gavin Newsom will welcome the arrival of the USNS Mercy, a 1,000-bed hospital ship dispatched by the federal government to help stem the overload of critical cases that are threatening to overwhelm emergency rooms across the city. But at the moment, Garcetti is grimly installed in his office at City Hall, trying to wrap his mind around the viral tsunami that is headed right for his city.

This is the greatest test that he has faced in his seven years as mayor. Since March 15, Garcetti has appeared on TV and Facebook livestreams on an almost nightly basis, reporting on the efforts of his administration to combat the global pandemic. Perpetually clad in a slim suit and tie, an American flag pin on his lapel, the mayor moves between stern taskmaster and agent of reassurance. In these sessions beamed into the homes of frightened and frustrated Angelenos, he’ll express admiration and threaten punishment. He’ll share a lengthy rundown of statistics and emphasize how data and the advice of medical experts are guiding his decision-making. With a sign-language interpreter to his left, he’ll warn of the danger posed by an invisible killer and then fluidly swerve to serve as the region’s comforter in chief. He knows this is a matter of life and almost unspeakable death—a few nights earlier he warned that Los Angeles was six to 12 days behind New York in the spread of the novel coronavirus.

Garcetti has sought to slow the infection rate through a series of executive orders that have cast a dark cloud over the city’s economy.

Under Garcetti and Newsom, Los Angeles and California have been ahead of the curve in terms of trying to bend the curve, but the body count is climbing in New York, and forecasts predict that L.A. hospitals—with not nearly enough ventilators—are just weeks away from being inundated by the infected.

I ask what impact this prospect has on him, the knowledge that 5 4 L A M AG . C O M

I NS I D E T H E WA R R O O M

Mayor Eric Garcetti prepares for a coronavirus media briefing at City Hall. His lockdown of L.A., one of the nation’s first, is credited with helping flatten California’s infection curve. “I’m feeling really proud of Los Angeles, and at the same time I’m feeling sad for Los Angeles.”

The competing emotions, he says, are “very polarizing”

despite everything he is doing a wave of death and sickness is coming to his city.

“It’s almost too much to hold,” Garcetti says. He tells me about a meeting he calls into each morning. The interdenominational group was organized by the mayor’s wife, Amy Elaine Wakeland. It includes Pastor J. Edgar Boyd of First AME Church, Rabbis Sharon Brous and Steve Leder, and J. Jon Bruno, the retired Episcopal bishop from L.A. “I find myself kind of distancing in those moments where they are praying for me and where they’re praying for the city,” he says. “That’s when the relief comes and when you just kind of break down a little bit.

“I looked at numbers yesterday of projecting deaths,” he says.

There’s sudden a hitch in his voice. For a few moments we sit in silence.

One second. Two. Three.

The mayor exhales deeply.

Four. Five. Six. Seven.

“Sorry,” he finally says in a quivering voice.

Nine. Ten. His voice might be breaking but he’s not broken.

I ask him what death count he projects for the city. “My estimate for the city is probably between 5,000 and 20,000,” he says.

Months into the coronavirus crisis it is clear not only how woefully unprepared the United States was for the pandemic but how badly the nation’s leadership bungled the early response. The inadequacies

He’s very intelligent about using information to do whatever we need to protect this city.

CITY HALL: COURTESY THE MAYOR’S OFFICE

L.A. COUNTY DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC HEALTH BARBARA FERRER

at the federal level are incontrovertible, and even if early projections of hundreds of thousands of U.S. deaths have since been downsized, the fallacy of comparing the virus to a bad winter flu has been challenged in morgues across the country. The near-total abdication by the White House in forming a coherent policy resulted in a scattershot state-bystate response. All across America, cities, counties, and states were enacting drastically different measures.

Dr. Barbara Ferrer, L.A. County’s director of public health, credits Garcetti and the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors with recognizing the seriousness of the threat early on. In the first throes of the crisis, the mayor would call Ferrer to discuss the science behind the virus. As the pandemic spread, they talked several times a day. “The mayor is very intelligent about using information in a way that makes it possible for good decisions to get made,” she says.

It’s easy to forget now, but for much of February, Los Angeles was consumed by the death of Kobe Bryant. But the mayor had other things on his mind. As 20,000 grieving fans filled Staples Center for Bryant’s memorial service February 24, Garcetti and his team were anxiously preparing for the arrival of the plague. “We have a pandemic annex to our emergency plan in the city so we started reading that,” he says. He instructed the general managers of city departments to ready their Continuity of Operations Plan.

Garcetti huddled with Aram Sahakian, who has overseen the city’s Emergency Management Department since 2016. And with that, the mayor started to display the sort of forceful leadership that he had never previously exhibited.

On March 4, after the Department of Public Health recorded seven coronavirus cases in the county, Garcetti declared a local

emergency. His announcement facilitated the flow of millions in state and federal funds into city coffers, but some of his closest associates worried about the damage to L.A.’s economy.

All along, the mayor says, he was voraciously reading scientific papers and scrutinizing infection rates, and planning what the city could do. The first COVID-19 death in the county was recorded March 11. A day later Garcetti closed City Hall to the public and banned events of 50 or more people on city property. Still, no one grasped the scope of action required to combat the spread of the virus. A video on Garcetti’s social media accounts March 12 shows him in City Hall with UCLA epidemiologist Dr. Anne Rimoin. There’s about 6 millimeters of distance between them. Neither wears a mask.

After serving 12 years on the City Council, Garcetti was elected mayor in 2013. He was a perfect foil to L.A.’s previous mayor. In the eight years he ran the city, Antonio Villaraigosa’s overweening personal ambition and squandered potential put Angelenos in the market for an earnest technocrat. Garcetti, an Encino native who studied at Columbia University before becoming a Rhodes scholar, took office just as the city’s economy was hitting a postrecession bull run. His arrival coincided with the downtown development boom, a huge employment spike, and an emergent regional tech industry. After seven years as mayor, where his most significant challenges have been L.A.’s intractable housing and homelessness crises, Garcetti has been criticized as risk averse and unwilling to fight for anything unless he’s certain he can win. His critics have always questioned his toughness. But if ever a situation demanded toughness and a willingness to take risks, the coronavirus outbreak was it.

The most consequential 24 hours in the city’s battle against L A M AG . C O M 55

Your decision to not physically distance yourself may kill someone.

This isn’t just about you. It’s about everyone.

56 L A M AG . C O M

I was,” Liccardo says—and on March 19 Newsom and Garcetti both issued stay-at-home orders for all but essential businesses, making California the first state in the nation to do so.

More restrictions followed. On March 22, Garcetti shuttered the city’s sports and recreation centers and the parking lots on Venice Beach. Three days later he closed Runyon and Bronson canyons to hikers.

All outdoor sports at city facilities were prohibited the next day. On March 30 the farmers’ markets shut down until operators could implement social distancing. On April 1, Garcetti ordered Angelenos to wear masks or face coverings when entering stores or public facilities (the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention made the same recommendation two days later). All of these steps were taken after consultation with experts. Ferrer commends Garcetti for putting science first. “The mayor has never said, ‘That’s not going to be popular or that doesn’t make sense for my political aspirations,’” she says. “That’s refreshing.”

In the span of less than three weeks, Los Angeles was transformed into a dystopian version of itself, where traffic flowed because few motorists were driving, Hollywood and downtown became virtual ghost towns, and people out for a stroll—their faces often hidden by masks—crossed the street to avoid

ALL PHOTOS COURTESY THE MAYOR’S OFFICE

COVID-19 began on the night of March 14, a Saturday. With his daughter, Maya, asleep in the family’s Hancock Park home, the mayor stayed up late and pored over a slim packet of research that his aides had compiled on the novel coronavirus as well as accounts of the 1918 flu pandemic and the lessons that it taught St. Louis and Philadelphia.

The former went on lockdown; the latter threw a parade for World War I vets. Within days Philly hospitals were full, and thousands were dying, but the peak death rate in St. Louis would be one-eighth as high.

On Sunday, Garcetti had a call with the Big City Mayors and a representative from the governor’s office. Speaking a month later he recalled a schism, with many mayors in favor of enacting stringent social-distancing measures while those from the more conservative Central Valley urged restraint. After the call Garcetti anticipated a significant move from Newsom; Garcetti organized another call, with the mayors of the 87 other cities in Los Angeles County, and told them what to expect. When the governor hit the airwaves that afternoon, he urged bars and wineries in California to close and restaurants to reduce seating capacity. When pressed by reporters, Newsom said it was not an order but a suggestion. He said there would be voluntary compliance.

Garcetti didn’t agree. He told his aides that voluntary compliance was not strong enough.

How many business owners would willingly MAYOR ERIC GARCETTI shut down and eviscerate their bottom line? A few hours after Newsom’s appearance, Garcetti scheduled his own televised briefing and stunned Los Angeles by ordering all bars, nightclubs, gyms, movie theaters, arcades, and bowling alleys to close at midnight. And forget staggered seating; restaurant service would be restricted to takeout or delivery.

Newsom has earned near-unanimous credit for his response to the crisis.

While some of the mayor’s aides might have cause to be skeptical of the governor, Garcetti himself isn’t throwing shade—“Gavin’s been stupendous throughout,” he says—but recognized that anything short of a strict mandate could have perilous consequences. The tactic was not without risk—operating counter to the governor can have political ramifications: Newsom controls the purse strings to billions of dollars that L.A. and other cities need.

Sam Liccardo, mayor of San Jose, California’s third-largest city, acknowledged the courage Garcetti displayed. “It’s easy as a public official when a hard decision needs to be made to hide behind the greater state or federal authority and say they made me do it,” Liccardo says. “It’s a much different act of leadership to say we’re going to take a step further because history won’t forgive us for the act of delay.”

Liccardo also credits Garcetti for strongly advocating for a statewide stayat-home order. The two were among a group seeking to persuade Newsom to go that route—“I’m fairly convinced Eric was probably more persuasive than

contact with others. Garcetti tells me that throughout the crisis he’s been watching Westworld. “It’s about the only thing I’ve been able to watch during this,” he says. “It’s funny to see that it’s a different dystopia, but there’s not traffic there, either.”

Newsom has commanded the spotlight in California during the crisis, but Garcetti has his daily briefings, usually from City Hall. The phalanx of TV cameras of a couple of months ago have given way to a single stationary pool camera. The mayor stands at a lectern with a Safer at Home sign affixed to the front. Like an old sitcom, sometimes there’s a special guest in the room (at another microphone), such as City Attorney Mike Feuer, USC President Carol Folt, or Police Chief Michael Moore.

I’m at a rare off-site briefing on a warm evening in April. At 5:09 p.m., a black SUV rolls up and Garcetti steps from the vehicle wearing jeans, brown boots, and a zippered black jacket bearing the city seal. A black mask covers his mouth, nose, and cheeks.

The location is the Crenshaw Christian Center, a South L.A. landmark that is now one of 30-plus regional drive-thru coronavirus SCENES FROM THE FRONT LINES testing sites. Garcetti sees the actor and activist Sean Penn, who is Opposite at top: Beds await patients at the Los Angeles Convention Center; Governor Gavin Newsom and Mayor Eric Garcetti have occasionally split over here to announce that his nonprofit Community Organized Relief COVID-19 policy. Above: the mayor at a coronavirus testing site in South L.A. with Effort (CORE) will run four locations, allowing the Los Angeles actor-activist Sean Penn, whose nonprofit organization is working with the city Fire Department, which staffs the sites with its medical professionals, to redeploy personnel to the field. Garcetti and Penn don’t have to multiply that 10,000 times. I’m feeling momentarily breach the six-foot personal barrier to bump elbows. really proud of Los Angeles, and at the same time “It’s nice to get some fresh air,” Garcetti says as he peels off the mask; he’s about I’m feeling sad for Los Angeles. It’s very polarizing.” to place it on the lectern when an aide recommends he put it in his pocket instead.

Garcetti’s handling of the crisis is not uniformly The mayor usually starts these briefings with an expression of faith in the praised. There’s grumbling that the mayor has opcitizenry, then shares the most recent tally of area cases and deaths—updates on erated independently of the City Council—in five testing, and the number of hospital beds and ventilators. He also thanks busiweeks of briefings no council member has appeared nesses, foundations, and individuals who have made donations: Eli Broad, Steve with him. His high-profile goal, announced March Ballmer, Snapchat’s Evan Spiegel, basketball star Russell Westbrook, musician 18, to move 6,000 homeless people to cots in city Pink, and DJ Mustard. He closes his comments with the refrain “Stay healthy. recreation centers collapsed almost immediately.

Stay safe. Stay home. Strength and love Los Angeles.” He then patiently fields The homelessness situation has been Garcetti’s reporters’ questions. albatross. During his briefings he promotes various In these appearances Garcetti reminds viewers of his gravitas and empathy— efforts to help the estimated 36,000 unhoused Angethat each death is not a number but a neighbor, not a statistic but a story—but lenos, everything from shelter to virus testing, but the also projects nerdy normalcy. He seems to be the only man in Los Angeles who is tents stubbornly pock the cityscape. Los Angeles enstill shaving every day. He attempts levity, pointing out that the distance between acted a moratorium on evictions and has prohibited people should be the length of LeBron James or, for Clipper fans, Kawhi Leonard. many rent hikes, but housing advocates are demandBut he doesn’t pander. I never thought I would hear a mayor accuse his constituing months-long rent suspensions. Activists have held ents of committing involuntary manslaughter, but Garcetti goes there frequently, noisy car protests outside the mayor’s home. and it always hits with the force of a rocket launcher. “Your decision to not physiGarcetti hasn’t had a day off since the crisis becally distance yourself may kill someone,” Garcetti stated at his March 22 briefing. gan. Sleep is elusive; he says the 10-minute power “This isn’t just about you. It’s about everyone.” naps he used to grab are gone. Exercise often means His relentless messaging on social distancing appears to have worked. By late resurrecting routines from his Navy Reserve trainApril the curve had been bent. Deaths still mounted and cases increased, but not ing. Each night at 8 p.m., when Angelenos open their at a pace that would obliterate the region’s health care system—there are open windows or come out of their homes to make noise hospital beds and about 1,000 available ventilators. The city is healthy enough for those on the front lines, he and Maya ring a cowthat the USNS Mercy has had few patients, and a field hospital in the Los Angeles bell. His day is a delirium of Zoom meetings, phone Convention Center has not been pressed into service. calls, and strategy sessions. He speaks with elected When I mention to Garcetti that his early projection of a minimum of 5,000 California officials such as House Speaker Nancy dead doesn’t look remotely possible, he answers not with a statistic but with a Pelosi and Senator Kamala Harris as well as Trump story. “Two things: One, I have to contain the sorrow of the moment that’s starting administration brass, including Treasury Secretary to hit, and it stops you in your tracks. I had to talk to a police officer who lost his Steven Mnuchin and Defense Secretary Mark Esper. wife.” The couple had two children, he adds, “and he can’t be with them because He lobbies hard. he’s quarantined. They lost their mother, and he lost his wife. It’s even worse than I The mayor gets plaudits for reaching across the thought when you go to each case. On the other side I am so grateful for the people aisle to form a consensus (CONTINUED ON PAGE 82) of Los Angeles for going with me on early actions and enacting them because we L A M AG . C O M 57

After the Fa l l Los Angeles as we all knew it is history.

But its future begins today

BY JEFF WEISS

L A M AG . C O M 59

Absorb the new abnormal. All the clubs are closed, but the line outside Trader Joe’s is limitless. You still awkwardly wait an hour to enter, buy a few bottles, and slink out onto empty streets praying you don’t get sick.

But now you’re turned away if you aren’t wearing a mask.

The Roaring ’20s have begun, but jazz is canceled. The same goes for all live music, sporting events, theater performances, strip clubs, and yes, Coachella. In an instant, the sweaty, anxious, and lopsided recovery of the last decade dissolved into 30 percent-plus unemployment, severe immiseration, and a local government begging for cash. Newspapers, restaurants, music venues, and other vital cultural organs are in danger of permanently failing, and the homelessness crisis still dangerously festers. Oh, and there’s a lethal invisible virus latent in any social interaction. Hugs are dicey; the Soho House double-cheek air kiss is a reminder of much simpler times.

The daisy-cutter carnage of the coronavirus has only started. The brief novelty of Zoom yoga and telecommuting in sweatpants has ebbed as the ramifications become more dire and infinite. A paralyzing ennui has set in. All future speculation brings to mind the old William Goldman adage: Nobody knows anything. L.A.’s last pandemic occurred when Beverly Hills was just a bunch of bean fields; modern-day Los Angeles and the fledgling Babylon wracked by the Spanish flu in 1918 have few similarities. Though the death count in L.A. remains a fraction of that in New York, the financial devastation from the shuttering of all nonessential businesses augurs a cruel 365-day forecast. During a normal recession some sectors plummet while others go unscathed, but this plague has spared almost nobody. William Morris Endeavor laid off 250 staffers and CAA instituted steep pay cuts. The Chateau Marmont axed its entire staff. As for the undocumented, homeless, and working poor, Dorothea Lange’s Depression-era poverty photos might look too familiar in the coming months.

With the virus plateauing but still perilous, Mayor Eric Garcetti described the city in mid-April as “under attack ... our daily life is unrecognizable.” The constantly shifting medical situation com6 0 L A M AG . C O M

pounds the maddening uncertainty. Oxford University scientists claim that their vaccine works on monkeys, and the first few million doses could be ready by September (if it proves effective on humans). Other medical professionals believe that a vaccine won’t be rolled out for 18 months or more. Meanwhile Japan is fast-tracking the antiviral medication remdesivir as a possible palliative. The virus could always mutate into a more fatal or gentler form. A vaccine could cost hundreds of dollars or it could be free. Physicians are still trying to decipher whether COVID-19 causes strokes or other longlasting damage. And everything you currently know could be outdated by the time you get to the end of this article.

“It’s definitely possible that it’ll abate in the summer and return in the winter,” says Tara Vijayan, the director of antimicrobial stewardship at UCLA, who has spent much of the last two months treating novel coronavirus patients. “We might see a bit of a lull once we release these guardrails, but anything novel can hit hard at any time. We still don’t know if any of us have immunity, and, if so, for how long.”

As the city slowly and fitfully emerges from quarantine, we’ll be confronted by scrambled realities until a mass-produced vaccine is here. In an attempt to understand what comes next in both the near

PAG E 5 8 : JAY L . C L E N D E N I N / LOS A N G E L E S T I M E S V I A G E T T Y I M AG E S ; PAG E 5 9 : D U TC H E R A E R I A L S /G E T T Y I M AG E S

Welcome to Los Angeles 2020. Are we having fun yet?

E L L I OT COWA N D J R . /S H U T T E R STO C K

and distant future, and the deep scars this catastrophe will leave, I spoke to some of L.A.’s most thoughtful academics, politicians, business leaders, chefs, venue owners, and artists. The answers varied, but the consensus was uniformly grim. Unless there is a massive influx of federal aid that goes dramatically further than previous efforts, the city could lose up to a third of its restaurants; economic inequality and unemployment could spike to levels unseen since the Great Depression; and the homelessness problem will metastasize.

The battle for the soul of Los Angeles is about to be fought in multiple arenas. Amid rampant chaos lies rare opportunity, and in typical fashion, its future will be warred over by a mass of competing interests. Since the 1990 publication of his landmark history, City of Quartz, Mike Davis has been L.A.’s most prescient urban theorist, savagely indicting the California Club set that has stealthily crafted the city's big-business agenda. Davis foresees the current crisis further fueling the age-old rivalry between the public interest and greedhead developers who have wielded disproportionate local influence since their forefathers drained the Owens River Valley in an act of original sin.

“Small businesses have a short window before they collapse, and there’s no possibility that the federal government’s loans will get out in the required time. It’ll hollow out L.A.,” Davis says. “Mom-and-pop landlords are weeks from liquidation, and the real estate investment trusts are looking over their shoulder, licking their chops, ready to buy property knowing prices will never be this low again. It’s an extinction event for your little neighborhood bistro but a huge business opportunity for the wealthy to come in and clean up.”

Backing up his point, Westwood-based Stockdale Capital recently raised $500 million with the express purpose of vulturing distressed properties. In the short term, the construction of large mixed-use developments and luxury condos will slow down. Commercial vacancy rates will skyrocket as retail shops go under, and corporations have their employees work from home. Davis sees municipal land banks as a stopgap solution to halt—temporarily—gentrification and displacement. But for now the state has merely enacted an eviction moratorium until June, and the city has frozen rent increases on rent-controlled apartments. The moves provide some relief but are ultimately Band-Aids used on heavy wounds. (Given opportunities to strengthen the statewide eviction ban, the Los Angeles City Council has twice declined.)

According to an early April poll conducted by USC, only 45 percent of L.A. residents are currently employed. Even as shelter-inplace orders are lifted, social-distancing restrictions will severely limit capacity in all brick-and-mortar businesses—which means less

“It’s an extinction event for your little neighborhood bistro,” Mike Davis says, “but a huge opportunity for the wealthy.”

revenue and a dramatically reduced need for employees. For the foreseeable future, hotels and restaurants and amusement parks will be half full at best. Bars, when they are allowed to reopen, will be bizarre if not outright depressing—no one orders bottle service in an empty club. At the apex of the crisis, Domino’s and Postmates were still hiring. Sex sites and cannabis stores were enjoying record traffic. But OnlyFans and Postmates alone can’t prop up an ailing economy. That same USC survey reports that nearly a third of L.A. County residents will likely run out of money should the shutdown extend into the summer.

The obvious solution is a federal stimulus—but the early attempts have been woefully inadequate. For the next four months, Canadians will receive $2,000 a month, not including their free health care.

Meanwhile the one-time $1,200 allotted to Americans won’t even cover the rent on a one-bedroom in South Gate. The chief benefactors of Washington’s largesse have been major corporations, few of which are headquartered in Los Angeles (at least outside of the entertainment industry). Most small businesses’ futures lie in their ability to procure Paycheck Protection Program loans, but the first round of funding was depleted in days, leaving many out of luck and frantically L A M AG . C O M 61

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next 18 months, it’s practically unthinkable that the situation won’t have worsened. In the interim there is Project Roomkey, Governor Gavin Newsom’s plan to move 15,000 people from encampments and shelters into empty hotel rooms.

As in all economic downturns, the dispossessed are the most dramatically impacted, but Hollywood has been comparatively recession-proof—picture Fred Astaire tap-dancing through the Depression. In our current dimension, Joe Exotic is the Gay Divorcee for the 75 percent of Americans reporting that they’re now streaming more Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime Video, and Disney+ than ever before. But even Disney has announced pay cuts and furloughs, and Marvel has terminated overall deals. Early statistics estimate that Hollywood could lose $20 billion, but as the pandemic stretches on that number might turn out to be twice that. A year’s worth of Hollywood films might never hit worldwide cinemas, which figure mostly to be closed or sparsely patronized. Next year the Oscars might run an hour.

The virus also canceled all scripted film and television productions, which means interminable waits for the new seasons of Succession and Atlanta. As far as reality shows go, how do you shoot Vanderpump Rules during quarantine?

Does Lisa match masks with the Vanderpump dogs?

“When the quarantine first started, everyone wasn’t talking about the new season of Ozark, they were talking about Tiger King,” says Danny Gabai, head of Vice Studios U.S. “The cultural shift toward documentaries was already happening, but this accelerates it. The streaming wars are still going full throttle, and companies can’t just stop making stuff. The coffers aren’t that deep in terms of alreadyproduced content, and I’ve been already finding that a lot of buyers are getting more aggressive about picking up unscripted and documentary projects.”

Indeed, a big-budget production isn’t a matter of flipping a switch. It requires filmmakers, talent, guilds, distributors, and financiers to be on the same page. If scripted filming does proceed this year, it will be in a stripped-down skeletal fashion—similar to how many documentary crews operate.

Of course Los Angeles is no longer just an industry town. For the last several decades, it’s Instagrammable allure and cinematic mythos have made it one of the world’s most popular tourist destinations. Between 2014 and 2019, L.A.’s leisure and hospitality industries reported 2.3 percent annual average growth, surpassed only by the educational and health services sectors. But the impact from nonexistent international travel and the closure of theme parks like Disneyland and Universal Studios will be only part of the sad financial saga. In the first week of April, hotel occupancy was at a meager 22.7 percent. The Melrose Avenue shopping strip and the Venice Boardwalk were veritably abandoned. As retailers from Neiman Marcus to the Gap have shut stores and cut employees, thousands of workers suffered immediate whiplash.

ST E V E W I N T E R

negotiating with landlords and creditors. Amoeba Music launched a GoFundMe to survive. Counterpoint Records & Books, a nostalgist’s paradise in Franklin Village, didn’t get a dime and faces existential danger. Ruth’s Chris Steak House hoovered up $20 million and the Lakers reaped $4.6 million (both returned the money after public outcry).

Within the regional political landscape, there remains the will to address the sufferings of the disenfranchised. Less clear is how to do that. “We learned our lesson from the Great Recession,” says Nury Martinez, president of the Los Angeles City Council, whose district covers much of the central and eastern San Fernando Valley. “We built up our corporations but not our people. We need to seize this opportunity and use federal dollars to fund job-creation programs, affordable housing, and, most importantly, help people pay their rent.”

She envisions a New Deal-type program to employ the suddenly jobless as sanitation workers or parks-and-rec maintenance staff.

But this raises the question broached by that great late-period L.A. noir: Where’s the money? In his most recent $10.5 billion budget plan, Garcetti proposed furloughing nearly 16,000 city workers and gutting street repairs, gang intervention programs, tree trimming, and neighborhood council dollars. The cratering of hotel and sales tax revenues underscores the imperative to procure federal funds. But this is deep-blue Los Angeles attempting to requisition money from a Senate controlled by Mitch McConnell.

The executive branch is run by an oily transactional golem whose only use for the city involves Beverly Hills Hotel trysts with porn stars. Maybe it’s time to send Kim Kardashian back to Washington.

Late last year a poll of 900 Angelenos rated homelessness as the city’s most dire problem.

Garcetti’s fiscal proposal cuts services for the homeless by 6 percent (the LAPD would get two raises). Now the crisis must be fought on two fronts: first, the public health risk that COVID-19 poses to the nearly 60,000 people on the streets without insurance, sanitation, or the ability to properly social distance; second, stopping thousands of newly destitute and vulnerable people from being forced out of their residences.

“I don’t know if I’ve ever felt this pessimistic about the homelessness crisis,” says Councilman Mike Bonin, whose Westside district includes Mar Vista and Venice. “If a month into this the vast majority of unsheltered people in Los Angeles are still living in encampments, we’re fucked. If we can’t move people rapidly indoors now with tens of thousands of vacant hotel rooms, it’s hard to find some hope and light at the end of the tunnel.”

Over the pandemic’s first few weeks, there was an urgency to provide the homeless with handwashing stations and toilets—but then inventory ran short. The mayor shrewdly commandeered closed recreation centers to house the indigent; the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs set up L.A.’s first temporary tent city in decades. But “temporary” is the operative word. When the fallout settles over the

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“Unfortunately not every business will survive this,” says Rick Caruso, whose vast real estate and retail portfolio includes the Grove and the Americana at Brand outdoor retail complexes. “Any overleveraged business with too much debt will struggle, but everyone’s revenues will be less. Until there’s a vaccine,” he says, “people will be reluctant to go out. Those businesses that rely on large crowds coming together—concerts, movie theaters, and indoor malls—will have a tough time. The smart businesses will find alternative ways to supplement the loss of revenue.”

Recently named to Trump’s bipartisan Great American Economic Revival industry group and Newsom’s state Task Force on Business and Jobs Recovery, Caruso will have as much of an impact as any nonpolitician on the city’s reopening. He foresees a slow and methodical process based on medical data and testing capacity. Ideally small businesses will open first as they’re the least able to sustain extended closure and generally have fewer people in their physical spaces. Face masks, temperature checks, and social distancing will become de rigueur. Even if the virus abates during the scorching summer months, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has already warned that it could return in the winter—in tandem with flu season—to create an even more wretched scenario.

Los Angeles Apparel is one of the few nondigital firms to flourish amid the crisis, according to founder and CEO Dov Charney. It has sold a half million cloth masks since late February. The company swiftly capitalized on the national shortage and weeks-long Amazon backlog, ramping up production at its downtown factory. With demand surging, the company’s employee ranks quickly doubled to almost 1,000 as it cornered the mask market for those who bought neon headbands in the late ’00s from Charney’s old business, American Apparel. Even the CDC recently placed an order. Los Angeles Apparel’s localized success might represent a broader shift that could define the next decade of American life: The disruption of the international supply chain—think of the terrifying ease with which the virus spread—could hasten the end of the current chapter of globalization. Multinational juggernauts like Grumman and Boeing have laid off thousands. But while the troubled aerospace industry might never return to its gilded days, local manufacturing has actu-

A year’s worth of Hollywood films might never hit theaters.

Next year’s Oscars might last only an hour. ally been trending upward. Many new jobs, however, require highly skilled workers trained in automation.

“It’s extremely valuable to manufacture locally because you can quickly adjust to market trends,” Charney says. “People don’t want ties or jackets right now. They’re hunkered down. They want sweatpants, hoodies, and masks. Formal clothing was already on its way out, but this accelerates it. Right now it’s about comfortable and practical clothing to work from home and go to the store.”

You didn’t need Anthony Bourdain’s Kitchen Confidential to tell you that restaurants were already among the most precarious parts of the economy. If most businesses live month to month, many chefs live day to day, hanging on by razor-thin margins and customer whim. Over the last decade Roy Choi, the short rib alchemist behind Kogi, was heavily responsible for what became known as the food truck revolution. His tacos quickly became an L.A. symbol as iconic as the Apple Pan hickory burger or El Tepeyac burrito. But instability wrought by COVID-19 forced a switch to a leaner model.

Since March Choi has teamed with corporations, charitable donors, and the band OneRepublic to help feed the hungry and give his employees regular work hours. Despite the partnership, his profits have been reduced to next to nothing. “This situation revealed how fragile the industry was,” Choi says. “It was like a house filled with termites. This pulled away the screen and showed that we were all close to the foundation collapsing.”

Everything from Michelin-starred fine dining to multigenerational ceviche stands went broke within days. Choi estimates that if the shutdown extends into June, it’ll be an extinction-level event for the L.A. food world. Conversely he stresses the industry’s inherent creativity and adaptability. Tables will be spread six feet apart.

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Takeout and delivery will be prioritized. A digital ordering format doesn’t necessarily need to put waiters out of work. It can potentially turn them into Swiss-Army-type multitaskers bolstering operations in multiple ways. On-demand delivery services and ghost kitchens will become even more crucial.

“I think you’ll see a lot of young cooks find a lane for themselves because the traditional restaurant model may not work anymore,” Choi predicts. “It could further blur the line between what’s street food and what’s a restaurant, like how it is in Mexico or South America. Hopefully it’ll lead to street food being further woven into the city’s fabric and ultimately provide an easier pathway for cooks to open up these new establishments.”

The retail shops, restaurants, and bars that weather the tumult of the next 18 months will be well situated to thrive in the post-Hunger Games landscape. But even if they reopen under rigorous safety protocols and social-distancing measures, a viral flare-up could send the city back into lockdown. Which is why it’s almost impossible to imagine festivals, large theater productions, or sporting events 64 L A M AG . C O M

until there’s a vaccine. If Mookie Betts ever plays a game for the Dodgers, it’ll likely occur in an empty home stadium in Chavez Ravine. Coachella is still technically rescheduled for October, but you probably shouldn’t book your Airbnb just yet. It’s hard to picture a summer without the Hollywood Bowl, but if the show goes on, it might be streamed from a stage in front of empty seats.

There’s no substitute for a riveting play, playoff game, or transcendent concert, but until such events are feasible, expect a digital substitute. In April a coalition of local promoters banded together to throw Weed Rave, a Zoom house party with DJs, a virtual smoking patio, and a 24-hour stoner-movie screening room. When the legendary burlesque club Jumbo’s Clown Room temporarily shuttered in March, one of its dancers, Emily Whittemore, created NAOMIDROME, a streaming show that exists in a surrealist cyberhaze between the debauched East Hollywood club and Wayne’s World; audience members can chat online with the dancers, make requests, and tip via credit card. In more traditional avenues of the art world, the Center Theatre Group downtown started a Zoom series featur-

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“You’ll see a lot of young cooks find a lane for themselves because the traditional restaurant model may not work anymore,” says Roy Choi.

TO M M AS O B O D D I /G E T T Y I M AG E S

ing monologues, discussions, and town halls. There’s been talk of livestreaming plays, too. Museums and galleries have virtual tours that allow you to partake in such attractions as the Broad’s Infinite Drone light-and-sound exhibit or check out van Gogh’s Irises at the Getty Center.

Over the most recent weeks of the lockdown, music venues have numbly started recognizing that they might have already hosted their final shows of the year. But there are ways for smaller rooms to keep the party going–though now it will be beamed directly into patrons’ apartments. It’s clearly not the same, but the liquor is cheaper, and there’s no chance of a DUI or a regrettable one-night stand. As shelter-in-place restrictions are loosened, private gatherings might require that guests and staff be vetted, temperatures taken, masks worn, and the property thoroughly sanitized. Just like Woodstock.

One place suited to tightly regulated small-room events is GoldDiggers, an East Hollywood bar, performance space, boutique hotel, and recording studio that has become one of the city’s most vibrant hot spots over the last two years. “Bands that normally sell out massive rooms suddenly have nowhere to play and will still want to perform,” says Dave Neupert, who co-owns Gold-Diggers as well as the Short Stop, Melody Lounge, and La Cita. “If we can create a safe environment where a record label or management company wants to have a band perform in an intimate setting, they can play a real live show before close friends and family; we can stream it from the 32-channel board in our studio and eventually turn it into a live album, too.”

As with all things in this circumspect new world, caution will be paramount. In the same way that 9/11 fundamentally altered all things aviation, our future might be closer to what South Korea already looks like post-COVID. Security will take your temperature and scrutinize your antibodies card when you enter buildings. Nothing will be simple or linear, and no one’s life will be unchanged.

In the case of the celebrated composer and producer Adrian Younge, disruptions have occurred across multiple industries. The 41-year-old musician has cut solo records and produced for Kendrick Lamar, Jay-Z, and the Delfonics. And as with many local musicians, film and TV scores helped support his noncommercial artistic pursuits. But in the wake of the novel coronavirus, such work has dried up. A creative force behind the popular Jazz Is Dead concert series, Younge was forced to indefinitely postpone a year’s worth of shows.

His record label has had to shift release dates. Artform Studio, his Highland Park beauty salon and record shop, closed its doors in March, one of countless “nonessential” businesses that have been sidelined by the plague.

“With less revenue coming in and no foreseeable notion as to when things will normalize, all I can personally do is put myself in the position to have an advantage when things do return to normal,” Younge says. “I’ve been telling all my friends and fans to get out of

their slump. You might not be in a better financial position than you were before, but you might be able to have a creative vantage point that you didn’t have prior.”

For Younge the constant stream of work in the past led him to place dream projects on the back burner. During this break he’s working on one of them: a solo political project in the vein of Marvin Gaye’s What’s Going On. “There’s a lot of negative things to focus on right now, but you can’t let yourself be consumed by it,” Younge says. “If anything, people will become more creative because they have a little more time to reflect and find themselves. A silver lining in these trying times is that everyone’s broke together. And as artists we all know what it’s like to be broke.”

Barring a world war or a cataclysmic natural disaster, this might be the most transformative moment of our lifetimes. Thousands of Angelenos will be dead, beloved landmarks and cultural treasures will shutter for good, and innumerable residents will be impoverished and desperate. Yet there’s a certain solidarity within a communal struggle. The Renaissance emerged from a Europe decimated by the bubonic plague, the New Deal derived from the capitalist failings exposed by the Depression, and the firebombing of Dresden yielded Slaughterhouse-Five.

In Los Angeles there is the opportunity to collectively organize against the blight of unwanted luxury condos and predatory landlords in favor of a public and egalitarian use of our soil. The dystopian excess of the 21st century, the helium-brained reality show delusions—all these could be subverted in favor of something that recognizes and reimagines the underground forces that have benevolently shaped this city: the Watts Prophets and the Ferus Gallery, the culinary wizards and gifted line cooks who saw the food truck as a form of salvation, the art punks on Main Street at the Smell, the eccentric fast-rapping poets at Project Blowed in Leimert Park, the underground filmmakers and skate kids who flourished outside Hollywood’s gates, the Low End Theory beat scene that lit up Lincoln Park. Gentrification has left entire neighborhoods on the verge of losing their essential character and spirit.

Maybe it is time to rip it up and start again.

As for those unable to find catharsis in acts of creation— or at least sourdough baking— there remains the distinct possibility that many years from now we’ll vividly recall this moment not only for the weltering pain and bewildering uncertainty. There is also an opportunity to view the city as it once was, with vehicular poisons cleared away to reveal a delirious blue sky and the ability to see farther than anyone ever thought possible. The hushed absence of traffic. The coyotes, rabbits, and deer reclaiming their natural habitats. The forced grace of having to pause everything for a little while before the breakneck velocity and dehumanizing grind of urban living restarted. This time much faster than ever before. It has to be all that, too. The alternative is too bleak to consider.

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The Secret Life of Robert Wagner An exclusive excerpt from the explosive new biography of Natalie Wood reveals she covered for her husband’s alleged bisexuality even as the knowledge nearly destroyed her

BY SUZANNE FINSTAD

Adapted from Natalie Wood: The Complete Biography, by permission of Penguin Random House

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DOUBLE LIFE Natalie Wood and Robert Wagner in Los Angeles in 1956

A

Natalie Wood’s demons and their origins revealed themselves as if released from a genie’s lamp. Family violence. Alcoholic father. Pathological attachment to her Svengali stage mother. Psychological abuse as a child star. Paranoia.

Phobias. Bedroom of storybook dolls she believed were alive and spoke to her. Pimped at 15 to Frank Sinatra. Forced to return an engagement ring to her high school sweetheart, who tried to kill himself afterward. Exploited as a teenager into a sexual liaison with 42-year-old director Nicholas Ray to prove that she could play a “bad” girl in Rebel Without a Cause.

The secret that was buried deepest in Natalie’s closet of skeletons was the shocking end of her fairy-tale first marriage to bobby-socks idol Robert Wagner. To protect his image, Natalie publicly took the fall for their sudden divorce in 1961. She never refuted fan-magazine gossip that their marriage imploded over an alleged affair she had with her costar Warren Beatty while filming Splendor in the Grass.

In time the gossip, patently false, was reported as fact. Only a trusted few knew Natalie’s account, which I was told by three of Natalie’s close friends; her mother’s best friend; and her sister, Lana, that Natalie came upon R.J., as he was known to his confidants, in their Beverly Hills mansion in flagrante with a man. Lana recalled Natalie arriving in hysterics at their parents’ house and shutting herself in her old bedroom. Natalie woke up in a hospital after taking an overdose of sleeping pills, dazed and in shock. [Through representatives, Robert Wagner denied this version of events and any allegations of bisexuality.]

As a self-described dutiful child, Natalie was trained by her mother to keep silent, to not rock the boat. As she got older, she kept her silence, often to protect others, as was Natalie’s way. During her life, in death, and even after her death, no one that I could see had ever pro-

tected her— certainly not her mother, the directors who exploited her, the studio executives who looked the other way, the men who abused her, or the sheriff’s detectives and coroner’s examiners investigating her drowning in 1981. In the archive of forgotten facts, hidden truths, and concealed evidence about Natalie Wood, what is most shocking is Robert Wagner’s role in her drowning. The man that Natalie married not once but twice, who would often say, with glass raised, “She takes my breath away,” refused to search for two and a half hours after she went missing from their boat in the waters off Catalina Island.

To understand what happened to her that last night in all of its dark Russian drama, people need to know Natalie’s complete story—from her birth, as Natasha Zakharenko, prophesied, before conception, to become a world-famous beauty by a Gypsy in Harbin, to her death at 43, which Natalie had a premonition would be in dark water, as the same Gypsy had predicted.

Who alive then had not been moved by the tragic breaking news on the Sunday after Thanksgiving in 1981? All of the major television networks interrupted their holiday programming to report that Natalie’s body had been discovered floating in the ocean off Catalina, where she and Wagner were spending the weekend on their boat with friends. Only later was it mentioned that actor Christopher Walken was their sole guest. News footage taken early that morning shows Wagner braced against the wind in a black double-breasted peacoat with the collar turned up, looking dazed.

After years of rooting around in Natalie’s past, when I more closely examined her drowning, I found red flags everywhere. Accounts of the yacht’s deckhand, Dennis Davern, all include troubling insinuations about Wagner’s role in Natalie’s disappearance from the Splendour. The details are vague, strange, and disturbing: There was a jealous tension from R.J. toward Natalie and Walken that weekend; Natalie requested to return to L.A.; R.J. directed Davern to take Natalie to a motel; R.J. smashed a wine bottle on the second night; THE BACHELOR Left: Robert Wagner at play, early 1950s. Rumors about his sexuality “were flying” prior to marrying Natalie Wood. Above: Frank Sinatra, Wood, and Wagner in 1958. Sinatra had a sexual liaison with Wood when she was 15 and quashed an inquiry into her 1981 drowning.

Opposite: A Kiss Before Dying (1956) was Wagner’s favorite role

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PREVIOUS SPREAD: EARL LEAF/MICHAEL OCHS ARCHIVES/GETTY IMAGES; TOP: SILVER SCREEN COLLECTION/GETTY IMAGES; BOTTOM: ROY WINDHAM ARCHIVE

S I P L U M B E D H E R PA S T ,

MOVIE OUTTAKE: GEORGE RINHART/CORBIS VIA GETTY IMAGES; POSTER: MOVIE POSTER IMAGE ART/GETTY IMAGES

the yacht’s dinghy was unaccountably missing; R.J. instructed Davern not to search for Natalie as they drank for over two hours before R.J. radioed for help.

There were also gaping holes in coroner Thomas Noguchi’s findings. At a press conference December 1, 1981, just two days after Natalie’s body was discovered, Noguchi announced the autopsy results, stating that her cause of death was “a tragic accident while slightly intoxicated.” But he went on to mention an unexplained “scrape type of bruise on her left cheek” that may have rendered her temporarily unconscious before she hit the water. Noguchi’s theory was that Natalie was trying to get into the dinghy when she slipped and fell before falling into the water, stating, “She was unable to reboard the dinghy or the yacht and tragically perished.”

What an aide of Noguchi did disclose was a “heated” argument between Wagner and Walken before Natalie disappeared, a tip given to Noguchi’s office by a sheriff ’s investigator. The argument was disturbing enough that Noguchi told the assembled press that he believed Natalie wanted to get off the boat. When asked by one of the reporters why Natalie would leave the boat in a nightgown, Noguchi replied, “We are going to investigate that.” He intended to do a “psychological autopsy” on Natalie to learn why she felt she had to separate herself from her husband and Walken.

After this disclosure, Noguchi was almost instantly fired by the Board of Supervisors— which was under pressure, he and his lawyer told me, from Frank Sinatra. “I represented Dr. Noguchi then,” says Godfrey Isaac, “and Frank Sinatra got very upset. The letter from Frank Sinatra to the Board of Supervisors is really what triggered them demoting Tom.” Sinatra’s strong-arm tactics were not surprising. The director Henry Jaglom had told me how Sinatra kept Natalie under surveillance by his “goons” when Jaglom took her out in her mid-20s; a protective, and proprietary, interest that began, I had learned, when Natalie was 15.

Two years after I published Natasha: The Biography of Natalie Wood, Frank Sinatra’s right-hand man of 15 years, George Jacobs, wrote the memoir Mr. S: My Life with Frank Sinatra. Jacobs, who worked for Sinatra from 1953 to 1968, was a silent accomplice to his boss’s sexual assignations. “One affair that, unlike the others, was conducted in top secret was with Natalie Wood,” Jacobs wrote in 2003, “because she was a minor at the time, either 15 or 16, though she didn’t act like it.” According to Jacobs, “Sinatra adored this tiny beauty, but he didn’t want to go the way of Charlie Chaplin or Errol Flynn or, later, Roman Polanski.” Jacobs says he mixed the drinks when Natalie’s “insanely ambitious Russian mother” brought her to Sinatra’s apartment for a cocktail in 1954 and “pushed her on Frank, who needed no pushing.” Sinatra told Jacobs that he had been “taken by” Natalie since Miracle on 34th Street, a film she made when she was eight. Sinatra’s procurer,

Natalie’s mother, Maria Gurdin, “had her kid all dolled up,” recalls Jacobs, “total jailbait, in a form-fitting black party dress, and Mr. S went for it in a big way.”

Sinatra’s MO with Natalie was like a playbook for aspiring Humbert Humberts. “Nothing dirty-old-mannish,” his valet boasts, “he was never like that. He played them cuts from his upcoming album, provided career suggestions.” That was the quid pro quo for Gurdin.

After cocktails Sinatra arranged for Natalie to return regularly— alone—for “singing lessons.” “Mr. S would send me away when she was there,” says Jacobs. “ ‘I don’t want you to testify,’ he joked. He wanted to be ‘in Like Flynn,’ but he didn’t want to be ruined for it.”

Jacobs observed what I also found. “Mr. S truly cherished her, and whatever went on in private, he was also a father to her more than her own father, very protective.” The 38-yearold Sinatra’s “seduction” of 15-year-old Natalie, tragically, would have been both child molestation and statutory rape. Actor Scott Marlowe told me he had observed signs that she’d been molested. “How do I say this delicately?” he asked. “She was very, very experienced for a very young girl. She knew too much. More than a kid that age should know. She just knew about all the male body parts. And about what to do, how to please, or how to get herself ... loved. She knew all those little things. And it was very sad.”

Post-autopsy in late 1981 Sinatra, enraged that Noguchi disclosed at a press conference that Sinatra’s great friend R.J. had a heated altercation with Walken before Natalie disappeared, pressured the Board of Supervisors to fire Noguchi in a scathing letter, insisting that coroners “should be seen and not heard.”

By R.J.’s own description, he had made a career from the favors and good graces of famous friends, names he liked to drop, like Fred Astaire, Clifton Webb, and “Spence” Tracy. According to Jacobs, R.J. ingratiated himself with Sinatra so deeply that Sinatra “always gave him ‘a pass.’” By precipitating Noguchi’s firing, Sinatra shut down the last hope for any of Natalie’s truths to be known in an official investigation of her death.

A month after Natasha was published, Wagner appeared on Larry King Live. King had previously canceled my appearance to promote the book, under pressure from his close friend Wagner. During the interview, King almost immediately brought up “the Natalie Wood episode,” asking his friend, “What did you make of the book that came out? ... Did you read it?” “You know, Larry, I didn’t read it,” replied Wagner. “I didn’t read the book. The woman had approached me on doing the book. I’m sorry, she did not approach me on doing the book or my representatives.”

After this contradictory falsehood, Wagner defamed me, saying incoherently, “This book is—you know, this woman has fabricated, you know, those things that are all these things. ... And there’s absolutely nothing you can do about it.”

Natalie walked in on Wagner having sex with his butler. “To hear it, is one thing— to see it is another.”

L A M AG . C O M 69

Jackman contacted Lana Wood that fall to tell her Jackman might have an unpublished autobiography by Natalie. In the early ’80s a celebrity diet doctor asked Jackman to help clean out his office. To thank her he gave her his old medical journals. Inside them were 100 or so loose pages, both typed and handwritten, from what Jackman believed was the manuscript for Natalie’s autobiography. Jackman had been guarding the pages for 20 years. When she heard about Natasha in 2001, Jackman decided to call Lana because she wanted to know if the manuscript was authentic. Lana asked me to go with her to Jackman’s trailer park to examine the pages. With such a bizarre premise, neither of us expected to find a lost autobiography by Natalie. But we decided we’d enjoy the road trip.

Lana and I sat with Jackman around a cozy Colonial table, where she had laid out the pages for us to read. It was almost immediately obvious to both Lana and me that Natalie had written the pages. A third of the manuscript was entirely handwritten. There was no doubt that it was Natalie’s neat, distinctive handwriting. As we randomly chose pages to read, Lana burst into tears. Her sister had come to life again in her own voice.

The memoir validated all that I had written, and all that I had intuited, in Natasha. Natalie touched upon the “demons” from her past and how as a child she had “always done as [she] was told”; that she had “no real identity”; that she was “terrified of flying”; her romantic illusion from childhood of R.J. as a “magical Prince Charming”; her reliance on her analyst; that she was “scared to death” of water. In her own handwriting, Natalie confirmed that her divorce had nothing to do with Beatty. “There was gossip & speculation that Warren was in some way responsible for the end of the marriage,” she wrote. “It is totally untrue.” She even confirmed the “rift” I disclosed that they had during Splendor in the Grass, writing, “between takes, Warren and I went our separate way.”

JEALOUS GUY After leaving Jackman’s, I did further research on Above: Robert Wagner and Natalie Wood in 1970. Opposite from top: Wood with Natalie’s memoir. In my files I found it referenced in Christopher Walken shooting Brainstorm in 1981; Wagner and Walken fought aboard Wagner’s yacht, the Splendour, the night Wood drowned. Wood, in St. Tropez, was The Hollywood Reporter. On July 5, 1966, the trade haunted by a Gypsy’s prophecy that she would drown in dark water paper reported that Ladies’ Home Journal had asked Natalie to write a “life story” that summer. Peter Wyden, the name typed on the first page of the memoir, was an lover was a man. In the end I followed the advice of Robert Redexecutive editor for the magazine at the time. I faxed a few pages ford, Natalie’s close friend, whom I interviewed. Redford’s suggesof the memoir to Anthony Costello, Natalie’s personal secretary in tion was that of a director: “Ask yourself: How important is it to the 1966. Not only did Costello remember Natalie writing her life story story you’re telling?” by hand that summer, he had typed the pages for her. Natalie evenBy that guideline the secret was crucial. Walking in on her hustually backed out, fearing that by writing candidly about psychoband’s affair, in their own home, nearly undid Natalie. The fact that therapy and other personal problems, she would reveal more than R.J.’s lover was a man—and that she actually saw them being physisociety could handle in the ’60s. cally intimate—was a shock that almost cost Natalie her life and Natalie wrote that she “wanted to set the record straight” about traumatized her for the remainder of it. I also wanted to clear Natawhy she and R.J. divorced. “I have suffered in silence from gossip lie’s name from scandal over an affair with Beatty that I was certain about my walking away from my marriage to go with Warren. ... she had never had, a scandal I believed Natalie bore to protect R.J. But Warren had nothing to do with it. We began our relationship at a time, 1961, when an affair with a man would have damaged his after, not before, my marriage ended.” The kindhearted Natalie concareer. Wagner, with his virulent denials of homosexuality in 2001, tinued to protect R.J., alluding to but not revealing the sexual beseemed to me like a man who doth protest too much. trayal that shattered her. “It is too painful for me to recall in print About that time I received what Natalie’s mystical Russian the incident that led to the final break-up,” she wrote. “It was more mother might have called “a message from the other side.” The than a final straw, it was reality crushing the fragile web of romanimprobable medium, Ruby Jackman, was an elderly retired office tic fantasies with sledgehammer force.” cleaner in Central California who enjoyed reading medical journals.

70 L A M AG . C O M

ART ZELIN/GETTY IMAGES

After briefly wondering how Wagner knew I “fabricated” anything if he had never read my book, I hired a Beverly Hills lawyer to send Wagner’s attorney Leo Ziffren (brother of R.J.’s lawyer fixer Paul Ziffren) a strongly worded cease-and-desist letter, and I moved on.

Still, the incident disturbed me. I dedicated four years of my life to researching Natasha and interviewed more than 400 people, the majority recorded on tape, documented in 44 pages of annotations.

Based on his lawyer’s correspondence with my publisher, and comments made to me by Natalie’s sister and half-sister, Wagner seemed more obsessed with the line in Natasha in which Natalie flees the house after finding him with a man than the implications about his role in her death. For months I had debated whether to disclose the secret of R.J.’s affair, and, if I did, whether to reveal that Wagner’s

She is more specific in another passage, stating exactly why she related to the titular character she played in Inside Daisy Clover. “Daisy becomes a movie star, falls in love with a handsome actor who is attracted to other men, and she discovers this flaw on her honeymoon.

After her marriage and career go haywire, Daisy finds deep inside herself a resourceful and dependable human being.” Natalie, in effect, would have outed R.J. Natalie was alluding to the traumatic night at the Beverly Hills mansion, her intended dream house with R.J., when she said that she opened a door to look for R.J. and saw him intertwined with a man. Or as her mother, Gurdin, told her neighbor and closest friend, Jeanne Hyatt, the next morning, “She caught him in the act.” Lana was 15 when Natalie arrived at the house that night in June 1961, bleeding from a crystal glass she’d crushed in her hand and nearly berserk. Lana affirmed to me what Hyatt called “that horrid thing” that Natalie had seen. “To hear that he could be that way is one thing,” Hyatt said to me, “but to see it in action is another.”

Natalie, Lana told me, shut herself in her old bedroom, where their mother found her in a coma from an overdose of sleeping pills. “The poor little thing,” recalled Hyatt, who heard every detail from Gurdin. “I would still say that she was in such shock over that, that she took the pills to go to sleep not to commit suicide. Of course, in that state she could have overdosed without even realizing it.”

I first heard about the real reason Natalie divorced R.J., from

Robert Hyatt, Jeanne’s son. He and Natalie were close friends as child actors on Miracle on 34th Street, played teenage siblings on a TV series, and shared confidences, like a real brother and sister, ever after. Hyatt told me he learned about the secret at his mother’s house the night it happened.

The first time he told me, Hyatt turned off my tape recorder, wrote one line on a piece of paper and slid it across the table. He’d printed, “NATALIE SAW WAGNER HAVING SEX WITH THE BUTLER.” When I asked him why he wrote it on a piece of paper, Hyatt told me he was afraid that Wagner would “screw him around.” The same fear that half of Hollywood, and deckhand Davern, seemed to share.

After further reassurance, Hyatt said I could turn the recorder back on. He went on to say, “I was awakened in the middle of the night with a phone call from Natalie’s mother. And she was freaking out. She called up to tell my mother, but I answered the phone, and it was late at night so Marie just started telling me everything. ... She had been telling me for years when Natalie married Wagner that ‘no good will come of this, it will be trouble.’ And she was right. Twice.” The secret was so deeply buried, and so traumatizing, it was several years, Lana told me, before Natalie could discuss it with her.

“Why it didn’t totally destroy her—it was close, I’ll tell you,” Natalie’s closest childhood friend, Mary Ann Brooks, confided to me. “I didn’t think she was going to pull out of it. ... She never got over it.

Never.” Mary Ann, one of the few people that Natalie trusted with the secret, told me that rumors about R.J.’s bisexuality “were flying” before they married. R.J. would deny them. “Oh, Mary Ann,” she recalled Natalie telling her. “All these people are just jealous of us.”

After she had found R.J. with the butler, Mary Ann said of Natalie, “She went through, ‘It’s my fault. What’s wrong with me?’ I said, ‘Honey, you have to accept now. He lied to you.’ She even tried to protect him. Her life was just a disaster. Catastrophic levels. Her whole world went—her private world, her professional world, everything.

It was just like somebody dropped a bomb.”

After I published Natasha, supporting details emerged. Lana recalled that the butler was named Cavendish. Hedda Hopper mentioned Cavendish by name as the butler in an article about the newlywed Wagners, three years before Natalie found him with R.J. “He brings them breakfast in bed,” wrote Hopper. The Wagners’ butler, just as Robert Hyatt described him to me, was an older, English gentleman. Hyatt said his name was David Cavendish. A syndicated columnist writing about the couple’s marriage in 1958 also brought up David Cavendish, describing him, ironically, as Natalie and R.J.’s “English man-about-the-house.”

Lana told me recently that Cavendish lived with R.J. in a bachelor apartment in Beverly Hills before he married Natalie. “R.J. had him living with him as his ‘valet,’ (CONTINUED ON PAGE 83)

YACHT: PAUL HARRIS/GETTY IMAGES; INSET: BETTMANN ARCHIVE; NATLIE WOOD: JAMES ANDANSON/SYGMA VIA GETTY IMAGES

Using Christopher Walken to provoke Wagner ended with Natalie in the sea with no one to save her.

L A M AG . C O M 71

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L A M AG . C O M 73

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74 L A M AG . C O M

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Ed Connaughton Hermosa Chiropractic and Live Food Nutrition Hermosa Beach 310-372-4200

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Eileen Abrahamian Body in Balance Chiropractic Glendale 818-839-0907

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Jeremy Brook The Life Center Chiropractic Los Angeles 310-392-5456

KenGee Ehrlich The Good Chiropractor Los Angeles 310-584-7708

Ralph Alvy Ralph Alvy, D.C. Santa Monica 310-451-0479

Lance E. Brooks Lance E. Brooks DC Downey 562-862-7262

Betty Ehrlich Essential Health West Los Angeles 310-474-2331

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Yoshio Homma B.E.S.T. Chiropractic Clinic Los Angeles 213-617-2228

Rochelle Neally Growing Healthy Together Pediatric Clinic Long Beach 562-473-4441 Eric Nepomnaschy Bay Chiropractic & Rehabilitation Santa Monica 310-993-8482 Brian Nishimoto Westwood Village Chiropractic Los Angeles 310-475-0444

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Farahnaz Jalali Farahnaz Jalali Chiropractic Reseda 818-668-8136 Valerie Johnson VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System Los Angeles 310-478-3711 Michael Kaliko Body of Beverly Hills Wellness Los Angeles 310-652-2099 Alex Kaykov Dr. Alex Kaykov, DC Valley Village 818-927-3777 Ash Khodabakhsh The Chiro Guy Los Angeles 323-939-9039 Mayya Kravchenko Mayya Kravchenko, DC Los Angeles 323-933-2444

Richard Stewart Dr. Richard Stewart Beverly Hills 310-562-5524

Golan Nissim Performance Care Sports Medicine & Rehabilitation Center North Hollywood 818-766-4307 Richard Ochsmann Rhino Chiropractic Northridge 818-998-2929 Omid Okhowat Okhowat Chiropractic Los Angeles 323-933-3357 Won W. Park Totalcare ONE Chiropractic & Acupuncture Monterey Park 626-280-2818 Louis Pastis Pastis Chiropractic San Marino 626-888-1287 Steven B. Perry Dr. Steven B. Perry, Chiropractor Tarzana 818-881-2225 Bradley Ping Park Place Chiropractic Pasadena 626-795-7711 Brian Ross Brian Ross, D.C. Calabasas 818-451-5700

David Kuo Chiro Pain Care Center Alhambra 626-872-2030

Troy Schott The Joint Chiropractic Sunset Galleria Los Angeles 323-736-4029

Peter Le Spinal Stenosis and Disc Center Santa Monica 310-451-5851

James R. Silbar James R. Silbar DC Woodland Hills 818-225-0013

Marvin C. Lee SoCal Back Doctor Los Angeles 323-375-5147

Daniel Sovetky Sovetky Chiropractic Granada Hills 818-360-1967

Fred Lerner Fred Lerner, D.C., Ph.D. Beverly Hills 310-423-9603

Neal Springer Springer Chiropractic Hollywood 323-661-1183

DAVID ;(55,5)(<4 D.C. Tannenbaum Chiropractic 9150 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 250 Beverly Hills, CA 90212 310-271-9968 drdavidtannenbaum. com

Arman Tchoukadarian Pasadena Chiropractic Clinic Pasadena 626-585-1616 Juan Torres Bloch Chiropractic Wellness & Sports Medicine Long Beach 562-493-5600 Dao Tran South Bay Pain & Rehab Center Lawndale 310-263-7246 1LYP <SILYN <SILYN /LHSPUN *OVPJLZ Chiropractic, Inc. Los Angeles 818-266-7599 Patrick Channing Wilbur HealthCare Partners Arcadia 626-462-1884 Anthony Yanagihara Yanagihara Chiropractic South Gate 323-569-2727 Ruth Ziemba Integral Wisdom Healing Arts Santa Monica 310-820-2400 Rion Zimmerman Flintridge Family Chiropractic La Canada 818-952-0172 Dan Zucker Dr. Dan Zucker Sherman Oaks 818-990-9345

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L A M AG . C O M 75

LA MAGAZINE

Filipino fare from Spoon & Pork P. 80

EATING IN A GUIDE TO GREAT TAKEOUT AND DELIVERY ACROSS THE CITY E D I T E D

BY

H A I L E Y

E B E R

WEST Birdie G’s SANTA MONICA » Eclectic $$

James Beard Award-nominated chef Jeremy Fox has dramatically retooled his sunny restaurant, named after his young daughter, for the moment. There’s prepared comfort food aplenty, from matzo ball soup to Reuben sandwiches, along with pantry items and sundries both basic—all-purpose flour—and gourmet—Spanish Bomba rice. Family style “hot plates,” like a grass-fed beef meatloaf and noodle kugel, feed up to six people. Finish things off with the beautiful chocolate layer cake. 2421 Michigan Ave. (310-3103616, birdiegsla.com, @birdiegsla). Takeout, curbside pickup, and delivery via ChowNow, DoorDash, Uber Eats, and Postmates. 12-7 p.m. daily. Beer, wine, and cocktails to go.

Broad Street Oyster Co. MALIBU » Seafood $$

Hit the road. Christopher Tompkins, aka “the Oyster Man,” has transformed his clam shack overlooking Malibu Lagoon State Beach (and across from a SoulCycle, if we’re being honest) into a drive-through concept. You can grab the lobster roll that first brought Tompkins acclaim, fresh oysters, or uni spaghetti.

There’s plenty for the seafood averse as well, including a burger sprinkled with shio kombu (dried kelp)

T H E B R E A K D OW N With all the city’s restaurants closed for dine-in service amid the COVID-19 crisis, this month’s dining listings are devoted to some of our favorite options for delivery and takeout meals.

W EST

EAST

Includes Beverly Hills, Brentwood, Century City, Culver City, Malibu, Mar Vista, Marina del Rey, Palms, Santa Monica, Venice, West L.A., Westwood

Includes Atwater Village, Eagle Rock, East L.A., Echo Park, Glendale, Los Feliz, Pasadena, San Gabriel Valley, Silver Lake

T H E VALLEY DOWNTOWN Includes Arts District, Bunker Hill, Chinatown, Historic Core, Little Tokyo, South Park

Includes Agoura Hills, Burbank, Calabasas, Encino, North Hollywood, Sherman Oaks, Studio City, Toluca Lake, Van Nuys

CENTRAL

SOUT H

Includes Beverly Grove, East Hollywood, Fairfax District, Hancock Park, Hollywood, Koreatown, West Hollywood

Includes Bell, Compton, Gardena, Hermosa Beach, Long Beach, Manhattan Beach, Torrance, Watts

TIP

> For the most current info on what beloved restaurants are offering— from curbside takeout to meal kits— check their Instagram accounts along with their websites, both of which we’ve listed. Many spots update their social media more frequently than their home pages.

7 6 L A M AG . C O M

$ $$ $$$ $$$$

I N E X P E N S I V E (Meals under $10) M O D E R A T E (Mostly under $20) E X P E N S I V E (Mostly under $30) V E R Y E X P E N S I V E ($30 and above)

Price classifications are approximate and based on the cost of a typical main course that serves one. For restaurants primarily offering multicourse family meals, the cost per person of such a meal is used.

2020

and Brussels sprouts in a bacon vinaigrette. 23359 Pacific Coast Hwy. (424-644-0131 , broadstreetoyster .com, @broadstreetoysterco). Takeout phone orders and delivery via Grubhub. 11:30 a.m.-8 p.m. daily.

Cassia SANTA MONICA

» Southeast Asian $$

At this grand Southeast Asian brasserie, Mozza vet Bryant Ng mines his Chinese Singaporean heritage, honors wife Kim’s Vietnamese background, and knows the secrets to making sublimely delicious food that travels well. 1314 7th St. (310-393-6699, cassiala.com, @dinecassia). Takeout, curbside pickup, and delivery via DoorDash, Caviar, ChowNow, Grubhub, Postmates, and Uber Eats. 4-9 p.m. Sun.-Thu. 4-10 p.m. Fri.-Sat. Beer, wine, and cocktails to go.

Colapasta SANTA MONICA

» Italian $$

Fresh, affordable pastas topped with farmers’ market fare shine at this sunny, casual spot. The colorful, poppy-seed-sprinkled beet ravioli is delicate and delicious, while the gramigna with pesto and ricotta is hearty and satisfying. 1241 5th St. (310-310-8336, colapasta.com, @colapasta.restaurant). Takeout and delivery via Grubhub. 11 a.m.-2 p.m. and 5-9 p.m. Mon.Sat. Beer and wine to go.

Dialogue SANTA MONICA » Modernist Cuisine $$$$

Dave Beran has dramatically pivoted his 18-seat tastingmenu restaurant concept for those looking for fine dining to go. Each day, he offers two ever-changing three-course meals—a meat and a vegetarian option— for takeout. Enjoy options such as beef short rib Wellington with market greens and a slice of Basque cheesecake with an equally splurgey bottle of wine.

Meals come with heating and seasoning instructions.

1315 3rd St. Promenade (dialoguerestaurant.com, @dialogue.sm). Takeout via Toast. 4-8 p.m. Tue.-Sat. Beer and wine to go.

Felix VENICE » Italian $$

Evan Funke is a pasta purist who can slip Italian lessons into any meal, so it’s no surprise that his

CO U RT E SY S P O O N & P O R K

JUNE

takeaway options include pasta kits that come with the sauce, fresh noodles, cheese, and instructions to assemble dishes like rigatoni arrabiata and casarecce with pesto Genovese at home. Not up for DIY? There are hot pizzas, antipasti, desserts, and Felix’s famous foccacia all ready to go (and eat). 1023 Abbot Kinney Blvd. (424-387-8622, felixla.com, @felixlosangeles).

Takeout and delivery via ChowNow. 12-9 p.m. Tue.Sun. Beer and wine to go.

mous, limited-edition sub sandwiches more readily available (check Instagram) and has been making free meals for doctors and nurses. 11712 San Vicente Blvd. (310-481-7108, pizzana.com, @pizzana). Pickup and delivery via ChowNow. 11:30 a.m.-9 p.m. daily.

Also at 460 N. Robertson Blvd., West Hollywood (310-657-4662).

Pizzana

The Westside spin-off of the Alhambra original serves a selection of dishes intended to be nostalgia-inducing for expats of Chengdu, the largest city in China’s Sichuan province. The cooking balances spiciness with subtlety, showcasing a cuisine that tantalizes the tongue while foreheads perspire and lips go numb. The handmade wontons will make you understand why the dumplings are a crowd fave. 11057 Santa Monica Blvd. (310-444-7171, sichuanimpressions.com, @sichuan_impression_).

Pickup and delivery via Postmates. 5-9:30 p.m. daily. Also at 1900 W. Valley Blvd., Alhambra (626-283-4622).

BRENTWOOD

» Italian $$

It’s not easy to make over the local pie joint, but 35-year-old chef Daniele Uditi has reimagined an urban standby with equal parts purism and playfulness, becoming a neighborhood favorite in the process. Most impressive is the open-mindedness that has him deftly transform the Roman pasta dish cacio e pepe into a pizza or putting a hearty short rib ragù on the Pignatiello pie. And in a real twist, appetizers and seasonal salads aren’t afterthoughts but highlights. The pizzeria is also making its fa-

Sichuan Impression WEST L.A. » Chinese $$

INSTA-GRATIFICATION

Vincenti

n/naka WEST

PALMS

Japanese $$$$

› Niki Nakayama’s acclaimed kaiseki

N / N A KA : CO U RT E SY N / N A KA ; I N STA- G R AT I F I C AT I O N : A L E XA N D E R S PATA R I /G E T T Y I M AG E S

restaurant has long been one of the city’s harder-to-score reservations, so, naturally, its takeout isn’t easy to get a hold of either. But, if you do, you’re in for a treat. The $38 bento box (below) with sushi includes an assortment of items such as grilled miso black cod, pan-fried shrimp with sesame aioli, sashimi, and matcha and white chocolate cake. The $85 kaiseki jubako features delicacies like braised Monterey Bay abalone and seared Wagyu salad. The restaurant opens up reservations for the to-go meals every Saturday at 10 a.m., and they’ve been going quickly. 3455 S. Overland Ave. (310-836-6252, n-naka.com , @nnakarestaurant). Takeout via Tock.

4:30-7 p.m. Tue.-Sat.

BRENTWOOD

» Italian $$-$$$

Italian food lovers, rejoice. Chef Nicola Mastronardi is still cooking from his regular menu, turning out impeccably tender roasted octopus and crisp fried calamari as well as comforting pastas such as sausage-rapini orecchiette. Those with larger appetites can order the Jidori chicken stewed with tomatoes, black olives, and onions or the New York steak served with green beans, potatoes, and black truffles.

No hugs from owner Maureen Vincenti right now, so air kisses will have to do. 11930 San Vicente Blvd.

(310-207-0127, vincentiristorante.com, @vincenti ristorante). Curbside pickup and delivery via Postmates, Uber Eats, DoorDash, and Grubhub. 5-8 p.m.

Mon.-Sat. Beer, wine, and cocktails to go.

DOWNTOWN Badmaash HISTORIC CORE

» Indian $$

This Indian gastropub concept comes from the father-and-sons team of Pawan, Nakul, and Arjun Mahendro, who are all well versed in the culinary techniques of East and West. The menu features contemporary mash-ups, like a version of poutine smothered in chicken tikka, spiced tandoori chicken wings, and a spicy lamb burger. If tradition’s your thing, you’ll be comforted by spice-stewed chickpeas, potato and pea samosas, and what they call “good ol’ saag paneer.” Wash it all down with carefully curated, reasonably priced natural wines. 108 W. 2nd St. (213-221-7466, badmaashla.com, @badmaashla).

Curbside pickup and delivery via Caviar and DoorDash. 12-9 p.m. daily. Beer and wine to go. Also at 418 N. Fairfax Ave., Fairfax District (213-281-5185).

4-7:30 p.m. Tue.-Sat.

Bavel

ARTS DISTRICT » Middle Eastern $$$$

Ori Menashe and Genevieve Gergis will send the deliciousness from their popular downtown spot home with you. Their menus for elaborate, multicourse family meals change week to week, but the offerings always look promising, leading to prime weekend slots sometimes selling out days in advance. Meals often start with olives and the restaurant’s famed hummus, progressing to vibrant veggie preparations like tabouleh with green almonds and dried apricots and mains like a half duck for two, then perhaps a cardamon apple prune cake for dessert. Pro tip: Tack on some hummus to your dinner order for later. 500 Mateo St. (213-232-4966, baveldtla.com, @baveldtla).

Takeout via Tock 3-8 p.m. Wed.-Sun. Wine to go.

Broken Spanish SOUTH PARK » Mexican $$$ At his modern Mexican-American spot near L.A. Live, Ray Garcia is offering a multicourse family

> W E ’ R E S C R O L L I N G I N STAG RA M

more than ever lately, and when our favorite local restaurants post gorgeous photos of their meals, we can’t help but shed a tear for simpler times. But thanks to a partnership with Playa Vista-based food-ordering platform ChowNow, at least we can instantly order what we’re seeing onscreen for takeout or delivery.

The new service will allow participating restaurants to add Order Food buttons and stickers to their posts and stories, which will drive users directly to a cart on ChowNow, making the time between seeing a crave-inducing pic and getting your meal even shorter.

While that frictionless experience might not be great for your impulse control, it could help restaurants stay afloat.

“One of the most critical things for a restaurant is to engage their customer base and let them know that they’re able to order food. ... And the number one channel restaurants are using to do that is Instagram,” ChowNow CEO Chris Webb told news site TechCrunch.

Unlike many other ordering platforms, ChowNow doesn’t charge restaurants fees for each order placed.

Instead, using the company’s orderingand-payment tool kit runs $99 to $149 a month.

Birdie G’s (see opposite page) and Tallula’s chef-restaurateur Jeremy Fox is enthusiastic about the shoppable post feature. “We’ve had to quickly pivot to delivery and takeout only, and this has been a huge challenge for independent restaurants across the country,” he said in a press release announcing the service. “With ChowNow seamlessly linking to our Instagram accounts—and not charging any commissions on orders— we’re able to promote all the new things we’re offering while ensuring that more dollars go directly back to our restaurants and beloved staff.”

— B R I T TA N Y M A RT I N

L A M AG . C O M 77

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13

JUN

dinner with dishes like hand-pressed tortillas with landrace organic corn, refried lentils with epazote and queso cotija, and pork belly chicharrón. You can also grab tamales by the dozen, and, on Tuesdays, there are tacos. 1050 S. Flower St. (213749-1460, brokenspanish.com, @brokenspanishla).

Curbside pickup via Tock. 12-7 p.m. Tue.-Sat. Wine and cocktails to go.

Guerrilla Tacos ARTS DISTRICT » Mexican $-$$ Fear not. The haute taqueria is serving up Emergency Taco and Emergency Nacho kits in various sizes along with margaritas for these trying times.

The kits feed many and feature proteins like roasted chicken and carne asada. And, of course, they also include chef-owner Wes Avila’s delightfully complex salsas, which are some of the best in town. À la carte tacos and burritos are also available.

2000 E. 7th St. (213-375-3300, guerrillatacos.com, @guerillatacos). Pickup and delivery via Caviar.

11 a.m.-6 p.m. daily. Beer, wine, and cocktails to go.

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» Filipino $-$$

Brothers Chase and Chad Valencia are offering meal kits for customers to whip up the restaurant’s tasty, market-driven Filipino fare at home. Don’t forget to grab a bag of salt-and-vinegar taro chips to munch on while you cook and a bottle of biodynamic wine to go with your meal. 727 N. Broadway, Ste. 120 (213443-6163, lasa-la.com, @lasa_la). Takeout, curbside pickup, and delivery; call to place your order. 12-4 p.m. Sat.-Sun. Beer and wine to go.

Rossoblu FASHION DISTRICT

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78 L A M AG . C O M

» Italian $

After closing completely for a few weeks, downtown favorite Rossoblu has returned with curbside takeout that can be ordered via Toast. You can grab pasta kits with premade sauces and whip up your own tagliatelle Bolognese or tortellini with sage and brown butter. If that sounds like too much work, opt for prepared options that are ready to go.

There are multiple lasagnas (comforting), meatballs, and even chef Steve Samson’s famed Parmigiano-Reggiano dumplings in broth, which were recently featured on Top Chef. The restaurant also has a number of wines priced under $39, along with negronis for two and grocery staples like sugar, flour, and anchovy butter. Perhaps that last one isn’t really a staple, but it should be. 1124 San Julian St. (213-749-1099, rossoblula.com, @rossoblula).

Curbside pickup via Tock. 3:30-8 p.m. Wed.-Sun. Wine and cocktails to go.

Sonoratown FASHION DISTRICT

BURGERS BOURBON + BEER

both thin-crust slices and whole pies. The pepperoni always pleases, but the honey—with spicy salami, provolone, Grana Padano, and buckwheat honey— really thrills. 1101 S. San Pedro St., Unit F. (323-6985677, superfinepizza.com, @superfinepizza). Curbside pickup and delivery via the restaurant website within downtown, elsewhere via Uber Eats. 12-8 p.m. Mon.Wed. 12-9:30 p.m. Thu.-Sun.

» Mexican $

They still have tacos—really great ones—at this downtown spot known for its flour tortillas. Order à la carte or opt for affordable family-style options to make your own tacos, burritos, or chimichangas filled with chorizo, carne asada, or mesquite-grilled chicken. Wash it all down with a six-pack of Tecate or seasonal aguas frescas. 208 E. 8th St. (213-6283710, sonoratown.com, @sonoratownla). Curbside pickup by calling the restaurant; takeout and delivery via Caviar. 11 a.m.-9 p.m. daily. Beer to go.

Superfine Pizza FASHION DISTRICT

» Pizza $

For a more casual taste of Steve Samson’s Italian-food mastery, order up from this casual pizzeria that serves

GET CARDED Los Angeles has partnered with Wagstaff Media & Marketing and spots like Broken Spanish (P. 77) and Ronan (opposite) for the One More Helping initiative. Go to onemorehelping.com to buy restaurant gift cards. For every card purchased, restaurants will donate $1 to a charity.

CENTRAL Angelini Osteria BEVERLY GROVE » Italian $$$ Gino Angelini grew up on his grandma’s lasagna in a town outside the Adriatic city of Rimini and came to Los Angeles to cook with Mauro Vincenti. His extensive to-go offerings are both comforting and refined, from the ever-popular Gino’s meatballs to tagliolini limone to sautéed Maine scallops with Riso Venere and aged balsamic vinegar. 7313 Beverly Blvd. (323-297-0070, angelinirestaurantgroup.com, @angeliniosteria). Takeout, curbside pickup, and delivery via Postmates, Uber Eats, Grubhub, Caviar, and DoorDash. 11 a.m.-8 p.m. daily. Wine to go.

Antico

LARCHMONT VILLAGE » Italian $-$$

Take comfort. Some of the city’s best ice cream is now available to pick up. Chef Chad Colby has converted his East Larchmont Italian restaurant into a takeout spot for foccacia pizzas and ice cream, fashioning a makeshift pizza oven with the plancha top that used to sit on the restaurant’s hearth. The ice cream has a wonderfully smooth texture, and the flavors are spot on. The honeycomb has garnered a lot of praise since the restaurant opened last year— and rightly so—but Colby and chef de cuisine-pastry chef Brad Ray have also been introducing flavors like cookies and cream and pistachio. 4653 Beverly Blvd. (323-510-3093, antico-la.com, @antico__la).

Pickup and delivery via Caviar. 12-8 p.m. Mon.-Sat. Wine to go.

Guelaguetza KOREATOWN » Mexican $-$$ An authentic Oaxacan restaurant located in a former Korean banquet has made for a happy jumble for decades. The tlayudas, giant tortillas, are irresistible when spread with aciento, a traditional condiment that could pass for whipped lardo. Thick with pounded almonds, olives, and roasted chiles, the seven different types of moles are a tapestry of interwoven elements. And now, the delightfully authentic flavors can be had at home thanks to the restaurant’s takehome meal kits. 3014 W. Olympic Blvd. (213-4270608, ilovemole.com, @laguelaguetza). Takeout, curbside pickup, and delivery via Postmates, DoorDash, Caviar, and Grubhub. 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Thu.-Sun..

Beer, wine, and cocktails to go.

Harold & Belle’s JEFFERSON PARK » Southern Creole $$ For Creole-style food—a mélange of French, African, and Native American flavors—Harold & Belle’s is as close to the Dirty Coast as you’ll come on the West Coast. And, the transporting food is now also transportable. The crawfish étouffée in spicy gravy will have you humming zydeco, while the bourbon bread pudding will leave you with a Sazerac-worthy buzz.

2920 W. Jefferson Blvd. (323-735-9023, haroldand belles.com, @haroldandbellesrestaurant). Pickup and delivery via Grubhub. 11:30 a.m.-9 p.m. Sun.-Thu., 11:30 a.m.-10 p.m. Fri.-Sat.

Jon & Vinny’s FAIRFAX DISTRICT

» Italian $$

Jon Shook and Vinny Dotolo’s homage to the neighborhood pizza joint is an in-demand reservation that translates well to the comfort of your couch. The Italian American canon is prepared with the signature gusto of their first venture, Animal, but there’s also a more rarely seen delicacy in everything from the chicken parm to meatballs. 412 N. Fairfax Ave. (323-

334-3369, jonandvinnys.com, @jonandvinnydelivery).

Pickup and delivery via DoorDash. 11 a.m.-9:30 p.m. daily. Beer and wine to go. Also at 11938 San Vicente Blvd., Brentwood (310-442-2733).

republiquela.com,@republiquela). Takeout and delivery via Grubhub and Postmates. 10 a.m.-7 p.m. Tue.-Sun. Wine to go.

Ronan

EAST

FAIRFAX DISTRICT » Cal-Italian $$

Daniel and Caitlin Cutler’s chic pizzeria retains its fun-loving spirit with delicious takeout specials like a $25 margarita-margherita combo with a cocktail and pie. Don’t sleep on the nonpizza items, like a great stinging nettle risotto or a French dip calzone inspired by Philippe’s. There are also kids’ menu items, pie-making kits, and loaves of sourdough bread. 7315 Melrose Ave. (323-917-5100, ronanla .com, @ronan_la). Curbside pickup and delivery via Caviar, Postmates, and DoorDash. 4-9 p.m. daily.

Beer, wine, and cocktails to go.

Republique

FAIRFAX DISTRICT » Cal-Italian $$

Margarita Manzke’s pastry case (above) lives on in the era of social distancing. Her carb-y delights can be ordered for pickup, while her husband and savory-cooking business partner, Walter Manzke, is making family-style dinners that start with baguettes and French butter and progress to dishes like cacio e pepe rigatoni and rotisserie chicken. The restaurant is also selling boxes of produce from one of its suppliers, Fresno’s Thao Family Farm. 7624 S. La Brea Ave. (310-362-6115,

All Time LOS FELIZ » California $$

LOS FELIZ » Eclectic $$

Chef-partner Hunter Pritchett (Son of a Gun) has breathed new life into the idea of a neighborhood restaurant and a stretch of Vermont Avenue not exactly known for its culinary cred. A number of selections from his globe-trotting menu are available to go, including an excellent breakfast burrito studded with Korean bulgogi sausage and a hulking head of cauliflower with Armenian salad and zesty pistachio zhoug. There are also plenty of options just for kids.

1816 N. Vermont Ave. (323-607-6944, atriumlosfeliz .com,@atriumlosfeliz). Takeout and delivery via Grubhub and Caviar. 11 a.m.-3 p.m. and 4-8 p.m. daily. Wine to go.

Hippo

BEVERLY GROVE

DY L A N + J E N I

BARBECUE $$

› Hungry diners used to line up in the driveway of Burt Bakman’s home desperate for a taste of his famous smoked barbecue meats. In 2018, Bakman came up from the underground, opening a sleek storefront that’s now filling to-go orders for hearty fare (above), from perfectly marbled brisket to pulled-pork sandwiches and collard greens.

You can even get a six-pack of Bud Light. 8136 W. 3rd. St. (310-855-7184, slabbarbecue.com, @slab). Takeout and delivery via Postmates. 11 a.m.-9 p.m. daily. Beer and wine to go.

C U I S I N E

Atrium

A night at the pale-pink “neobistro” in the old Malo space in Sunset Junction always feels like a party, and now the restaurant will send you home with one. Chef Douglas Rankin, who worked under Ludo Lefebvre for years, cooks up three-course family meals nightly with eclectic mains like duck fried rice and lobster grilled cheese. There are also DIY boxes that allow you to make restaurant-style dishes at home. If you really want to go big, opt for the $225 premium with jamón ibérico, cheese, olives, aged strip steaks, and smoked tomato bordelaise sauce.

4326 W. Sunset Blvd. (323-347-5557, barrestaurant.la, @barrestaurantla). Curbside pickup via Toast. 12-8 p.m. daily. Wine to go.

SLAB

T H A I

Tyler and Ashley Wells’s cozy bungalow café has long been a local gem, but it’s really something now.

In addition to faves like the superb breakfast sandwich and salmon bowl, it is offerings grocery survival kits packed with tasty necessities, pasta kits with house-made tomato sauce, bake-at-home lasagna and pot pies, and much more. The Wells have also been offering a limited number of free boxes of market produce for those in need. 2040 Hillhurst Ave. (323-660-3868, alltimelosangeles.com, @freakinall time). Takeout and delivery via ChowNow. 9 a.m.-8 p.m. daily. Wine to go.

Bar Restaurant SILVER LAKE » Eclectic $$

CENTRAL

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H A L L O F FA M E 1 9 9 6 - 2 0 1 9

» Cal-Italian $$

Hidden in a wood-trussed dining room behind Triple Beam Pizza, this Cal-Ital restaurant from Mozza vet Matt Molina balances casual and refined. Many favorites from the eat-in menu are available for takeout and delivery, including a salad of snappy wax beans sluiced with vinaigrette and fettucine with heritage pork ragù. Keep an eye on Instagram for fun specials like pickle-brined buttermilk fried chicken and custom cocktails, where bartenders shake something up for you based on your favorite spirit, preference for shaken or stirred, and one word of inspiration. 5916 ½ N. Figueroa St. (323-545-3536, hipporestaurant.com, @hippohighland park). Pickup and delivery via Caviar.

5-9 p.m. daily. Wine and cocktails to go.

Maury’s Bagels SILVER LAKE » BAGELS $ East Coast transplant Jason Kaplan spent a decade in L.A. before deciding he had to take matters into his own hands if he wanted a great bagel in this town. He started out as a pop-up at farmers’ markets and coffee shops, but his appropriately modestly sized, delightfully chewy bagels now have a brick-and-mortar location on a quiet, charming Eastside corner next door to Psychic Wines. Maury’s is currently not offering sandwiches, but you can grab its excellent whole bagels, cream cheeses, and smoked fish to make your own at home. 2829 Bellevue Ave. (323-380-9380,

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maurysbagels.com, @maurys_losangeles). Takeout and delivery via Caviar and ChowNow. 7 a.m.-2 p.m. weekdays, 7 a.m.-3 p.m. weekends.

Northern Thai Food Club EAST HOLLYWOOD » Thai $ Offering specialty dishes unique to Northern Thailand, this family-run favorite doesn’t skimp on flavor, spice, or authenticity. Tasty takeout meals include the khao soi gai (curry egg noodle with chicken), laab moo kua (minced pork), tam kha noon (jackfruit salad), pla salid tod (fried gourami fish). For those unfamiliar with the region’s distinct cuisine, the illustrious sticky rice is still a staple.

Need more incentive? Everything on the menu is less than $10. 5301 Sunset Blvd. (323-474-7212 or amphainorthernthaifood.com). Takeout and delivery via the restaurant’s website. 10 a.m.-9:30 p.m. daily.

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Porridge + Puffs HISTORIC FILIPINOTOWN

» Pan-Asian $

Minh Phan’s beloved restaurant is still cooking up porridge and puffs, along with bahn mi and a set meal named in honor of the late Jonathan Gold.

Proceeds from the latter go toward providing free meals to those on the front lines of the COVID-19 battle. Various provisions—from miso caramel to apricot habanero—are on sale to help jazz up your home cooking. Look out for a Mother’s Day brunch special. 2801 Beverly Blvd. (213-908-5313, porridge andpuffs.com, @porridgeandpuffs) Takeout via Square Up. 12-6 p.m. Thu.-Sat.

now, the restaurant is continuing to offer curbside pickup by directly ordering through the restaurant.

That means you’ll be able to indulge in delicacies— charred octopus (served with tabbouleh, preserved lemon, Greek yogurt, green olives) for $19—and a selection of handmade pasta dishes, like the strozzapreti with braised short rib ragù, red wine, and Parmigiano for $22. As a way to say thank you to the community, all bottles of wine are currently 25 percent off, and specialty cocktails are only $10. 13251 Ventura Blvd. (818-285-8184, thebellwetherla.com, @thebellweather_la). Curbside pickup by calling the restaurant. 4-8 p.m. daily. Wine and cocktails to go.

Black Market Liquor Bar STUDIO CITY » New American $$ Most nights it seemed half the Valley was here huddled at the bar. Sure the world has changed, but you can take comfort in still being able to enjoy Top Chef graduate Antonia Lofaso’s crowd favorites— meatballs, crispy spring rolls, and sticky toffee pudding. The market is also selling fresh pasta and handmade sauces. Popular cocktails like the

Spoon & Pork SILVER LAKE » Filipino $$ The go-to for Filipino comfort food offers a variety of dishes, all featuring one shared ingredient: deliciousness. Spoon & Pork puts an innovative spin on some Filipino favorites—just try its adobo pork belly, pork belly banh mi, or lechon kawali. The dishes elegantly mix decadence with some authentic soul.

3131 W. Sunset Blvd. (323-922-6061, spoonandpork .com, @spoonandporkla). Takeout and delivery via the restaurant’s website. 12-7 p.m. Tue.-Sun.

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80 L A M AG . C O M

VA L L E Y

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Union PASADENA

PHOTOGRAPHERS

» Japanese $$

The popular izakaya has modified its menu to include to-go-friendly options like bento boxes with charcoal-grilled ocean trout and Jidori chicken accompanied by miso soup, daikon pickles, greenbean goma-ae, and root vegetable kinpira. There are also fried pork dumplings and a fried chicken sandwich—perfect home-drinking food. The restaurant is also offering a virtual sake school, highlighting a particular sake with tasting notes and videos via Instagram Stories. 1356 Allison Ave. (213-9004900, tsubakila.com, @tsubakila). 12-8 p.m. daily.

Takeout and delivery via Caviar and Postmates.

Sake to go.

» Italian $$$

The food shines at this cozy trattoria just off Pasadena’s main drag. Chef Chris Keyser, an acolyte of Philadelphia pasta maestro Marc Vetri, joined in 2019, keeping classics, like a great cacio e pepe on the menu while adding his own dishes such as a thrilling crispy octopus appetizer. Most of the eat-in menu is available to go, and family-style meals for four are also available. The pastas all impress, but don’t miss the wild mushrooms and polenta with a sublimely delicious sherry vinegar and truffle butter sauce. 37 E. Union St. (626-795-5841, unionpasadena.com, @unionpasadena).

Curbside pickup and delivery via Toast and Postmates.

12-9 p.m. daily. Wine to go.

THE VALLEY The Bellwether STUDIO CITY » New American $$ Ted Hopson is committed to doing all he can to ensure his neighborhood gem outlives this virus. Right

› The L.A. bagel revolution continues at this stylish new spot in the Valley that serves up carefully constructed sandwiches. Tomato, aioli, and maple-glazed bacon elevate a simple bacon, egg, and cheese, while a classic salmon-and-lox construction has thoughtful touches like salted cucumbers and pickled onions. Sammies shine with plain cream cheese, but it’s worth grabbing a tub of Hank’s “angry” spread—a spicy, slightly sweet concoction—to have in your fridge. And, no cream cheese is needed for Hank’s everything jalapenocheddar bagel (above), a stunning gut bomb. 4315 Riverside Dr. (hanksbagels .com, @hanksbagels) Takeout and delivery via Toast. 8 a.m.-1:30 p.m. daily.

KY L E DAV I D M O R E N O

FLORALS

jalapeno-infused, vodka-based Red Hot & Bothered have been bottled up for home use. 11915 Ventura Blvd. (818-446-2533, blackmarketliquorbar.com, @blackmarketliquorbar). Takeout and delivery via Caviar, Grubhub, Postmates, and Seamless. 3-9:30 p.m. daily. Cocktails to go.

The Brothers Sushi WOODLAND HILLS » Sushi $$$ At least there’s still sushi, and at this hidden gem, which was reinvigorated when chef Mark Okuda took the helm in 2018, the fare is really great.

Keep spirits up with the Handroll Party home kits (there’s even one for kids) or splurge on an omakase to go. You can also order à la carte or get nonsushi items like soy-glazed grilled chicken. 21418 Ventura Blvd. (818-456-4509, thebrotherssushi .com, @thebrotherssushila). Curbside pickup and delivery by calling the restaurant. 12-2 p.m. Tue.-Fri., 5:30-8 p.m. Tue.-Sun. Beer, wine, and sake to go.

Gino’s East SHERMAN OAKS

» Pizza $$$

Carbs don’t get any more comforting and indulgent than deep-dish pizza—at least if you have ties to Chicago. This new location had fans waiting hours for a table in prepandemic times; now you can order spinach-artichoke dip and a deep-dish Meaty Legend to enjoy at home. 12924 Riverside Dr. (818-788-5050, ginoseast.com/los-angeles, @ginoseastla). Takeout and delivery via ChowNow. 12-9 p.m. daily. Beer and wine to go.

SOUTH The Arthur J MANHATTAN BEACH

» Steak House $$$

David LeFevre’s take on the American steak house is

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so midcentury plush, it’ll definitely be worth a visit to splurge after the quarantine ends to celebrate being able to leave your house again. For now, you will have to settle for sampling his culinary creations in the comfort of your own home. Whether that means ordering a top-grade Japanese Wagyu (4 ounces) for $60 or a petite New York steak for $38, wet-aged and darkened on the grill, for takeout or delivery is up to you. The overhauled menu no longer includes seafood dishes (except a daily special), but more casual options like fried chicken, pastas, and burgers are now on offer. Plus, the eatery is serving lunch in addition to dinner, and you can order raw cuts from its butcher shop (for pickup only). 903 Manhattan Ave. (310-878-9620, thearthurj.com, @the_arthurj).

Takeout and delivery via DoorDash and ChowNow. 12-8 p.m. daily. Beer and wine to go.

Costa Manhattan Beach MANHATTAN BEACH » Spanish $$$ At his recently opened neighborhood joint, Josiah Citrin is offering “TV dinners” for customers to reheat at home. The limited menu features tasty classic dishes such as chicken parm and lamb cavatelli with roasted carrots and Broccolini. 1017 Manhattan Ave. (310-376-1536, costa-mb.com, @costamanhattanbeach). Takeout by calling the restaurant or emailing info@costa-mb.com. 4-6 p.m. Thu.-Sat. Preorder by 6 p.m. the previous day.

» Spanish $$$

Mozza alum Chris Feldmeier has revamped his traditional tapas menu to offer a selection of family meals, along with discounted beer, wine, and cocktails—even gin-and-juice Jell-o shots. Meals are designed to fit a range of tastes and include a starter, main dish, and dessert. Feldmeier has even given them cute names like the Netflix & Grill, which comprises an arugula salad appetizer, two skirt steaks, filet mignon, french fries, and two chocolate bread puddings to feed four to five people for $125. Extra desserts can be ordered à la carte. 1810 S. Catalina Ave. (310-540-4884, gabijamesla.com, @gabijamesla). Curbside pickup and delivery via DoorDash. 12-8 p.m. Tue.-Fri., 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Sat.Sun. Beer, wine, and cocktails to go.

Hotville BALDWIN HILLS CRENSHAW

» Fried chicken $

Kim Prince has fried chicken in her blood. She is the niece of André Prince Jeffries, owner of Nashville legend Prince’s Hot Chicken Shack, where hot fried chicken is said to have originated. If you are craving what Prince calls her “fiery fowl, brined to burn,” you’re in luck. The restaurant is still operating for takeout only. And the full menu is available, including sides ($5 and up) like spicy mac and cheese and kale coleslaw and lemon pound cake and banana pudding for dessert .

4070 Marlton Ave. (323-792-4835,hotvillechicken. com, @hotvillechicken). Takeout by calling the restaurant. 11 a.m.-8 p.m. Tue.-Sun.

» WE WELCOME YOUR COMMENTS AND SUGGESTIONS. PLEASE EMAIL US AT LETTERS@LAMAG.COM.

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Inside the Bunker C O N T I N U E D F R O M PA G E 5 7

with stoic Republican backbenchers in the state Senate and Assembly. “Eric is savvy in the best sense of the term,” Liccardo says.

“He has the distinction of being the smartest in the room but doesn’t want to tell other people that he is. That’s a particularly effective strategy for encouraging collaborative action in a divided electorate like ours.”

Leading Los Angeles through the pandemic has driven Garcetti to take extraordinary steps. He recruited the Fire Department to conduct coronavirus testing, a strategy that, if not handled adroitly, had the potential to roil the department higher-ups and the powerful firefighters’ union. But LAFD Chief Ralph Terrazas applauded the decision.

“I thought it was a good call,” Terrazas tells me, speaking through a blue face mask on the parking lot at the Crenshaw Christian Center.

Garcetti, he says, has generally been very forward thinking. “He’s been supersupportive of public safety, and our job is to keep up with him,” Terrazas adds. “And I like the pace.”

During the crisis Garcetti’s office has often felt less like a traditional government bureaucracy and more like a Silicon Valley start-up, trading the standard dot-every-i approach for a move-quickly-and-break-stuff ethos. That is manifested in a bevy of novel projects: Garcetti enacted L.A. Protects, which aims to boost the making of masks and personal protective equipment; he set up a web portal to help those who lost jobs find employment; he drafted business ambassadors to visit nonessential businesses that remain open to encourage them to shut down (the next visit comes from the LAPD); he put Gene Seroka, his Port of L.A. chief, in charge of procuring medical equipment and working with hospitals and health care providers.

In the best outcomes, the slash-and-burn approach reduces bureaucracy. Penn tells me that when he reached out to Garcetti’s office about having CORE, best known for its relief efforts in Haiti, join in the pandemic response, the partnership was instantaneous.

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“Typically there’s a lot of politics involved,” Penn says. “In this case it’s a seamless, immediate responsiveness.”

It’s pointless to declare that any city or state has been “better” than another at navigating the coronavirus. Needing fewer body bags is a hollow victory. Still the orders that Garcetti issued in March appear to have been palliative.

On April 30 the county had registered 1,111 COVID-19-related deaths; the same day New York state reached 17,809. Los Angeles had ten deaths per 100,000 residents, compared with 211 per 100,000 residents in New York and 111 in Orleans Parish, Louisiana.

On April 29, Garcetti announced free coronavirus testing for all L.A. residents, regardless of symptoms, hours after an alarming spike in confirmed cases in the county, which accounts for almost half of California’s cases.

Still, Ferrer says, “the evidence is pretty clear.

I do think getting ahead of the outbreak really helped us.”

But while the anxiety caused by the pandemic is palpable, the economic fallout of this disaster promises to be even more painful. In his State of the City address in April, Garcetti warned that city services in the upcoming year would be sharply curtailed, and thousands of city employees would be furloughed. He said the economic damage will be deeper than the damage suffered during the Great Recession.

The mayor’s Safer at Home order is scheduled to expire May 15. Nobody knows what will happen after that. Garcetti speaks frequently of the businesses and employees that have suffered as a result of his actions.

As dozens of states across the nation move toward reopening, he is speaking to officials across California about what it will take to open the economy without thwarting the progress that has been achieved. On April 14, Newsom joined the governors of Oregon and Washington to unveil criteria that must be met before they reopen their economies.

The following day Garcetti outlined five “pillars” of L.A.’s strategy. It’s a heavy if inexact list, including the need for extensive testing; real-time surveillance to react to outbreaks; the ability to isolate positive cases and quarantine those individuals’ close contacts; having sufficient hospital capacity to withstand the next surge; and ensuring there is ongoing scientific research.

Garcetti says he frequently thinks about the multitudes of Angelenos who have lost their jobs during this crisis. He’s eager to get them back to work. But he is quick to state the dangers of relaxing social distancing too soon.

He refers to a study that found that if L.A. had opened up in mid-April, 95 percent of

its residents would contract the coronavirus

by August 1. Ironically L.A.’s success at limiting the spread might slow the reopening. An initial serology test, conducted by USC and the county health department, says that 4.1 percent of those tested had developed antibodies to the virus, much higher than initial estimates. Most of them never exhibited any symptoms. Meanwhile 19 out of 20 people in the county don’t have any immunity to the virus and remain vulnerable.

Garcetti knows that despite his best efforts, the city might be forced to endure a second wave of illness and death, as happened when San Francisco reopened during the 1918 pandemic. Despite pressure from the president and raucous protests from residents, he is determined to proceed cautiously.

Garcetti will institute gradual changes.

He won’t flip a switch and turn on all the lights at once. A more apt metaphor, he says, is a circuit board, with a methodical rollout driven by need and safety concerns. When stores, offices, and service businesses begin welcoming workers and accepting customers, it will likely be with face coverings and limited entry. “If we can’t safely open something, we won’t do it,” he said in his April 22 briefing. Part of the challenge in responding to a novel virus is that projections of deaths and infections swing wildly. Newsom made waves in March when he cited projections that 56 percent of Californians, about 25.5 million people, could be infected over an eight-week period. Six weeks later the state had only 43,464 confirmed positive cases.

“What is this city going to look like after this is over?” I ask Garcetti in mid-April.

“I think we’re going to feel the familiar flavors of L.A.,” he answers, “but in bits and pieces. I think we’re going to go from extreme action to days where sometimes we’ll step forward cautiously. We might be back walking on a trail or the beach, and a month or two later we might be back at home and a month or two after that we might be back outside.

“I think more of us will be working. I think our economy will be fragile. I think our spatial movement will be fragile. But it will be forward motion in balance. There may be a full snap back once or twice, but I think people will understand it. And as frustrating as it will be, it will be more familiar.

“I think there will be less fear, and I hope that there will still be a sense of the common purpose. We will need to get through much more complicated issues of how we rebuild an economy and what sort of a city we’ll want to see.

“But I think ‘fragile’ is the word that comes to mind.”

The Secret Life of Robert Wagner C O N T I N U E D F R O M PAG E 7 1

his ‘man,’” Hyatt told me. “Natalie was questioning why he had that guy before they got married. She was trying to get rid of him.”

I even found movie magazines from the ’50s with fan-girl articles about the young Wagner that include a peculiar mention of his live-in butler. For a Photoplay article in 1953, the dapper 23-year-old actor posed for photographs outside his “first bachelor apartment,” an elegant Colonial fourplex.

Per the magazine, Wagner’s friend, actor Dan Dailey, suggested he rent the apartment below his. Dailey, an older song-anddance man from MGM musicals of the ’40s, lived in a one-bedroom with his “houseboy.”

Perhaps the most on-point validation of R.J.’s secret was an interview in my own archive with Irving Brecher, a screenwriter from the golden age of Hollywood. Brecher directed Wagner in Sail a Crooked Ship, the film that the actor was completing when Natalie said she walked in on him with the English houseman. I listened to that tape again 20 years later. Throughout the interview, Brecher, who told me he liked Wagner and enjoyed working with him, seemed preoccupied with the couple’s marriage in 1961 and Natalie’s apparent unhappiness. Brecher kept circling back to something that was nagging him. “And I’m just wondering,” he said thoughtfully, “whether, for any reason, Bob was involved in any homosexuality?” I told Brecher I had heard rumors he was bisexual. “Well, I think that you may be on to something,” he said. “And I’m not accusing him, but it’s quite possible.”

Brecher measured his words carefully. “I only saw one thing,” he told me. “And I—Jesus.

It’s not an awful thing I saw. But once I did see him with another actor, in a very—in a house, and I happened to walk in the room. And they weren’t doing anything serious, but one of them was fondling the other’s butt.” This happened, Brecher said, around June 1961—the same month that Natalie took an overdose of

sleeping pills and went into a coma.

Brecher’s account suggests that R.J. took risks with his trysts. “It was in a private house,” Brecher recalled. “They were guests in the house on the way out to dinner.” The actor who was fondling or being fondled by Wagner was “reasonably” well-known, the director said. “Nothing was made of it, [so] there was no embarrassment.”

Still the image had lingered in Brecher’s mind since 1961. Wagner’s sexual betrayal of Natalie in their first marriage is the dark cloud that looms over the story of a long weekend that began with Natalie using Walken to provoke an already jealous, angry R.J. and ended with Natalie in the sea with no one to save her.

In his 2008 memoir, Pieces of My Heart, Wagner reveals a violent, frightening dark side that was spinning out of control when he was in an earlier love triangle with Natalie. Like Walken, R.J.’s 1961 rival was Natalie’s costar, a younger, more successful actor. She was separated from Wagner, devastated by

“Everybody knew Wagner was a hypocrite. He’d play the dreamy straight boy for the teenage girls.”

his affair with a man, but she had not filed for divorce. “Then Warren came into the picture,” Wagner angrily recalls. “That summer, when I read about them as the hot young couple around town, I wanted to kill that son of a bitch. Life magazine was calling Beatty ‘the most exciting American male in movies.’

My last four or five pictures had been flops. I was hanging around outside his house with a gun, hoping he would walk out. I not only wanted to kill him, I was prepared to kill him. Everything was coming to an end—my marriage, my career, the life I had built. I remember thinking that if I couldn’t kill Beatty, maybe I should kill myself. It was either flip out or flip the page: I chose the latter.”

The parallels in 1961 to the night on the Splendour in 1981 are eerie. Wagner had been hearing gossip from the set of Brainstorm, a sci-fi thriller starring Natalie and Walken, that the two were having an affair.

Walken was Hollywood’s new, brash leading man in 1981, an Academy Award winner two

years earlier for The Deer Hunter. Wagner “sold soap,” as he derisively described his TV career. R.J.’s visceral response to that dynamic in 1961 had been to kill the rival who was threatening “the life [he] had built.” More recently, Wagner offered an even more disturbing insight into his psyche. In a long video interview in 2011 with Alan K. Rode, the host of an annual Palm Springs film festival, he said that his favorite role was in the 1956 film noir A Kiss Before Dying, based on the 1953 novel by Lawrence Roman. In the movie’s most famous scene, Wagner’s character, Bud, who has discovered his pregnant fiancée might be disinherited, lures her to the roof of a building, pushes her to her death, and tries to make it look like suicide. The movie poster is of a young Wagner as he pushes Joanne Woodward off a building. The poster was released July 20, 1956, the day of Natalie’s first date with Wagner, also her 18th birthday.

Wagner first heard about the novel from his sister, who read an excerpt prior to its publication. She told R.J. that he reminded her of Bud, a charming, amoral sociopath who would stop at nothing to get ahead. “That character, I never thought of him as a villain, really,” Wagner says in his strangely candid 2011 interview with Rode.

“I mean, he was just tryin’ to keep it goin’, to get ahead. I never played him as a guy who was a killer or anything like that. He was in love with her, and it was just too much pressure for him. I mean, he only had one way to get out.” R.J., 23 in 1953 and under contract to Fox, was so obsessed with playing Bud, he persuaded studio chief Darryl Zanuck to buy the film rights for him before the book was published and took it to producer Robert Jacks himself to set it up.

The film was notable for another reason.

The dark, suave Robert Quarry, who would become a cult figure in the 1970s for his film portrayals of the vampire Count Yorga, played one of Bud’s victims. Quarry, a distinguished stage actor, was several years older than Wagner. “R.J. was such a pretty boy that it was hard to take him seriously in those days,” Quarry said. In his last years Quarry, who was gay, shared confidences in an interview with writer-producer-director Tim Sullivan. “Everyone knew Wagner was a hypocrite. He’d play the dreamy straight boy for the teenage girls.” Quarry recounted to Sullivan how R.J. would stroll off the set, put his arm around whichever young actress the studio was promoting as his girlfriend, and pose for photographers like a man in love.

By the end of filming on A Kiss Before Dying, that actress would be Natalie Wood.

L A M AG . C O M 83

EMAIL YOUR BURNING QUESTIONS ABOUT L.A. TO ASKCH RIS@LAMAG.COM

Q

Why is Hot Dog on a Stick tearing down its Santa Monica landmark to put up a replica?

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ARTIST CREATES SURREAL “19TH CENTURY” IMAGES

A: The city has owned the little red shack since the first teenagers started stomping lemons and frying corn dogs there in 1946. The architect designing its replacement reports that the floor is uneven, the employee restroom isn’t handicap accessible, and there are drainage issues around the teensy stand.

Any changes could force Hot Dog on a Stick to bring the whole building up to code, so it has plans to replace the location with a similar but slightly larger “replica.” However, the company has had those plans since 2010, so here’s hoping the weenies are still there when we get back to the beach ... in 2021.

nient for out-of-town guests. The first of 64 plaques were installed around the pool in 1996 for Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, George Gershwin, and Benny Goodman, but “these things get expensive,” Holmes says.

“And our crowd was starting to die off.”

Q: Why is there a musicians’ walk of fame at the LAX Marriott?

A: Wally Holmes is an old jazzbo who has loved the tunes of the 1930s and ’40s since

Q: Is there still a museum underneath the Chase Bank at Sunset Boulevard and Vine Street?

A: Nope, both basement museums (one dedicated to magic and

84 L A M AG . C O M

they were new. The horn player (who made a fortune as the writer of the disco hit “Rock the Boat”) created the Sweet and Hot Music Festival and picked an airport hotel conve-

one to radio) were closed in 2004 after an electrical transformer exploded, raining toxic chemicals on vintage microphones and scripts. The magic mementos, including Houdini’s handcuffs, escaped unharmed.

Today the restored Pacific Pioneer Broadcasters collection is at the Thousand Oaks Library; the Society of American Magicians Hall of Fame hosts traveling shows of its displaced items. Both collections are seeking permanent locations.

O Do you ever wake up from a particularly vivid dream and remember so much rich detail that you feel like the events might have actually happened? Pasadena artist Stephen Berkman recounts memories of a most curious Victorianera photo studio in his sumptuous new book, Predicting the Past: Zohar Studios.

Shimmel Zohar captured uncanny images of twins conjoined at the mustache, a learned caveman, and even a tiny alien. The technology of Zohar’s time coincides with Berkman’s talent for wet-plate collodion photography. When studios need a period-perfect image of Brad Pitt or Gal Gadot on a glass plate negative they call Berkman. This meticulously crafted world uses ancient equipment and dizzying chemicals.

“It definitely puts me in an altered state of mind,” says Berkman.

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