L.A. Times CNPA Entry Inside Pages Year in Review by LATawards

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YEAR IN REVIEW

TRUMP AND CHAOS ARRIVE IN D.C. By Cathleen Decker

hange came to Washington in 2017, as the new president promised. So did chaos, division and disruption, and a sense that the guardrails that usually had kept the capital and American politics on a normal path had collapsed under the weight of it all. A year that started with a bleak inaugural address in which President Trump spoke of “American carnage” and his angry insistence that he’d drawn the greatest crowd of supporters ever to watch a swearing-in ended with the president venting publicly at the FBI, his own Justice Department and, in what became a common refrain, his predecessor, President Obama, and his defeated opponent, Hillary Clinton. All year, the capital and, by extension, politics at large have been roiled by multiple investigations into Russia’s interference in the 2016 election, questions of whether the Trump campaign was also involved, massive protests, a president whose moods could be transparently ascertained in 140-character bites, rancor on Capitol Hill and discontent in Trump’s own administration. On Capitol Hill, Democrats and Republicans have been thoroughly alienated from each other, as Republicans forge ahead alone on goals long thwarted by Obama, only to find themselves cobbled by internal warfare, while Democrats watch and contemplate their own brewing civil war. By the end of the year, for many there was a palpable fear of what was to come on matters as diverse as the Cold War-reminiscent dispute with North Korea and the specter of sexual harassment allegations tarring politicians of both major parties. Trump’s presidency has echoed the curvature of his campaign, with a histrionic public facade that fronts an administration that does manage to get some things done. Trump has begun to reshape the federal judiciary in conservative fashion, impacts that will be felt for decades given judges’ lifetime appointments. He has curbed regulations on a variety of fronts, many of them aiding industries that have long complained about restrictions, and has benefited from an economy that, continuing the long trend begun under Obama, has soared. He has begun walking back trade deals reached by his predecessors, including the TransPacific Partnership. He has altered long-standing, bipartisan foreign policy goals, including his December announcement that he would move the U.S. Embassy in Israel to Jerusalem and his soft touch toward Russia. But apart from the Pacific trade deal, those were nowhere near the top of the bullet points he fired off night after night in campaign rallies filled with adoring fans. The wall meant to block illegal immigration? Nowhere near funded. Obamacare repealed? Nope. China labeled a money manipulator and punished? Not at all. The swamp of Washington drained? It’s deeper and more brackish. Wall Street punished for plundering middle America? To the contrary, it was rewarded with Cabinet positions and a promising tax plan. As 2017 closes, America is no closer than it was at the year’s beginning to be able to answer some basic questions about the president’s approach, so often scattershot, and his odds of forging a presidency whose accomplishments might still some of the national discontent. From the start of his campaign until now, Trump has succeeded thanks to an overt usage of usversus-them, fueling the anger of his loyal base of roughly 35% of Americans against those he’s attacked: Muslims, Latinos, women who have accused him of sexual misconduct, Gold Star families, African American athletes, Republicans who don’t genuflect to him, Democrats of all stripes, and always, always, Clinton and Obama. But like chaos, anger blows past boundaries. Already, Trump’s presidency has set off a fierce backlash that has improved Democratic chances in the 2018 elections. The question — of enormous import for 2018 and Trump’s reelection odds in 2020 — is whether he can contain something he helped unleash. cathleen.decker@latimes.com

Irfan Khan Los Angeles Times

THE DAY AFTER President Trump’s inauguration, protesters gathered in downtown Los Angeles and other cities across the country

for a women’s march. Hundreds of thousands of demonstrators also flocked to the National Mall in Washington in a sea of pink hats, the symbol adopted by many women.

BOTH SIDES IN THEIR TRENCHES

By Thomas Curwen

hysicists have long understood that for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. What is true in the natural world is also true in human society. Little wonder then that in 2017, democracy found its voice in the streets. Protesters marched, quarterbacks took a knee, scientists exclaimed and millions of Americans stood in awe of a darkening that came across the sky. Man buns and “pussy hats” were in vogue, superheroes were box office, and real-life heroes were found in the midst of heartbreak and tragedy. The year opened with a sea of pink when some 5 million marchers around the world — inspired in part by the grass-roots activism of two Los Angeles feminists and their knit shop in Atwater Village — rallied for their right to protest the inauguration of the new president. Barack Obama had just said goodbye (“I leave this stage tonight even more optimistic about this country than I was when we started”), and Donald Trump had just said hello. Under drizzling skies, his words charted a

new course. “At the bedrock of our politics will be a total allegiance to the United States of America,” Trump told his followers who had gathered at the Washington Mall, “and through our loyalty to our country we will rediscover our loyalty to each other.” But loyalty proved elusive in a country where moderation was marginalized. Citizens gravitated to extremes: political, moral, even comedic. Just ask Kathy Griffin, who in a year of outrageous gestures and crude bombast managed to find the line and cross it, Salome-like, with a photo of herself brandishing a bloodied replica of the first executive’s head. Battle lines — over immigration, healthcare, trade and climate change — seemed immovable. Diversity had become less a reason to celebrate than a point of antagonism. Some debated free speech. Others challenged it with chants of “blood and soil” in the streets of Charlottesville, Va., where tiki torches, assault rifles and clubs set the stage for the death of a counterprotester. Most disturbing, perhaps, was fear that some Americans welcome the disarray as if chaos was

merely the unfortunate side effect of the cherished goal of “draining the swamp.” Only the financial markets seem immune from such troubles. What happened? Up was down, and down was up. Even the stolid accountants at PricewaterhouseCoopers botched the envelopepass during the Academy Awards. Had the country suddenly become addled by rising temperatures? NASA declared 2017 the third-hottest year on record, and as if to oblige, an ice sheet the size of Delaware broke free from Antarctica in July. Fallout and blowback — stoked by the self-proclaimed “Ernest Hemingway of 140 characters” — became staples of the news cycle. “Covfefe” became a word. “Little rocket man” squared off against the “U.S. dotard,” and the White House briefing room, thanks to Melissa McCarthy, became a venue for ridicule. Only Congress seemed unable to appreciate the joke, and when some of its members stepped to microphones, they put politics above morality, platitudes above common sense. As the poet W.B. Yeats once opined of another divided time, “the best lack all conviction while the worst are full

of passionate intensity.” Meanwhile, the investigation of special counsel Robert S. Mueller III burned like a quiet fuse through the back alleys of Washington and Moscow. So when Puerto-Rican import “Despacito,” a four-minute encomium to dancing and a little more, surpassed 3 billion YouTube views, it felt right to bust a move. This battered world was ready for distraction. In California, storms soaked the state to end the historic drought, and in outer space, Cassini, intrepid explorer of Saturn and its ethereal moons, threaded the needle between the planet and its rings. Elsewhere, champagne corks popped at Caltech when two goateed physicists celebrated winning a Nobel Prize for proving Einstein was right once again about that E=MC2 business, and a supernova 160 million light-years away provided the fireworks. From Oregon to South Carolina, millions of Americans risked retinal burn for the sake of glimpsing the totality of a solar eclipse (or a fraction thereof). Some made pilgrimages to the heartland. They donned goofy glasses, peered into cereal box eclipse projectors and

Carolyn Cole Los Angeles Times

A TOTAL SOLAR ECLIPSE in August provided a grand celestial show that had not been visible all

across America in nearly a century. The happening mesmerized millions of people. Watching, some embraced. Others wept. Above, sky-watchers in Andrews, N.C., dubbed “Totality Town” by NASA.

joined a fleeting culture of amazement and awe. As satisfying as these reveries were, there was no escaping more terrestrial woes: hate crimes on the rise, “bump stocks” still on the market, and violence tearing through communities in Las Vegas, Sutherland Springs, Rancho Tehama and elsewhere. Amid the memorials, heroes were rightly found and praised: the doctors and paramedics at a trauma center off the Vegas Strip; the next-door neighbor to the church in Texas; the teaching aide who locked down her elementary school. And when wildfires devastated Northern California in October (and Southern California in December), the story of the couple who survived the night in a neighbor’s swimming pool seemed especially miraculous, as were the encores and comebacks that 2017 brought. Never mind Taylor Swift dropping her first album in three years, the animal kingdom delivered the real surprises. There were sharks circling the Southland, a new wolf pack howling in Lassen County, and a second mountain lion skulking through the Hollywood Hills, company at last for the city’s other

resident cougar, P-22, just across the 101. Fictional heroes and superheroes played big as well, as audiences tuned into the timeliness of “The Handmaid’s Tale” on TV and cheered for “Wonder Woman” in the cinemas, never suspecting that a real power struggle between the good and the bad would emerge as the year came to an end. Demonstrators, who marched in January, marched in November as well, only now #MeToo was the rallying cry, an exhortation to the courage of the women who stood up to speak truth to the predators who seemed to believe that their abuse and harassment would never come to light. And now with a new year upon us, 2017 recedes with the promise of what lies ahead: The Dodgers, coming so close in October, ready for the spring. Los Angeles’ winning bid for the Olympics. And with the midterm election approaching, the political action committee Emily’s List has recorded nearly 20,000 women interested in running for office. If all else fails, marijuana will be legal in California on Jan. 1 Will we need it? thomas.curwen@latimes.com

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YEAR IN REVIEW CALIFORNIA

BATTLES ON MANY FRONTS

Garcetti is reelected. What’s next for him?

Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti won a landslide reelection this spring, riding a wave of prosperity and civic rebirth that is marked by a growing skyline, blossoming neighborhoods — and wrenching gentrification. But where Garcetti goes next is a question. He says he simply wants to serve L.A., but has not completely knocked down presidential aspirations. In the meantime, he got locked out of the two most logical stepping stones: California governor and U.S. senator.

Former sheriff is convicted in a retrial While overseeing the troubled L.A. County Sheriff ’s Department, Lee Baca remained so popular that L.A. Weekly started calling him “the Teflon sheriff.” That was before federal investigators started looking into allegations of abuse in the jail system. In March, in a retrial, the former sheriff was convicted of obstruction of justice, conspiracy and making false statements to federal investigators.

Charter school backers are victorious In May, charter school backers won a majority of seats on the Los Angeles Unified School District board in what was the most expensive school election in U.S. history. L.A. already has more charter schools than any other city, but advocates want to see a dramatic increase. And more challenges lie ahead. Ref Rodriguez, a charter backer and LAUSD board member, is facing three felony charges on allegations of campaign money laundering. He stepped down as board president. Meanwhile, Supt. Michelle King is on an extended medical leave.

Constituents turn up the heat at town halls Shortly after President Trump’s inauguration, many voters turned to local town hall meetings to express their frustration — particularly with Republican members of Congress. The events often were marked by protests, rowdy crowds and a touch of political theater. Facing criticism over votes on the Obamacare repeal and tax reform, some GOP members avoided in-person town halls while others publicized their appearances. Activists rallied at “empty chair” town halls without congressional members present. But Democrats faced contentious town hall meetings too. Sen. Dianne Feinstein fielded tough questions at events in Los Angeles and San Francisco, and several people were arrested after protesters interrupted an immigration-focused town hall held by Santa Ana Rep. Lou Correa.

Key climate change tool gets a big boost California lawmakers approved an extension of the state’s cap-andtrade program in the summer, making it a more permanent fixture of the state’s climate change agenda. Designed as a financial incentive for companies to release fewer greenhouse gases, cap and trade was set to expire in 2020. The new law, which extends the program until at least 2030, found political acceptance when longtime critics in the manufacturing sector came on board after Gov. Jerry Brown made concessions. Brown also spent time in 2017 crisscrossing the globe — from New York to China to Europe and beyond — making the case that not all U.S. leaders were walking away from the issue.

California Democratic Party faces a civil war

Marcus Yam Los Angeles Times

A blistering leadership fight in the California Democratic Party unearthed divisions, mirroring a similar struggle at the national level and threatening to undercut California’s role as the nation’s political counterweight to President Trump. In May, delegates elected Eric Bauman, a bullish union organizer and party insider, as the new party chairman. He won a narrow victory over Kimberly Ellis, a progressive Bay Area Democrat who tapped into a wellspring of disaffected backers of 2016 presidential hopeful Sen. Bernie Sanders. Ellis accused party “establishment hacks” of skewing the election in Bauman’s favor, but her challenge was rejected by the party in August after a months-long appeal.

Wildfires in Northern and Southern California

The last three months of the year were plagued by destructive wildfires that left several communities in the state reeling. In October, infernos killed more than 40 people and destroyed more than 8,000 buildings in California’s wine country. Losses from insured properties alone are expected to far exceed $1 billion, and the total bill for the fires will be still higher. Fighting the fires alone cost $189 million, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. In December, wildfires made headlines in Southern California, as homes and countless acres were lost to the Skirball, Lilac, Rye and Thomas fires. Heavy winds, dry conditions and thick brush combined to make the Thomas fire, which scorched parts of Ventura and Santa Barbara counties, on track to become the largest wildfire in modern California history; as of mid-December, it had destroyed more than 700 homes and cost $130 million to battle. Above, the Coffey Park neighborhood in Santa Rosa.

San Diego’s hepatitis outbreak spreads America’s worst hepatitis outbreak in years hit San Diego in late summer and later spread to other California cities, traveling through the most vulnerable population — the homeless. Experts said filthy street conditions contributed to the outbreak, prompting San Diego to launch a massive public health campaign that included the addition of portable restrooms and steam-cleaning sidewalks.

The L.A. County rail boom continues Los Angeles County’s rail boom shifted into overdrive — with construction on the long-promised Wilshire Boulevard subway, as well as a light-rail line along Crenshaw Boulevard that will eventually connect to Los Angeles International Airport. Metro’s Expo Line to Santa Monica has proved to be a huge hit with riders, though the numbers for the transit system overall are still sobering. All that construction downtown? That’s for yet another new, connecting subway system snaking its way through the city center.

Free speech on campus The University of California, where the free-speech movement started and students now argue over how far unrestricted expression should go, announced plans in October to launch a national center to study 1st Amendment issues and step up education about them. Many of this year’s student protests took place at UC Berkeley, but in November, eight people protesting an appearance by conservative firebrand Milo Yiannopoulos were detained at Cal State Fullerton.

The state drought is over — for now

Gary Coronado Los Angeles Times

California’s five-year drought ended with a bang. The wettest year on record caused flooding, and Sierra snow kept ski resorts in business through the summer. But many of the problems that the drought highlighted remain, prompting debate about the massive delta tunnel plan, groundwater problems in the Central Valley and whether the state can live within its ecological means.

Northern California shootings For 45 minutes, a gunman stormed through the Rancho Tehama Reserve in the northern Sacramento Valley, killing at least four people. Authorities were investigating seven crime scenes, one of them an elementary school where, after hearing gun shots, teachers and staff rushed children into classrooms. When the gunman arrived, officials say, he opened fire, wounding two students, but could not enter the buildings and moved on to other targets. Police would later fatally shoot him.

Gas tax goes up, and GOP vows to fight One of the most contentious issues in the Legislature this year was the adoption of gas tax and vehicle fee increases to raise more than $52 billion for improvements to the state’s roads, bridges and mass transit over 10 years. The action spawned two petition drives by Republicans to qualify 2018 ballot measures to repeal the measure. It also has fueled an effort to recall a Democratic state lawmaker who voted for the tax increase. The law took effect Nov. 1, when the state gas tax increased by 12 cents per gallon to 41.7 cents. The excise tax on diesel fuel increased by 20 cents, to 36 cents per gallon.

An effort to help ease housing crisis After years of soaring rents and home prices, Gov. Jerry Brown and California lawmakers agreed in 2017 to pass the most significant package of housing legislation in recent memory. The laws taking effect Jan. 1 could add billions of dollars to subsidize new housing for low-income residents, make it easier for developers to build and, for the first time in 50 years, provide a substantive penalty to cities and counties where home construction fails to meet state planning goals. Nonetheless, estimates show that new construction will still lag by tens of thousands of homes needed just to keep pace with projected population growth.

Leaders work to protect people in the U.S. illegally

Gary Coronado Los Angeles Times

President Trump’s harsh words and promises of a crackdown on those in the U.S. illegally have sparked fears in L.A.’s large immigrant communities. In Sacramento, Democrats introduced bills specifically to counter the president’s agenda. The centerpiece of the legislation was a sweeping expansion of efforts to limit state and local law enforcement cooperation with federal immigration agents. Gov. Jerry Brown signed the so-called sanctuary state measure into law on Oct. 5.

Dam disaster averted, but massive repair job is on the agenda

David Butow For The Times

The Oroville Dam is America’s tallest. And for a few hours this spring, it came close to sending a deadly wave of water into the Sacramento Valley. The main spillway was damaged and its emergency spillway showed signs of collapsing. Although the structure withstood this particular test, it raised major questions about how Oroville Dam was built and maintained. In the meantime, the state is rushing to complete repairs before the rains come.

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YEAR IN REVIEW SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA WILDFIRES

WIND AND FLAMES AND DESTRUCTION

The Thomas fire in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties puts a horrifying exclamation point on a dangerous year of wildfires

Wally Skalij Los Angeles Times

EVA SMATHERS, a resident of La Conchita, is overcome with emotion as the

Thomas fire approaches the beach community in Ventura County on Dec. 7.

Marcus Yam Los Angeles Times

RESIDENTS pack up as smoke envelopes their Ventura neighborhood on Dec.

5. As of mid-December, the Thomas fire had destroyed more than 700 homes.

Al Seib Los Angeles Times

VENTURA COUNTY firefighter Aaron Cohen catches his breath after

battling overnight on Dec. 5 to save multimillion-dollar homes in Ventura.

Wally Skalij Los Angeles Times

A FIREFIGHTER battles embers and flames from the wind-stoked Thomas fire in

Al Seib Los Angeles Times

A MASSIVE AND OMINOUS cloud of smoke from the Thomas fire rises to the north of downtown Ventura on Dec. 10, as seen from the Ventura Pier.

the Ventura County community of La Conchita on Dec. 7. The blaze, which ignited on Dec. 4, is on track to become the largest wildfire in modern California history.

Wally Skalij Los Angeles Times

CASEY RODRIGUEZ helps a friend move belongings from a Ventura apartment building on North Kalorama Street that was ravaged by the Thomas fire on Dec. 8.

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YEAR IN REVIEW POLITICS

FIRST SCENES IN A TUMULTUOUS ERA Justin Sullivan Getty Images

Pablo Martinez Monsivais Associated Press

New environment in Washington

Attempts to repeal Obamacare

(Many) changes at the top

Before taking office, President Trump derided the science linking human activity to global warming as a “hoax.” So it wasn’t a total surprise when he announced the U.S. would cease participation in the Paris agreement on climate change, the 2015 pact that set country-bycountry goals for reducing fossil fuel emissions. Still, the announcement came with some suspense as U.S. allies had lobbied Trump to stick with the accord. By the end of the year, every country except the U.S. — nearly 200 in all — had signed the accord, leaving China as the world leader in combating climate change. The Paris withdrawal is the highest-profile item on a long list of Obama-era environmental policies that Trump has taken steps to reverse.

After several tries, the House in May passed a bill that not only sought to undo much of the 2010 Affordable Care Act, but also would have severely limited federal payments for the Medicaid program. But the effort repeatedly stalled in the Senate when a few Republicans refused to go along with plans that would have left millions more Americans without health insurance. The Senate tried again — unsuccessfully — in the summer and early fall. In one dramatic late-night roll call, John McCain, above, cast a deciding vote against his Republican colleagues’ effort. The GOP dissenters were denounced by Trump, who was eager to deliver on a key campaign promise.

The first year of the Trump administration saw more turnover in its top ranks, in shorter time, than in any recent presidency. Eight months in came the first Cabinet casualty: Tom Price resigned as secretary of Health and Human Services after it was revealed he had used private jets at taxpayer expense. Before that, White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer left in late July, and Chief of Staff Reince Priebus soon followed. Both had opposed Trump’s hiring of Anthony Scaramucci, above, as communications director. Before he even officially started, “the Mooch” was fired at the insistence of new Chief of Staff John F. Kelly after profanely assailing Priebus and chief strategist Stephen K. Bannon in an interview. Weeks later, Bannon too was out.

Vernon Bryant Dallas Morning News

AFP/Getty Images

Trump’s Twitter war with NFL players

Denouncing North Korea’s Kim as ‘Rocket Man’

The president has repeatedly dived into culture wars, frequently on topics with racial overtones, and typically used language that in previous administrations would have been considered unpresidential. His Twitter war against NFL players who knelt during the playing of the national anthem combined all those elements. Trump began the battle during a rally in Alabama in September, profanely denouncing the players, mostly African American, who had been kneeling during the anthem to protest social injustice and racial inequality.

Before he took office, Trump was warned that North Korea was a foreign policy nightmare. Since then, he and Pyongyang’s ruler, Kim Jong Un, have traded crude insults. Trump denounced the North Korean leader as “Rocket Man” at the U.N. General Assembly on Sept. 19. Kim responded by mocking “the mentally deranged U.S. dotard.” But beyond the insults, the danger is real as Kim continues to test nuclear weapons and long-range ballistic missiles and Trump boosts military forces in the region.

Chip Somodevilla Getty Images

Ryan M. Kelly Daily Progress

Trump fires FBI Director Comey; Mueller takes over Russia investigation

Trump reacts to the violence in Charlottesville

In May, Trump sacked FBI Director James B. Comey amid an investigation of the Trump campaign’s possible complicity with Russia’s election meddling. Initially, the White House said Trump had followed the advice of Justice Department officials. But in an interview a few days later, Trump indicated he’d planned to fire Comey, whom he called a “grandstander,” regardless of advisors’ recommendation, saying that he acted because of his unhappiness with “this Russia thing.” About a week after Comey was fired, the Justice Department named a special counsel — Robert S. Mueller III, who had preceded Comey as FBI chief and served 12 years on the job — to take over the Russia inquiry.

The president ignited a national furor in August with his remarks after a rally by white supremacists in Charlottesville, Va., turned bloody. One of the demonstrators intentionally drove his car into a crowd, killing a woman protesting their presence. Initially Trump blamed “many sides” for the violence. After a bipartisan outcry, two days later he criticized the neo-Nazis, only to return the next day to his original stand: The racists and anti-racists were equally at fault. “You also had people that were very fine people on both sides,” he said. Trump’s response caused widespread condemnation, resulting in resignations of appointees to White House advisory boards.

J. Scott Applewhite Associated Press

Mark Wilson Getty Images

Chip Somodevilla Getty Images

Special counsel brings first indictments

Flynn resigns in February, pleads guilty in December

Mueller’s special counsel investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 election produced its first three indictments on Oct. 30 — and they included a surprise. Trump’s former campaign manager, Paul Manafort, above, and his deputy, Richard Gates, were charged with conspiracy, fraud and money laundering in an alleged scheme unrelated to the election. The surprise came a few hours after the indictments were released when another former campaign aide, George Papadopoulos, pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI, and court papers showed he secretly had been helping prosecutors.

Michael Flynn, Trump’s first national security advisor, was forced to resign after 24 days on the job. The White House said he had misled Vice President Mike Pence and other top officials about meetings with the Russian ambassador. But his long-term problems — his contacts and contracts overseas — put him in the cross hairs of the Mueller team’s Russia inquiry. On Dec. 1, Flynn pleaded guilty to making “false, fictitious and fraudulent statements” to the FBI about his communications with Russia’s ambassador in December 2016, after Trump had named Flynn his national security advisor. As part of the plea deal, Flynn agreed to cooperate with investigators.

John Bazemore Associated Press

Chip Somodevilla Getty Images

Trump’s GOP critics go public

A stunning upset in Alabama

GOP delivers tax cut votes

For a time, Trump’s election papered over the split his candidacy opened between pro-Trump partisans and establishment Republicans. But by October the establishment’s criticisms, which had been mostly private, became extraordinarily public: Within eight days, three Republican senators and the previous Republican president attacked Trump’s style and stewardship. On Oct. 24, Sen. Jeff Flake excoriated him from the Senate floor as “reckless, outrageous and undignified.” Sen. Bob Corker, above, said Trump would be remembered for “the debasement of our nation.” This came days after Sen. John McCain and former President George W. Bush delivered blistering speeches that didn’t name Trump, but plainly were directed at him.

Throughout the year, Democrats have said voters were outraged by Trump, were highly motivated and eager to vote. Late in the year, the party scored some high-profile election victories to back that up. None was bigger than the U.S. Senate race triumph of Doug Jones, above, over scandal-plagued Republican Roy Moore in deep-red Alabama. A month earlier, Ralph Northam won a larger-than-expected majority to win the governor’s race in Virginia, where Democrats also picked up several additional seats in the lower house of the state Legislature, possibly challenging the Republican majority. Democrats also won the governorship in New Jersey, where Republican Chris Christie’s tenure is drawing to a close.

On the heels of their failed Obamacare repeal, Republicans wanted to score a political win on tax reform. This month, Senate Republicans, led by Mitch McConnell, above, put Congress on track to deliver. The ambitious package, opposed by Democrats as a giveaway to the wealthy that will pile on the national debt and raise taxes for many among the middle class, challenges GOP orthodoxy against deficit spending. Even after accounting for future economic growth, the plan is estimated to add $1 trillion to the deficit over 10 years, despite Republican promises that the tax cuts will pay for themselves. By late December, a final tax bill was approved by the House and Senate and sent to President Trump.

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YEAR IN REVIEW THE NATION

DAYS OF TRAGEDY AND RAGE

David Becker Getty Images

The worst mass shooting in U.S. history

On the ground, it was a party. Thousands of people were spread out across a Las Vegas fairground, enjoying a country music performance as part of the Route 91 Harvest festival. High above them, a man with high-powered assault weapons was watching from a window of the Mandalay Bay hotel. Then he opened fire. Fifty-eight people would die and more than 500 would be injured in the worst mass shooting in U.S. history. The shooter took his own life; his motive for the massacre remains a mystery. Gun manufacturers’ stocks rose after the shooting.

Marcus Yam Los Angeles Times

Hurricane Harvey rips into Texas Gulf Coast and delivers a deluge in Houston

Andres Kudacki Associated Press

Eight people killed in Manhattan truck attack

After it was done, after, authorities said, he killed eight people by driving a rental truck along a popular bike path in Lower Manhattan, Sayfullo Saipov lay in his hospital bed, said he “felt good about what he had done” and asked for an Islamic State flag to be hung in his room. Saipov, a legal immigrant from Uzbekistan, was yet another acolyte who had been radicalized by Islamic State online and allegedly took it upon himself to kill as many people as possible. New Yorkers didn’t flinch. The New York Marathon went ahead as scheduled the following Sunday. “I left my bodyguard at home,” one spectator joked.

It was a hurricane season like no other. Hurricane Harvey slammed into the Gulf Coast of Texas on Aug. 25, drove north and camped over Houston for days, bringing a deluge that flooded tens of thousands of homes, including those above. Statewide, more than 50 people died. Less than two weeks later, Hurricane Irma rampaged through the Caribbean before hitting Florida, causing widespread damage but fewer deaths than feared. Then came Hurricane Maria, which made a direct hit on Puerto Rico, leaving most of the island without power or potable water — but plenty of rage over what was perceived as inadequate federal help. More than two months after Maria, much of the U.S. territory remained crippled.

White supremacists’ rally in Charlottesville turns deadly

Samuel Corum Anadolu Agency

By their own telling, white supremacists were emboldened by the election of President Trump, who was slow to renounce them and embraced some of their social media memes during the campaign. That all came to a head on Aug. 12, when assorted white supremacists rallied in Charlottesville, Va., chanting “blood and soil!” and “white lives matter!” A counterprotester was killed by a car driven by a white supremacist from Ohio. Two state troopers patrolling the area also died when their helicopter crashed.

26 killed in Texas church shooting

Scott Olson Getty Images

The killer was methodical, relentless. He marched through the church with an AR-15-style rifle and mowed down everyone he saw — adults, teenagers, babies. His target was as “soft” as they come — the First Baptist Church of Sutherland Springs, Texas, a welcoming place whose congregants included the shooter’s mother-in-law, with whom he was apparently having a dispute. In the end, 26 people were killed, including the daughter of pastor Frank Pomeroy. “I know everyone who gave their life that day,” Pomeroy said a week later, wiping away tears. “I guarantee they are dancing with Jesus today.”

Farewell to Saturn’s greatest explorer Total solar eclipse unites millions of Americans More than 1 million rally nationwide for women’s rights

Carolyn Cole Los Angeles Times

As it turned out, this was not the year of the first female president. It was, though, the year that women said #MeToo and #Resist. The biggest single event occurred the day after President Trump’s inauguration, when well over a million women and their male supporters rallied in cities around the world, including Washington, New York, Chicago and Los Angeles. “We can whimper, we can whine, or we can fight back,” Sen. Elizabeth Warren told marchers in Boston. “Me, I’m here to fight back.”

Marcus Yam Los Angeles Times

It was an event that inspired Americans to stop in their tracks and gaze — at the total solar eclipse. Moving along a 2,600-mile, 14-state swath starting in Oregon and ending in South Carolina, the eclipse seemed to bring out everyone’s awestruck inner poet — or curious amateur scientist. Even in cities where the eclipse was only partial and the sky barely darkened, office workers clustered on street corners, using protective spectacles to look at the obscured solar disk. And for those who fell in love with the darkest moment of the celestial event, it’s not too early to plan for the next one in the U.S., in 2024.

NASA

Just a few weeks after Americans marveled at the solar eclipse, scientists marked a bittersweet farewell to Cassini, the NASA spacecraft that spent 13 years exploring Saturn. Cassini, whose breakthrough discoveries revolutionized the search for life beyond Earth, disintegrated in the ringed planet’s cloud tops in a choreographed demise. NASA had extended the spacecraft’s original four-year mission twice. And even in the final seconds before it burned up like a shooting star, it sent back new data from deeper in Saturn’s atmosphere than ever before.

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YEAR IN REVIEW SEXUAL HARASSMENT

AT FIRST WHISPERS, AND THEN A ROAR

Women wouldn’t be silenced in this year of reckoning. Sexual harassers are put on notice.

Accusations and revelations of sexual harassment and sexual misconduct have rocked the nation, prompting lawsuits, firings, resignations — and denials. Below are quotes from women reacting to the news or stating their own allegations.

“Yup. Hollywood shines light on Catholic Church, sex trafficking — let’s shine it on ourselves a second and what we’ve condoned.”

By Robin Abcarian

or sexual harassers, 2017 has been a year of reckoning. In October, the New York Times and the New Yorker published bombshell reports on movie mogul Harvey Weinstein, detailing numerous accusations of sexual abuse and secret settlements. Days later, the Los Angeles Times published a report alleging that director James Toback had harassed at least 38 women, 31 of whom were willing to be named. In the days that followed, hundreds more women contacted staff writer Glenn Whipp to give similar accounts of harassment by Toback, bringing the total to 310. The floodgates had opened. For weeks, each day brought new revelations about powerful men who were accused of abusing subordinates and others. Occasionally, victims were men. Overwhelmingly, they were women. The sheer number of familiar names was stunning: Joining Weinstein and Toback on the dishonor roll were Brett Ratner, Russell Simmons, Kevin Spacey, Louis C.K., Dustin Hoffman, Jeremy Piven, Matt Lauer, Charlie Rose, Mark Halperin, Leon Wieseltier, Republican (and losing U.S. Senate candidate) Roy Moore, Democratic Sen. Al Franken and Democratic Rep. John Conyers Jr. Franken and Conyers resigned under pressure in December. Inspired by the outpouring, more than 140 women in the California state capital — elected officials, lobbyists, legislative staff — signed an open letter under the banner “We Said Enough.” “Each of us has endured, or witnessed or worked with women who have experienced some form of dehumanizing behavior by men with power in our workplaces,” the women wrote, choosing words that resonated far beyond Sacramento. “Men have groped and touched us without our consent, made inappropriate comments about our bodies and our abilities.” Three Democratic assemblymen from Southern California — Raul Bocanegra, Tony Mendoza and Matt Dababneh — soon faced accusations. Bocanegra resigned, Mendoza was stripped of committee assignments pending an investigation and Dababneh announced his resignation as well. In retrospect, this cultural moment had been gestating for several years. Bill Cosby’s long history of bad behavior, finally acknowledged in 2015, broke ground for this sordid national sweepstakes. The subsequent toppling of Fox News boss Roger Ailes by former Fox personality Gretchen Carlson indirectly led to Bill O’Reilly’s exit from the network. By the time the Weinstein exposes came along, the country was realizing that powerful men might no longer be immune from the fallout of their own reckless behavior. The male sexual prerogative — which confuses power with allure — is not a new feature of gender relations. Grabbers and gropers have always occupied every echelon of America. But in all walks of life men have often been protected by their institutions. Now the avalanche of accusations, and secret settlements revealed by dogged investigative reporters and courageous victims willing to speak out, put the institutions at risk. Skeptics no longer asked: Why did it take her so long to come forward? Why did she allow herself to be alone with him? How can we believe her when it’s his word against hers? Out of the mists of denial, patterns were emerging. If a man had been accused of sexual harassment once, maybe it would be swept under the rug. But if a man had been accused by three women, or 10 women, or dozens, we finally came to accept that the sheer number of accusers weighed in favor of the accusers. It was no longer a he said/she said situation. It was he said, she said, she said, she said, she said, she said, she said. Now our questions were directed at the accused and the institutions that protected them: How could the Weinstein Co. have paid settlements to Harvey Weinstein’s victims year after year? Why was Bill O’Reilly’s contract renewed after he paid an accuser $32 million to go away? In the second week of December, three of 16 women who have accused President Trump of sexual harassment or assault during the campaign appeared on “Megyn Kelly Today” to renew their accusations. They had come forward in 2016 after hearing Trump boast to Billy Bush of “Access Hollywood” about grabbing women’s genitals, but faded from the spotlight after his election. Trump has said they are all lying. It’s been at least 40 years since sexual harassment was recognized as an illegal form of gender discrimination, and 26 years since law professor Anita Hill accused Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas of sexually harassing her, a wakeup call that led to the election of an unprecedented number of women to Congress. In 2017, the illusion that sexual harassment was becoming a relic of a less equitable time crumbled. Women won’t be silenced. Harassers are on notice. I’m looking forward to 2018. robin.abcarian@latimes.com

— Actress-writer-producer Lena Dunham,

writing on Twitter in reaction to allegations against movie mogul Harvey Weinstein

Illustrations by

Greg Houston For The Times

MARIO BATALI

Mario Batali stepped away from the operations of his culinary empire and was fired from “The Chew” after the website Eater reported that four women said he touched them inappropriately. He said that he did not know the identity of his accusers, but the behaviors in the news report “match up with ways I have acted.”

RAUL BOCANEGRA

Assemblyman Raul Bocanegra (D-Pacoima) became the first California lawmaker to resign over sexual harassment allegations spanning his career. Assemblyman Matt Dababneh (D-Woodland Hills) also is resigning after accusations of sexual misconduct. Both say legislative inquiries will clear their names.

LOUIS C.K.

For years Louis C.K. denied rumors of inappropriate behavior. But then five women alleged incidents of him masturbating — or requesting to — in front of them. He admitted to the acts, then went into seclusion. Casualties included the comic’s movie “I Love You, Daddy” and deals with HBO, Netflix and FX.

JOHN CONYERS JR.

Rep. John Conyers Jr. (D-Mich.) resigned after support among Democrats, including House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (DSan Francisco) and Congressional Black Caucus leader James Clyburn (D-S.C.), collapsed amid accusations of sexual harassment by female employees. Conyers denies any wrongdoing.

“It’s pretty hard to not just be constantly outraged. You’re just constantly refreshing the news. We are all shocked at how truly horrific these stories are, but we also recognize that this is the culture we live in. This is how women are devalued.” — Writer Jen Statsky,

who has worked on “Parks and Recreation,” “The Good Place” and “Broad City.”

“He grabbed me by the hair and forced me to do something I did not want to do. He then dragged me to the bathroom and forcibly raped me.” — An Italian model-actress who alleges that Harvey Weinstein sexually assaulted her at a hotel in 2013. Weinstein has “unequivocally denied” allegations of nonconsensual sex.

AL FRANKEN

Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) said he would resign “in the coming weeks” after several women accused him of sexual misconduct, including forced kisses. Franken said past statements, in which he said women who raise such allegations should be heard, had given a “false impression” that he was admitting guilt.

JOHN LASSETER

As the chief creative officer of Pixar and Walt Disney Animation Studios, John Lasseter has overseen numerous animated movies, including the new hit “Coco.” But he is on a six-month leave after publicly apologizing to people who have received “an unwanted hug or any other gesture.”

MATT LAUER

Matt Lauer’s termination from “Today” shocked his co-anchors after NBC fielded a complaint about “inappropriate sexual behavior in the workplace.” In a statement, he said, “Some of what is being said about me is untrue or mischaracterized, but there is enough truth ... to make me feel embarrassed and ashamed.”

ROY MOORE

Roy Moore, a former Alabama state Supreme Court chief justice, had been a heavy favorite to win a U.S. Senate seat until a number of women stepped forward alleging sexual misconduct — including charges that he sexually assaulted a 16-year-old girl — when he was in his 30s. Moore, 70, has denied the allegations.

“What’s really important right now is that there’s an uprising — people are saying, ‘No, this is problematic.’ Women need to speak up, and women need to be heard. It’s not one industry, and it’s every level of the food chain. It’s just something women learn to write off as the day-to-day of being a woman: ‘She asked for it because she wore a dress.’ But thank God now the conversation is shifting.” — Actress Blake Lively,

responding to reports of sexual harassment in Hollywood

“All of you Hollywood ‘A-list’ golden boys are LIARS.” — Actress Rose McGowan, who has targeted powerful media figures in a series of sharply worded tweets

“I felt like a prostitute, an utter disappointment to myself, my parents, my friends. And I deserved not to tell anyone.” BILL O’REILLY

Bill O’Reilly, the former Fox News host, was fired in April after a 20-year run amid sexual harassment allegations and reports of payouts — made by the anchor and the network — to women who alleged harassment and verbal abuse. O’Reilly, who had been the network’s top-rated personality, denied the allegations.

BRETT RATNER

Filmmaker Brett Ratner, who has directed, produced or financed dozens of box-office hits, has been accused by several women of sexual misconduct or harassment. Ratner has denied the allegations. Warner Bros. has opted not to renew a deal with his company, RatPac-Dune Entertainment.

CHARLIE ROSE

Charlie Rose, a host on “CBS This Morning” and a “60 Minutes” correspondent, was fired by CBS after several women accused him of sexual misconduct. Rose apologized, saying, “I have behaved insensitively at times, and I accept responsibility for that, though I do not believe that all of these allegations are accurate.”

RUSSELL SIMMONS

Music mogul Russell Simmons, co-founder of Def Jam Recordings, has been accused by several women of various acts of sexual misconduct, including rape. Simmons has stepped away from his businesses. He apologized for some of his treatment of women but denied all allegations of misconduct.

— Actress Adrienne LaValley,

talking about an alleged encounter in a hotel room with director James Toback, where she says he tried to rub his crotch against her leg and later ejaculated in his pants. Toback denies the allegations.

“It’s a career based on networking — not just what you know, but who you know. Speaking up could make it more difficult, if not impossible, to advance your own career.” — Sabrina Demayo Lockhart,

a former legislative staff member who now works as the communications director for an oil and gas association, speaking about sexism and harassment in Sacramento

“He grabbed me with one hand, grabbed my head and shoved his tongue into my mouth. With his other hand, he put it up my dress.” — Sylvia Castillo,

KEVIN SPACEY

After actor Anthony Rapp accused Kevin Spacey of an unwanted sexual advance when Rapp was 14, Spacey apologized and said, “I choose now to live as a gay man.” Then others accused Spacey of sexual misconduct, including assault. He was dropped from “House of Cards” and replaced in “All the Money in the World.”

JEFFREY TAMBOR

After being accused of sexual harassment by two women on the set of the Amazon series “Transparent,” Jeffrey Tambor said in a statement, “The idea that I would deliberately harass anyone is simply and utterly untrue.” He then said he couldn’t see returning to the show in the current “politicized atmosphere.”

JAMES TOBACK

After 38 women accused filmmaker James Toback of sexual misconduct, the director denied the allegations, saying that he had never met any of these women or, if he did, it “was for five minutes and have no recollection.” After that, the list grew to more than 300 women. Toback continues to deny all allegations.

HARVEY WEINSTEIN

Harvey Weinstein, co-chairman of the Weinstein Co., has been accused of misbehavior ranging from harassment to rape by more than 80 women. He was fired from his company and booted from the movie academy. Weinstein, the focus of several criminal investigations and lawsuits, has categorically denied any crimes.

describing an alleged encounter with Raul Bocanegra, then chief of staff to California Assemblyman Felipe Fuentes, in 2010. Bocanegra resigned from the state Assembly last month after multiple women accused him of unwanted physical advances or communications. “While I am not guilty of any such crimes,” he said, “I am admittedly not perfect.”

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YEAR IN REVIEW THE WORLD

POWERFUL FORCES WERE ON DISPLAY

Nationalist challenges defeated — for now Europe’s two most important governments got a taste of the populist resurgence that catapulted Donald Trump to power in the United States. In May, Emmanuel Macron — a centrist who shunned his country’s establishment parties — became France’s youngest president by defeating the far-right nationalist Marine Le Pen. In September, Germany’s Angela Merkel weathered a strong nationalist challenge to come out on top of a parliamentary election — but with such a weak mandate that she referred to herself as a “caretaker chancellor” and was considering another election.

Trump says U.S. will quit Paris climate accord Donald Trump fulfilled one of his campaign promises when the president announced that the U.S. would be pulling out of the Paris accord on climate change. “It is time to put Youngstown, Ohio, Detroit, Mich., and Pittsburgh, Pa. … before Paris, France,” Trump declared in an announcement in the White House Rose Garden. That declaration came six months after U.S. government agencies reported that global temperatures were the hottest on record in 2016 for the third year in a row. Later in the year, the Trump administration hinted that it might not pull out of the Paris accord, but seek new terms.

Catalonia votes for independence from Spain With nationalism roiling Europe, it was perhaps inevitable that separatist movements could gain traction. And so it was in Spain, where the affluent northeastern province of Catalonia — which has long nurtured its own identity and language — voted overwhelmingly on Oct. 1 to declare independence. What followed was a high-stakes game of chicken between the Spanish government and Catalan leaders — who ultimately fled to Belgium to escape arrest and eventually turned themselves in to police. For now, Catalonia remains part of Spain.

Zimbabwe’s Mugabe resigns, ending 37-year rule He had been president for 37 years, a revolutionary figure who had helped end white minority rule in Zimbabwe, the former Rhodesia. A majority of the people in his country could remember no other leader. But all that came to an abrupt and surprising end on Nov. 21 when Robert Mugabe, a hero who became a dictator, stepped down in the face of a de facto coup by his military. “I will always remember this day,” said Brian Tumbare, an unemployed 25-year-old in Harare, the capital. “I have suffered for too long, and I am just loving every moment of it. It’s like our independence day.”

North Korea’s missile launch raises stakes After launching its third intercontinental ballistic missile of the year, North Korea declared that it had achieved its long-held goal of becoming a full nuclear power. Its provocative actions throughout the year sharply raised the stakes of its rivalry with the United States, which was only compounded by a series of taunts and insults between President Trump and North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong Un. Kim called Trump a “dotard,” sending Americans to their dictionaries, and Trump dubbed Kim “Little Rocket Man,” threatening to rain “fire and fury” on Pyongyang.

Marcus Yam Los Angeles Times

Islamic State loses territory in Iraq and Syria This was the year that Islamic State lost its caliphate. After months of intense, block-by-block fighting, U.S.-backed Iraqi forces reclaimed Iraq’s second-largest city, Mosul, from Islamic State in July. Then, in October, U.S.-backed forces in Syria wrested control of the group’s “capital,” Raqqah. After those defeats, the Islamist extremists were left with very little territory, but experts warned that they weren’t toothless and still had the capability to carry out — and inspire — international terrorism. “It’s a different story now, with a different plot,” said Hassan Hassan, a fellow with the Washington-based Tahrir Institute.

Fred Dufour AFP/Getty Images

Xi Jinping is China’s strongest leader since Mao

Until this year, only one Chinese leader — Mao Tse-tung — was so powerful as to warrant a mention in the country’s constitution while he was still alive and in power. That changed on Oct. 24, when China’s Communist Party agreed to insert Xi Jinping’s name and ideology into the constitution, affirming what was already clear: Xi is not your average Chinese leader. By the time his second five-year term was rubber-stamped at the Communist Party congress, Xi had made his mark as the country’s strongest, most authoritarian leader since Mao — with no clear successor in sight.

Isabel Infantes AFP/Getty Images

Britain suffers series of terrorist attacks Hundreds die when 7.1 earthquake hits central Mexico

Gary Coronado Los Angeles Times

The sirens sounded at 11 a.m. on Sept. 20, marking the 32nd anniversary of one of Mexico’s worst disasters, a magnitude 8.0 earthquake in which thousands died in the nation’s capital. And then, about two hours after the observance, it happened again. This time, the quake was magnitude 7.1, also centered near Mexico City. Lessons learned in the prior quake helped contribute to a much lower death toll of about 325 people. And, tragic though it was, it also led to a surge of national pride as Mexicans drew together and helped one another. The quake gave birth to a popular hashtag: #FuerzaMexico, or Strength in Mexico.

‘A textbook example of ethnic cleansing’ in Myanmar

Kevin Frayer Getty Images

A year ago, few people outside Myanmar and its neighboring countries had ever heard of Rohingya Muslims, although their plight had been growing steadily worse in recent years. Then, in August, Rohingya began fleeing Rakhine state in Myanmar as government troops carried out what the United Nations called “a textbook example of ethnic cleansing” in response to an insurgent attack. First thousands, then tens of thousands, then hundreds of thousands fled, mostly to Bangladesh. The crisis tarnished the international reputation of Myanmar’s leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, and even drew Pope Francis into the fray.

Singer Ariana Grande had just ended her concert in Manchester, England, with the song “Dangerous Woman” when the suicide bomber struck. Twenty-two people would die and dozens more were injured in the May 22 attack, claimed by Islamic State. It was one of several terrorist attacks that Islamic State claimed in Britain this year, including attacks outside Parliament in March, at London Bridge in June and on the London Underground in September. In an apparent revenge strike in June, a man from Wales drove his car into a crowd of Muslim worshipers in London.

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INSPIRATIONS AND DISAPPOINTMENTS PLAYOFFS

PLAYOFFS

Dodgers lead series 1-0 W: Kershaw L: Walker GAME 2: 6 p.m. today at Dodger Stadium, TBS

Dodgers lead series 2-0 W: Maeda L: Ray S: Jansen GAME 3: 7 p.m. Monday at Arizona, TBS

Dodgers win series 3-0 W: Darvish L: Greinke S: Jansen NLCS Game 1: Saturday vs. Washington or Chicago at Dodger Stadium

Dodgers lead series 1-0 W: Maeda L: Rondon S: Jansen GAME 2: 4:30 p.m. today at Dodger Stadium, TBS

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DIVISION SERIES GAME 1

LIKE GOOD OL’ DAYS

Kershaw gives up four solo homers, but Dodgers regain their summer swagger

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DIVISION SERIES GAME 2

IT’S A HIT SEQUEL Bottom of lineup does the job and Jansen gets five-out save for 2-0 advantage

By Andy McCullough

The night felt like June or July or August, those glorious months when the Dodgers ruled the sport like preordained kings. But it was October, the proving ground for prospective monarchs, and that mattered all the more. In the first game of the first round of 2017 playoffs Friday, the Dodgers pulped the Arizona Diamondbacks in 9-5 victory, galvanized a crowd of 54,707 at Dodger Stadium and re-staked their claim for National League preeminence. A four-run, first-inning blitz against a jittery Taijuan Walker set the tone. Justin Turner bashed a three-run homer, en route to tying a playoff franchise record with a five-RBI night. Yasiel Puig licked his bat, wagged his tongue, cracked a double and a triple, and drove in two runs. Corey Seager scored three runs and delivered a tension-easing, RBI triple in the eighth. Handed the lead, Clayton Kershaw towed his team into the seventh inning before a fusillade ended his night. Arizona walloped a quartet of solo home runs against Kershaw, the most given up by any Dodger in postseason franchise history. Two came in the sev[See Dodgers, D11]

Rich Hill clutched the cardboard sign and walked into the Dodgers dugout. The crowd at Dodger Stadium was sitting on its hands in the bottom of the seventh inning Saturday, minutes after a five-run lead over Arizona had shrunk to two. The second game of the National League division series was no longer a party, a lark, a celebration of the Dodgers’ might. The 54,726 fans assembled at Chavez Ravine wore the scars of the past and the tension of the present. October is a cruel month. The highs feel fleeting. The lows are eternal. Hill sought to counteract the encroaching dread with a handcrafted message: “Make Some Noise.” The crowd caught Hill’s drift. The cheers gathered in volume as the Dodgers mounted a rally. As if on cue, a grounder from Chris Taylor rolled through the legs of Arizona shortstop Ketel Marte. A run scored. The crowd exploded, and the Dodgers had enough to hang on for an 8-5 victory to capture a 2-0 lead in this series. To get there, the Dodgers [See Dodgers, D2]

admitted to shoplifting in China during the Bruins’ season-opening visit.

Wally Skalij Los Angeles Times

Stanley Cup championships. General manager Dean Lombardi was also let go.

Spoiling a gem: Cubs capitalize on error to ruin the night for Strasburg and Nationals. D12

A L D S

Power players: Carlos Correa and Jose Altuve back Dallas Keuchel to give Astros 2-0 lead. D12

No safe lead: Indians rally to win in 13 innings and put the Yankees on the brink of elimination. D12

PLAYOFFS D

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1 NL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME 2

Dodgers lead series 2-0 W: Jansen L: Duensing

Photographs by

Wally Skalij Los Angeles Times

JUSTIN TURNER conjures memories of Kirk Gibson with his three-run, walk-off home run against John Lackey (41) of the Cubs in the ninth inning of Game 2.

Turner joins Gibson in Dodgers lore, homers for 2-0 lead Lakewood, a 3-year-old boy screamed as the baseball cleared the fence. The boy grew up to be a baseball player, then a big leaguer, then a Dodger, then the second Dodger to hit a walk-off postseason homer. On the 29th anniversary of Gibson’s home run, Turner recognized the symmetry as he rounded second base. He decided against mimicking Gibson’s famed fist pump. Instead he hollered at his teammates assembled at the plate, tossed his helmet into the grass and disappeared inside delirium of two dozen other Dodgers, a group two wins away from the World Series. “I felt like I was floating,” Turner said. The noise inside the stadium felt volcanic. The ballpark shook beneath the weight of 54,479 fans stamping [See Dodgers, D2]

By Andy McCullough

SPORTS INSIDE

ger Stadium as the Dodgers moved within two wins of a World Series return.

GAME 1 DODGERS LEAD 1-0

The Rams beat the Jaguars 27-17 and the Chargers top the Raiders 17-16. D3

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W: KERSHAW L: KEUCHEL S: JANSEN

GAME 2 TODAY: HILL VS VERLANDER 5 P.M. AT DODGER STADIUM TV: CH. 11

SPECIAL K A brilliant Kershaw is backed by homers from Taylor and Turner

A PICKUP GAME With Seager out, almost everyone else contributes to opening win over Cubs By Andy McCullough The message glared in green ink on a clubhouse whiteboard, a three-sentence mantra for the Dodgers as they seek to end a 28season World Series drought and extinguish the flames of baseball’s defending champions. “You get few opportunities in life to be great,” the message read inside the Dodgers clubhouse. “Be [expletive] great today! End the Cubs!” It will take three more victories. On the first night of the National League Championship Series, the Dodgers overcame a somnolent start and the psychic blow of losing their All-Star shortstop to capture a 5-2 victory and a 1-0 series lead in front of a sold-out crowd of 54,289 at Dodger Stadium. Unbowed by the absence of Corey Seager, the lineup outlasted Cubs starter Jose Quintana and blitzed the overmatched Cubs bullpen. They turned a foreboding afternoon into a blissful night. They relied on a cast of characters both familiar and obscure. Yasiel Puig sparked the offense with an RBI double in the fifth and a solo shot in the seventh. Chris Taylor blasted the go-ahead stroke with a homer in the sixth. In the middle of everything was Charlie Culberson, a last-minute replacement for Seager. Culberson tied the score with a sacrifice fly in the fifth. He scored another run in the seventh on a controversial call at the plate, which led to the ejection of Cubs manager Joe Maddon and the delight of the crowd. Clayton Kershaw withstood a two-run homer by Cubs outfielder Albert Almora Jr. to complete five innings. He kept the Cubs scoreless otherwise, but manager Dave Roberts hit for Kershaw and trusted his bullpen for the last 12 outs. Five relievers were perfect. Kenley Jansen closed the door with a four-out save. And the Dodgers rolled through their fourth consecutive victory this Octo[See Dodgers, D15]

BILL PLASCHKE PHOENIX — Austin Barnes shook his right fist toward the dugout. Kenley Jansen pointed his right hand to the sky. The catcher and pitcher swaggered into each other’s arms and were soon joined by a stream of sprinting, leaping teammates trying to storm their way into history. It was a scene not of surprise, but strength. It was a moment not of unbridled joy, but fulfilled expectation. These Dodgers have been here before, but never like this. The Dodgers have marched into the National League Championship Series twice before during their current five-year playoff streak, but never with such quiet intensity and blunt force. What was completed at [See Plaschke, D2]

Nobody does it quite like Puig Outfielder provides the energy again, Bill Plaschke writes. A1

Seager not on NLCS roster Dodgers hope All-Star shortstop can play in World Series. D2

It was a good call

AL CHAMPIONSHIP

Greinke proves the Dodgers were right. D2

SPORTS INSIDE

Ducks lose 2-0 Wally Skalij Los Angeles Times

DODGERS CLOSER Kenley Jansen, middle, is mobbed by Yasmani Grandal, left, and Clayton Kershaw after series-clinching victory.

N L D S

Tied up: Bryce Harper and Ryan Zimmerman homer to even series. D12

Missed chance: The Nationals waste a strong effort from ace, are on brink of elimination. D9

A L D S

Astros moving on: Justin Verlander gets the win in relief and Houston eliminates Boston in Game 4. D9

Flames end long losing streak in Anaheim. D3

Alive for Game 5: Severino redeems himself as Yankees take advantage of Indians’ errors. D9

1 Robert Gauthier Los Angeles Times

YASIEL PUIG IS PUMPED after an RBI double in the fifth inning for the Dodgers’ first run. He would add a solo homer in the seventh.

Justin time: Verlander strikes out 13 and Astros win on walk-off hit. D14

USC hangs on — barely — against Utah at Coliseum; UCLA can’t stop Arizona in Tucson. SPORTS INSIDE >>>

PLAYOFFS

Dodgers lead series 3-0 W: Darvish L: Hendricks GAME 4: Today at Chicago, 6 p.m. TV: TBS

Dodgers lead series 3-1 W: Arrieta L: Wood S: Davis GAME 5: Tonight at Chicago, 5 PDT. TV: TBS

Dodgers win series 4-1 W: Kershaw L: Quintana World Series Game 1: Tuesday at Dodger Stadium vs New York or Houston

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ONE-AWAY TRAIN Unbeaten in postseason, Dodgers are close to ending World Series drought

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LOWER BROOMS

Dodgers unable to sweep as Baez hits two of three solo home runs against Wood

By Andy McCullough

CHICAGO — When his eyes registered the location of the last pitch, Yu Darvish stepped outside the batter’s box. He stared at the umpire to be sure. It was a fastball from Cubs reliever Carl Edwards Jr. like the three pitches before it, and it was not a strike, like the three before it. In October, good luck can give a man pause. There was only one thing left to do. Darvish roared and chucked his bat into the grass. The trajectory of the lumber was not majestic. It felt more visceral, the stunned reaction of seeing fortune smile on the Dodgers. “The story of the night,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said, “is Yu Darvish.” In a postseason packed with bat flips, this one in the sixth inning of a 6-1 victory over the Cubs was the most improbable. With two outs and the bases loaded in Game 3 of the National League Championship Series, Roberts allowed Darvish to bat for himself, even after sending Curtis Granderson to the on-deck circle as a decoy. Roberts decided outs were more precious than runs — and he would be rewarded with both. The move looked curious in the moment. In hindsight, it served as another chapter in this pristine postseason, one in which the Dodgers own a commanding 3-0 series lead, and reside one victory away from their first World Series since 1988. Roberts manages a club in an enviable position. Roberts operates with urgency in the playoffs, willing to insert pitchers and pinch-hitters with abandon in search of exploiting any edge. Here he opted for restraint, hoping to extend Darvish deeper into the game. As his team stormed to their sixth consecutive playoff victory, Roberts received the best of both worlds: Darvish took a walk to extend a two-run lead to three, then lasted 61⁄3 innings without permitting another [See Dodgers, D9]

CHICAGO — Justin Turner wended through the ground-floor maze of this 103-year-old ballpark, walking across the green carpet that leads into the visitors’ batting cage at Wrigley Field. A cluster of reporters awaited him after a 3-2 defeat to the Chicago Cubs in Game 4 of the National League Championship Series as the Dodgers struck out at a chance to sweep their way into their first World Series since 1988. Turner did not make an out Wednesday. He bashed one of his team’s two home runs, a gargantuan blast off Cubs closer Wade Davis in the eighth inning. It was not enough. The game ended an inning later with Turner standing in the on-deck circle. By the time he returned to the dugout, the strains of “Go Cubs Go” rained down onto the field from the lungs of 42,195 fans, the theme song of a defending champion granted another day before winter. “They’re not just going to roll over and hand it to us,” Turner said. “We’ve got to go out and prepare and play hard, and hopefully get a better result tomorrow.” On the precipice of history, the Dodgers stumbled. Alex Wood could not contain Cubs second baseman [See Dodgers, D9]

Bill Plaschke says there’s no stopping L.A., especially not the Cubs. A1

The veteran responds after lost season, Dylan Hernandez writes. D2 AL CHAMPIONSHIP

BLUES CRUISE Dodgers clinch behind Kershaw and three Hernandez homers

AL CHAMPIONSHIP

T H U R S DAY , OC T O B E R 2 6 , 2 017

GAME 2 SERIES TIED 1–1

SPORTS INSIDE >>>

L AT I M E S . C O M / DO D G E RS

11 INNINGS W: DEVENSKI L: MCCARTHY

Jansen blows save, Astros get even in wild game with eight homers

Good in clinches

By Andy McCullough

The Lakers and Clippers begin their NBA seasons tonight with a matchup at Staples Center. SPORTS INSIDE >>>

Wally Skalij Los Angeles Times

FLIPPING THE BAT and blowing a bubble, Chicago’s Javier Baez watches his second solo homer of the game, giving the Cubs a 3-1 lead.

S AT U R DAY , OC T O BE R 2 8 , 2 017

GAME 3 FRIDAY: MCCULLERS VS. DARVISH, 5 P.M. AT HOUSTON TV: CH. 11

SWING SHIFT

Wally Skalij Los Angeles Times

ENRIQUE HERNANDEZ exults after his grand slam in the third inning gave the Dodgers a 7-0 lead. He also had a solo homer and a two-run shot for seven RBIs.

CHICAGO — Clayton Kershaw climbed atop a plastic cooler and hoisted a green bottle of Korbel Brut. Below him heaved a delirious crowd of teammates, the 2017 Dodgers, the group who brought the National League pennant back to Los Angeles. Kershaw wiped the alcohol from his eyes and gazed upon the scene inside the visitors’ batting cage at Wrigley Field. “You are way too dry!” he shouted. “You are way too dry!” Kershaw sprayed his bottle until it was empty and then descended into the throng, joyous to take part as they celebrated clinching the franchise’s first World Series berth since 1988 with an 11-1victory over the Cubs in Game 5 of the NL Championship Series. The long drought ended in a hail of home runs from Enrique Hernandez, strikeouts collected by Kershaw and the relentless charge of this Dodgers team.

Wally Skalij Los Angeles Times

CHRIS TAYLOR STICKS OUT his tongue after an RBI triple in the fifth. His solo homer in the third inning gave the Dodgers the lead.

The Clippers aim to regroup without Chris Paul while the Lakers expect to lean on Brook Lopez.

1 NL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME 52

CHICAGO — Strangest night of October. Cody Bellinger took the final big swing, yet somewhere down the right-field line he stopped running, stared at the sky, and rubbed his head as if lost. Chris Taylor had the final slide, yet when he stood up at second base, he was swarmed by celebrating Chicago Cubs, leaving him dusty and outnumbered. Weirdest moment of the playoffs. The Dodgers lost. The Chicago Cubs won. Wrigley Field roared. Nobody is perfect. On an unseasonably warm Wednesday night that played like late August at Chavez Ravine, the Dodgers lost their first postseason game after six consecutive wins, 3-2 to the Cubs to end [See Plaschke, D2]

Ethier is ready when called upon

L AT I M E S . C O M/ D O D GE R S

BILL PLASCHKE

These Dodgers are the real deal

All tied up: The Yankees rally from four down to even series. D10

F R I DAY , OC T O B ER 2 0 , 2 017

There’s no real reason to panic

Big day for L.A. football PENNANT FEVER like this town hasn’t seen in 29 years surged through Dod-

2 NL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME 21

Powering through with force

USC, coming off its first defeat of the season, enjoys an easy 38-10 victory over Oregon State. SPORTS INSIDE >>>

He’s walking tall Justin Turner joins elite Dodgers company, Bill Plaschke writes. A1

WE DN E SDAY , O C T OB E R 2 5 , 2 017

Gina Ferazzi Los Angeles Times

CURTIS GRANDERSON REACTS after scoring on a double by Austin Barnes in the fifth inning, giving L.A. a 6-2 lead.

GAME 3: Tuesday at Chicago, 6 p.m. PDT. TV: TBS

RED OCTOBER

Justin Turner sank into his chair inside the Dodgers clubhouse and picked up his iPhone. Mere minutes after his game-winning, ballpark-rattling, three-run homer cleared the center-field fence, the aisles at Dodger Stadium still were packed, his auburn mane still was sticky from a postgame Gatorade shower, and his body still coursed with the adrenaline unleashed in the final moment of Sunday’s 4-1 victory over the Chicago Cubs in Game 2 of the National League Championship Series. Turner could not sit still. There were 65 unread messages on his phone, and he expected more to flood it. He rose to greet a staffer who showed him a picture of the homer. He hugged Cole Roberts, the teenage son of the Dodgers’ manager. The younger Roberts declared it “the sickest thing ever.” Turner did not disagree. “That,” Turner said, “was the coolest thing I’ve ever done in my baseball career.” It was something this ballpark and this city had not seen in 29 years. On Oct. 15, 1988, Kirk Gibson pulled himself off the training table for a legacy-defining homer off of Oakland closer Dennis Eckersley. Sitting on a living room floor about 25 miles south of the ballpark, inside his grandmother’s house in

LATI ME S. C O M /D O D G ER S

PHOENIX — Dave Roberts wore a smile on his face and held a can of beer in his hand. A few feet away from him, in the visitors clubhouse at Chase Field, was madness, the spoils of a 3-1 Dodgers victory Monday to sweep Arizona out of a National League division series. Kenley Jansen dumped a cooler of ice on Yasiel Puig’s head. After a tidy series, the Dodgers made a righteous mess. Roberts stayed out of the fray. A few specks of alcohol dotted his goggles. Otherwise he was dry, hanging back, greeting players, coaches and executives as they escaped the chaos in the middle of the room. The moment belonged to the players. The night belonged to Roberts, the manager who manipulated this game like it was his marionette, pulling each string with the proper force at the proper time. In a postseason already littered with managers undone by indecision and miscalculation, Roberts offered a rejoinder: At least one man knows what he is doing. “When a manager can make it seem like all the pieces fit together perfectly,” Dodgers general manager Farhan Zaidi said, “that’s [See Dodgers, D10]

Pulisic, Altidore pace 4-0 victory that makes World Cup bid likely. D3

S U N DAY , O C T O BE R 15, 2017

By Andy McCullough

NL DIVISION SERIES

SPORTS INSIDE

Key win for U.S.

N L D S

Darvish, Bellinger and Co. help the Dodgers finish off the rival Diamondbacks

It’s all on Yu

Hill, today’s starter, gives an inspiring speech to the Dodgers. D11

Robert Gauthier Los Angeles Times

HOW SWEEP IT IS

Darvish’s time to shine begins with Game 3. D2

Giving his all

JUSTIN TURNER GOT the Dodgers going in the first inning with a three-run home run, and he tied a franchise record with five RBIs.

DIVISION SERIES GAME 3

His name has become a song, a deepthroated anthem lasting only three seconds yet big enough to engulf a city enraptured by its lyric. “Puiiiiig” ... “Puiiiiig.” The joyful bellowing has rippled through Chavez Ravine since Yasiel Puig joined the Dodgers in 2013, but never like this, never this loud, never this emotional, never this hungry. Two games into a National League division series, with the Dodgers looking strong enough to wind up in a World Series, 50,000 fans at Dodger Stadium are begging Puig to carry them there, and he is pleading for them to climb aboard. You can hear it now, can’t you? You were chanting it even in your living room, weren’t you? “Puiiiiig” ... “Puiiiiig.” [See Plaschke, D13]

Vin was waving to the crowd again. Newk was whipping one across the plate again. The ageless Sandy Koufax was in the box seats, the new Sandy Koufax was on the mound, and the once-brilliant Dodgers were those Dodgers again. Welcome back, summer. Welcome home, hardball. On an early October night that appropriately felt like a warm July afternoon, the Dodgers began their long-awaited postseason Friday with a raucous, rollicking flashback. Remember when everyone thought they could be the best team in baseball history? Before everyone thought they were the worst team in baseball history? Well, after a few hours of [See Plaschke, D2]

THE KINGS fired coach Darryl Sutter even though he had led them to two

LATI M E S . C O M / D O D G ER S

BILL PLASCHKE

Gary Coronado Los Angeles Times

T U E S DAY , O C T O B E R 10 , 2 017

Puig has the whole place just rocking

From start to finish, a time to celebrate

THREE UCLA basketball players, including LiAngelo Ball, left, and Cody Riley,

A Bronx mugging: Yankees win third in a row, take series lead. D10

L AT I M E S . C O M / DO D G E R S

GAME 3

HOUSTON LEADS 2-1

W: MCCULLERS L: DARVISH S: PEACOCK

GAME 4 TODAY: WOOD VS. MORTON 5:15 P.M. AT HOUSTON TV: CH. 11

ROOF FALLS IN Darvish is KO’d in second inning and Dodgers are down in Series

So this is what it’s like to go to the World Series, Bill Plaschke writes. B1 AL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME 6

5 P.M.

FS1

Back in Texas: Astros will try to break Yankees’ momentum. D10

S U N DAY , O C T O B E R 2 9, 2 017

After so many years in which his organization asked him to play the savior, on Thursday Kershaw reaped the benefit of an offensive bounty. Hernandez supplied a trio of homers, including a third-inning grand slam that transformed the ballpark into a tomb and a two-run blast in the ninth that turned the Dodgers dugout into a mosh pit. They led by seven runs after three innings and by nine midway through four. Kershaw responded to the largess with six innings of one-run baseball. He will start Game 1 of the World Series on Tuesday at Dodger Stadium. The thought left him dazed and delighted. He clapped and hollered as his teammates used the Warren C. Giles Trophy, the physical distillation of the pennant, as a beer luge. When they chanted his name, Kershaw ducked beneath a downpour of champagne and beer. The deluge left his eyes red. The yelling [See Dodgers, D11]

LATI M E S . C O M / D O D GE R S

GAME 4 SERIES TIED 2-2

W: MORROW L: GILES

GAME 5 TODAY: KERSHAW VS. KEUCHEL 5:15 P.M. AT HOUSTON TV: CH. 11

BACK IN BLUE Dodgers score five in ninth to get even and have Kershaw set to go

By Andy McCullough

By Andy McCullough By Andy McCullough

The result cannot be considered unthinkable, because October baseball expands the realm of possibility and exposes the soul to untold anguish. The Dodgers had avoided this fate for so much of these playoffs. They were the team who broke hearts, who snuffed out dreams. Except until this week, they had not stared down an opponent like the Houston Astros. On Wednesday evening, in the final innings of Game 2 of the World Series, the veneer of invincibility surrounding the Dodgers bullpen shattered beneath the might of Houston’s offense in a 7-6 defeat that tied this series at one victory each. Kenley Jansen blew a save by yielding a solo homer in the ninth. Josh Fields surrendered two more in the 10th. After scoring two runs in the bottom of the 10th, the Dodgers turned to Brandon McCarthy for the 11th. There was no one left in the bullpen. McCarthy had appeared in only five games since the All-Star break. The Astros pilloried him. George Springer boomed a two-run shot. McCarthy seethed with anger afterward. Jansen contemplated the [See Dodgers, D13]

The sun had started to set on Dodger Stadium as the trio left the bullpen, yet the 103-degree heat clung to Chavez Ravine like a cloak. Clayton Kershaw walked shoulder to shoulder through the swelter with pitching coach Rick Honeycutt and catcher Austin Barnes. An ovation greeted the pregame procession. Ten seasons in the major leagues, and four consecutive Octobers filled with regret, had braced him for this night. Neither of his companions dared speak to Kershaw as they approached the dugout. He craves silence in these moments, the final minutes before he can stand in the middle of a ballpark and anesthetize his opponents. On Tuesday evening, in a 3-1 victory over Houston in Game 1 of the World Series, Kershaw fulfilled his mission and brought his team three wins away from a championship. “I don’t think there’s a more competitive person than Clayton,” Barnes said. “When he’s got his stuff, he just out-wills people.” Barnes witnessed the synchronization of Kershaw’s arsenal as they warmed up before the game. His perspective would soon be shared by those watching from the Dodgers dugout, the hitters in the Astros lineup and the 54,253 fans sweating into the night. After 28 seasons without the World Series in Los Angeles, Kershaw authored a performance fit for an earlier generation, striking out 11 Astros across seven innings of onerun baseball in a game that lasted 2 hours and 28 minutes. To numb the Houston bats, Kershaw flung fastballs that clocked in the mid-90s, snapped latebreaking sliders and spun immobilizing curveballs. He walked none. He permitted three hits, one of them a solo home run by Alex Bregman in the fourth inning. He survived a scare in the seventh inning, his postseason house of horrors. He struck out 10 or more for the fifth time in his playoff career and delivered a stinging rebuke to those who question his performance at this time of year. “He’s still Clayton Kershaw,” outfielder Enrique Hernandez said. “He’s still the best in the game.” The praise for Kershaw overflowed from the Dodgers’ clubhouse. “A special night,” manager Dave Rob[See Dodgers, D12]

Series grip for Dodgers is blasted away

Facing a Texas-sized depression

BILL PLASCHKE

The first blast shocked. The second blast stunned. The third blast silenced. The fourth blast finished. Bam, bam, bam, bam, the Dodgers have lost a World Series game, a World Series advantage, and every bit of World Series momentum. After three weeks of partying, a full Dodger Stadium crowd fell into hushed mourning Wednesday night at a sight they thought they would never again see this season. The Dodgers blew it. The Dodgers blew it big. The Dodgers lost a game that could have set them on an unalterable course toward a World Series championship, one that instead has sent their title hopes careening back into limbo. Three outs from beating a second consecutive Houston Astros ace and taking a seemingly insurmountable two-games-to-none lead, [See Plaschke, D12]

He’s just getting warmed up It was a hot night, just how the Dodgers like it, Bill Plaschke writes. A1

Relievers can’t get the job done

Late bloomer, late boomer

L.A. bullpen finally has an off night, Dylan Hernandez writes. D2

Turner is still doing amazing things, Dylan Hernandez writes. D2

Seager brings his bat back After sitting out NLCS, he’s only player to get two hits in Game 1. D3

HOUSTON — Built like an airplane hangar, named after orange juice, the contours of Minute Maid Park evoke camp and claustrophobia. The foul poles are sponsored by Chick-fil-A. A conductor runs a train beyond the left-field fence, high above the Crawford Boxes, which beckon for home runs only 315 feet from the plate. The retractable roof creates a caldron of noise. On Friday evening, in the second inning of Game 3 of the World Series, the quirks of this ballpark taunted Dodgers starter Yu Darvish as the Houston Astros battered him en route to a 5-3 victory to capture a 2-1 series lead. The Crawford Boxes swallowed up a homer smashed by Houston first baseman Yuli Gurriel. The building rattled with so much noise that Darvish had to duck his head so catcher Austin Barnes could shout instructions in his ear. The advice wasn’t enough. The Astros sizzled enough hits for four runs, building a deficit that the Dodgers’ offense could not overcome and creating a mess for manager Dave Roberts with implications beyond Friday’s loss. Houston remains unbeaten at home in the postseason. The Dod[See Dodgers, D4]

He’s sorry, but Dylan Hernandez wonders, why all the fuss? D2

Altuve’s bat comes to life with a clutch home run in the 10th. D4

Bellinger still can’t buy a hit Wally Skalij Los Angeles Times

CODY BELLINGER was the symbol of Dodgers futility, striking out four times in Game 3. The rookie is 0 for 11 in the World Series.

AFTER STRIKING OUT four times in Game 1, George Springer celebrates the biggest hit in Game 2, a two-run homer in the 11th inning.

Robert Gauthier Los Angeles Times

REBOUNDING from a four-strikeout Game 3, Cody Bellinger doubled in the go-ahead run in the ninth inning, above, after scoring the tying run in the seventh.

Gurriel suspended five games, in 2018, for making offensive gesture By Bill Shaikin

Gurriel gestures after homer

Astros’ mighty giant slayer

Wally Skalij Los Angeles Times

Robert Gauthier Los Angeles Times

THE EMOTION SHOWED for Clayton Kershaw in his first World Series game. He struck out 11 and walked none in seven innings.

HOUSTON — This is one bad hangover. Two days after one of the most devastating losses in franchise history, the flattened Dodgers stayed down, stared up, and watched the Houston Astros continue to swagger their way through this World Series. Just when you thought it couldn’t get any worse, it became Texas-sized bad, the Dodgers following their Game 2 collapse with a Game 3 meltdown Friday night in a 5-3 loss at Minute Maid Park that took the locals back to their dark side. Remember that team that went 52-9 at one point this summer? Well, these were the guys that went 1-16. Remember the team that rode Clayton Kershaw to a Series opening win? That team is now trailing two games to one and must rely on postseason newbie Alex Wood to pull them out [See Plaschke, D13]

Roberts says he won’t bench the probable rookie of the year. D3

Yuli Gurriel, one of the key hitters for the Houston Astros, was suspended for five games after television cameras caught him making a gesture and mouthing a word with racial overtones during Friday’s Game 3 of the World Series. The unpaid suspension will be served at the start of the 2018 season, and Gurriel will not appeal. He will not miss any games in the Series. He started at first base Saturday. In announcing the suspension, Commissioner Rob Manfred said that “there is no place in our game” for Gurriel’s behavior. He then was

asked whether baseball had passed on a chance to make its biggest statement to that effect by choosing not to suspend Gurriel during the World Series. “I used my best judgment as to where the appropriate disciplinary level fell,” Manfred said. Manfred deflected a question about the virtual certainty of the players’ union challenging a suspension during the Series. He said he thought the penalty was appropriate in part because the suspension would be unpaid (players do not earn extra salary during the World Series), because the Dodgers’ Yu Darvish — the [See Gurriel, D2]

Dodgers don’t go Belly up With Bellinger finally regaining his stroke, L.A. is all square. A1

Wood is good at right time Starter gives up just one hit, a home run, Dylan Hernandez writes. D3

To Morrow, to Morrow... Dodgers have called on middle reliever in first four games of Series. D17

All the Dodgers breathe easier after Wood and Bellinger deliver BILL PLASCHKE HOUSTON — When Cody Bellinger reached second base, he looked up into the Minute Maid Park ceiling and screamed, his hallelujahs spiraling skyward for battling team, a thankful city, and a renewed World Series. “A super sigh of relief,” he said. The Dodgers are back. A title is within reach. Two wins away, three games to get it done, and if 22year-old kid Bellinger can break

out of an 0-for-13 World Series hitless streak with the game’s two biggest hits with his team’s baseball life on the line, doesn’t anything seem possible? “It’s a beautiful game,” Bellinger said, and amen to that. On a Saturday night that stunned the swaggering Houston Astros, Bellinger finished what Alex Wood brilliantly started, and together they led Dodgers to a giant 6-2 victory over the Astros in Game 4 of the World Series, knotting the series at two games apiece. How big? Just listen to the most understated of Dodgers [See Plaschke, D3]

Robert Gauthier Los Angeles Times

THE CHARGERS stunned San Diego when they moved to Los Angeles, where their debut season in the StubHub Center was initially met with boos and apathy. D

The World Series came to town, and other tales of heartbreak By Bill Plaschke

he jagged 2017 Los Angeles sports landscape can best be painted by an early November evening at Dodger Stadium. For one brilliant moment, as a city breathlessly awaited the first pitch of Game 7 of the World Series between the Dodgers and Houston Astros, this was the greatest sporting spot on the planet. Less than four hours later, it was the most devastated. The Dodgers’ thrilling run through the baseball postseason ended with a thud, a 5-1 loss to the Astros in the deciding game that extended the locals’ championship drought to 29 years while epitomizing the last 12 months in Los Angeles sports. Every time we thought we won, we lost. With every glorious promise, there was sobering puncture. Plenty of titillating championship

moments, zero major championship trophies. Lots of greatness drowned out by reams of groans. How disillusioning was it? The Dodgers’ Game 7 loss was the city’s second title-deciding-game defeat in the span of a month, as the Sparks had earlier lost to the Minnesota Lynx, 85-76, in the deciding Game 5 of the WNBA Finals. If the 2017 Los Angeles sports year had a face, it would be slightly reddened. If it had an expression, it would be somewhat contorted. If it had a name, it would be Yu Darvish. After collapsing in two World Series starts, including giving up all five runs in that awful Game 7, Darvish became a town villain who at least had the decency to make his mess in his own backyard. If the 2017 Los Angeles sports year had an address, it would be Hangzhou, China. Less than a week after the

Dodgers’ last loss, three UCLA basketball players admitted to shoplifting from three Chinese stores during the Bruins’ seasonopening visit. LiAngelo Ball, Cody Riley and Jalen Hill required the intervention of two presidents to leave the country, and wound up with season suspensions, although one of them was suspended permanently by … his father? If the 2017 Los Angeles sports year had a voice, it would be the carnival barking of LaVar Ball. Ball, who was the city’s 2017 sports jester by crudely attempting to sell shoes and T-shirts off the backs of his three basketballplaying sons, pulled LiAngelo out of UCLA because he thought his son was being treated too harshly. He also pulled youngest son LaMelo out of Chino Hills High because he thought school would interfere with basketball. A year that began with the Ball family at the center of the basket-

ball world ended with it being the butt of basketball jokes, as only oldest son Lonzo, a Laker firstround pick, was still playing on an organized team. Even then, because of his father’s outlandish bragging, the overmatched point guard was playing with little joy and loads of pressure. The Ball children have not yet fired their father. But in disjointed 2017, other sports axes fell. UCLA fired football coach Jim Mora after he engineered a “Bruin Revolution.” The Kings fired coach Darryl Sutter after he led them to two Stanley Cup championships. Chris Paul fired the Clipper organization by forcing a trade to the Houston Rockets. And, of course, the Chargers fired the entire city of San Diego by suddenly and stunningly moving to Los Angeles, where their debut season in the StubHub Center was initially filled with boos and apathy. One person who was not fired,

and should not be fired, was USC Coach Clay Helton, who continued to overcome fan skepticism by leading the Trojans to an 11-2 record and their first Pac-12 championship in nine years. Of course, this being 2017, the Trojans’ success had to come with a footnote: In a year when one College Football Playoff semifinal game was at the Rose Bowl, the Trojan losses to Washington State and Notre Dame knocked them out of the Rose Bowl. There did seem to be one bit of truly great news in town this year when Los Angeles was awarded the Summer Olympics. Oh, wait, you say they won’t light that torch until 2028? Sigh. If nothing else, in 11 more years maybe the Dodgers will have finally won a championship. Better yet, by then maybe everyone will be able to watch their games on television. bill.plaschke@latimes.com

M O N DAY , O CTO B E R 3 0 , 2 017

GAME 5

HOUSTON LEADS 3-2

L AT I M E S . C O M / D OD G E RS

10 INNINGS W: MUSGROVE L: JANSEN

GAME 6 TUESDAY: HILL VS VERLANDER 5:15 P.M. AT DODGER STADIUM TV: CH. 11

GUT PUNCH Dodgers battle but fall in the 10th inning on Bregman’s walk-off hit

W E D NE SDAY , N OV E M BE R 1, 2 017

GAME 6 SERIES TIED 3-3

L AT I M E S . C OM / D O D G ER S

W: WATSON L: VERLANDER S: JANSEN

GAME 7 TODAY: DARVISH VS. MCCULLERS 5:15 P.M. AT DODGER STADIUM TV: CH. 11

BLUE SEVEN

Dodgers take it to limit by beating Verlander as Jansen closes it out

By Andy McCullough

Wally Skalij Los Angeles Times

The closer lumbered down the stairs away from the diamond, three outs down, three more to go. Dodger Stadium trembled in his wake, aware of the responsibility that hung across his broad shoulders. As Kenley Jansen entered the dugout midway through Tuesday’s eighth inning, he met the most concerned spectator inside a ballpark containing 54,128 fans in the sixth game of the World Series. “You got this?” manager Dave Roberts asked. Jansen stared at his manager. He had blown one save and lost one game to these Houston Astros. He understood that the Dodgers resided on the brink of elimination because of it. His gaze was firm. His answer was brief, biting and unequivocal. “Yes,” Jansen replied, and he walked away. Roberts needed to hear no more. Jansen climbed the stairs for the ninth. He refused to relinquish the baseball. And he refused to wilt, slamming the door shut in a 3-1 victory that guaranteed something that has never happened at Dodger Stadium. World Series, Game 7. Could you expect any less? Could you ask for any more? The baseball gods might not answer letters, but they do allow dreams to flourish. The Dodgers kept theirs alive Tuesday, 48 hours after an excruciating Game 5 defeat, by playing like the team that ran away with the National League West and bulldozed the other contenders for the pennant. Humbled for five innings, the offense awakened in time. Chris Taylor helped conquer Astros ace Justin Verlander with a tying double in the sixth. Corey Seager gave the Dodgers the lead with a sacrifice fly. Joc Pederson unleashed his third homer of the World Series in the seventh. The offense provided enough cushion for the pitchers. Rich Hill made a gesture to protest the delayed suspension of Astros first baseman Yuli Gurriel, then gave up one run before exiting with two outs in the fifth. The Dodgers relied upon the bullpen strategy that propelled them this far — and the strategy that had backfired earlier in this series. Earlier in the day, Roberts insisted Jansen would record only three outs. Jansen faced the heart of the Astros order in the eighth in[See Dodgers, D4]

Rally from season on the brink Sixth inning was time for Dodger baseball, Bill Plaschke writes. A1

Kershaw falls short once again

Can Yu do it this time for L.A.?

Dodgers ace can’t hold four-run lead, Dylan Hernandez writes. D2

Darvish gets ball after short Game 3, Dylan Hernandez writes. D2

Dodgers suffering from tired arms

Hill likes these Halloween boos

In his analysis, Tim Leary says the bullpen needs a day off. D4

T H U R SDAY , N OV E M B E R 2 , 2 017

L AT I M E S . C O M/ D O D G E RS

GAME 7

ASTROS WIN SERIES 4-3

W: MORTON L: DARVISH

GEORGE SPRINGER NAMED MVP .379 SERIES BATTING AVERAGE, 5 HR

NAH NAH LAND Dodgers can’t dig out of Darvish’s early hole as Astros win first title

T H U R S DAY , NOVE M B ER 2, 2 017

LATI M E S . C O M / D O D G ER S

IN ORBIT

ASTROS CLAIM FRANCHISE’S FIRST CHAMPIONSHIP

The Dodgers’ roller-coaster season ends in heartbreak for team, fans

By Andy McCullough

HOUSTON — The baseballs are too slick, or maybe they are juiced, or maybe it’s both. The strikeouts happen too often and the home runs never stop falling and the umpire is always wrong. The sport of baseball is broken in 2017, or it’s rejuvenated, or it’s somewhere on the spectrum in between: still perfect for all its imperfections, still timeless for all its radical modernity, still agonizing for what it can do to the lungs and the brain and the spleen. Because nowhere else can you find theater like this, like the10th inning of Game 5 of the World Series, with life’s rich pageant displayed in one tableau in the final moments of a depth-defying 13-12 Dodgers defeat in Game 5 of the World Series. Near third base, a mob of Astros moshed around third baseman Alex Bregman, who had delivered the gamewinning hit to topple the game’s best closer for the second time in five games. Fireworks rocketed toward the retractable roof of Minute Maid Park. The noise felt loud enough to open the building. His head down, his body exhausted, Kenley Jansen walked off the mound, unable to tame the remorseless beast that is the Astros offense. No one on his team could, not Sunday, in a game that lasted 5 hours 18 minutes and pushed the Dodgers one defeat away from the offseason, down 3-2 in the series. The outcome felt cruel, for the Dodgers did not wilt. They just could not hold back their opponents. “This is it,” Jansen said. “We can’t hang our heads.” Their best was not good enough. The Dodgers handed Clayton Kershaw seven runs of support — and lost. They grabbed a lead on a fortuitous run-scoring triple by Cody Bellinger in the seventh inning — and lost. They overcame a three-run deficit in the ninth inning — and lost. They trusted Jansen to keep them afloat — and lost. The Astros were too much, too deep, too resourceful. Masterful for so much of October, manager Dave Roberts saw his bullpen decisions backfire before the relentless pressure of Houston’s offense. On Sunday, the Astros launched five home runs as they broke Kershaw, broke Roberts’ in-game strategizing and broke Jansen. The fusillade may have broken the Dodgers. They will try to save their season Tuesday in Game 6 at Dodger Stadium. “This is not going to be finished Tuesday,” Yasiel Puig said. “There is going to be a Game 7.” Puig spoke well past 1 a.m. in Texas, a fine time for bravado. His teammates could only mumble platitudes to match his confi[See Dodgers, D16]

BRIAN MCCANN celebrates with pinch-runner Derek Fisher after he scored past Austin Barnes in the 10th inning to win Game 5.

Wally Skalij Los Angeles Times

KENLEY JANSEN, asked to get a six-out save for the third time in the World Series, completed it by striking out Carlos Beltran.

Dodgers starter steps off to give fans a chance to jeer Astros’ Gurriel. D3

Gina Ferazzi Los Angeles Times

MVP GEORGE SPRINGER circles the bases after giving the Astros a 5-0 lead in the second inning with a two-run homer off Yu Darvish, who was then removed.

Astros have the bang; Dodgers’ season ends with a whimper By Andy McCullough On the ground floor of Dodger Stadium, inside a makeshift room set up for press briefings, a television relayed the joy emanating from the field outside. Astros manager A.J. Hinch climbed onto a stage and declared Houston a city of champions. George Springer, the World Series MVP, stood next to a Chevy truck. Carlos Correa proposed to his girlfriend. The images flickered across the screen in the moments immediately after a 5-1 defeat ended the Dodgers’ season in Game 7 of the World Series. After a historic regular season and an idyllic path to

their first National League pennant since 1988, the campaign of this group ended with a thud, with a disastrous start by hired gun Yu Darvish and a maddening performance by the offense. The combination allowed the Astros to dance and spray champagne inside the Dodgers’ ballpark, long after the majority of the 54,124 fans had filed toward the exits. Inside the press room, an MLB official signaled to a staffer: When Dodgers manager Dave Roberts enters the room, “kill the TVs.” On cue, Roberts entered and slumped into a chair. He sighed and waited for questions. [See Dodgers, D16]

Who’s to blame? It has to be Yu Darvish never gave them a chance, Dylan Hernandez writes. D2

Don’t let hitters off so easily Dodgers batted only .205 for Series and were futile in Game 7. D2

Springer sets tone for Astros Fun-loving outfielder ties Series record with five home runs. D3

Hope of ending season with a title evaporates in a flash BILL PLASCHKE The drought continues. The emptiness remains. The ache returns. After waiting 29 years for their championship moment, Dodgers fans watched their hopes disintegrate Wednesday night in about 29 minutes. It was so quick. It was so brutal. It was Blue Hell on Earth. In the seventh and deciding game of an epic World Series that spent a week leaving Los Angeles

on edge, the Houston Astros swiftly turned the town numb with a stunning opening punch that resulted in an eventual 5-1 victory at a somber Dodger Stadium. “It breaks your heart,” closer Kenley Jansen said. It was over as quick as two Astros first-inning runs on a double, a throwing error, a stolen base and a ground ball. It was finished as fast as three second-inning runs on a walk, a double, a groundout and a home run. It was ruined as swiftly as you can say “Yu Darvish.” Five runs in two innings against [See Plaschke, D15]

Gina Ferazzi Los Angeles Times

HOUSTON ASTROS players celebrate their Game 7 win at Dodger Stadium on Wednesday night. The victory shattered the Dodgers’ bid to end a 29-year drought.

A HAUNTING DEFEAT A meltdown by Yu Darvish and a sputtering Dodgers’ offense led to a 5-1 loss in Game 7. D1

PLASCHKE After waiting 29 years for a title, Dodger fans’ hopes disintegrate in about 29 minutes. D1

HERNANDEZ Yu Darvish’s unimaginable and inexcusable start gave Dodgers no chance to win the series. D2

THE ASTROS’ MVP George Springer set the tone for the Astros, batting .379 with five home runs in the series. D3

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YEAR IN REVIEW SPORTS

Mayweather vs. McGregor

Christian Petersen Getty Images

Somewhere P.T. Barnum is smiling. In one of the best marketing efforts ever foisted on the sporting world, fans were enthralled at the idea that an old boxer meeting a young MMA fighter with no boxing experience could bring a $100 pay-per-view buy. It worked. Floyd Mayweather beat Conor McGregor by technical knockout in the 10th.

U.S. ousted from the World Cup

Rebecca Blackwell Associated Press

The U.S. men’s soccer team had been to seven straight World Cups, and all it had to do was beat Trinidad and Tobago, a country whose population is about 1/325th as large. It couldn’t do it, losing 2-1, eliminating the U.S. from next year’s World Cup in Russia. After the loss, coach Bruce Arena resigned (he had replaced Jurgen Klinsmann in 2016).

Wally Skalij Los Angeles Times

The Ball family

Where do you start? With LaVar Ball, of course. The outspoken father of Lonzo, LiAngelo and LaMelo has become a media sensation with his constant chatter about the greatness of his sons and his shoe brand. Lonzo became the Lakers’ top pick and tore up the Summer League. The real season has been more difficult. UCLA freshman LiAngelo Ball was arrested in China, along with two teammates, for shoplifting. He has since left UCLA and signed, along with his 16-year-old brother LaMelo, a contract to play pro ball in Lithuania.

SWEAT AND TOIL Chargers move to L.A.

What followed was a weekendplus of protests by players, coaches and some owners to show their solidarity against the attack on the NFL. The issue was rather minor until it was escalated by the president. Things have quieted as the league contemplates keeping teams in the locker room during the national anthem.

It’s a move that’s still being debated. But believing their options for a new stadium were gone in San Diego, the NFL’s Chargers announced they were moving to Los Angeles and will eventually share the new stadium in Inglewood with the Rams. It hasn’t been pretty, though. Interest in the team has been low, and even the temporary stadium at StubHub Center has had trouble filling its 27,000 seats. But there is a cure, and that’s to win more games.

FBI basketball sting

This story will probably be bigger in 2018, but when the FBI charged 10 assistant basketball coaches, including USC’s Tony Bland, in an investigation of fraud and corruption in college basketball, the sport was rocked. The FBI is looking into the unsavory way some players are acquired and shopped. Among the first major casualties was legendary Louisville coach Rick Pitino, who was fired without being charged.

Lakers turmoil

The Lakers have not looked very good the last few seasons. The once-famous franchise seemed in tatters and the fans were restless. It fell on the shoulders of Jeanie Buss, who was in charge as her brother Jim was handling basketball operations. Then he wasn’t. In February, Jeanie fired Jim and longtime general manager Mitch Kupchak and brought back a legend. Magic Johnson was introduced as the new head of basketball operations and Rob Pelinka, Kobe Bryant’s former agent, as the general manager.

Dodgers reach Game 7

It was a story 29 years in the making. The Dodgers returned to the World Series for the first time since 1988. What transpired was one of the wildest, most exciting World Series in history. However, the Dodgers went down in seven games, losing the last 5-1 to the Houston Astros. It was an unsatisfying ending to a season in which the Dodgers won 104 games, the most in baseball. It also saw Cody Bellinger hit a rookie record 39 regular-season home runs.

L.A. gets Olympics

Los Angeles’ journey to being awarded the Olympic Games for a third time was very much a roller-coaster ride. First Boston was given the U.S. bid, but the city backed out. L.A. was there but then had to go up against a very strong Paris bid for the 2024 Games. Fearing it would get nothing, L.A. cut a deal with the International Olympic Committee to get the 2028 Games, which were awarded in September. So the 11-year wait begins.

NFL protests

President Trump said in September that NFL owners should fire players who sit or take a knee during the national anthem, in reaction to a movement started by Colin Kaepernick.

UCLA football

Chris Paul leaves Clippers

Wally Skalij Los Angeles Times

The Clippers were always on the verge of greatness. They had, arguably, three of the best players in the NBA — Chris Paul, Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan. But they could never get out of the second round of the playoffs. Paul couldn’t take that anymore. He didn’t like the chemistry and culture of the team. He quarreled with Coach Doc Rivers. So, almost as if it happened in a flash, Paul was traded to the Houston Rockets in June. And with it, the Clippers were headed for an inevitable team rebuilding.

A couple years ago, Jim Mora owned this town after turning around the fortunes of the UCLA football team. After losing to USC, 28-23, in November, he was fired on his birthday. The search for his replacement was swift as UCLA proved more attractive than Florida to Chip Kelly, a great college coach at Oregon but unsuccessful in the NFL. The UCLA offer — $23.3 million over five years — did the trick.

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Adele vs. Beyoncé, the Dodds sisters (a true package deal), and a bit of politics. Our look at the music industry’s big night.

MOONLIGHT

ARRIVAL

2017 MOVIE AND TELEVISION PREVIEW

HIDDEN FIGURES

LA LA LAND HACKSAW RIDGE FENCES

MANCHESTER BY THE SEA HELL OR HIGH WATER

LION

THE OSCARS

THE GRAMMYS Michael Waraksa For The Times

Alessandro Pautasso For The Times

THE OSCARS

TRAVEL TRAVEL

FESTIVAL of BOOKS U N I V E R S I T Y O F S O U T H E R N CA L I F O R N I A

A SHOCKING TURN Kenneth Turan says “Moonlight’s” astonishing win is a victory for film fans.

FASHION The red carpet arrivals signaled a distinct retro vibe that often evoked Hollywood’s Golden Age.

TV REVIEW Here’s what you can say about the Oscars telecast — it was fun, entertaining and unpredictable.

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Robert Carter For The Times

SUNDAY, JUNE 11, 2017

WINNERS Lead actress winner Emma Stone, above, had one of “La La Land’s” six victories. See the full list.

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Robert Gauthier Los Angeles Times

WRITER-DIRECTOR BARRY JENKINS holds the Oscar aloft after a surprising — on several levels — best picture victory for his film, “Moonlight.”

AUDIENCES, PLURAL

The show found a way to address industry elites and viewers around the globe, Charles McNulty writes. PAGE E4

By Justin Chang, film critic

WINS MEAN GRINS

Movies like “Moonlight” don’t win the Oscar for best picture. Movies about the conflicted desires of young gay men, captured with quiet tenderness and exquisite intimacy, don’t win the Oscar for best picture. (Just ask “Brokeback Mountain.”) Movies that tell modest coming-of-age stories, light on dramatic incident but rich in emotional rewards, don’t win the Oscar for best picture. (Just ask “Boyhood.”) Movies that subtly examine some of the social and psychological burdens that weigh heavily on too many African Americans today — poverty, parental abandonment, drug addiction and mass incarceration — don’t win the Oscar for best picture. Movies about black life that are not overtly about slavery don’t win the Oscar for best picture. It’s hard to overstate just how culturally, economically, institutionally and statistically improbable an outcome “Moonlight’s” best-picture Oscar win represents. Movies that lose all three major guild prizes — from the Producers Guild of America, the Direc[See Oscar, E9]

Clutching their statuettes, waves of Academy Award recipients smile for the camera. PAGE E5

PARTY ON, STARS Post-Oscars merriment: making the rounds at the Governors Ball and Vanity Fair’s bash. PAGE E6

GRATEFUL FOR MIX-UP The envelope fiasco saved the show from a nostalgia overload, says Christopher Hawthorne. PAGE E8

Months of meticulous planning that went into the ceremony were laid to waste in an instant By Jeffrey Fleishman

The mood backstage was high. Champagne had been poured, and a long evening seemed destined for a suave and elegant ending. Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway glided through the wings and onto the stage to announce the Oscar for best picture. But things went sideways inside the Dolby Theatre: “Oh, my God,” said a stagehand, “he got the wrong envelope.” That glitch led to the one of the biggest embarrassments in Academy Awards history when Beatty handed the envelope to Dunaway, who incorrectly named “La La Land” and not “Moonlight” as the winner. Stunned silence rolled through the darkened wings as stagehands peeked out to the spotlight. Confusion ensued, and the casts of both films stood like wellgroomed prizefighters in a disputed final round. Those excruciating moments belied months of planning, rehearsals, sound checks, production designs, scripts and precision behind one of the world’s most watched television shows. The days leading to the program were filled with backstage intensity, tempers, humor and sublime narratives, such as the sultry notes from a lone saxo- [See Backstage, E2]

CANDY? DA NDY

TWAIN’S M ARK

TIM E MACHIN E

From Mexico to the Pacific Northwest, trip itineraries and quick escapes that pave the way for maximum fun.

Confections for the car? Sweet. Handpicked just for the highway, these toothsome treats pack a 100 mph sugar rush.

To follow the trail of America’s beloved humorist in Nevada and California is to see what made us who we are.

Quirky, classic or cute, cars that live on in auto museums are portals to our past ... and our psyche.

YOU SAY YOU WANT A REVOLUTION? THIS CRITIC IS ALL IN. F2

JOSHUA HENRY IS SO, SO HAPPY TO PLAY AARON BURR. F3

THE KEY MOMENTS IN THE SHOW’S HISTORY. F4-5

robbreece Getty Images/RooM RF

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 3, 2017

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PETS LATIMES.COM/HOME

BY DEBORAH VANKIN >>> Hollywood Boulevard, 4:45 a.m. The sky is charcoal-colored and hazy, the nearly empty streets bathed in a blur of red, orange and green from a thicket of neon signage — the W Hollywood hotel, Decoera apartments, Dunkin’ Donuts. ¶ Suddenly a spot of white appears in the distance. Two 18-wheel trucks roll into view, cutting through the glow of the lights. The unmarked trucks could be carrying produce to nearby restaurants or T-shirts to a souvenir shop. But as they rumble and turn onto Argyle Avenue, a finely printed slogan becomes visible on the truck’s side: “Let’s get the show on the road.” ¶ That show would be “Hamilton.” And the cargo would be pieces of the set, to be installed at the Hollywood Pantages Theatre for Wednesday’s opening night. Lin-Manuel Miranda’s hip-hop musical about the life of Alexander Hamilton, the Broadway version of which won 11 Tony Awards last year and sparked a fan frenzy driving resale ticket prices into the thousands of dollars, is on tour and making its first jump from city to city. Arguably the most anticipated production in American theater history has — at long last — arrived in Los Angeles. ¶ But here’s the thing: As those white trucks [See Moving, F6]

CAR H OPS

Cameron Cottrill For The Times

SUNDAY, AUGUST 27, 2017

‘HAMILTON’

ROAD TRIPS

HIGH DRAMA

Tender, socially relevant movies like ‘Moonlight’ never take the best picture Oscar — until they do

Nancy Ohanian For The Times

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E L T T A B THE FOR ES L E G N A LOS Genaro Molina Los Angeles Times

“ON THE back side of your 60s, most people aren’t working. This keeps us young. I think it keeps me young,” Tom Petty said on Sept. 27, relaxing at his Malibu home.

THE HARDEST PART Tom Petty’s death comes just days after an introspective interview

Two years ago, the city had no NFL presence. Now two teams — the Rams and the Chargers — are vying to become the headliner in town. NO-KILL GOAL

BEYOND SHELTER

LOVE IS LOVE

HER BESTIE

City shelters in Los Angeles are on track to reach no-kill status by year’s end.

Take a look around a 21st century center for adoption and education.

A pig is a cuddly cutie. A tortoise, not so much, but the love is just as real.

How a 160-pound English mastiff proved to be her best friend in tough times.

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Civic-centered

Rams’ fresh faces

Taking charge

Snap judgments

Market’s big enough for both teams, but potential is still there for a real rivalry. V2-3

Rams counting on young players, as well as rookie 31-year-old coach. V4-8

Chargers responding to new coach’s pleas to accept responsibility. V9-14

What’s new around NFL, and analyzing always critical QB situations. V16-25

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With a fresh Clayton Kershaw and home-field advantage, the Dodgers hope to reach the World Series for the first time since 1988. D2

Robert Gauthier Los Angeles Times

A lasting influence: Over his lengthy career Tom Petty wrote songs for just about everyone and everything. E9

Cameron Cottrell For The Times

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BY RANDY LEWIS >>> This is not the Tom Petty story that I had intended to write. Though I was more than thrilled to catch up with Petty, whom I had interviewed before, I had no clue that this would turn out to be the last, for me and for him — that he would die just a few days later after suffering a massive heart attack at age 66. This is not the way things were supposed to happen. When I sat down with Petty in the outer room of the cozy but fully equipped recording studio at his home above Malibu beach, the idea was for him to reflect on the wildly successful 40th anniversary tour he and the Heartbreakers had wrapped less than 48 hours earlier at the end of three sold-out nights at the Hollywood Bowl. It was a triumphant stand particularly rewarding to Petty, a Florida transplant who considered himself and his band mates California adoptees. He said as much from the stage each night, noting how the Heartbreakers, although composed entirely of musicians born or raised in and around Gainesville, Fla., had been born at the Village Studios in West Los Angeles. “This year has been a wonderful year for us,” he said now, sipping a cup of coffee he’d just poured at 4:30 in the afternoon and sinking into the plush sofa. Above his head hung a framed illustration of his departed friend and boyhood idol George Harrison, created by artist Shepard Fairey and presented to Petty by Harrison’s son, [See Petty, E8]

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TODAY’S GAME

BILL PLASCHKE

The Dodgers face Chicago in Game 1 of the NLCS at 5 p.m. TV: TBS

Last season, the Cubs were the better team. This season, it should be the Dodgers’ turn. A1

ASTROS 2, YANKEES 1 Keuchel strikes out 10 in seven shutout innings as Houston gets the jump in ALCS. D10

DYLAN HERNANDEZ Luck might be on the Dodgers’ side, but they earned it during their big regular season. D11

TRAVEL TRAVEL

SUNDAY, DECEMBER 3, 2017

PLUNGING INTO FIJI Laid-back hospitality, excellent snorkeling and other activities beckon visitors to dive right in. A new resort on a 140-acre private island ups the irresistibility quotient. L4

Edel Rodriguez For The Times

HORRIFYING! Horror is cinema’s great equalizer. No one is safe. Whether a parable for troubled times or a scream-filled escape, film’s masters of scare bring us tales that frighten us silly, explore the unspeakable and remind us that, unlike the unlucky souls onscreen, we are the ones still left alive. Though the form is often maligned, horror has never been more robust in ideas — and popularity. With horror’s highest-grossing film still in theaters, we take a look at the monsters we love to fear.

THE WORKS THAT SPOOKED TODAY’S FILMMAKERS. E4

IS REAL LIFE JUST AS SCARY AS WHAT FILMS OFFER? E6

WHY FILM CRITIC KENNETH TURAN AVOIDS IT ALL. E7

The Dodgers and Houston Astros begin the World Series on Tuesday at Dodger Stadium. The Dodgers last reached the Fall Classic in 1988, when in Game 1 , a gimpy Kirk Gibson hit the most famous home run in team history. The Dodgers played Houston in the playoffs in 1981, winning a division series en route to the title.

Robert Carter For The Times

HOLIDAY MOVIE SNEAKS Jonathan Bartlett For The Times

Kokomo Island Resort

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AMID BOOM YEAR, TAX BILL TURMOIL

Rise of downtown

By Michael Hiltzik

The completion of a new “tallest” building often marks the end of a building boom — but not in downtown Los Angeles. The 73story Wilshire Grand Center, developed by South Korean investors, opened in June. The $1.35billion skyscraper houses an InterContinental hotel, several floors of office space and five restaurants. Nearby, giant cranes work away on projects like the $1-billion Metropolis condominium and hotel complex and the $1-billion Oceanwide residential, hotel and retail complex. Money pouring in from U.S. and foreign investors — both Metropolis and Oceanwide are backed by Chinese developers — is transforming L.A.’s central core.

Home prices soar In 2017, home prices fully recovered from last decade’s crash, but all was not right with Southern California’s housing market. The median price hit a nominal record of $505,000 in September, partly driven by continued low mortgage rates. But a lack of homes for sale played a big role too. That doesn’t bode well for affordability as the region’s economy continues to add jobs, making it hard to find housing near booming job centers like L.A.’s Westside.

The never-ending bull market

Karen Bleier AFP/Getty Images

Rising rates were supposed to kill it. So were North Korea’s saber rattling and doubts about President Trump’s tax cuts. But nothing slowed the nearly 9-year-old bull market in stocks, now the second-longest on record. The Dow Jones industrial average climbed 25% for the year through Dec. 21. But the biggest frenzy in finance was in cryptocurrencies. Bitcoin soared more than 1,400% — then dropped 30% in one day. Devotees believe they’re on the ground floor of a revolution, but it will be a wild ride.

Tech loses its Teflon This year marked the end of Silicon Valley’s honeymoon with America. Utopian visions of a digital future quickly turned dystopian thanks to revelations that the country’s biggest tech companies were manipulated by Russian operatives to undermine the 2016 election. Google, Facebook and Twitter were all forced to appear before lawmakers in Washington to explain how their platforms were infiltrated by trolls, bots and fake news. The scrutiny has raised the odds the industry will see new regulations.

Amazon plays kale card Amazon.com went on its own spending spree this year, adding Whole Foods to its shopping cart. Jeff Bezos’ Seattle mega-company bought Whole Foods for $13.7 billion and vowed to immediately slash prices at the notoriously pricey grocery chain. Avocados, salmon, brown eggs and organic apples all got the lower-price treatment, although prices for other products went up. Meanwhile, Amazon continues to make significant strides in streaming video, lightning-fast delivery, voice-recognition personal assistants, music, audiobooks, online shopping, pharmacy — and even bricks-and-mortar stores.

Elon Musk’s production hell

Peter Parks AFP/Getty Images

Elon Musk wants to fly people to Mars and bore a tunnel alongside the 405 Freeway. But his big dreams won’t matter if he fails to fix Tesla’s Model 3 production line. Tesla’s first mass-market car launched in July, and 400,000 were to be sold in 2018. But bottlenecks have held production to only a few cars a day. The automaker’s sky-high stock value — which briefly passed GM’s — depends on turning that around.

Uber veers off course Uber started the year as the king of ride-hailing and start-ups. But a relentless string of scandals has weakened its standing. It lost executives over sexual harassment and bullying accusations, ousted Chief Execuitve Travis Kalanick and concealed a data breach that affected more than 50 million customers. It faced lawsuits from drivers, passengers and Alphabet-owned Waymo, and was kicked out of London. Amid boardroom infighting, Uber is now facing a huge mark-down in its valuation as it tries to sell at least 14% of its shares to Japanese conglomerate SoftBank.

Snap continues to struggle

Banks’ friend, the GOP

Bryan R. Smith AFP/Getty Images

The darling of L.A.’s tech scene did little to silence critics who say Snap Inc. was not ready to start selling shares to the public. The company’s stock price has fallen 50% since its March debut. Executive turnover, a failed play at camera-equipped sunglasses and persistent competition from Facebook properties Instagram and WhatsApp soured investors on the makers of the Snapchat video app. A recent redesign is being counted on to raise lackluster user growth.

A decade after the housing bust sparked the worse U.S. recession since the Depression and ushered in tighter lending regulations, the financial industry is loosening its leash. In October, Congress voted to overturn a Consumer Financial Protection Bureau rule that would have allowed consumers to hit banks with class-action lawsuits. A month later, President Trump moved to neutralize the bureau itself, installing White House budget director and harsh bureau critic Mick Mulvaney as its interim head. Next up: reworking regulations on unwinding failed financial institutions.

Hollywood drama It would create one of the biggest players in Hollywood, marrying a telecommunications giant with the owner of HBO’s “Game of Thrones” and the “Harry Potter” films. But there’s one hitch: The Department of Justice has sued to block AT&T’s $85-billion purchase of Time Warner Inc., contending it would wield too much control over entertainment. Many observers suspect the unusual action has something to do with Trump, who has long expressed disdain for Time Warner’s cash cow, CNN. A court case could establish a benchmark for antitrust actions and have a chilling effect on other big media deals.

Revolt of airline passengers Travis Geske For The Times

Joshua Lott AFP/Getty Images

The violent deplaning of United Airlines passenger David Dao became a viral video in April as the bloodied physician was dragged down an aisle. That sparked a backlash from consumers and lawmakers, who pointed to a flurry of nasty incidents, many captured on cellphone video. United and other carriers vowed to reduce or end overbooking, pay more to bumped passengers and bolster employee training.

n a recent interview, the conservative economist Stephen Moore — an advisor to and unapologetic fan of President Trump — explained the policy rationale of the tax cut bills that were then making their way through a Republicandominated Congress. “It’s death to Democrats,” he told Bloomberg’s Sahil Kapur. “They go after state and local taxes, which weakens public employee unions. They go after university endowments, and universities have become playpens of the left.” The key element missing from this assessment by an economist? Economics. Nonetheless, Republicans have marketed the tax cuts as keys to economic growth — and that’s why the plans have elicited widespread skepticism from budget analysts. It’s not only because there’s virtually no historical evidence that tax cuts are tied to economic growth. It’s that even if one believes the linkage exists, now would be the wrong time to cut taxes. The economy is growing strongly and unemployment is falling fast. Moore himself, in an email exchange with me in October, described the economy as “sizzling hot.” If that’s so, then the tax cuts could lead the economy to overheat, possibly into a recessionary meltdown. The economy was on a high through most of 2017, but the hangover in 2018 could be epic. The consequences would be dire for the middle class. Pressure would mount to reduce spending. Under Republican regimes, that means cutting Social Security and Medicare benefits. Some Republican officeholders already are talking that way, including Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, who told a Washington forum earlier this month that reducing spending means “instituting structural changes to Social Security and Medicare for the future.” Medicare was threatened with an automatic annual budget cut of $25 billion. That’s the result of a law requiring Congress to offset any increase in the federal deficit with spending cuts. The law limits Medicare cuts to 4% of its budget per year, or $25 billion of its $625billion budget. Congress voted to waive the provisions known as Paygo (for “pay as you go”) for 2018 but they may still kick in for later years. That could result in fewer services or higher premiums for some seniors. Residents of California and other high-service, high-tax states would detect the impact of the proposals as soon as they calculate their 2018 taxes, when the deductibility of state and local taxes will be limited to $10,000. According to a survey by my colleague Jon Schleuss, more than 30% of residents deducted state and local taxes in 12 of the 14 California congressional districts represented by Republicans, and in seven of the districts the ratio was 40% or higher. None of this will matter if the tax cuts produce an economic surge, as their supporters predict. They also assert that the corporate tax cuts at the center of the tax plan will translate into higher wages, as businesses redirected their tax savings to their workforce. No evidence exists for either claim, but there is considerable evidence to contradict them. Following a study of changes in tax rates dating back to 1950, the Congressional Research Service reported in 2014 that “past changes in tax rates have had no large clear effect on economic growth.” Bruce Bartlett, who confessed in a recent op-ed to having “helped create the GOP tax myth” that cuts equal growth as a member of President Reagan’s domestic policy team, observed that economic growth actually was higher in the 1970s than after Reagan’s tax cut in 1981. In times like this, Washington should be using the revenue flowing into the Treasury to reduce the deficit and pay down the national debt — not adding to the deficit and setting up a surge in borrowing. That will leave the government with little ammunition to combat the next recession, “unless previously unimaginable and politically intolerable deficits, tax increases or spending cuts suddenly become acceptable,” argues Stan Collender, a former staff member of the House and Senate budget committees. Moreover, he says, “Washington’s ability to invest in anything new that will improve the economy (think infrastructure, education and medical research) will be far less.” The GOP tax plan, in other words, is mortgaging the future. And the future starts on Jan. 1. michael.hiltzik@latimes.com Twitter: @hiltzikm

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DRAMA, SHOCK AND AWE Melissa McCarthy adds ‘Spicy’ to ‘SNL’

As former White House spokesman Sean Spicer on “Saturday Night Live,” Melissa McCarthy slammed her lectern into the open arms of a public obsessed with POTUS 45. “SNL” ratings spiked and love for the funny lady flowed. Alas, when “Spicy” made a cameo as himself come Emmys time, it wasn’t nearly as amusing.

‘Dear Evan Hansen’: Love, the Tonys

The Tony Awards were all about “Dear Evan Hansen,” a young adult musical that explores teen suicide through the story of an awkward, anxious high school nobody whose lie gets caught up in a social media chain reaction. The show took home half a dozen trophies (after nine nominations) during a broadcast hosted by a pre-scandal Kevin Spacey.

Pirates of the Caribbean get enlightened

Presciently, the Pirates of the Caribbean crew found itself among entertainment’s most evolved men after Disney announced in June that it would bring on a female pirate and swap out the ride’s buy-a-bride auction for a more forward-thinking scene of villagers queuing up to surrender their belongings to the conquering horde.

Los Angeles succumbs to ‘Hamilton’

“Hamilton” finally arrived in L.A., bringing with it sky-high show prices and a Pantages-adjacent mini-concert for fans who gathered for a shot at 40 opening-night tickets being sold, via lottery, for $10 each.

Wait, what? Doctor Who is a … woman?

In a groundbreaking casting move, the 13th actor chosen to play “Doctor Who” was, well, an actress. “Whovian” fans, who had apparently wanted a lady Doctor for a while, celebrated online after Jodie Whittaker got the gig.

A new look for the Grammy Award nominations

As the Recording Academy finally woke up and embraced hip-hop — and rap and R&B — its Grammy Award nominees skewed heavily toward women and artists of color. For the first time in Grammy history, no white men were up for album of the year.

Shonda Rhimes’ move is a gut punch to ABC

Drama queen Shonda Rhimes (we mean that in the best way) took her “Scandal”-spinning showrunner skills to Netflix over the summer, reinforcing the growing influence of streaming services. In jumping ship, the producer delivered a gut punch to ABC, her former network home.

Patrick T. Fallon For The Times

Borda leaves L.A. for New York Philharmonic

As chief executive of the L.A. Philharmonic, she opened Disney Hall, brought Gustavo Dudamel to Los Angeles and oversaw operations as it became the most progressive major symphony orchestra in the world. Then Deborah Borda was lured back to the New York Philharmonic in a move that caught the arts world by surprise.

Robert Gauthier Los Angeles Times

Diversity — and some confusion — at the Oscars

#OscarsSoWhite? This time around, not so much. After a two-year drought, people of color were once again nominated in the Academy Awards’ acting and directing categories, and “Moonlight,” “Hidden Figures,” “Fences” and “Lion” were among the best-picture nominees. Still, the contenders weren’t truly diverse, just “blacker,” according to the creator of the social media campaign hashtag. Next year, the slate may be even more homogenous. And let’s not forget about the finale of the show, when the 2017 Oscar for best picture went to — well, it wasn’t “La La Land.” Because of a screw-up on the sidelines, people who tuned out immediately after the wrong title was read woke up the next day to headlines full of “Moonlight,” the actual winner. An anticlimactic ending, for sure, unless you were rooting for “Moonlight.”

Jay L. Clendenin Los Angeles Times

‘Wonder Woman’ a box-office hero

Get this: A movie starring a female superhero, directed by a woman, was amazingly appealing to men and women alike. Who would have thought? “Wonder Woman” showed the world how cool it could be to fight like a girl, all the while rescuing summer at the box office.

Margaret Atwood’s big year

Patrick T. Fallon For The Times

Streaming services had a major crush on Margaret Atwood. Her dystopian “Handmaid’s Tale” made Emmy-winning waves for Hulu, and the grim “Alias Grace” became a Netflix original. Well played by a prize-winning author who’s fondly known as the patron saint of Canada.

Taylor Swift wins in court — and tops the charts

Kent Nishimura Los Angeles Times

Taylor Swift made a buck the hard way in 2017: via federal court. A jury awarded the pop star a symbolic $1 judgment after determining that, yes, a former radio personality had groped her backside during a photo opp. Then Swift’s “Reputation” brought in big bucks the old-fashioned way as the year’s bestselling album.

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Jay L. Clendenin Los Angeles Times

CLAIRE FOY: Her portrayal of Queen Elizabeth II

in the Netflix series “The Crown” is acclaimed.

Carolyn Cole Los Angeles Times

STEPHEN COLBERT: The Trump era has been

comedy gold for “The Late Show.” Ratings surged.

Kirk McKoy Los Angeles Times

SAOIRSE RONAN: Her lead performance in the

movie “Lady Bird” may bring awards her way.

Kirk McKoy Los Angeles Times

STERLING K. BROWN: A year after his award-winning role in “The People v. O.J. Simpson,” he won admiration for his ongoing part in the TV drama “This Is Us.”

Jay L. Clendenin Los Angeles Times

KRISTEN STEWART: The “Twilight” star is a commanding presence in “Per-

sonal Shopper,” her second collaboration with French director Olivier Assayas.

Carolyn Cole Los Angeles Times

ETHAN HAWKE: He brings a weary authenticity to the part of a hired assassin

in “24 Hours to Live,” a visually stylish shoot-’em-up set in South Africa.

Genaro Molina Los Angeles Times

SONEQUA MARTIN-GREEN: After her turn with “The Walking Dead”

phenomenon, she has a central role in the new series “Star Trek: Discovery.”

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THOSE WE LOST — A REMEMBRANCE Bertrand Guay AFP/Getty Images

FATS DOMINO

The singer, pianist and rock pioneer had hits such as “Ain’t That a Shame” and “Blueberry Hill.” He died in October at 89.

Genaro Molina Los Angeles Times

GLEN CAMPBELL

The Grammy-winning singer, guitarist and TV personality, whose long career was capped by a singular last act after he went public with his advancing Alzheimer’s disease, died in August at 81.

Liz O. Baylen Los Angeles Times

HUGH HEFNER

He built a publishing and entertainment empire on the idea that Americans should enjoy sex. He died in September at 91.

CBS Photo Archive

MARY TYLER MOORE

The beloved star of two top-rated TV shows helped define a new vision of American womanhood. She died in January at 80.

Michael Ochs Archives Getty Images

CHUCK BERRY

One of the founding fathers of rock ’n’ roll, Berry was an innovator who designed much of the music’s sonic blueprint and became his era’s most creative lyricist. He died in March at 90.

Genaro Molina Los Angeles Times

TOM PETTY

The rocker rode to the pinnacle of music stardom with his beloved and long-running band the Heartbreakers. He was a tireless champion of artistic integrity and musical purity. “He was a great performer, full of the light, a friend, and I’ll never forget him,” Bob Dylan said after Petty died in October at 66.

David Barry For The Times

FRANK DEFORD

The award-winning sports journalist and commentator died in May at 78.

Cliff Lipson CBS

DELLA REESE

The singer and star of TV’s “Touched by an Angel” died in November at 86.

Associated Press

Tony Barnard Los Angeles Times

GREGG ALLMAN

The musician and Southern rock pioneer was a founding member of the Allman Brothers Band. He died in May at 69.

LIU XIAOBO

The Chinese dissident was given the Nobel Peace Prize in 2010. He died in July at 61.

Mitsu Yasukawa For The Times

TRISHA BROWN

The dancer and choreographer’s relentless experimentation and innovations were credited with revolutionizing dance in the 20th century. She died in March at 80.

Robert Durell Los Angeles Times

SAM SHEPARD

The actor, writer and Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright died in July at 73.

John Springer Collection Corbis

JERRY LEWIS

The legendary comedian, actor, filmmaker and host of the annual Muscular Dystrophy Assn. telethon died in August at 91.

Stephane de Sakutin AFP/Getty Images

DAVID ROCKEFELLER

The billionaire banker and philanthropist died in March at 101.

Kirk McKoy Los Angeles Times Richard Drew Associated Press

EDITH WINDSOR

Her lawsuit led the Supreme Court to grant same-sex married couples federal recognition. She died in September at 88.

DICK GREGORY

The groundbreaking comedian and civil rights activist died in August at 84.