I've been a regular contributor to the feature and
Calendar sections of the LA Times since 1999,
covering everything from a convention of cloggers to a
corporate dustup between Disney and Imax.
Features
• It Takes a Village to Help One Man -- Is this a participatory feature or an exercise in masochism? Both, it turns out. For one week, I followed the advice of 12 of LA's growing legion of "lifestyle experts " -- including a life coach, a spiritual advisor, a physical trainer and a personal brander. Ended up a little more confident, a lot more self conscious and very, very tired. May 29, 2003
• Time to Take Back the Night -- I was asked
by editors at the LA Times for 2,000 words on
Halloween and why it matters. My ponderings on why we
all celebrate fear in a time of recession, terrorism and
mass anxiety got mixed up with a vivid recovered memory
of being mugged by a Smurf. October 31, 2002
• Dog Town - First person cover story for
Calendar section about the canine-craziness of Los
Angeles. May 16, 2002
• East/West Smackdown - Cover story for
Calendar section in which I go head-to-head with a
die-hard Westsider over the comparative merits of our
'hoods. It gets nasty. Generated a ton of response from
readers, many of whom didn't quite get our intended
cheekiness. April 18, 2002
• Curses! -- Lead story in Sunday feature section
about the casual, common use of swearing in public. Fuck
yeah! November 14, 1999
Entertainment:
• The Roman Empire Rises Again -- Interview
with director Ridley Scott on the eve of the release of
"Gladiator." Friendly and thoughtful, Scott was positive
the movie was going to be huge -- I secretly thought the
movie was silly and figured it would flop. Goes to show
you.
• Imax Says No, So Disney Builds its Own
Theater -- While reporting a routine preview of
Disney's "Fantasia 2000," I stumbled upon a bit of
embarrassing news: Disney had been forced to build its
own temporary IMAX theater in LA after the local science
museum rejected the movie, on the grounds it wasn't
"educational."
• Taking a Fast-Track Career in Stride --
Profile of martial arts action star Jet Li. What made
this more than just an ordinary junket story was the
glaring contradiction of a mild-mannered,
Chinese-speaking Buddhist publicizing a super-violent
American action flick.
