A Novel Saturday at the Book Festival

Hoping to avoid the crunch — not to mention the swealtering temps — the Kid Formerly Known as the Blogger Toddler and I drove out to the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books early on Saturday — and I’m glad we did.

(Maria was at home, still recovering from a terrible virus that knocked her out for several days. Yeah, it’s been a pretty rough week here at Franklin Avenue HQ, between that and the car accident.)

Parking was $8, but ultimately worth being so close to the festivities. (In years past, we’ve gone on a Sunday and hunted for free parking spaces.) The real reason we got there so early: “Johnny and the Sprites.”

Getting there before 10 didn’t make much of a different with the heat; it was a sauna all day.

If you’re going tomorrow, one reminder: Don’t pay for the overpriced, disappointing vendor food; just go to UCLA’s Ackerman student union, where there are several fast food choices.

Now, some shots from Saturday:

Ahh yes, the main reason we were there with the Kid Formerly Known as Blogger Toddler: A live performance on the Target Children’s Stage by Playhouse Disney’s “Johnny and the Sprites.” “Avenue Q” star (and “Sesame Street” alum) John Tartaglia headlines the show, and appeared on stage with two of the show’s puppet characters. Ex-Blogger Toddler enjoyed it, as did his cousin (who we met up with); I now have those damn songs in my head. (It was actually a pretty good, nearly half-hour show — not bad for free. Gladly took this over seeing those creepy “Doodlebops.” Would have liked to have seen “Choo Choo Soul,” but that performance was slated for the afternoon.)

J. Eric Lynxwiler and L.A. Observed‘s Kevin Roderick man the Angel City Press book, signing copies of their Wilshire Blvd.-themed book.

The spirit of the book festival: Strangers standing side by side, solving crossword puzzles together.

Hi De Ho Comics promises “books with pictures.”

Pop culture historian Charles Phoenix holds up one of his great books, a colorful look at life in post-war Southern California. Charles confirms that he’s taking a break from doing his Disneyland-themed tours of downtown L.A., but he’s excited about his Roller Skating Spectacular at Glendale’s kitschy, historic Moonlight Rollerway. Event, which takes place May 17 and 18, includes Charles’ retro slide show, this time celebrating roller skating, and an after show all-skate party, among other things.

The “Comix Strip” row of mostly animation/comics-related booths (although, strangely, several non-comics booths resided there as well, including Tribune’s Metromix).

Pretty self-explanatory.

A Novel Saturday at the Book Festival

Hoping to avoid the crunch — not to mention the swealtering temps — the Kid Formerly Known as the Blogger Toddler and I drove out to the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books early on Saturday — and I’m glad we did.

(Maria was at home, still recovering from a terrible virus that knocked her out for several days. Yeah, it’s been a pretty rough week here at Franklin Avenue HQ, between that and the car accident.)

Parking was $8, but ultimately worth being so close to the festivities. (In years past, we’ve gone on a Sunday and hunted for free parking spaces.) The real reason we got there so early: “Johnny and the Sprites.”

Getting there before 10 didn’t make much of a different with the heat; it was a sauna all day.

If you’re going tomorrow, one reminder: Don’t pay for the overpriced, disappointing vendor food; just go to UCLA’s Ackerman student union, where there are several fast food choices.

Now, some shots from Saturday:

Ahh yes, the main reason we were there with the Kid Formerly Known as Blogger Toddler: A live performance on the Target Children’s Stage by Playhouse Disney’s “Johnny and the Sprites.” “Avenue Q” star (and “Sesame Street” alum) John Tartaglia headlines the show, and appeared on stage with two of the show’s puppet characters. Ex-Blogger Toddler enjoyed it, as did his cousin (who we met up with); I now have those damn songs in my head. (It was actually a pretty good, nearly half-hour show — not bad for free. Gladly took this over seeing those creepy “Doodlebops.” Would have liked to have seen “Choo Choo Soul,” but that performance was slated for the afternoon.)

J. Eric Lynxwiler and L.A. Observed‘s Kevin Roderick man the Angel City Press book, signing copies of their Wilshire Blvd.-themed book.

The spirit of the book festival: Strangers standing side by side, solving crossword puzzles together.

Hi De Ho Comics promises “books with pictures.”

Pop culture historian Charles Phoenix holds up one of his great books, a colorful look at life in post-war Southern California. Charles confirms that he’s taking a break from doing his Disneyland-themed tours of downtown L.A., but he’s excited about his Roller Skating Spectacular at Glendale’s kitschy, historic Moonlight Rollerway. Event, which takes place May 17 and 18, includes Charles’ retro slide show, this time celebrating roller skating, and an after show all-skate party, among other things.

The “Comix Strip” row of mostly animation/comics-related booths (although, strangely, several non-comics booths resided there as well, including Tribune’s Metromix).

Pretty self-explanatory.

USC Move to the Rose Bowl?

(Flickr pic by Steve Eggleston.)

It’s possible, as the school’s deal is up with the Coliseum. But, as the L.A. Times writes, it also could be a negotiation ploy:

Frustrated by lack of progress on a lease agreement with the Coliseum Commission — one that would allow the school to run and renovate the venerable Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum — USC is negotiating with the Rose Bowl to begin playing home games in Pasadena next fall.

While a deal with the Pasadena stadium is not complete, a potential USC lease agreement is on the agenda for a Dec. 6 meeting of the Rose Bowl Operating Co. The school’s two-year lease with the Coliseum expires after Saturday’s game.

Some insiders have dismissed USC’s talks with the Rose Bowl as a negotiating ploy, saying it’s highly unlikely the school would ever leave a stadium that’s practically part of its campus. But others point to the number of teams that have left the Coliseum over the years and say USC is likely to uproot if there’s no significant progress with the commission.

“We’ve been a loyal, faithful tenant of the Coliseum for 80 years, and our goal is to continue playing in the Coliseum for another 80 years,” said Todd R. Dickey, USC’s senior vice president for administration. “But in order to do that, the Coliseum has to be improved. It needs to be repaired and restored. And we’ve offered to make those improvements, not just to hand the money over to the Coliseum Commission, but for the university to actually operate the facility.”

Timing of the news is interesting, of course, with the big USC/UCLA faceoff this Saturday at… yes, the Rose Bowl Coliseum.

USC Move to the Rose Bowl?

(Flickr pic by Steve Eggleston.)

It’s possible, as the school’s deal is up with the Coliseum. But, as the L.A. Times writes, it also could be a negotiation ploy:

Frustrated by lack of progress on a lease agreement with the Coliseum Commission — one that would allow the school to run and renovate the venerable Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum — USC is negotiating with the Rose Bowl to begin playing home games in Pasadena next fall.

While a deal with the Pasadena stadium is not complete, a potential USC lease agreement is on the agenda for a Dec. 6 meeting of the Rose Bowl Operating Co. The school’s two-year lease with the Coliseum expires after Saturday’s game.

Some insiders have dismissed USC’s talks with the Rose Bowl as a negotiating ploy, saying it’s highly unlikely the school would ever leave a stadium that’s practically part of its campus. But others point to the number of teams that have left the Coliseum over the years and say USC is likely to uproot if there’s no significant progress with the commission.

“We’ve been a loyal, faithful tenant of the Coliseum for 80 years, and our goal is to continue playing in the Coliseum for another 80 years,” said Todd R. Dickey, USC’s senior vice president for administration. “But in order to do that, the Coliseum has to be improved. It needs to be repaired and restored. And we’ve offered to make those improvements, not just to hand the money over to the Coliseum Commission, but for the university to actually operate the facility.”

Timing of the news is interesting, of course, with the big USC/UCLA faceoff this Saturday at… yes, the Rose Bowl Coliseum.

Angeleno of the Week: Sporting Life Edition

Consider it the sports edition of Angeleno of the Week. Not exactly a good week for Marion Jones, the Trojans or the Bruins. Of course, USC and UCLA will recover — OK, perhaps not this season, but they’ll recover. Jones? Not so much. The jail-bound Olympic Gold Medalist (er, soon-to-be-former Olympic Gold Medalist) swore up and down that she didn’t dope up, expressing plenty of righteous indignation when anyone made the allegation. Now, in admitting that she lied, Jones has already harmed the sport, and permanently ruined her rep.

L.A. native Marion Jones, you’re our Angeleno of the Week!