I hadn’t been to any of the previous ones but since a couple of friends had glowing reviews of last years Eagle Rock Music Festival, I figured it was time to check it out. They were right, it’s a very fun festival with a good mix of bands, food, booths, and most notably, people. (It’s kinda like the Sunset Junction used to be in the early days which just reminds me how bad that “festival” has become.) I was only there for a short time, but click ahead if you want to see what I saw!
Oh look, that newspaper subscription I keep meaning to cancel has put out a new magazine. Hmm, maybe this time it’ll be a little more reflective of the larger Los Angeles and stop being so Westside Provincial? Haha. As the cover says: Dream On!
I’d been to this eatery maybe a year or so ago, when it was simply called La Tia and they were trying to specialize in tamales (no doubt to compete with the Eastside institution next door known as Tamales Liliana) but the food was just okay and it seemed like they were still getting things in order. About a month ago a friend told me that they now carried “all kinds of moles” and that it was under new ownership. Could it really be the same place? Only one way to find out!
“Por la Quince hehehehe,†sums up the latest installment of Casa 0101’s production of “El Verde.†That’s because “La Quinceanera,†played by Ramona Pilar Gonzales, steals the show in an unexpected turn of events. Gonzales does a terrific job of playing “El Verdes,â€Anthony Aguilar, most nefarious foe. Like any scorned woman, she is driven by the heart ache of a past lover, detective Johnny Angel, Gabriel Guillen. This is the fourth installment in this on going serious revolving around the origins of the shows major characters “El Verde†and “La Quinceaneraâ€.
REPORT FROM SAN DIEGO COMIC CON
Days Three, Four, Five, Six, – Quien Chingáos Sabe?……
By Al Desmadre
San Diego, CA, Sunday July 27, 2008
Ahh, another year, another Comic Con come and gone. Only sweet memories remain, lingering like the pungent aromas of the Nerd Herds even now fading from these Cheesy Nacho littered halls of the great San Diego Convention Center…. Continue reading
San Diego Comic-Con 2008, Day Two,
Thursday July 24, 2008
By Al Desmadre
San Diego, CA.
Complete sensory overload compounded by unyielding waves of costumed humanity funneling themselves through row after row of vendors, mobbing displays containing everything imaginable from the worlds of Fantasy, Science-Fiction, Games, Toys, Posters, Books, Clothing, Jewelry, Art, Television, Movies and Comic Books. Presentations for every upcoming multimedia release and more promotional swag than you’ll ever know what to do with. And if you try to see it all in one day, you’ll go Mad. Continue reading
San Diego Comic-Con 2008, Day One,
Wednesday July 23, 2008
By Al Desmadre
San Diego, CA.
The first thing that strikes me about coming to Comic-Con in San Diego, is the stark human contrasts one sees in everyday settings during this week. Generally speaking, San Diego is a conservative, laid back, kind of military oriented type of town. At my hotel, mainly you see a lot of old white guys smoking cigars and talking about golf and boats. Continue reading
Speaking of Latinos on film, Check out these stills of the versatile BENICIO DEL TORO as CHÉ GUEVARA… Continue reading
I was cruising along Soto earlier today, crossing my fingers that the Chavo-mobile wouldn’t panic at the slight incline coming up ahead and throw me off yet again, when all of a sudden I see the sign above. The Tequila Warehouse was interesting enough but the smaller type that reads “Over 450 Beers In Stock” was the clincher. Could it really be? In Boyle Heights? Alto burrito, vamos a ver! I tied Rucio to a post and went inside…
You meat eaters don’t know how hard it is to be a vegetarian wanting to go out for Mexican food; mostly the choices tend to be breakfast dishes, bean and cheese burritos, enchiladas de queso, chiles rellenos, or the always boring Vegetarian burritos which are basically the bean and cheese with some added lettuce. (Don’t even mention vegan, that gets much more difficult.) So when a place has potato tacos it feels like they care about us carrot munchers, but we know its just a cheap and easy item to include on the menu. But still, I always appreciate seeing these on a menu. So when I finally had the courage to eat at the place named “My Taco” (jajaja!!!) I was quite blown away with the tasty tacos de papa.
Memories of Lost L.A. Eateries, Â Part 2
Still more nostalgia for those long gone L.A. favorites……………..
We’ve all seen them. We might pass by them on the streets and pretend to look away……
But they are there. Always there. Staring sadly from public street walls. These are the unloved renderings of some unheralded artists who, at one time, attempted to leave their artistic marks upon an otherwise blighted world.
These works started out perhaps with a sketch, some paint, and good intentions.
But now, they stand as nothing more than painted victims of ridicule from cynical would be Art Critics like myself.
Could I have done any better? Probably not. Have I the right to critique and judge these pieces? Probably not. Will I do it anyway? Simón! Here are a few specimens chosen from the Los Feliz, Silver Lake & Echo Park areas, (or as I like to call it, “The Westsideâ€). Judge for yourselves.
