As the iPhone turns 10, a new book details its ‘secret history’
In January 2007, Steve Jobs appeared at MacWorld in his trademark black turtleneck, blue jeans, and white sneakers, and announced that Apple is going to reinvent the phone. “An iPod,…
In defense of slowing down: Peter Brook’s ‘Battlefield’
There isn’t much action (in the action movie sense) in a Peter Brook play. “Battlefield,” which played at The Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts in Beverly Hills last…
Want to fight fires? Use goats
High fire season kicked off in Santa Barbara this week. Plants that flourished during this winter’s rains are already drying out and turning into kindling. More than six small wildfires have broken…
The stories we tell: 50 years of Center Theatre Group
(Note: – I worked at CTG from 1997 – 2005 both as Associate Producer for New Play Development and helping to build and open the Kirk Douglas Theatre). Last Saturday…
How politically divided are today’s college students?
Are you friends with people who have different political views than you?
A resurgence at the Saturday fisherman’s market
Early Saturday mornings, you can stroll down the Santa Barbara harbor to pick up local seafood like rockfish, urchin and abalone direct from the fishermen. Sometimes, you can even find ling cod,…
ASMR and the sounds that soothe
Devaan describes his ASMR as a pulsing, tingling feeling on the back of his neck. His preferred stimuli are whispers, shuffling cards, scissors, tapping noises, anything that makes a crisp…
What should Curious Coast investigate next? Time to vote!
After our first Curious Coast voting round, you sent us into the tunnels below State Street to find a jazz club. Since then we’ve received dozens more questions, from Santa Barbara to Carpinteria…
Memories, activism and kicking up dust at Manzanar
A howling wind kicked up dust at Manzanar National Historic Site, where Japanese-Americans were interned during World War II. A racially and ethnically diverse crowd streamed out of buses and…
Who was Santa Barbara’s only pirate?
Santa Barbara’s history is tied to the sea, so it wasn’t surprising that we got this Curious Coast question from KCRW listener Bill Hall: “Was there ever pirate activity in Santa…
What you need to know about Trump’s visit to Israel
Trump’s visit to Israel isn’t without controversy.
How the joy of T-ball gets lost on the little league field
The purest play one can find at the diamonds down in Arroyo Seco are on that wee field nearest the skate park and across from golf course entrance. Beyond this…
Don’t tweet this play
The plot of Wallace Shawn’s “The Designated Mourner” is fairly simple for a three-hour play. The protagonist (Shawn) finds himself as the designated mourner for a tribe of people that…
Catherine Opie on family and photographs
Catherine Opie has photographed freeway overpasses, homes in Beverly Hills, surfers, mini malls and the Lesbian S&M scene. Her work is both about Los Angeles and a product of it–…
May 16 LA City Elections: Results
Note: This post has been updated to include results. Tuesday May 16 is an election in Los Angeles. Find out what’s on your ballot and where to vote: Polls are open…
A tough, essential play
Dry Land, by Ruby Rae Spiegel, is a brutal and graphic play. It’s definitely not a play for everyone, and if you’ve got young or fragile ears you might want…
Semi-recovered sex addict believes there’s no such thing as a true cure
Sagittarius is a sex addict. His therapist told him that naming his addiction would be a good way to compartmentalize it. So he chose “Sagittarius,” a name he stole…
Senator Kamala Harris: Firing of Comey threatens entire judicial system
California Senator Kamala Harris says she’s very concerned about Donald Trump’s decision to fire FBI director James Comey. “It’s threatening the integrity of the entire judicial system,” Harris tells KCRW’s…
Neil deGrasse Tyson on why we should — or maybe should not — go to Mars
“The universe is under no obligation to make sense to you,” writes Hayden Planetarium director Neil deGrasse Tyson is his new book, “Astrophysics for People in a Hurry.” Astrophysicist…
Gil Cedillo defends his District 1 seat
In what would normally be a sleepy election, there is an unexpectedly exciting runoff next week in a Los Angeles city council race. Bike activist Joe Bray- Ali faces incumbent…
How anti-vaccine propaganda fueled Minnesota’s measles outbreak
Minnesota’s largest measles outbreak in more than 25 years is currently raging in the Twin Cities, and it’s largely the fault of anti-vaccination activists. The outbreak has so far spread…
