After a 6½-year hiatus from theaters, “Star Wars” returns to the big screen this weekend with “The Mandalorian and Grogu.” This time around, however, the franchise faces a much different universe than it did in 2019 when the last film came out. For one, theatrical attendance has fallen dramatically since “Star Wars: Episode IX — … Read more
President Trump, it’s well known, is into gold. Every day brings new evidence that he’s thoroughly enjoying the “golden age” he pronounced in his inaugural address — as few other Americans are — with stock trades, crypto profiteering and much more, even a new taxpayer-financed slush fund to reward his allies. As for me, I’ve … Read more
The Sports Report Hall of Fame, NFL edition Those of you who read the Dodgers Dugout newsletter know that for the last few years, we have done a Dodgers Dugout Hall of Fame, asking readers to vote for former Dodgers who they believe should be in this more fan-oriented Hall of Fame. Clayton Kershaw was … Read more
On a late Monday afternoon in early May, three members of the band Xcomm sit behind the control board at multiplatinum producer Ross Robinson’s studio in Atwater Village during an afternoon hang while bassist Adan Escoto joins via Zoom. Usually at this point in the year, a teenager would be counting down the days until … Read more
Before joining Microsoft as a junior software engineer last year, Ume Habiba, imagined spending most of her time fixing bugs and juggling other mundane tasks. Instead, the University of Maryland graduate was charged with building a new feature for Azure Networking, one of Microsoft’s flagship products. Habiba’s miscalculation? Not realizing she would get to offload … Read more
WASHINGTON — House Democrats on Friday released 19 photographs from Jeffrey Epstein’s private email server showing a collection of powerful men in politics, media and Hollywood in the convicted sex offender’s orbit. The photographs — which were released without information on the timing, location or context of the events portrayed — do not reveal any wrongdoing or … Read more
To describe a movie as including a ski mask, a camcorder and $50,000 in cash would certainly lead one to imagine a specific type of story. Add two men and sex work and the brain might roll around more pointed scenarios. But none of that can prepare you for what micro-indie “Blue Film” has in … Read more
SAN FRANCISCO — A high school student was killed and 32 other teenagers were injured Monday–as many as 16 of them seriously–when a group of students on an amusement park outing allegedly ignored a lifeguard’s warning and crowded onto a water slide, which snapped and sent them crashing to the ground, emergency officials said. Waterworld USA General … Read more
It wouldn’t be a Musk production without some ambitious deadlines. Loading audio narration… SpaceX filed for its blockbuster IPO on Wednesday, and it’s already proving to be one of the most unconventional public-offering documents in recent memory, with its grandiose, sci-fi language and a CEO pay package partly tied to life on Mars. Then there … Read more
As the office market bottoms out after a long fall, renters are swooping in to buy their own buildings. Occupant businesses are seizing the opportunity to become owners, especially in downtown Los Angeles, where glittering high-rises have plummeted in value since occupancy dropped during the pandemic. It has never fully recovered, but investors believe the … Read more
WASHINGTON — Sophia Nyazi’s husband, Milad, shook her awake at 8 a.m. “ICE is here,” he told her. Three uniformed Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents were downstairs at the family’s home on Long Island, N.Y., on Tuesday, according to a video reviewed by The Times that she captured from atop the staircase. Nyazi said the agents asked … Read more
At Jimmy Kimmel’s annual monologue to advertisers at Disney’s recent upfront presentation, the ABC late-night host offered sympathy to his ousted CBS cohort Stephen Colbert. “First, it’s bad enough to lose your job,” Kimmel said. “Imagine getting replaced by the owner of the Weather Channel.” Byron Allen, the media mogul whose holdings do include the … Read more
Red meat is having a moment. It’s the OG protein at a time when America’s protein obsession is peaking. MAHA influencers, avid gym-goers, and anyone trying to cool it with the processed foods are embracing steak, burgers, and roast beef with renewed enthusiasm. The federal government — particularly Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. … Read more
Last Friday morning, Avi Patel was scrolling on X when he saw a post that made him crash out. The post, from General Catalyst investor Yuri Sagalov, announced a $31 million seed round for a startup called Luel, which pays people for AI training data. Patel is the founder of a startup called Kled that … Read more
Zoox’s CEO said China’s EV companies have an edge in one major area. Loading audio narration… In a Wednesday Rapid Response podcast interview, CEO Aicha Evans said there’s one key reason China’s autonomous vehicle companies are successful — because they’re great at integrating hardware and software. “When you look at the ecosystem in China, a … Read more