On any day in Los Angeles, there is something appealing to do indoors and out, given the great weather and all, but things are a bit slower closer to home this week, so please do try to enjoy the calm before the storm. If not for yourself, do it for the children! And aside from yesterday’s Black Friday shenanigans (if you dared leave the house), we’ve got the much friendlier Small Business Saturday today (our Larchmont and other nearby merchants would love to see you!) and the first weekend of Christmas tree sales at the Wilshire Rotary’s tree lot on North Larchmont…or you can opt to chill out doing some of the mellowish holiday activities below. There’s the Hollywood Christmas Parade, lit up train rides in Griffith Park, and The Hot Chocolate Nutcracker over yonder. On the non-holiday side, you’ve got Comic Con LA, Mental Health talks at Chevalier’s, and Survivor Talk at the Holocaust Museum — in other words, you have options. And if none of these happenings tickle your fancy, stay tuned ’til next week.
Arts, Culture, Comic Con, and some Holiday Stuff
It’s Mizrahi Heritage Month and the Holocaust Museum LA will be honoring this day with an In-Person Farhud Survivor Talk on Sunday, November 27 at 3 p.m. Joseph Samuels was born in Baghdad, Iraq in 1930 and is a survivor of the Farhud Massacre (1941). His story “illustrates the wider geographic scope of the Holocaust, which extended beyond Europe.” This event is free; please register here. The Museum’s Survivor Talk series allows survivors the opportunity to share their stories of “courage, resilience, and hope, allowing us to preserve their memories and steward their messages.” And be sure to check out the Museum’s latest exhibits while you’re there! Museum Tickets are free all day Thursday and $10-$15 every other day, kids 17 and under are always free. Daily hours are 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. and 10 a.m. – 7 p.m. on Thursdays.
“It’s the most wonderful time of the year,” they say, and the great City of Los Angeles will make good on that promise again this year with the 90th Annual Hollywood Christmas Parade, supporting Marine Toys for Tots, this Sunday, November 27! Starting at 6 p.m. on Hollywood and Orange, this 90-years-young extravaganza will travel east to Vine, south on Vine to Sunset, and west on Sunset back to Orange forming a nicely U-shaped parade route. There’ll be balloons and floats a-plenty, performers, dance groups, marching bands, and pageantry, of course! Because what’s a parade without pageantry – well, it would just be a bunch of people walking down the street. Reserved Grandstand Seating is limited, but still available for $120/$60 adults/children under 16, but hurry! P.S. The Hollywood/Highland complex is your best bet for parking, but be sure to get there early, OR you could just take the Metro Red Line directly to the parade route, your choice.
Chevaliers Books’ first week of December only has a few events scheduled, but one in particular brings up a very important issue, mental health. A lot of us struggle with this on the daily, but as we’re all now uber aware, the pandemic has made things that much worse. Join Dr. Ken Duckworth, Chief Medical Officer of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), and professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, along with multi-hypenate NAMI ambassador, Corrine Foxx, as they discuss his most recent book, You Are Not Alone. This is a free event that will take place in-person at Chevalier’s on Thursday, December 1 at 6 p.m. Kindly RSVP here. There’s another book discussion scheduled for Tuesday, November 29 and an Art Showing on Friday, December 2, but deets are yet to be posted for these events, so be sure to check back closer to the date.
If you’re looking for a classic reimagined and are up for a bit of a drive, then head to the distant land of the South Bay for The Hot Chocolate Nutcracker, Debbie Allen’s modern adaptation of the classic ballet by composer Tchaikovsky. Come bear witness to the Debbie Allen Dance Academy (DADA) award-winning production this holiday season on stage from December 1-4 at the Redondo Beach Performing Arts Center. The plot: It’s Christmas Eve and the Johnson Family is having a grand party. Gifts are shared and young Kara receives a nutcracker doll filled with hot chocolate – her favorite. She falls asleep and the journey begins with a grand cast of characters, including three wise-cracking mice, flamenco-stamping cockroaches, toy soldiers, and more. Set to brand new choreography and the beat of original music by Arturo Sandoval and Mariah Carey! Tickets range from $50-$125.
Come one, come all to the LA Convention Center and get your Comics, Gaming, Cosplay, Anime, Sci-Fi, and Pop Culture freak on! Starting next weekend, December 2-4, “An Event For Fans. By Fans.” will be coming to the LACC in the form of Comic Con LA. Enjoy time spent with other like-minded fans, along with a ton of celebrities from your fave shows and movies, while you discuss all things listed above. Being a bit of a sci-fi nerd, I’ve always been a bit curious about Comic Con, but have never actually braved the waters myself (I don’t think I’m quite hardcore enough). And if you, yourself, have also been curious, why not go for it and make a new friend or three. Bonus: you’ll get to wear that costume outside of Halloween. Come on… You know you want to. VIP passes are sold out, but general admission tickets are still available; prices vary. Download the app for complete show guide.
My bad! I meant to include this one in last week’s roundup, but there’s still plenty of time to enjoy an Enchanted Evening Train Ride around the very festively decorated, one-mile track in Griffith Park. Every night, until early January, experience the one-mile track at Griffith Park & Southern Railroad as you’ve never seen it before! Well, they’ve been doing this for a while now, so maybe you have seen it before, but anyway, come witness this spectacular transformation (again) on a magical train ride sure to delight the mind with thousands of lights and holiday cheer! In addition to the lights and train ride, enjoy the shiny and new holiday gift kiosk (weekends only until Dec 9), and 3 winter-themed photo booths to capture that perfect ‘treasure forever’ snapshot! Open ’til January 6; Mon-Thurs: 5-8 p.m.; Fri-Sun: 5-9 p.m. The cost is $7 per person. P.S> Tickets can only be purchased onsite.. for now.
Community and Local Government
Attention All! Saturday, November 26 is Small Business Saturday, a day to celebrate and support small businesses and all they do for their communities. And this year, we all know that small businesses – like the ones in Larchmont Village – need our support now more than ever as they recover from the effects of the pandemic, so please join the SBA (Small Business Administration) and organizations across the country in supporting your own local gems! Founded by American Express in 2010 and officially cosponsored by the SBA since 2011, SBS has become an important part of small businesses’ busiest shopping season. Kicking things off by encouraging consumers to support our nation’s nearly 32 million independent businesses now and all year long. Find participating small businesses in your area.
Also, another sign that holiday shopping is up and running in the Larchmont area – our very own Wilshire Rotary Christmas tree lot is now full of trees (and wreaths and more) and welcoming customers at 568 N. Larchmont Blvd. seven days a week until Christmas – just in time to start decking your halls!
Your local NC, the Greater Wilshire Neighborhood Council has, count’em, 2 gatherings on the books this week, starting with a Transportation Committee meeting on Monday, November 28 and ending with a Quality of Life Committee meeting on Wednesday, November 30. Click here to view the calendar for deets.
And the Mid City West Neighborhood Council has a pretty light week due to the Thanksgiving holiday, of course, and will start on Monday, November 28 with an Executive Council meeting, followed by the Public Safety and Well-Being Committee on Tuesday, November 29, and weekly in-person Wednesday Walks on Wednesday, November 30. But, wait! There’s one more and it’s an important one.. Neighborhood Council elections are coming up, so if you’ve ever thought about serving on the Board of Mid City West NC, now is the time to give it a go! The only requirements are that you’re at least 18 yrs old and a resident or community-interest stakeholder within Mid City West’s border. Attend this virtual Candidate 101 presentation to learn the steps to file for candidacy and what it means to serve. The event will take place on Thursday, December 1 at 7 p.m. Click here to check MCW’s calendar for details.
