Muah ha ha ha ha! Halloween and the Day of the Dead have finally landed this week, folks, and good golly miss molly is there a lot to do. Unfortunately, I couldn’t fit everything into my little – yet robust and carefully curated – roundup, so I went with more local options to simplify. And I wholeheartedly trust your internet searching skills if you don’t find anything here, so I’m not worried. And if you need your makeup done for one (or both) of the big days, why not head over to Sephora at The Grove and let the professionals work their magic. Just a thought, as makeup has never been my strong suit and only elevates an outfit, especially a costume. What I also didn’t include below is the plethora of classic horror movie showings all week long at New Bev Cinema, which just happens to be owned by Quentin Tarantino, so you know the lineup is good. Enjoy!
Halloween and Día de Los Muertos
Okay, I’m gonna start you off with a real treat, no trick, to all those interested in – Beetle House LA – a year-round celebration of Halloween with an artistic and thematic atmosphere inspired by horror culture, magic and the artistic, literary and cinematic works of Tim Burton, Alfred Hitchcock, Bram Stoker, Washington Irving, Edgar Allen Poe, and many many more – because, who knew?! First opened in 2016 as a pop-up restaurant in NYC, this unique offering provides guests with a truly unique and macabre experience. Enjoy a culinary spectacular with signature cocktails, while being dazzled at your table by an ever-changing offering of dining room shows that include world-class singers, sword swallowers, magicians, psychics, sideshow acts, contortionists, impersonators, and so much more. The cost for dinner and a show is $60 and $22 for kids under 12. Reservations are highly recommended. The bar and patio are 21+ and require no reservations. Beetle House is located at 7080 Hollywood Blvd. Dining hours vary daily; bar closes at 2 a.m.
The Wind of Change (Quetzalcoatl) came to us as a pandemic like it hadn’t been seen in a century. Now that we have experienced and have become resolute in restoring celebrations of Life and Death, it is exhilarating to commemorate Dia Y Noche de Los Muertos at Hollywood Forever Cemetery through the celebration of “Máscaras de México – Vida y Muerte en La Máscara” (Masks Of Mexico: Life And Death In The Mask). This highly anticipated annual event is back on Saturday, October 28 with a brand new theme, along with all of your favorite traditions. Broken up into two separate day and night events, Dia de Los Muertos opens at 9 a.m. and closes at 3 p.m. when attendees must exit the park, while Noche De Los Muertos goes from 5 p.m. – Midnight. The daytime event will feature a children’s plaza, face painting, altars, art exhibits, aztecs, folkorico dance, traditional dance, ceremonial procession, costume contests with big prizes, arts and crafts vendors, food vendors, and more! Tickets are $35 for GA and $150 for VIP. The evening iteration features all the fun of the Dia event, just with way less kids, plus live music and DJs. Tickets are $60 for GA and $250 for VIP. Other Los Muertos events include the Los Muertos 5K at Olvera St and Dia de Los Muertos Street Festival on Sunset, both happening on Saturday, October 28 as well. Enjoy!
And what better place to spend All Hallows Eve than at the mysterious Philosophical Research Society, bringing you EXP TV’s Phantasmic Ectoplasmic Halloween Ball with the Legendary Cut Chemist – his first appearance in 5 years! If you haven’t been out in a while, you know who you are, tonight is the night to make your cameo, as Cut Chemist presents a live audio/visual music experience, enhanced by alcoholic beverages, a vinyl pop up shop with rare records direct from his epic collection, spooky video projections, a costume contest with prizes, and a dance floor, of course! A founding member of Jurassic 5 and Ozomatli, and one of the world’s most celebrated DJs and producers – Cut Chemist – and EXP TV’s Tom Fitzgerald have been performing “meticulously constructed,” wholly immersive audio-visual live sets together since 2006. This Halloween, they are pairing up again, bringing you “a hallucinatory All Hallows Eve trip for your ears n’ eyes that will transport you to the past, future, and beyond!” It’s going to be a Halloween party unlike any other — so don’t miss it! EXP TV is…a 24/7 live TV channel broadcasting an endless stream of obscure media and video ephemera. Big Bonus: Tickets are only $20. Your journey begins at 8 p.m. in the PRS Auditorium.
Ain’t no party like a WeHo Halloween Carnaval 2023 party ‘cuz a WeHo party don’t stop! First launched in 1987, Weho’s incomparable Halloween Carnaval is one of the most unique Halloween gatherings in the world and it’s back, baby! So, expect a wild fun time, and plenty of shenanigans as you make your way up and down that magical one-mile stretch of Santa Monica Blvd. between Doheny and La Cienega Blvd. to the stage at San Vicente. Come out and dance to DJ music, eat from LA’s best food trucks, and take in all of that eye candy as thousands of wildly dressed Halloween revelers parade on by. There will also be celebrations at businesses, bars, restaurants and entertainment venues throughout the City. You won’t want to miss it! Halloween Carnaval is free to attend and will take place on Halloween night – Tuesday, October 31 – from 6-11 p.m.
Wholesome Halloween
The 14th annual Wilshire Park Halloween Haunt is finally here, well, on Saturday, October 28 from 4:30-7:30 p.m. at S Bronson Avenue (between Wilshire and 8th), more specifically. This hug Halloween bash, courtesy of the Wilshire Park Association, comes complete with trick or treating, a haunted house, fortune tellers, bouncers, face painter, games, silent auction, photo ops, doggie costume parade, costume contest… and more! There will also be a hot dog cart from Serendoggity this year, and a giant bake sale with all the baked gooey goodness you can imagine – 
because what is Halloween without a little overindulgence – am I right? Most of the activities are free, but food, drinks, Wilshire Park merch and auction items will cost you some green or plastic. And just a friendly reminder: this is a family event, NO Alcohol is permitted at the Haunt – so, save your boozin’ for the after party – wherever that may be. Thank you in advance.
And courtesy of Boo at the LA Zoo, the family fun just keeps on coming this Saturday and Sunday, October 28-29, when the Halloween spirit will be in full swing at the Zoo, meaning there’ll be trick-or-treating stations throughout the Zoo (offering wildlife-friendly candies made with sustainable ingredients); animal pumpkin feedings; “fang-tastic” photo ops; spooky story times; education stations; and an extinct animal graveyard, where visitors can honor dearly departed species and learn how you can help save at-risk wildlife today. And, finally, don’t forget to visit “The Lair,” where you’ll come face-to-face with rare snakes, poisonous frogs, and venomous lizards! Costumes are encouraged. Please check the website for a full schedule of events and times. Festivities are free with paid Zoo admission or GLAZA membership. And don’t forget to bring your own bag for all that candy!
Get ready to par-tay at Car-thay! The annual Carthay Square Block Party has returned to Whitworth between Hi Point and Stearns for its much anticipated pancake breakfast and festive Halloween event. Come spend the morning on Sunday, October 29 with your neighbors, while the kiddos play in the bounce house, get their face painted, and take fun pics in the photo booth. Costumes are encouraged! And don’t forget to bring a book for the book swap, and (wrapped) baked items for the bake sale. Items will sell for $5 each, with proceeds going towards future events. Venmo and cash accepted. Whitworth will be closed between Stearns and Hi Point, so the “hub” will be the corner of Whitworth and Point View. Festivities take place from 9:30 a.m. – 12 p.m. – right when the Larchmont Family Fair is starting up, so why not keep the fun going and head on over to Larchmont Village for some more PG shenanigans.
And appropriately closing out ‘Wholesome Halloween’ is the Hollywood Halloween Trick or Treat and Festival happening on Halloween – Tuesday, October 31 from 4-9 p.m. Join your Hollywood community for an epic holiday celebration with all the usual favorites, plus a few extras, that include trick-or-treating, pumpkin carving, creepy critters petting zoo, a ferris wheel, donut eating contest, costume contest with prizes, haunted maze and more! All activities are free of charge and all are welcome, so bring your fam and friends for a safe, family friendly Halloween hootenanny! The fun begins at 4810 Sunset Blvd.
Not-So-Spooky Stuff
Although Halloween definitely dominates this week, there are also many other worthy happenings that we hope don’t get lost in the ghostly shuffle. For example:
On Saturday, October 28, you can “experience the diversity of stories that make Southern California such a place of discovery” at the 18th annual Los Angeles Archives Bazaar, presented by L.A. as Subject and the USC Libraries. The event features “a broad array of institutions and archives” (nearly 70 of them, including our own Ebell of Los Angeles), exhibiting materials from their collections and answering questions from the curious, as well as a full day of programming on specifically food-related history told through historic documents (e.g. “Mapping LA Through Community Cookbooks,” “A Brief Culinary History of the Farmers Market” (the one at 3rd & Fairfax), and “How LA Invented the Backyard Barbecue”). The event is free and open from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at USC’s Doheny Memorial Library at its University Park Campus. (See the event link above for parking and some inconvenient street closure information.)
Next, if you’re looking to unload some old drugs you can do just that – safely and legally! – on Saturday, October 28 at the Olympic Community Police Station (1130 Vermont Ave) for National Prescription Drug Takeback Day. Dispose of unused medication free of charge and help make your community safer and healthier by properly (and responsibly) disposing of your unused and expired medications, and reducing potential incidents of overdose. Vape devices will be accepted if lithium batteries have been removed. Syringes and other items will not be accepted, please click on the link for a full list of acceptable items. Event takes place from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Moving on to Sunday, October 29, early risers can check out the Petersen Museum’s monthly Cruise-In from 8-11 a.m. on the top level of the museum’s parking structure. This month’s event celebrates 70 years of Matchbox toy cars, and will include “a real world packaging backdrop to park your vehicle in front of to make your car look like it’s on the shelf!” There will also be a panel discussion featuring Matchbox Designers Bryan Benedict and Julian Payne, along with a special feature by artist Mr. Brainwash to celebrate the brand. The Cruise-In event is free, with coffee, bagels, complimentary parking, and a cupcake provided for all registered attendees. (There’s also an additional Rally ticket available for $75, which includes a post Cruise-In drive, collection tour and lunch.) Petersen Museum members will also enjoy Early Museum Access starting at 8 a.m., as well as special discounts at the retail booth, and themed giveaways at the membership booth (membership card and ID required).
Of course the big event on Sunday, October 29, is the highly anticipated 2023 Larchmont Family Fair, with this year’s theme appropriately dubbed “Fun for Everyone.” This beloved annual event is happening in Larchmont Village on Larchmont Blvd. between 1st and Beverly from 12-5 p.m. So get yourself out of the house for a festive day of live performances, beer garden, food, rides, talent show, kids’ costume contest with prizes, booths run by your favorite charities and schools, and more! Come spend the afternoon with your friends and community, and I can almost 100% guarantee you’ll be happy you did. Sponsored by the Larchmont Boulevard Association, with proceeds helping to support the Boulevard’s beautification, safety, and future events. (Oh, and also, for the very first time, the Buzz will have its own booth at the Fair – we’ll be collecting plastic bags for recycling with Ridwell, distributing LASAN kitchen recycling bins, and making seed bombs with California poppies. So be sure to stop by and say, “Hi!”)
Modeled after the thousands of other “open streets” or “ciclovia” events (there can never be too many!) that have been organized around the world and across the US, 626 Golden Streets temporarily opens stretches of roadway for people to walk, jog, skate, bike and more in (my valley of origin) the San Gabriel Valley. And on Sunday, October 29 you’ll get the chance to experience the Golden Streets version at Arroyo Fest, taking place on Arroyo Seco Parkway from 7 a.m. – 11 a.m. with activity hubs set up at Lincoln Heights (’til 1 p.m.), Highland Park (Lummis Festival ’til 3 p.m.), and South Pasadena (’til 2 p.m.). Organized by non-profit ActiveSGV, this series of events is meant to promote a safer, more sustainable and equitable SGV. There is no “right” way to experience the day’s events, you may join and depart the event route anywhere you like, and are free to check out the many local businesses that can be found along the route. This is a FREE event; taking public transit is highly encouraged.
And a little to the west, TrollsFest Immersive Fan Event and Musical Extravaganza is where it’s at and it’s where you should be this Fri, Sat, or Sun, Nov 3-5. Taking over Westfield’s Century City Mall, this weekend-long event will transport its human visitors to the TROLLS world to celebrate their latest soon-to-be hit movie, Trolls Band Together (In Theaters Nov. 17). Come immerse yourself in the franchise’s latest chapter by performing with the film’s all-star boy band BroZone (voiced by Justin Timberlake, Troye Sivan, Kid Cudi, Eric André, and Daveed Diggs), along with lots of other cool stuff like getting a TROLLS makeover, mini-golf, dance lessons, giveaways, exclusive merch, and much more! Sip on TROLLS-themed shakes from Shake Shack and get your hair and nails did like a troll (of course) by Hally Hair and Sally Hansen. Southwest Airlines will even be in the house unveiling its new TROLLS-themed plane – what? – mania! Please note that online tickets have sold out, but not to worry, there will be a standby line each day. Tickets are FREE. Hours are Fri: 11 a.m. – 7 p.m. Sat: 2 – 7:30 p.m. and Sun: 11 a.m. – 5 p.m. See you there!
Finally, your local NC, the Greater Wilshire Neighborhood Council (GWNC), along with our friends at the Mid City West Neighborhood Council, are taking a breather this week and shall return in due time… next week. Check the GWNC’s calendar or Mid City’s calendar for a full schedule of meetings and events. 
GWNC meeting locations vary by Committee; every Board meeting is held at the Ebell of Los Angeles on the second Wednesday of the month. All MCW meetings are held at the Pan Pacific Park Senior Center (lunch room) located at 141 S. Gardner St.
