Volunteers Welcomed Daily (4) Nov 17, 2009
Published: Friday, November 14, 2008 5:26 PM PST DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES - It's a familiar sight: Every year, hundreds of volunteers, led by celebrities such as Kirk Douglas and Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, trek to Skid Row to serve thousands of meals to the area's homeless population for Thanksgiving. With photographers and cameras jostling for space in front of the food line like paparazzi at The Ivy, the Los Angeles Mission's annual Thanksgiving dinner is a high-profile event. (Los Angeles Downtown News, CA)
FMHS' 'Little Shop of Horrors' opens tonight Nov 14, 2009
Luce), Dorthea Whitehead (Patricia Martine), Colter Hentzel (Audrey II puppeteer), and Hannah Corns, Kara Eid and Carys Glaze (Skid Row Ladies). Share this Article. (Fort Madison Daily Democrat, IO)
Is Dr. Drew's sexual healing bad for you? Nov 8, 2009
But when Phil Varone, drummer for Skid Row, complains to the "Sex Rehab With Dr. Drew" cameras that he's slept with more than 3,000 women, when he compares being surrounded by horny groupies to being a cocaine addict who's offered coke every night, it's tough to weep big, salty tears for him. When we learn that Kari Ann Peniche, former Miss Teen U.S.A., spends a lot of her time masturbating in her bathtub instead of facing reality, it's not all that easy to generate empathy for her. (Salon)
Murder, music and a flower shop Oct 30, 2009
The show, based on the low budget, black comedy film from 1960, centers around a mysterious plant that talks and drinks blood at a little flower shop in the fictional urban area of Skid Row. Living off the fame and success that it has brought him, Seymour Krelborn, played by senior Ryan Dring, must find a way to sustain the plant without causing too much destruction to himself. (GW Hatchet, Washington DC)
Falcons handle their business vs. Bears Oct 20, 2009
Dallas is going to burn these guys like a short oder cook in a skid row diner next week and Tony Romo is not the second coming of Dan Marino. Imagine Drew Brees versus theses guys. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution -- Sports)
• 'Little Shop of Horrors' opens at Juneau Douglas High School Oct 16, 2009
"Little Shop of Horrors," set on skid row, is about a clumsy flower assistant named Seymour, played by freshman Aaron Abella, who cross-breeds a butterwort and Venus Flytrap cultivating a blood-thirsty plant ... Lucas Hoiland designed the set that captures the skid row look where the Little Shop of Horrors is located. (Juneau Empire)
Singing in the Rain Oct 15, 2009
Musical Act Performs for Skid Row Kids Today. Published: Tuesday, October 13, 2009 11:54 AM PDT DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES - Despite the gloomy rain, some kids in Skid Row will be getting a high-energy show today from Orelia4Kids, a child-oriented musical act. (Los Angeles Downtown News, CA)
More Than Just a Game Oct 14, 2009
A Year in Skid Rows Streetball Mecca Shows That Recovery Works In Many Ways ... After cruising to victory in the first two games of a five-game set for the championship in the league based in Gladys Park, Skid Rows streetball mecca, Sways team, Da Villains, is in a deep hole in game three ... On the sideline is Ron Crockett, the leagues iron-lunged play-by-play announcer whose dramatic, syllable-stretching narration of the game has earned him the nickname the Skid Row Chick Hearn. (Los Angeles Downtown News, CA)
* EVENTS & ENTERTAINMENT Oct 2, 2009
American heavy metal band Skid Row, which broke into the scene in the 1980s as a glam metal band, takes to the stage on Sunday. On Wednesday its another round of Challenging the Fire (KjD), a battle of young or otherwise unknown bands, while on Thursday the venue hosts drum n bass-influenced group Chi Chi and Di Di (__P), emo punk band Lucy Overdrive (WtS) and nu-rock band Beright. (Taipei Times, Taiwan -- Business)
Down but not out Sep 24, 2009
"But Steve Lopez took me down to Skid Row, I met a load of people and I fell in love with a lot of the community. "I decided they had the right to make the film, and I had to give them the platform from which to speak. "These are people who have had their voice taken away, and who haven't been given space to express their view of life.". (BBC News -- Entertainment)
MIND Reviews: The Soloist Sep 19, 2009
Lopez often wrote about Ayers for the Times, introducing many readers to the reality of schizophrenia and the desperate plight of the Los Angeles slum known as Skid Row. The Soloist, based on Lopez s book of the same name, translates Lopez s powerful depiction of mental illness and urban desolation into a moving film. (Scientific American)
Paul Zeise's Pitt football chat transcript (Yesterday) Sep 11, 2009
Paul Zeise: Well, either Dokken, Metallica, Skid Row or Megadeath -- any one of that foursome will do the trick. Big_John: What is Wanny's Record against the MAC. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, PA -- Sports)
Art Walk or Party Walk Sep 9, 2009
Its an amazing success story, Green said When we first started the gallery scene Downtown we were constantly told it was not possible, that this is Skid Row, that people will never come. But it has turned into a big party. (Los Angeles Downtown News, CA)
The Central City Synagogue (848) Sep 5, 2009
People told me, Youll be the rabbi of Skid Row. . (Los Angeles Downtown News, CA)
Little Shop of Horrors coming to Palm Canyon (1) Aug 30, 2009
In modern cult theatre, few shows can compare with the musical genius and character wit of Howard Ashman s and Alan Menken s Little Shop of Horrors, where we are taken to the destitute and poverty stricken downtown Skid Row, and meet our heroes, Seymour Krelborn, the awkward but loveable florist assistant, and the woman he loves, Audrey, who is continually battered by her rough-and-tough dentist boyfriend ... Alan Menken is famous for countless popular musical movies, and his genius in Little... (Desert Entertainer, CA)
Stephen Elliott recounts his past Aug 30, 2009
Nearby we found skid row where the homeless slept against the buildings or lined up for the soup kitchen. There was vomit all over the sidewalks. (Boston Globe)
Jamie Foxx's crazy solo Aug 28, 2009
Many of the scenes were filmed in gritty downtown LA, near the drug and crime-riddled Skid Row One thing Downey jnr doesn't like is an ''us'' and ''them'' mentality being implied when referring to people who live on the streets ... I was surprised that my street cred on Skid Row was pretty high,'' he says ... While some actors may have been concerned, Downey jnr says he enjoyed his time filming around Skid Row. (Sydney Morning Herald -- Entertainment)
Double Fine and EA Announce Super-Charged Soundtrack for Brütal Legend Aug 11, 2009
Double Fine and EA Announce Super-Charged Soundtrack for Br. "market" : {"NAME" : "U.S.", "ID" : "us_market", "TZ" : "ET", "TZOFFSET" : "-14400", "open" : "1249997424", "close" : "1250020824", "flags" : {}} , "STREAMER_SERVER" : "http://streamerapi.finance.yahoo.com","arrowAsChangeSign" : false,"throttleInterval": "1000". (Yahoo! Wire -- Entertainment News)
Downtowns Basketball Bonanza Aug 8, 2009
Teams have registered from everywhere from Venice, home to one of L.A.s most popular and competitive street basketball leagues, to Skid Row ... General Jeff Page, a Skid Row activist and member of the Downtown Los Angeles Neighborhood Council, assembled a team to represent the Skid Row 3 on 3 Street Ball League ... We thought it would be a wonderful way to promote our league and bring positive exposure to Skid Row. (Los Angeles Downtown News, CA)
Best Downtown Crime Buster Aug 1, 2009
Acting on a tip, Spafford and a partner knocked on the door at the Skid Row hotel where Manchado was staying. Four men, including Raul, watched as Manchado was arrested. (Los Angeles Downtown News, CA)
L.A. teen tried to get money before death Jul 28, 2009
Less than a half-hour later, Samuel was seen drinking beer on a Skid Row street and arrested for investigation of possessing narcotics paraphernalia because he allegedly had a crack cocaine pipe, Diaz said. He was still jailed when Burks body was found. (MSNBC -- Crime)
Growing gardeners Jul 27, 2009
Music acts at the fair will include 2 Buck Drunk, Candy Coburn, Gloriana, Honky-Tonk Tailgate, Six By Silver, Red Line Chemistry, Vandelyn Kross and Skid Row. Admission is 5 on Monday and Tuesday and 10 the rest of the week. (Jefferson City News Tribune, MO)
A Permanent Place (3) Jul 26, 2009
SRO Housing Corp. Opens $15 Million James M. Wood Apartments in Skid Row ... Thats a big deal, said the 44-year-old Skid Row resident ... Johnson is one of the tenants who recently moved in to the $15 million permanent supportive housing project by the SRO Housing Corp. The five-story building at 506 S. San Julian St. is the latest development from the nonprofit organization that runs almost two dozen properties in the Skid Row area. (Los Angeles Downtown News, CA)
10,000+ predicted for rock weekend at casino Jul 26, 2009
Sunday July 26, 2009. Web Search powered by YAHOO. (Mason City Globe-Gazette, IO)
Turn on the guilt: Shows were ashamed to love Jul 21, 2009
The show just delivers videos, no VJs to interrupt the music, which includes all the classics Skid Row, Cinderella, Dokken, Ratt and more. I spent my teenage years as a sullen, eyelinered suburban Cali goth actively hating this stuff and Reagans America. (MSNBC -- Television)
Becks Little Shop of Horrors is a hoot! (6) Jul 10, 2009
The setting is Skid Row, home to winos, bums, whores, the homeless and Mushnik s Flower Shop. Don McBride s grungy, derelict tenement setting and Gregory Falcione s darkly lurid lighting set the stage for this neighborhood of down-and-outers. (Cleveland Jewish News, OH)
Tattoo-shop owners claim Tempe biased Jul 9, 2009
"It's going to look like another skid row if we let this kind of business come in. I'm ashamed," said Nancy Hickman, who owns a plumbing business next to the proposed studio. "It's going to look like Van Buren (Street) pretty soon.". (AZCentral -- News)
Letters to the editor Jun 30, 2009
Sixth Street and the Tenderloin and Skid Row area need a real cleanup plan. A good start would be closing most of the liquor stores. (San Francisco Chronicle -- Opinion)
Light, frothy mayhem for a steamy season Jun 28, 2009
He navigates the sprawling city by cab following clues that take him from movie studio to skid row, from clogged freeway to underground subway tunnel, driven as much by sibling rivalry as by brotherly love. Hallie Ephron is the author of Never Tell a Lie. (Boston Globe)
'The Soloist' and beyond Jun 28, 2009
Suffering from schizophrenia, Nathaniel withdrew from the Juilliard School of Music and his caring family and became a street person on L.A.'s Skid Row. NAMI Mercer applauds the filmmakers for raising public awareness about the 2 million Americans with schizophrenia and the plight of the homeless, one-third of whom suffer from mental illness. (NJ.com -- Times)
Hair bands forever! Grunge never! Jun 16, 2009
Back in 1989, rap and R&B had yet to dominate the mainstream, and instead of hip-hop, kids were listening to Bon Jovi, Great White, Warrant, White Lion, Tesla, L.A. Guns and Skid Row ... The stage was set for toothful singers like Warrants Jani Lane and Skid Rows Sebastian Bach, both of whom could never have fit into any scene that included Iron Maiden. (MSNBC -- Music)
Noir Tour, Seeing L.A. From Under a Fedora Jun 3, 2009
There's a tour that covers the favorite haunts of Skid Row poet laureate Charles Bukowski and another that takes you down the streets that inspired musician Tom Waits ... Then there's the Barclay Hotel on the edge of Skid Row, the place where the bald guy in Room 332 got the ice pick in the neck in "The Little Sister." It was called the Van Nuys Hotel in the book, a name still etched in the granite facade. (Fox News)
Rock Gone Wild festival scheduled in Algona May 13, 2009
Previously announced bands include Puddle of Mudd, Candlebox, Saxon, Dokken, Saliva, Skid Row, Lita ford, Saving Abel, Warrant, Jackyl, Eve 6, Tyketto, Saigon Kick, Tantric, Kix, Great White, armored saint La Guns (featuring Phil Lewis), Black N Blue, Hardcore Superstar, Dangerous Toys, Helix, Junkyard, , Lizzy Borden, Dirty Looks and more. Visit for special offers on tickets and up-to-date information on the event. (Mason City Globe-Gazette, IO)
With Twitter as your tour guide, visiting L.A. is a breeze May 2, 2009
It ranged from the benefits of Twitter "it doesn't matter who you are, but what you say," said homeless advocate Mark Horvath (@hardlynormal) to the accuracy of The Soloist, the new movie based on Times reporter Steve Lopez' columns and book about a homeless musician living on L.A.'s Skid Row. laurably Joy of #travel: Meeting folks like seatmates @axelwoolfolk of @bravenewfilms and war vet @rick_reyes, a new John Kerry. (USA Today -- Travel)
Basking in the Glow of The Soloist May 2, 2009
Hughes was one of the Skid Row residents who appeared in The Soloist, about Ayers relationship with L.A. Times columnist Steve Lopez ... Skid Row Community Had a Supporting Role in Film ... The film, in which Robert Downey Jr. plays Lopez and Jamie Foxx portrays Ayers, is ostensibly about how a newspapermans quest for a promising story at one point sleeping on the street with Ayers in Skid Row evolves into a crucial friendship for both men. (Los Angeles Downtown News, CA)
"The Soloist" Apr 28, 2009
The picture is based on a true story, that of Los Angeles Times columnist Steve Lopez, who one day came across a Skid Row denizen, Nathaniel Ayers, playing a violin with only two strings. Lopez learned that Ayers had attended Juilliard at one point, but his mental illness prevented him from functioning normally in the world. (Salon)
The true-life journalist of The Soloist, Steve Lopez Apr 28, 2009
Nathaniel, once a promising student at Juliard, was living on the streets of L.A.'s notorious Skid Row, but his soul was able to escape in the music, which gave him temporary relief from illness. He would go so far to play in the tunnels of Los Angeles because he found the spaces to be orchestral. (The Loyola Greyhound, MD)
A love affair with all flavors of film festival Apr 19, 2009
Whodunit: Billed as the "longest running film festival in the Americas," the first version of this festival was largely put together by Irving M. "Bud" Levin, whose vision wowed everyone from the Nob Hill penthouses to the Beatniks hanging around Skid Row. Memorable scene: Consider Factoid No. 65 (from the festival Web site's history section): "The combined running time for all the films in the festival ... is about 215 days of viewing, 24 hours a day, with no breaks.". (San Francisco Chronicle -- Entertainment)
Joe Wright directs 'The Soloist' Apr 19, 2009
It was when I went to Skid Row with Steve Lopez and the community there welcomed me ... Skid Row is like a mental hospital out on the street. (San Francisco Chronicle -- Entertainment)
Double Homicide Rocks Skid Row Apr 15, 2009
Published: Tuesday, April 14, 2009 11:11 AM PDT DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES - At about 5 a.m. on Sunday, April 12, two men were shot and killed inside the Lamp Lodge, a Skid Row residential hotel for people with mental disabilities, in what police believe was a drug-related incident ... Known affectionately in the community as KK, Cohen was looking forward to his big screen debut as an extra in The Soloist, the film about the formerly homeless musician Nathaniel Ayers and Los Angeles Times... (Los Angeles Downtown News, CA)
Christopher Award Winners Announced Apr 15, 2009
NEW YORK, April 14 /PRNewswire/ -- From the slums of Mumbai to the Iraqi desert, from skid row in Los Angeles to the aftermath of the Holocaust on Lithuanian survivors, winners of the annual 60th annual Christopher Awards share the common theme of hope in the face of adversity ... And In The Soloist: A Lost Dream, an Unlikely Friendship, and the Redemptive Power of Music, journalist Steve Lopez tells the story of his life-altering involvement with a mentally-ill musical genius on L.A.'s skid... (Yahoo! Wire -- Entertainment News)
Lady in a Cage Movie (1964) Apr 2, 2009
Lady in a Cage serves up a healthy dish of highfalutin society, skid row and juvenile delinquency. Toss in a rich pampered broad trapped in a private elevator on a hot summer day, and one has the 1964 cinematic version of "Help, I've Fallen and I Can't Get Up!". (Suite101.com)
Out in front Apr 1, 2009
is fairly accurate, except I would also add with interpretive dance by Skid Row s Sebastian Bach with special confetti-throwing appearance by Rip Taylor. What the hizzy was that. (The Palm Beach Post)
Night Gallery's The Little Black Ba... Mar 29, 2009
Dr. William Fall was once a respected surgeon, but a past medical mishap has turned him into a skid row bum. Fall and another derelict named Heppelwhite fight over a bottle of cheap whiskey, breaking it against a wall. (Suite101.com)
Students stage 'Little Shop of Horrors' Mar 26, 2009
The "pop-style" show follows Seymour Krelborn, a clumsy florist on poverty-stricken Skid Row whose life begins to change after discovering a mysterious plant during a solar eclipse. In an attempt to show his true feelings for his co-worker, Audrey, he names the mysterious plant Audrey II. As Audrey II grows, so does Seymour's notoriety with the media and the people of Skid Row ... When Seymour finally discovers the plant's unique food needs, people start disappearing from Skid Row. (Ft. Washington Montgomery Newspapers, PA)
Foxx, Diaz, Renner will have you weeping Mar 25, 2009
Starring: Jamie Foxx, Robert Downey Jr., Catherine Keener, Tom Hollander, Lisa Gay Hamilton Director: Joe Wright Story: Los Angeles Times reporter Steve Lopez (Downey) meets Nathaniel Ayers (Foxx) in the Skid Row section of downtown Los Angeles and discovers that hes a musical prodigy whos also a schizophrenic. Their friendship transforms both of their lives. (MSNBC -- Movies)
The Big Picture (5) Mar 22, 2009
Donald T. Sterling, real estate mogul and owner of the Los Angeles Clippers, has moved ahead with plans to build a 50 million homeless center at the corner of Sixth and Wall streets in Skid Row ... 6 million community complex by the Skid Row nonprofit are moving forward, with a groundbreaking expected this summer, said Cynthia Harnisch, executive director of Inner-City Arts. (Los Angeles Downtown News, CA)
Danny Boyle, Parker Posey, Amy Winehouse Mar 19, 2009
The Catholic priest took $15,000 in cash to Skid Row in Los Angeles and doled it out to hundreds of the city's most down-and-out residents outside the Fred Jordan Missions ... "I come out here to tell them that God loves them and I love them, that someone is concerned about them." Father Chase is an institution at Skid Row, where he has given away cash, plastic rosaries and blessings every Sunday on the same corner for 24 years. (International Herald Tribune -- Arts)
Vancouver cool Mar 18, 2009
The area in between downtown and Chinatown is Vancouver's skid row, a scene of urban decay and poverty, so best to be avoid -- a reminder that there are still big city problems here. Away from the and noodle joints, on the other side of downtown is. (CNN -- International)
Sound relief Mar 13, 2009
IN 1993, about 75,000 people trekked out to Calder Park Raceway to see Guns n' Roses, Skid Row and Rose Tattoo on a sweltering summer's day. That show holds the record as the biggest paid concert in Australian music history. (The Age, Australia)
One-on-one with 'The Soloist' author Steve Lopez Mar 11, 2009
"But then he [Ayers] does something remarkable and charming and draws you back in and you are reminded all over again that those down moments for him are not conscious choices; it's the disease." Fairly early on in their friendship, Lopez asked Ayers if he could join him one night where he slept on the streets of LA's Skid Row district. Although Lopez admitted he was scared at first by the visions of drug addicts running rampant and the feeling of rats approaching his makeshift bed, he quickly... (Springfield Sun, PA)
No comments posted. Mar 8, 2009
5 million effort at 506 S. San Julian St. in Skid Row will include 31 units for tenants with severe mental illness ... Skid Row Housing Trust is on track to finish a $35 million, permanent supportive housing project at 325 W. 17th St. by July, said SRHT Director of Special Projects Molly Rysman. (Los Angeles Downtown News, CA)
This One Goes to 11 Mar 5, 2009
They opened across the community and involved a variety of pursuits, from L.A. Live, the entertainment complex that instantly changed the Downtown nightlife landscape, to the expansion of Inner-City Arts, the longtime Skid Row educational institution, to the Vista Hermosa Natural Park, which created a much-needed green space in City West ... Inner-City Arts has been helping the children of Skid Row and surrounding communities since it opened in 1989, providing artistic and educational... (Los Angeles Downtown News, CA)
Lohan Blames Stress And Work For Skinny Frame Feb 18, 2009
and lack of sleep (cocaine will do that) when I travel (to Skid Row to find drugs). " She adds, "I think it's all that stuff (up my nose) that adds up. (San Francisco Chronicle)
Casinos warned about card-counting iPhone app... Feb 17, 2009
In a report to investors, LaFleur downgraded MGM Mirage and Wynn Resorts Ltd. and said the Strip was "the new skid row." Casino operators are in a treacherous period. "Since 1990, we have seen a tenfold increase in capital deployed on the Strip and only a fivefold increase in profits," LaFleur said, adding that $90 billion in equity has evaporated in the past year. (The Drudge Report)
The lonely road from 'Baker Street' to skid row Feb 17, 2009
The lonely road from 'Baker Street' to skid row - Features, Music - The Independent ... The lonely road from 'Baker Street' to skid row. (Independent)
Horrors on stage at Belmonte Middle School this weekend Feb 8, 2009
Little Shop of Horrors is a classic rock-tinged musical featuring the sounds of the 50s that tells the tale of the strange and interesting plant that entrances the residents of Skid Row. The tale is narrated by the Urchins, a girl group. (Saugus Advertiser, MA)
Family of Skid Row Musician Forms Nonprofit Feb 7, 2009
The Nathaniel Anthony Ayers Foundation is named after and founded by family members of the Skid Row street musician whose story was told by Los Angeles Times columnist Steve Lopez. That led to a book and a film, The Soloist, that will be released in April. (Los Angeles Downtown News, CA)
