The Enduring Barbershop Keeps It Real—and Real Funny

One of the First Comedy Classics of the 21st Century Found Plenty of Fans for a Friday Night Screening

Everyone in the audience, it seemed, had seen the movie before. But that didn’t mean the crowd arrayed on the lawn at LA Plaza de Cultura y Artes in downtown Los Angeles laughed any less at Barbershop, the third installation of the Zócalo Summer Movie Series. If anything, bonding with fellow aficionados of the modern comedy classic heightened the humor, as moviegoers recited punch lines in unison with the characters on screen.

When asked about the appeal of the 2002 film, starring a surprisingly subdued Ice Cube and an irreverent Cedric …

By Callie Enlow | August 22, 2016

The Epic Effort to Map the West

A Brilliant Geographer and Famous Photographer Teamed Up to Tackle the Nearly Impossible Task of Surveying 19th-Century California

By Tyler Green | August 22, 2016

We’ll start in the 1840s, when Western North America was almost wholly empty of European-Americans. To prepare the land for settlement, the United States government sent teams of explorers into …

Having Some Awkward Family Fun on a Friday Night

Hundreds Turned Out to See Indie Comedy Little Miss Sunshine in Downtown L.A.

By Joe Mathews | July 25, 2016

On a warm Friday evening that concluded the hottest day of an anxious summer, a big audience in Los Angeles sought solace in a film about people overcoming their own …

To Understand America’s Small Towns, Ask About Their Swimming Holes

Under a Waterfall or Inside an Old Quarry, These DIY Pools Are a Refreshing Way to Connect With Simple Pleasures of the Past

By Dave Hajdasz | July 14, 2016

Consider the swimming hole. It lacks the majesty of an ocean or the pedigree of a lake—forget about boating or surfing. A swimming hole is by its very nature utilitarian. …

Bon Voyage, Sport Chalet

Southern California's Good-Natured Sports Chain Will Be Missed, Meat Locker Dive Shop and All

By Dan Cunningham | May 16, 2016

When news broke that the Sport Chalet chain of stores was closing, it might have sounded to you like just another failure in a retail sector—sporting goods—that has seen more …

Why We Need More Latinos to Hit the Trails

State and National Parks Won’t Survive Unless a Diverse Cross Section of Americans Steps Up to Protect Them

By Richard Rojas, Sr. | March 2, 2016

During my more than 30-year career as a California state park ranger, I was known as the diversity guy because I was one of the few Latinos to wear the …

outdoors