LA Podcast - Don't Hate the Leia, Hate the Game

Scott, Alissa, and Sophie attempt to understand the Lucas Museum’s decade-long arrival in Expo Park and what “narrative art” actually means. Does this mean the La La Land optimism of 2016 LA is back? MacArthur Park hosts a picnic — and potentially a new fence? And more major endorsements in the mayoral race. 

Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, on the web at Think Forward, or almost anywhere you get your podcasts.

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SHOW NOTES

Haven’t you ever wanted to picnic with your district attorney? Your dreams could have come true this weekend

(Despite his throwing of the gauntlet, DA Nathan Hochman had enjoyed himself at a World Cup event in MacArthur Park earlier this summer)

Picnics might become harder in a fenced MacArthur Park, but it is unclear when or if that is actually happening

The Lucas Museum of Narrative Art will officially open on September 22 and everyone has thoughts about it (you might like to revisit Christopher Knight’s 2017 remarks where he describes this project as the “Treacle Museum — a sentimental vanity gallery pumped up on soppy emotional steroids”)

What is “narrative art” anyway? George Lucas explains. Kinda? Is it just horny statues?

It’s the 10th anniversary of La La Land’s premiere and Eric Garcetti is with us in spirit 

UNITE HERE Local 11 and DSA-LA both endorsed Nithya Raman for mayor (positioning Airbnb as a top issue in the race)

Meanwhile, Mayor Karen Bass shared videos about encampments near schools and “No-Show Nithya” (while, it must be said, missing a third of LAHSA meetings and two thirds of Metro votes)

“I’ll take Raman’s “wonderful ideas and plans” — Bass’ words, not mine! — over the mayor’s record. For climate voters, this is an easy choice.” Sometime LA Podcast host Sammy Roth also endorses Raman

And a happy Labor Day to all — City Council aides have unionized!

Thanks to Sophie Bridges for producing and Bianca Cockrell for production assistance

The reporting and analysis you hear in the show is put together by our rotating cast of producers and co-hosts every week. All opinions expressed on the show are solely those of co-hosts and may not represent the views of LA Forward

Scott Frazier is an original co-host of LA Podcast

Alissa Walker writes the newsletter Torched, tracking LA’s megaevent progress. Find her at @awalkerinla on Instagram and @awalkerinla.bsky.social on Bluesky

Sophie Bridges is a writer and audio producer whose work has appeared on This American Life, Radiolab, and Reveal. She’s a proud graduate of LAUSD and the Writer’s Guild of America