A suspected member of a racist gang was arrested in Anaheim after a pursuit by law enforcement authorities Tuesday, Feb. 21, that began in Laguna Beach. Darryl James Mason, 42, of Huntington Beach, was taken into custody by the California Highway Patrol, according to Laguna Beach police Lt. Jason Kravetz. He was arrested for two [...]
More than 720 Laguna Beach residents will see a decrease of $167 to $299 on ensuing annual property tax bills due to low interest rates on a newly issued city bond. In total, $877,000 will be saved as a result of refinancing bonds initially issued to pay for undergrounding utility lines and poles in seven [...]
Laguna Beach High School’s girls water polo team used strong defense in the final minutes to hold off a surging Santa Barbara Don squad and pull out an 11-10 victory in the Division 1 CIF quarterfinal Saturday, Feb. 18. Melena Masson was key to the effort at the local pool, frustrating the Don’s attack in [...]
The city’s ban on the distribution of single-use plastic bags by retailers could pose a sticky situation for pet owners. Dog owners typically reuse plastic grocery bags to pick up their pets’ poop on walks along city streets. “I do know a lot of people use them for the purpose I think you’re asking me [...]
Screenings save lives By Benjamin Bodart, Special to the Independent Jennifer Gustafson will always remember June 1. A letter arrived that day saying that a recent medical tests her daughter Dillon had taken identified a potentially fatal heart defect. Moreover, the threat was considered so imminent, the letter warned, that Dillon should [...]
Three restaurants scheduled to open in Laguna Beach this spring should elevate the casual dining options in town. Newcomers BurgerFi, Umami Burger and Carmelita’s, respectively touting healthy and sustainable burgers and franks, burgers with extra flavor, and fine Mexican food, all expect to woo hungry budget-conscious patrons. Each of the owners say Laguna’s unique sense [...]
Laguna Canyon Road reopened for morning commuters Wednesday, Feb. 15, after a 10-hour overnight closure due to a downed utility line, knocked over by a collision involving a teen-age driver from Laguna Beach, police said. The 18-year-old behind the wheel was arrested for being under the influence of drugs, said Lt. Jason Kravetz. Neither she [...]
By Benjamin Bodart, Special to the Independent Laguna Beach’s Liz Fletcher, 17, will soon achieve the prestigious rank of quartermaster in the Mariners Sea Scouts program. The quartermaster rank is comparable to the Eagle Scout rank in Boy Scouts and requires a depth of knowledge about maritime activities as well as completion of a community [...]
Laguna Beach resident Dennis Yang, who has written over 110 children stories under the pen name Papa Didos, finished a 3,281-mile cross-country journey last year where he gave away books to children along the way. He’s still on the road, this time making a local pit stop at the Laguna Beach Boys and Girls Club [...]
Buick devised the competition to show that NCAA athletes are about more than points and playoffs. Contestants were required to submit a mini-documentary, up to 60 seconds long, about a former NCAA athlete’s experience on or off the field that caused them to take action. In the film, Culverhouse describes a life-changing experience as an [...]
Popular wisdom holds that one can’t be everything to everyone. Don’t tell that to actor James Leaming, who embodies George Bailey, the main character, and everyone else in the Laguna Playhouse production of “This Wonderful Life.” The one-man Steve Murray stage play is based on the iconic holiday film, Frank Capra’s “It’s a Wonderful Life.” [...]
Friday, Feb. 24 Sawdust Art Festival art classes: 10 a.m., chain making with Annette Doreng-Stearns; 2 p.m., print making with Hedy Buzan. www.sawdustartfestival.org/studioartclasses 949-494-3030. Also Saturday. Hansel & Gretel; Cinderella, Youth Theatre production, 7 p.m. Laguna Playhouse, 606 Laguna Canyon Rd. 949-497-2787 www.lagunaplayhouse.com Through March 4. Jazz with pianist Giovanni Miradi at [...]
The show “So Close/So Far” features two Laguna Beach artists whose mediums and aesthetics could not be farther apart. Or so one might think. But glass artist Sian Poeschl and photographer Suzi Chauvel reveal much in common when it comes to creative inspiration. In this show, the artists’ shared the same frame of reference in [...]
Bossa Zuzu Reinterprets Brazilian Music The hot sounds of Brazil are coming on Wednesday, Feb. 29 to the Laguna Beach Live! Jazz Wednesdays Winter Series. Bossa Zuzu, featuring Dan Reckard on saxophone, guitarist-vocalist Capital, and percussionist Jose Gurria, plays recent popular Brazilian music and original compositions to reinterpretations of classic bossa nova songs. The two-set [...]
Long-time Laguna Beach resident, Lesley Domiano has been battling Myelodysplastic Syndrome for four years and now needs a bone marrow transplant to live. To help her find a compatible match, Mozambique is hosting an event on March 7 from 5 to 9 p.m. where the public is encouraged to help save a life simply by [...]
Monday, Feb. 13 Suspicious. 6:52 a.m. 500 block Cliff Dr. A resident who asked a man to leave refused and began masturbating in view of a window. Fraud. 10:16 a.m. 31300 block of Brooks St. A man who purchased a Maserati put his roommate’s name on the title. Grand theft. 1200 block [...]
By Anne Salafia, Special to the Independent When former Laguna Beach resident Helen Keeley received an invitation to attend an art opening this month in the Caribbean, she reluctantly declined, saying in a note to the artist “…I know your show will bring you fame and fortune. Wish I could be there. I’ll soon [...]
Shhh… Don’t Tell the Girls I’m trying something new this week: I’m asking you for advice on where to go. I admit it: there are two islands near and dear to many Lagunans’ hearts that we have never visited. One we look at almost every day, atmospheric conditions permitting. The other is quite a distance [...]
Lessons from Whitney Houston A few days after Whitney Houston’s death, I received a phone message from someone who wanted to express her sadness and concern about the probability that prescription drugs played a part in her death. She believes many women who use antidepressants are less aware of the dangers they face if [...]
Dow 15,000? Halfway through the first quarter of 2012 and stocks are up 6%! That’s far better than last year when the S&P 500 was totally flat after four full quarters. Eight quarters since 2009 only bumped it to 1%. Despite over-publicized anxieties with political resistance and obstacles in some sectors, the economy has continued [...]
Six Afghan orphans traveling the U.S. for 10 weeks stopped in Laguna Beach over the weekend for a sample of beach culture. Fifteen students from teacher Jun Shen’s Laguna Beach High School model United Nations and history class greeted them. The Laguna Beach host was Afghanistan-native Sadiq Tawfiq, owner of Khyber Pass Gallery [...]
When school resumes after the mid-winter break, the high school’s girls softball team will warm up on their home softball field at Thurston Middle School, newly outfitted with a long-expected irrigation system. The project slides home just days before the team starts their third season. The field was refurbished a year ago, prior to the [...]
Campus Re-Opens for Night Session Arts Night at Top of the World Elementary earlier this month drew 330 families. The school’s multipurpose room was successfully transformed into “The Dolphin Gallery” for the evening, and featured a visual arts piece exhibited by every student in the school. Talk on Parenting in the Digital [...]
Long-time Laguna Beach resident, Lesley Domiano has been battling Myelodysplastic Syndrome for four years and now needs a bone marrow transplant to live. To help her find a compatible match, Mozambique is hosting an event on March 7 from 5 to 9 p.m. where the public is encouraged to help save a life simply by [...]
By Anne Salafia, Special to the Independent When former Laguna Beach resident Helen Keeley received an invitation to attend an art opening this month in the Caribbean, she reluctantly declined, saying in a note to the artist “…I know your show will bring you fame and fortune. Wish I could be there. I’ll soon [...]
Top Ranking for Covington Shauna Covington was named 2011’s leading agent for her sales production by Prudential California Realty’s Laguna Beach office, manager Jim Vermilya announced. Covington also earned the Chairman’s Circle Diamond award, a feat that ranks her in the top ½ of 1 percent of the company’s 60,000 agents nationwide. “Shauna’s [...]
By Andy Hedden, Special to the Independent Just ask Sampson. Getting a bad hair cut can have devastating results. Any man worth his salt knows that his hair as much as his clothes make him. I have had good luck and bad when it comes to this. Fortunately for the citizens of Laguna, a [...]
Words and Images by Mitch Ridder Skimboarding originated in the late 1920′s when Laguna Beach lifeguards used flat sheets of wood to skim across the wet sand. In the ‘60s as the surfing craze took off, skimboarding’s popularity grew and began evolving toward its current form that involves skimming the sand into the water, [...]
The Laguna Beach Music Festival, a collaboration between Laguna Beach Live and the Philharmonic Society of Orange County, is celebrating its tenth anniversary with an expanded repertoire under the artistic direction of violinist Joshua Bell, a Grammy winner, Avery Fisher Prize recipient and Musical American’s 2010 Instrumentalist of the Year. Also featuring double bass player [...]
Thurston Middle School’s student actors will be performing “Up The Down Staircase” a look at student life in a New York City public school, beginning Wednesday, Feb. 29. The shows Feb. 29-March 3 begin at 4 p.m. with an additional 7:30 p.m. performance on March 3. Tickets are available at the door. Students, [...]
Cubmaster Honored Before Retirement Rev. Jerry Tankersley and Charter Organization Representative Dick Maxwell honored Laguna Beach Cub Scout Pack 35’s Cubmaster Tom Fay on Sunday, Feb. 12. Fay is retiring his position after nine years of service as cubmaster when his younger son bridges to Boy Scouts next month. Fitness Challenge [...]
The Laguna Outreach for Community Arts’ Junior Curators team installed their first juried exhibition, “Layers of Life”, is on display now through March 3 at the Laguna Beach Public Library, 363 Glenneyre St. The show features 30 works by Laguna Beach High School students, grades 9-12. The curator team selected entries from among 48 [...]
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Monday, Feb. 13 Suspicious. 6:52 a.m. 500 block Cliff Dr. A resident who asked a man to leave refused and began masturbating in view of a window. Fraud. 10:16 a.m. 31300 block of Brooks St. A man who purchased a Maserati put his roommate’s name on the title. Grand theft. 1200 block [...]
