I realize that some people who live in the greater LA area think it’s just fine to do things other than go to the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books this weekend, but they would be wrong. Very, very wrong.
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Yes, there is other news: for instance….an ambiguous medical marijuana case in LA fed court.…and Billings, Montana wants to be the new Git’mo, (fortunately the MT Senators say, oh, he-ell no!)….and Bill Maher has a smart and snarky Op Ed…and Paul Krugman stops opining about economics for a minute and talks instead about taking back America’s soul…
...But sometimes it’s important to take time for literature.
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As most of you know, the LA Times Book fest is a free event that draws more than 130 thousand book lovers to the UCLA campus every year on the third weekend in April. There are readings and panels and speakers and kid events on an astonishing number of book-related topics.
I’m not on a panel this year, so will be happily sitting in the audience as an adoring acolyte at a number of panels both Saturday and Sunday.
To give you an idea of the wide variety of offerings…..here are some of my favorites in and around the 3 p.m. hour on Saturday alone.…. (Since these 3 p.m. panels feature some of my smartest friends, I am desperately trying to figure out how I can teleport between all five.)
FOR INSTANCE….IF YOU WANT TO CONTEMPLATE SERIOUS ISSUES FROM A HUMOROUS P.O.V…THERE IS THIS….
At 3:30 p.m. in 100 Moore Hall
Humor & Race
Moderator: The brilliant and wildly funny Mr. Tod Goldberg—who, all by himself, is reason enough to make sure you see this panel. Trust me on this.
Mr. Lalo Alcaraz (terrific political cartoonist)
Mr. Christian Lander (very funny blogger/commentator)
Mr. Larry Wilmore (of Daily Show fame)
OR IF INSTEAD YOU WANT TO HEAR A BUNCH OF INCREDIBLY SMART, TALENTED WOMEN SITTING AROUND TALKING….there is this:
At 3 p.m. in Young Hall
Memoir: The Bigger Picture
Moderator: Ms. Dinah Lenney (brilliant)
Ms. Samantha Dunn (also brilliant)
Ms. Lynne Sharon Schwartz (totally amazing and wickedly smart)
Ms. Gabrielle Burton (don’t happen to know her but know she wrote a terrific book called Heartbreak Hotel)
OR IF YOU WANT TO CONTEMPLATE ANOTHER KIND OF SERIOUS TOPIC…LIKE, YOU KNOW, THE IMPLOSION OF THE NEWS BIZ.
3 p.m. at the Fowler Museum, Lenart Auditorium
The Future of News (With the great mix below, drama is guaranteed!)
Moderator Ms. Karen Grigsby Bates (NPR)
Ms. Geneva Overholser (Dean of Annenberg School of Journalism. Go, Geneva!)
Mr. Russ Stanton (LA Times Editor-in-Chief)
Mr. Jacob Weisberg (Newsweek columnist and editor-in-chief of Slate)
OR IF YOU’RE LOOKING FOR MURDER AND MAYHEM OF A FICTIONAL VARIETY…
AT 3 p.m. in Dodd Hall
Mystery: Cops & Crooks in California with a bunch of the kings of the California mystery novel….chatting.
Moderator Mr. Robert Crais
Mr. T. Jefferson Parker
Mr. Joseph Wambaugh
Mr. Don Winslow
OR…FINALLY…A COUPLE OF VERY SMART GUYS SITTING AROUND TALKING ABOUT MURDER AND MAYHEM, THE NONFICTION VARIETY
At 3:30 p.m. in Humanities Hall
Dave Cullen in Conversation with David L. Ulin
Interviewer Mr. David L. Ulin (Our fantastically smart LA Times Book Review editor)
Mr. Dave Cullen (author of the new very, very good new book, Columbine,….about, you know, Columbine.)
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HERE’S THE FULL SCHEDULE …loaded with much more on Saturday and even more on Sunday.
It sounds great. Have fun.
We’re going to a festival in the hippie part of Atlanta Saturday. My car will be the only one without Obama and Save the Earth bumper stickers.
Regarding the topics of the book festival….
Humor & Race – Oh, is this in style?! I have a million of those jokes. There’s a black and a Mexican in a car, who’s driving? — THE COP!
TALENTED WOMEN SITTING AROUND TALKING – No thanks. I’ve already seen “The View.”
THE IMPLOSION OF THE NEWS BIZ. – Finally, a topic of good news. In her LAT farewell article, Rosa Brooks called for government bailouts of papers. It appears that government schools have trained robots to believe that goverment can do a better job with the press: Student: “The press just wants to print something that people will buy. The government has to be true to the public.” That student votes today.
MURDER AND MAYHEM – This could be in conjunction with the first topic above.
I’d love Woody to tell that first joke to my father and my uncles. Really. The 3 WWII vets – come on Woody, I’ll introduce you and you can see how long it takes them to laugh at that one.
Everyone knows that liberals have no sense of humor, and I wouldn’t want to have to explain it three times.
I can imagine that the “Humor and Race” session will be spoiled by a bunch of politically correct agitators.
Out of town, so regrettably, will miss the fun. Looks like there are lots of cool panels.
Would love to hear any authors remarks on the state of publishing and kindle.
I have been wanting to go to the LA Times Festival of Books for several years now, and finally got to go this weekend.
The festival itself was great–we got to see a panel, we talked to some really neat people, and bought a bunch of stuff.
However, please take heed, those of you who wish to attend in the future: the logistics and management were terrible. There were confusing parking signs, almost no signs directing you anywhere, no one to talk to about potentially dangerous parking problems, and no clear signs for the shuttle. During our panel, although there were volunteers stationed in the room, people openly used their cell phones while authors were speaking, had conversations with their friends, and one volunteer actually gave directions to a participant, in a loud voice, *while the panel was still going on*.
I don’t know if it’s because of lean resources this year, fewer volunteers, or what, but this turned out to be somewhat of an unpleasant experience. My advice is to take public transportation, sit at the front of the room during any events, and spend the bulk of your time checking out the small presses and nonprofits. Personally, I’ll need a few years for this memory to fade and for me to venture to the festival again.
Your jokes are real barn burners Woody, slap my fro, a real visionary and leader. Celeste, if you were to ask me now – hand on heart – whether Woody is a racist…well…the kindest answer would be that he reflects the values and opinions that a white American male of Woody’s generation would be expected to have.
David Duke and Woody are at Treblinka, standing by the gas chambers, inside are homosexuals, foreign people, physically and mentally disabled, and intellectuals,
who pulls the switch?
It’s not a “switch”, Sandra. It’s a valve.
Gava,
It could be a switch which is pushed, pulled, pressed, raised, lowered and etc to control the valve.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solenoid_valve
Woody’s favorite comedian.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uCbD9o948ec
It’s clear that the left has taken the souls of those who hold such hate or are so insecure that they can’t enjoy a small joke.
In reply to a joke in comment #1, testing the waters on a subject of a panel, Humor & Race, they label me a racist and a Nazi. Even a Nazi?! Well, I’m neither, although you won’t acccept that. To the left, one can never demonize a conservative enough.
Are these people really offended, or do they feign offense to please the left-wing crowd with whom they associate? I think it is more the latter, as liberal types seem more concerned with acceptance than being their own men. Then, they can also fulfill an inner need for self-esteem, by feeling superior and smarter than others with their condemnations.
When a joke is made about my ancestral heritage of being cheap, I laugh with absolutely no problems whatsoever. A laugh is better for the body than a bitter put-down.
Maybe some will share some of the knee-slappers shared by the panel, or was it all gloomy air of people afraid to laugh for fear of offending someone and becoming unpopular?
I bet that the panel, unfortunately, avoided going to the heart of the issue of humor and race, which is that the jokes are funny as silly exaggerations of the worst of some groups and jokes for which healthy individuals can enjoy – but, not liberals…at least outwardly.
Now, here’s an episode from The Chappell Show over which you can show offense, except for laughs about white people, who are not covered by politically correct tent of offense. Video Link: Clayton Bigsby
(Hyey, did I tell you the joke about the drunk Irishman?)
Finally, so everyone can feel offended.
The problem with race and jokes is that many of you won’t allow them to be told, yet all ethnic groups do it privately. It’s too bad that you won’t permit it and that, likely, the panel wouldn’t go that far. Sharing them might actually help to bring some harmony rather than hate and distrust.
I should have been there.
Woody, you’re a flaming fucking racist – and a rather stupid one at that.
Go to hell…
I would expect such a response from a backwards liberal, who further divides rather than unites the races and has no point other than to curse everyone with whom he disagrees.
reg, do the world and yourself a favor. Stick to your word and quit reading and responding to my comments.
I’m waiting for an intelligent response other than name-calling.
Oh, and, reg, regarding stupid, I’m the one with the Master’s degree and you’re a dropout. Also, you once shared with me that black people never tell the truth to white people. Maybe you know the wrong ones.
This slideshow has some great photos of some of the authors who went to the festival:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/megan-sayers/authors-show-eclectic-sty_b_193013.html