Utah

The Aquabats! Super Show! Nominated for a Daytime Emmy; Christian Jacobs Talks About Being Family Friendly

How goes our favorite skankin', live-action TV superheroes? The last time we saw the Aquabats, they were performing at the Great Park for a 2012 summer season-ender, and there were suspiciously a ton of kids in the audience. (Maybe it has something to do with the first season The Aquabats! Super Sho ... More >>

The Boy Mir Documentary is as Gripping as Artist Christiana Mohr's Quest to Show it in OC

How an award-winning documentary about a boy in an Afghan mountain village wound up with a screening date in a Santa Ana art gallery Tuesday evening sounds worthy of a film itself. The movie is The Boy Mir: Ten Years in Afghanistan, and it's screening as part of an Afghan New Year celebration and fu ... More >>

The End of the World Came and Went, But Training for the Apocalypse Never Ends

The Mayan end-of-days' days passed without the world ending, but you suspect that won't stop the subjects of Rob VanAlkemade's gripping (and surefire) new documentary from preparing for what they believe to be the inevitable.Training for the Apocalypse, which premiered on NatGeo last spring and is n ... More >>

Surf City's Signal Snowboards Develops Board That Lets the Paralyzed Hit the Slopes

I can relate to professional snowboarder Tim Ostler in this way. Years ago, as the last skier off the chair for the last run of the day at Brian Head, Utah, a binding broke off a ski, I tumbled near the top of the run and remained there until a ski patrolman came to save me. Ostler, of Murray, Utah, ... More >>

Jeremy Schiro, La Habra Heights Councilman's Stepson, Found Hanging in Pool House

The stepson of La Habra Heights City Councilman Howard Vipperman was found hanging at the public official's home last night. Assistant Chief Coroner Ed Winter said the man, identified as 34-year-old Jeremy Schiro is believed to have committed suicide at the sprawling complex located in La Habra Heig ... More >>

Osiel Ruvalocaba-Azpeitia, Subject of Utah's Biggest Meth Bust, Wins Ugly Police Mugshot of the Week (But It Was Damn Close!)

Before Anaheim's Osiel Ruvalcaba-Azpeitia was indicted in what's reportedly Utah's biggest-ever methamphetamine bust--and considering the tweakers in desolate trailers out there, that's saying something--he is said to have told investigators a Mexican man named "Juan" paid him $500 for every pound o ... More >>

[UPDATED with Startling Diego Alejandro Figueroa Photo:] Fullerton Police Shoot Aurelio Paul Ramos-Navarette Dead

UPDATE, MAY 16, 1:28 P.M.: The Fullerton Police Department's booking photo for Diego Alejandro Figueroa has been released. The 22-year-old was one of two suspected gang members in a stolen pickup that led police on a high-speed chase and crashed before Figueroa's partner, according to cops, opened f ... More >>

Newport Beach Sports Bookie Sentenced in Federal Court

Sports bookie Jeffrey Wayne Bzroska, a onetime manager at PIMCO, got great news this month when a federal judge in Santa Ana sentenced him to probation for two years in proceedings that were partly conducted in secret.Bzroska had managed an illegal sports betting operation in Newport Beach for at le ... More >>

Berkeley Dogs Hot-Dogs It

[Hole In the Wall] The East Bay transplant brings its luscious wieners as part of our wave of outside regional chains

Police Seize Pot From High Schoolers on SWAT Snowboarding Trip

​​Teens on a bus trip to Utah for what would be three whole days of parent-free debauchery in the snow were busted by cops this week for having a massive stash of marijuana. Party foul.    Nearly 250 high school students from the Bay Area were heading to Salt Lake City on a trip organi ... More >>

Is Costa Vida Another Cafe Rio?

​I'm both intrigued and kind of wary that a Mexican chain called Costa Vida is planned for Irvine, next to Strickland's at the Albertons plaza near UCI. I'm intrigued because like the Cafe Rio chain, it is Utah-based (how many Mexican chains they got over there?) I'm wary because I hope that Costa ... More >>

Mormons: A Shallow Yet Helpful Guide to See If You Should Hate Them or Not

Long Beach's Cold War Kids Announce Fall U.S. Tour

​ Long Beach's very own Cold War Kids just announced the second leg of their fall North American tour in support of their latest release, Mine Is Yours (Downtown/DGC/Interscope Records).

Shelly S. Singhal, Newport Beach Broker, Faces Second Fraud and Conspiracy Indictment in 2 Years

​A Chinese media company, a Utah entrepreneur and a Newport Beach brokerage firm owner who was indicted last year on conspiracy and securities and mail fraud charges are at the center of a new federal case alleging conspiracy, mail fraud and lying.Supplying the local hook is Shelly S. Singhal, 43, ... More >>

Like Crazy, Indie Drama From OC's Drake Doremus and Ben York Jones, Wins Sundance Grand Jury Prize

​Like Crazy, the little indie darling at Sundance by former Santa Anan and second-time U.S. Dramatic Competition entrant Drake Doremus, won the prestigious film festival's grand jury prize last night.Co-written by Doremus and his childhood friend Ben York Jones, a Chapman University film school gr ... More >>

Ex-OC Sheriff's Applicant Under Investigation For Fraud

Babka​Beau Babka, the Utah lawman who applied to become Orange County's sheriff in the wake of Mike Carona's resignation to (unsuccessfully) fight corruption charges in 2008, is under investigation for committing fraud.According to the Salt Lake City Tribune, Babka--a Cottonwood Heights cop who ha ... More >>

Whole Foods Recalls Ginger Bread House For Possible Bacteria Contamination

Flickr User Andrew Kelsall​If you think it's safe to chow down on that stale gingerbread house you've been eyeing for the past month, you may want to just let it foreclose. On Christmas Eve, Whole Foods Market recalled the houses made by Rolf's Patisserie, a Chicago-area bakery and one of its sup ... More >>

Harry's Place Is Roadside Retro

[Hole in the Wall] And oh, those pastrami burgers

As Mountain Resort Bookings Bounce Back, Mtn. High Offers Screaming Season Pass Deal

​Yes, by most leading indicators, the U.S. economy--what's the technical word for it again? Oh yes--BLOWS! However, an, erm, un-leading indicator shows one economic sector bouncing back.Mountain destinations across the western U.S. reportedly experienced sharp increases in July occupancy and steep ... More >>

8: The Mormon Proposition

Art Theatre

Neon Trees

The Glass House

At the Farmers' Market: Petrou Foods

Twenty years ago, your average American was about as likely to use freshly-rendered beef tallow for cooking as he was to use extra-virgin olive oil. Unless you grew up in a Middle Eastern or Mediterranean household, the green-golden elixir was an expensive and, frequently, a poor-quality purchase.Da ... More >>

Crimes, Injuries, Mayhem at OC Parks and Open Space

Soaring platter of death​The man who invented the Frisbee died last Tuesday at his home in Monroe, Utah. Walter Fredrick Morrison was 90.A 6-year-old boy was hit in the head by an errant disc thrown from Huntington Beach Central Park's Disc Golf Course, prompting his mother to file a formal compla ... More >>

Drake Doremus' 'Douchebag' at Sundance

OC stage prodigy-turned-filmmaker Drake Doremus brings his 'very personal' movie to Park City, Utah

Whole Foods Recalling Hazelnuts Because of Salmonella

​Whole Foods is recalling organic and non-organic raw hazelnuts (known also as filberts) sold in bulk at stores in California, Colorado, Kansas, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah and Washington. So far, according to the company, no illnesses have been reported. You can call 512-542-0656, for more info ... More >>

Rumbi Island Grill to Open Three More In O.C.

Over a year ago I reported that a Utah chain called Rumbi Island Grill was planning to come and open up a series of stores. With their Mission Viejo store now already well- established, they're moving onward and upward. The RSM store will debut in January and it's been announced that they're staki ... More >>

This Week in Food

Flickr user LoveBones​This week in food:Dave spills the date that convenience store, 7/11, will start carrying private label wine... classy.Vickie shows how creative you can get with a little rice and a LOT of time in The Art of the Bento Box.We discover that Bodhi Tree Cafe's currently stellar ra ... More >>

Cafe Rio in Lake Forest Not Open Yet...But There's a Sign

Edwin Goei​ Among all the posts that I've written here this year, none have gotten more comments and curiosity than the one where I announced that the Utah-based chain Cafe Rio was opening its first California outlet in Lake Forest. Nevermind that there's already excellent Mexican all over our fi ... More >>

MC Hammer...WTF???

Am I the only person on the face of the planet who just found out that MC Hammer and Vanilla Ice performed together in February? The one-night only gig took place in Orem, Utah, aka the hip-hop capital of the world, and judging by the video below was a smashing success.Seriously, why didn't anyone t ... More >>

The Used

Chain Reaction

Three Extremely Chain-Reaction-Appropriate Shows Coming To Chain Reaction

​The Used is one of those bands created seemingly to embody everything Chain Reaction, so regular Chain Reaction-goers might be psyched to know the Utah screamo quartet will be playing there Aug. 31 -- and you don't even have to buy a ticket. You just gotsta pre-order their new album, Artwork, her ... More >>

How an Anaheim Burger Joint Changed Utah Tastes Forever--and the NY Times Ripped Off an Alt-Weekly

A Crown Burgers location...​The New York Times has an article today about how people in Utah apparently love pastrami on their burgers more than anywhere else in the country, something shocking to me because I thought all the state subsided on was Jell-O. But a fascinating local connection is buri ... More >>

Flier of the Week: The Sequence Tour Kickoff at DiPiazza's

That's a pretty fun one, right? I like it mainly because the guy on the left is dressed as Solid Snake. The rest are all video game characters, too, and there's even more video game fun on their MySpace (Squirtle!). Plus, it promises a party. Who doesn't like parties? Punch bowls, pin the tail on th ... More >>

Navel Gazing: The Avis of Journalistic Blogs in the West

Dear readers, prepare to withstand some navel gazing about Navel Gazing, the OC Weekly staff news blog: It has won second-place honors from Best of the West, which was founded in 1987 to promote freedom of information and reward journalistic excellence, mainly through its contest for newspapers and ... More >>

Rumbi Island Grill to Open 15 Outlets in Orange County

Rumbi Island Grill, a concept that describes itself as "tropical fast casual dining", is slated to open fifteen locations in Orange County in its push into California. About five or six are planned to be operational by 2009. No word on where the exact locations will be. Rumbi has existing stores i ... More >>

[¡Ask a Mexican!®] Why Do Mexican Women Hate Spanish Women?

First shocker of the night!

ABC calls Utah for Romney! Which is like calling Berkeley for Kucinich...

Aural Reports

No Label Necessary: Road rat Drew Danburry plies his quirky folk-rock outside the system

D'oh!

While 7-Eleven stores around the nation are temporarily transforming themselves into Kwik-E-Marts to promote The Simpsons Movie, a report in The OC Register suggests the San Onofre nuclear-power plant may have made a few mistakes that resemble the goings-on in Mr. Burns' facility. Among other thing ... More >>

Dissent for Sale

WEB EXCLUSIVE! Opposition is a commodity in Sundance documentaries

The Music Men

Halfway through Sundance, and still whistling a happy tune

Sympathy for the Devil

WEB EXCLUSIVE! Even horny horse whisperers get off in Sundance docs

The Rich are Different

We live in era in which many resources are dwindling, but there's still one thing California has in abundance: rich people. According to a review of tax records for the years 1999-2004, done by the NewTithing Group of San Francisco, California has 407,000 households with $200,000 or more in adjust ... More >>

The Meek Shall Inherit My Boot Up Their Ass

Epiphany. For awhile now I've wondered how America could exit in its bizarre current dynamic, with the Christian right flexing its government-sanctioned power, in flagrant defiance of the separation of church and state. Christians who love their neighbors, provided their neighbors accept Jesus. Cons ... More >>

Kissing the Ass of the New Owners

Not that we're grovelers or anything, but we do want to point out that the big-ass LA Times story today on polygamous breakaway Mormons in Utah and Arizona is something our new daddies over at the Phoenix New Times have been covering for years, specifically by John Dougherty. In fact, here's the New ... More >>

Ill Wind Blowing

The Land Southward is a should-be classic

Fairies, Queens and handsome Princes

Matt Marxtynn brings the Pixie Flix Fest to Disneyland

Missionary Positioning

Indie Mormon cinema attempts a mainstream conversion

A Weenie In The Ear!

Seizures in the Middle East