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July 19 - 23, 2004
Monday, July 19
Fire Update
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Inspector John Mancha of the Los Angeles County Fire Department joins Kitty with an update on the Foothill/Placerita Canyon fire, which has burned 5700 acres and was 39% contained as of this morning.
"Girlie Men" in the Capitol
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Governor Schwarzenegger spent the weekend with the people of California at various malls and restaurants around the state. His message? Terminate the legislators who are holding up the budget in the state capitol. Calling the lawmakers "girlie men" who are "acting like children," Schwarzenegger continued to paint the lawmakers as the bad guys. Kitty gets the latest on the budget negotiations and fallout from the weekend rallies from Capitol Bureau Reporter for Capitol Public Radio, Jenny O'Mara.
New Editor Joins the LA Times
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Michael Kinsley, the new editorial and opinion editor of the LA Times, joins Kitty to talk about his plans and ideas for change at LA's largest daily newspaper. Kinsley is the former editor of The New Republic and Harper's who conceived and edited the online magazine Slate.
Summer Reading: Carl Hiaasen
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Looking for a book to take to the beach this weekend? Carl Hiaasen's latest novel, Skinny Dip (Knopf), packed with stories of scandal, adventure, love and loss is as racy as the title suggests and a "pure Hiaasen ride." Kitty sits down with Hiaasen to discuss his latest romp through the highs and lows of humanity.
Carl Hiaasen will be participating in a writers block event tonight at 7:30 pm at the Skirball Cultural Center, 2710 North Sepulveda Boulevard. For tickets or more information, call 310-335-0917.
Animals, Music, and the Night at the LA Zoo
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Connie Morgan, the President of the Greater LA Zoo Association, joins Kitty to talk about the "Music in the Zoo" program happening tomorrow night. Some animals will stay up past their bedtimes, joining Angelenos to enjoy music from eight different musical acts scattered throughout the zoo.
Tuesday, July 20
The View from Baghdad
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A suicide bomber detonated a fuel tanker yesterday at a Baghdad police station, killing nine people and wounding 60 others – the third such blast in as many days. Kitty gets the latest news on events in Iraq with Vivienne Walt, Time correspondent in Baghdad. Walt's latest article for Time is on the topic of honor killings in Iraq.
Laura Chick Advises the Army
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Los Angeles controller Laura Chick has been tapped for higher things. The U.S. Army recently contacted her for advice in creating an inspector general's office in Baghdad. Kitty talks to the woman who successfully pursued high profile audits against LAX and more recently, Fleishman-Hillard Inc.
Combating West Nile
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A dead bird found in Bakersfield is the first confirmed case of West Nile virus in Kern County. Two weeks ago, health officials said 16 people in Southern California had been infected with the virus -- two in Los Angeles County, the others in San Bernardino and Riverside. The virus has infected and killed horses along the Santa Ana River where mosquitoes carrying the disease thrive. At least 26 horses have been infected this year in Riverside and San Bernardino counties. Eleven of those have died. State officials and veterinarians recommend that owners have their horses vaccinated. Kitty gets the latest on this from Matt Burd, veterinarian and associate professor in the Animal Science Department at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.
Pelicans Dying
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The International Bird Rescue Research Center called a press conference earlier today to bring attention to the fact that large numbers of pelicans are dying due to starvation. They are turning up as far east as Arizona whereas they are usually found on the Pacific coast. Kitty speaks with Mark Russell, manager of the International Bird Rescue Research Center in San Pedro to find out what can be done to address this and what this means for Southern California’s ecology.
For more information about adopting a pelican visit the International Bird Rescue Research Center.
The Earth Moved
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Imagine fighting pollution, defeating plant disease and enriching the land. Such honorable work could merit a Nobel Prize, but the lowly earthworm, which does this everyday, will most likely be overlooked by the Nobel assembly. Kitty Felde speaks with author Amy Stewart who documents the heroic work of worms. Her book is The Earth Moved: On the Remarkable Achievements of Earthworms (Algonquin).
For additional information to obtain earthworms for composting, visit the
Smart Gardening Program sponsored by the County of Los Angeles Department of Public Works or call 626.458.5100.
Organic Fire Control—A Goat’s Tale
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As fire season returns to California, some took preventative measures for fire control in the off-season. The Descanso Gardens contracted with Sarah & Hugh Bunten of Nanny and Billy's Vegetative Management for some organic fire control through the use of goats. Sarah Bunten checks in from the open range.
Wednesday, July 21
Profiling Terrorists
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On the eve of the 9/11 commission’s final report, Kitty speaks with USC terrorism specialist Dr. Jeffrey Victoroff about the feasibility of a new homeland security initiative designed to profile terrorists before they attack.
What Would Lincoln Say?
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139 years after Lincoln's death, Mario Cuomo joins Kitty to discuss how the former President might view the issues facing the world today. Less than one week before the Democratic National Convention, Kitty talks to the former New York State Governor about the Democratic ticket in the upcoming Presidential election along with other big issues like war and peace, equality and the role of government. Cuomo's new book is called, Why Lincoln Matters Today More Than Ever (Harcourt).
Khmer Arts: Traditional Cambodian Music, Song and Dance
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Khmer Arts Academy's artistic director, Sophiline Cheam Shapiro shares with Kitty the lavish costumes and beautiful stylized movements of traditional Cambodian dance and music, along with a musical interlude.
The Khmer Arts Academy will perform on Friday, July 23rd at 8 pm, and Sunday, July 25th at 3 pm as part of the free summer Grand Performances series held at California Plaza in downtown Los Angeles.
Thursday, July 22
San Andreas Fault
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Lucy Jones, scientist with the US Geological Survey, joins Kitty to discuss her recent appointment as Chairwoman of the State Seismic Safety Commission as well as the recently released report on the San Andreas Fault. The report turns the tables on the commonly held belief that small seismic activity releases tension built up in the fault.
Jerry Goldsmith
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Jerry Goldsmith, the Academy Award-winning composer of hundreds of movie scores and TV soundtracks, has died after a long battle with cancer. He was 75. Talk of the City regular Jon Burlingame knew him so well that when we caught up with him he was still in the process of writing up his obituary for both Variety and the Film Music Society.
The Corporation
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One hundred and fifty years ago, the corporation was a relatively insignificant entity. Today, it has become a dominant and hardly benign institution, according to the documentary, "The Corporation". Based on writer Joel Bakan's book, The Corporation: The Pathological Pursuit of Profit and Power (Free Press), it is co-directed by Mark Achbar and Jennifer Abbott. The film is a timely inquiry that invites many on a journey that reveals the corporation's inner workings, curious history, controversial impacts and possible futures. Kitty explores some of the themes with activist and creative director of the film, Katherine Dodds. Kitty is also joined by Linnea Bernard McCord, associate professor of Business Law at Pepperdine University's Graziadio School of Business.
"The Corporation" plays at the NuART Theatre in West LA through tonight. Tomorrow it opens at Landmark's Westside Pavilion on Pico Blvd. in West LA, and at Laemmle's One Colorado Theatre in Pasadena.
Extreme Make-over Pasadena City Hall
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This summer, Pasadena City Hall will pause for a retrofit. Kitty Felde speaks with Pasadena Mayor Bill Bogaard and the executive director of the Pasadena Heritage, Sue Mossman, about what the rebuild will entail.
Pasadena Heritage offers many historic tours. For more information, visit www.pasadenaheritage.org or call 626.441.6333.
The Loh Life
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Public radio's accidental bad girl Sandra Tsing Loh racks up the clams in her own Van Nuys.
Friday, July 23
Whither a State Budget?
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Does next week's Democratic convention have any influence on speeding up the budget impasse? Kitty Felde speaks with Capital Public Radio bureau chief Mike Montgomery.
CA Delegation: Barbara Lee, U.S. Congresswoman from California's 9th District
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Kitty speaks with Congresswoman Barbara Lee about the upcoming election, the global AIDS crisis, and human rights abuse in Sudan. She is a member of the California delegation to the Democratic National Convention and serves on the International Relations and the Financial Services Committees of the U.S. Congress.
Reporting on the Women of Juarez
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Minerva Canto and Yvette Cabrera, reporters for the OC Register, did an 8-part series in June covering the murders and disappearances of hundreds of women in the Mexican border town of Juarez. Diana Washington Valdez, reporter for the El Paso Times, has reported on the same topic for the past five years. Some of those murders are attributed to sexual serial killings. Some of those murdered were by domestic violence. Hundreds of women have simply disappeared without a trace. The reporters join Kitty to discuss their interviews with various people tied to the murdered and disappeared women of Juarez.
If you are interested in reading the series in the OC Register, visit the OC Register online.
The Women of Juarez – the Play
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Writer and Director of "The Women of Juarez", Ruben Amavizca, joins Kitty to discuss his play dealing with the one hundred or so women - mostly young, poor, factory workers - whose mutilated and raped bodies have been found in Juarez, Mexico. The show opened at the Frida Kahlo Theater on July 22 in Spanish, and will open on July 24 in English.
For more information about the play, please visit Frida Kahlo Theater .
Ugly Girl: Studying the Production of Ugliness
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To kick off a new occasional series looking at courses we wish we could take, Kitty learns about a summer course currently being offered at her alma mater, UC Irvine: "Ugly Girl: The Production of Ugliness in American Culture." Instructor Tracy Sachtjen gives Kitty a quick lesson.
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