Al Jolson

Today is Tuesday, Oct. 7, the 281st day of 2008. There are 85 days left in the year. Today's Highlight in History: On Oct. 7, 1777, the second Battle of Saratoga began during the American Revolution. (British forces under Gen. John Burgoyne...

On Oct. 6, 1884, the Naval War College was established in Newport, R.I. In 1889 the Moulin Rouge in Paris first opened its doors to the public. In 1891 Charles Stewart Parnell, the "Uncrowned King of Ireland," died in Brighton, England. In 1905...

Today is Monday, Oct. 6, the 280th day of 2008. 1683: Thirteen families from Krefeld, Germany, arrived in Philadelphia to begin Germantown, one of America's oldest settlements. 1884: The Naval War College was established in Newport, R.I. 1908:...

Warner Bros. Studio turns 85 this year, an anniversary now marked by two of the most recognizable symbols of success, High Hollywood style: a No. 1 summer blockbuster -- "The Dark Knight" -- and a long, thoughtful PBS biopic. The three-part “You...

Where has Mandy Patinkin been for the past few years? Besides a few solo concerts, he hasn't appeared on a New York stage since the flop Broadway musical "Wild Party" in 2000. He isn't even on TV anymore. Showtime Networks canceled "Dead Like Me" in...

IN COURTNEY HUNT'S absorbing new feature film "Frozen River," an Upstate New York blue-collar mom decides to take a job in one of America's hottest growth industries: people smuggling. Not that Ray (Melissa Leo) is very clued in about why so many illegal...

In simplest terms, “The American Mall,” which premieres tonight on MTV, is MTV looking at the Disney Channel's burgeoning teen-musical empire and thinking, "I got to get me one of those." It's “High School Musical” -- but in a...

The Times editorial "It’s a two-way street” correctly pointed out earlier this month that traffic in areas of Mar Vista and West L.A. has been adversely affected by Santa Monica's nonstop development. Indeed, all one has to do is watch the...

British documentary maker Tony Palmer called his 17-hour TV series exploring the origins of American popular music “All You Need Is Love,” because John Lennon told him it would make a great title. But in the three decades since he made it, it'...

Moving farther from Melrose? Now that the writers strike has been settled, former "Melrose Place" star Grant Show has swung back into action. Show plays Tom Decker, an airplane pilot and lead character in the '70s-themed CBS series "Swingtown," about...

Look up "yellow face" in the dictionary. It says "a yellow stylized representation of a smiling face." But for playwright David Henry Hwang, it refers to the practice of having a Caucasian pretend to be an Asian individual, rather like the infamous...

San Bernardino may not be the Eden the early inhabitants stumbled upon, but the creeks and river are still inviting, and snowcapped mountains grace its backdoor in the wintertime. Sports and cultural events abound in this storied city where the McDonald...