California Department Of Alcoholic Beverage Control

Gay community leaders and bar owners in the Hollywood and Silver Lake areas are complaining about allegedly overzealous bar inspections by the Los Angles Police Department. At a community meeting with police officials in Silver Lake on Wednesday night, critics said the LAPD and the state Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control are engaged in a crackdown on gay bars.

A Long Beach police detective said Thursday that a $100,000 grant from the state will help police crack down on liquor stores that sell alcohol to minors. The grant from the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control "will allow the Police Department to dedicate one officer, full time, to the enforcement" of state liquor laws, Detective Joel Cook said.

California's former top alcohol regulator has taken a job advising lawyers for the industry he regulated until his retirement in August. Jerry Jolly, a 31-year veteran of the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control, began work this week as a consultant to the wine, beer and spirits-industry practice of Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman, a San Francisco law firm with offices worldwide, including Sacramento.

Authorities are trying to crack down on one of the worst-kept secrets in Hollywood: underage stars partying hard at trendy clubs on the Sunset Strip and Hollywood Boulevard. Doormen at Hollywood hot spots have been lifting the velvet rope for teen stars for years. Two decades ago, Drew Barrymore became tabloid fodder after being spotted drinking at Hollywood clubs when she was 13 and 14.

Johnny Grant, the longtime Hollywood showman and Tinseltown's unofficial mayor, has seen a lot of star antics over the decades. But from his penthouse apartment atop the trendy Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel, Grant, 84, said he's not happy about what he's seeing today -- especially amid investigations focusing on underage starlets partying at Hollywood hot spots. "They're out of hand today," Grant said. "They used to be much more discreet. Studios used to control their images.

The Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control appointed a 49-year-old Redlands resident Tuesday to head the agency's Van Nuys District office. Timothy A. Clark was named the new administrator for the department's Van Nuys office. Clark replaces Dale Rasmussen, who recently left the agency to take a position with the Army. Agency interim director Manuel Espinoza said Clark will be a valuable addition to the Van Nuys office.

The Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control on Tuesday appointed a 49-year-old Redlands resident to head the agency's local district office. Timothy A. Clark was named the new administrator for the department's Van Nuys office. Clark replaces Dale Rasmussen, who recently left the agency to take a position with the Army. Clark has been with the agency since 1988 after transferring from the California Department of Transportation.

A two-year battle by church members and community protesters to keep an all-nude club from getting a liquor license ended this week when the state Alcoholic Beverage Control appeals board upheld an earlier decision denying Scamps the license. "It's a huge decision that all the people in the community of Westminster are happy about," said James Anton, an Orange attorney representing one of the protesters, Father James Hartnett of Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church in Westminster.

California's prestigious wine trade is nervous about a crackdown on long-ignored industry practices that include providing abundant free samples for formal tastings at wine shops. Suppliers have routinely--and illegally, in some cases--furnished ample quantities of wines to shop owners for tastings, and "the ABC has looked the other way," said Randy Kemner, owner of Wine Country, a Signal Hill retailer. No longer.

The Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control confirmed trade reports that it is investigating Anheuser-Busch's "Buy the Beer, Get the Gear" promotion for Budweiser. An ABC spokesman said state law bans giveaways that are tied to alcohol sales. The Anheuser-Busch promotion allows Bud purchasers to earn points that can be redeemed for such merchandise as coasters. In a statement, St. Louis-based Anheuser-Busch said it is working with the ABC "regarding their concerns."