Contests

Gear up for St. Patrick's Day by attending the 11th Annual L.A. County Irish Fair and Music Festival. The event features nine stages of Irish entertainment and attractions including a faux ancient Irish village, shamrock rides, sheepherding demonstrations, face painting and Irish beer drinking contests. There's also Rusty O'Flatery: the World's Tallest Leprechaun. Pomona Fairplex, 1101 W. McKinley Ave., Pomona. 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sat. and Sun. $16. (213) 305-9653; http://www.la-irishfair.com .

Former lawmaker Mike Feuer and Los Angeles City Atty. Carmen Trutanich appeared headed for a May runoff election after a tempestuous campaign that pitted the wounded incumbent against two well-financed challengers. Trutanich, battling back from his poor showing in a race for county district attorney last year, trailed Feuer as returns in the city attorney race trickled in Tuesday but was running ahead of private attorney Greg Smith. Another private attorney, Noel Weiss, lagged far behind.

Got a wine you think loves oysters? The West Coast's premier bivalve/beverage dating service, the 19th annual Pacific Coast Oyster Wine Competition is gearing up and they're looking for entries. As it has for the last 18 years, the competition will be held in three cities -- Los Angeles, San Francisco and Seattle -- with wine professionals and journalists in each city judging the wines for how well they pair with raw oysters. March 22 is the deadline for wine entries and the winners will be announced April 29. It's always an interesting lineup, because it seems usually the best oyster wines are also the most simply made.

A former U.S. Marine convicted of arson while stationed in Japan more than a decade ago pleaded no contest Tuesday to charges that he ignited numerous vehicle and motor home fires in the North Hollywood area. Kurt Kaye Billie, 35, entered his plea to two counts of arson of an inhabited structure and one count of aggravated arson. As part of his plea, he admitted setting 21 fires to vehicles and motor homes in July and August 2011 in the North Hollywood area. Deputy Dist. Atty.

Lakers 99 - Hawks 98 (Final) The Lakers won a close one at Staples Center on Sunday night against the Atlanta Hawks. Kobe Bryant hit a layup with nine seconds on the clock to put the Lakers up 99-98. The Hawks had one final chance to win the game but Josh Smith turned it over under his own basket and time expired. Bryant scored the Lakers' final six points, finishing with 34 on the night while shooting 13-27 (48.2%) from the field. The Lakers shot 48.7% from the field as a team but turned the ball over 21 times.

Money well spent? Former Lakers great Magic Johnson, on his efforts to boost the intrigue surrounding the NBA's dunk contest: "Please, LeBron, get in the dunk contest. I'm going to put up a million dollars. A million dollars from Magic to LeBron. Please get in the dunk contest. I go every year. I want to see you out there. A million to the winner. " That answers that Minnesota Coach Rick Adelman, when asked whether there was a point when he gained more trust in Timberwolves forward Derrick Williams: "Well, Kevin Love's broken his hand twice.

In the latest effort by China to expand its cultural influence and build stronger ties to Hollywood, government officials in Beijing are looking for U.S.-based screenwriters to help tell their stories. The Cultural Assets Office of the Beijing Municipal Government on Monday will announce the 2013 Beijing International Screenwriting Competition, which organizers called a "groundbreaking initiative" to foster artistic collaboration and an ongoing creative dialogue between China and the U.S. Open to U.S.-based contestants of all nationalities, the competition will consider screenplays for feature films and short films centered on Beijing and its culture.

Magic Johnson has thrown down the gauntlet when it comes to LeBron James and the NBA All-Star dunk contest by offering a $1-million prize to the winner. Well, $1 million to the winner if James, who has never participated, enters the contest. One would suspect that James would win since he's gained notoriety for putting on a pregame show with an array of dunks that would easily get him to the finals. The legendary Lakers guard made his plea on ESPN's nationally televised pregame show on Friday evening.

With the Los Angeles mayoral primary a week away, an aggressive mail campaign by Jan Perry has helped push her into a three-way fight with Wendy Greuel and Eric Garcetti for two spots in a May runoff. From the start, Garcetti and Greuel have seen each other as the chief competition. But Perry's steady attacks via mailers - she lacked the money to advertise heavily on TV - have made her, at the very least, a credible threat to Greuel, the city controller. The race remains highly fluid, with many voters still largely unfamiliar with the candidates days before the election.

Chuck Person stands out in a crowd, but the former NBA forward turned Lakers assistant coach isn't instantly recognizable, even to some ardent basketball fans. That has its advantages. The 6-foot-8 Person, nicknamed "The Rifleman," finished fourth in the three-point shooting contest at the 1995 NBA All-Star game. And he still has a deadly shot from the perimeter. He proved that recently at a street fair in Redondo Beach, where, anonymously, he made some jaws drop at a long-range-shooting game.