Eagle

Shopping for underwear sounds either mundane or glamorous, depending on your point of view -- but it can also be daunting. "People have no idea what they're doing," said Bonnie Kaufman, "because it's like buying a mattress. What do you really know about mattresses?" Kaufman, the president and founder of the Creative Woman: The Wizard of Bras boutique in Monrovia -- which stocks 49 brands of brassieres -- is talking about women and bra shopping. More specifically, she's calling out the sorry state of sagginess that exists in the average American woman's bra wardrobe.

Anyone who has ever walked past an Abercrombie & Fitch store at the local mall knows that it's a place for queen bees and cool jocks. Hot, buff store employees greet customers at the front door. They don't say, "Fatties keep out. " They don't have to. Abercrombie does not stock sizes for the average American young woman, who is roughly 5 feet 4 and weighs about 162 pounds. Abercrombie does not want that person in its clothes. And that is not news. But thanks to the power of social media, the company's obnoxious marketing philosophy is making waves again.

Advertising company Lamar sued the city of Los Angeles two months ago, demanding the right to install new digital billboards in such neighborhoods as Sherman Oaks, Silver Lake, Glassell Park and the Fairfax district. Lamar's involvement in city politics did not stop there. Since it filed that lawsuit, the company has financed scores of billboards for candidates in the May 21 election - 100 for mayoral hopeful Wendy Greuel, 100 for city controller candidate Dennis Zine and 20 apiece for City Council candidates Curren Price, Nury Martinez and Gil Cedillo.

Facing sliding sales and a racial discrimination lawsuit, teen retailer Wet Seal Inc. fired Chief Executive Susan McGalla and started looking for a replacement. In the interim, the Foothill Ranch company will be steered by Chairman Hal Kahn, President Ken Seipel and Chief Financial Officer Steve Benrubi as members of the newly formed Office of the Chairman. McGalla came aboard as Wet Seal's CEO in January 2011 after serving as president and chief merchandising officer of rival American Eagle Outfitters Inc. She has overseen the company as sliding sales slashed its stock price by half its value over the last year.

The confident smile Sam Rivero wore as he hunted for his first house had a lot to do with the buzz thumping in his ears. Ever since home values began sinking, pundits have touted the juicy opportunities for aspiring buyers priced out of the market before, and the young business-development executive heard that cue like a sonic boom.

Gold is one holiday gift that has kept on giving for the last seven years. The metal's market price, which last month surged above $800 an ounce for the first time in nearly three decades, has risen every year since 2000. It has trounced the U.S. stock market in that period, rocketing 190%, compared with a 26% total return for the Standard & Poor's 500 index.

Flo Hyman, perhaps the most recognizable name in international volleyball, collapsed during a match in Japan Friday night and died of heart failure. A member of the U.S. Olympic team that won a silver medal in the 1984 Games at Long Beach, Hyman, 31, was playing for Daiei, Inc., in a Japanese women's league match against Hitachi, Ltd., in Matsue City, about 380 miles west of Tokyo.

This post has been updated. See note below for details. Here's a twist: a situation where a trip to Las Vegas is the safe bet for anyone who doesn't want to gamble. The Eagles will be hitting the road for a summer tour in the wake of the “History of the Eagles” documentary now running on Showtime, and tickets for the first round of shows will become available first to American Express cardholders on March 23, and then go on general sale March 28. The first 11 shows, however, include no stops in Southern California, but constitute a run through the nine Eastern states and Ontario, beginning July 6 in Louisville, Ky., and concluding July 25 in Bethel, N.Y. The only date west of the Mississippi that the long-running country-rock band has on the books for now is March 23 at the MGM Grand's Garden Arena.

Chicago entrepreneur Ted Foxman has put his Mediterranean-style mansion in Bel-Air up for sale at $16.25 million. Entered through a two-story foyer, the 14,000-square-foot house overlooks the Bel-Air Country Club. There is a bar, den, library, seven bedrooms and 11 bathrooms. The grounds of more than three-quarters of an acre include a swimming pool, sports court and a cabana. Foxman sold his Eagle Test Systems to Teradyne Inc. in 2008 for $360 million and founded branding and marketing firm Productive People.

Steve Howe, a former Dodger relief pitcher whose cocaine and alcohol abuse overshadowed and ultimately tarnished his major league baseball career, was killed early Friday morning when he rolled his pickup truck in an unincorporated area of Riverside County east of Palm Springs. He was 48. The single-vehicle accident occurred about 5:30 a.m.