Enjoys

Thanks CBS for bringing back "Guns of Paradise" (Fridays at 8 p.m.). It's a very enjoyable show, one that our whole family enjoys.

Moments after center Mike Richards woke up Wednesday, he realized he could enjoy a rare and welcome luxury. The Kings' seven-game playoff victory over the San Jose Sharks, completed on Tuesday with a 2-1 triumph at Staples Center, had launched them into the Western Conference finals and led Coach Darryl Sutter to give players a day off. After pushing himself through a compressed, 48-game season and 13 rugged playoff games Richards took advantage of...

"The Law and Harry McGraw" is charming and delightful. Our family enjoys it and looks forward to seeing it. Abby Katz, Montecito

During last season's run to the Stanley Cup, the Kings enjoyed an unusual edge. With no major injuries on the back end, and no pressing strategic concerns, they relied on the same six defensemen, in consistent pairings, throughout the playoffs. "You just have a feel for what the other person is going to do and when they're going to do it," veteran Rob Scuderi said. "It's not a luxury that every team gets. " This postseason is a different story. When the Kings take the ice against the San Jose Sharks in the fourth game of the Western Conference semifinals Tuesday night, Scuderi and his defensive teammates know they might be mixed and matched in different combinations.

If King Midas Orel Hershiser gets his salary increase, I hope he enjoys it. Can anybody out there tell me why any human being needs more than $2 million a year? ANGEL PEINADO Ontario

After watching the Dodgers for the first 70 games, it has occurred to me that Tom Lasorda enjoys pain. Why else use a bullpen when he doesn't have one? SCOTT RHODES Encino

Congratulations on your new "O.C. Live!" Thursday supplement. It's fresh, very interesting and well-written. Our family particularly enjoys the "Kid Stuff" items by Corinne Flocken. She makes it possible for our little group to enjoy many Southern California attractions without putting a second mortgage on the house. Keep up the good work. H.A. JONES Santa Ana

London is swinging again thanks to bride and princess-to-be Kate Middleton. Millions are hanging on her every move — where she shops, where she primps, what she eats and drinks. Although the couple live (part of the time) in a rented farmhouse in North Wales, Middleton and Prince William will likely move to London's Kensington Palace at some point in the future. And Middleton certainly spends a lot of time in London — especially now that the wedding is a month away — mostly in the swish neighborhoods of South Kensington, Chelsea, Knightsbridge and Mayfair, all of which are in close proximity to Hyde Park and the Buckingham and Kensington palaces.

The gig : Andrew Wiederhorn is the chairman and chief executive of Fatburger Inc., a fast-food restaurant chain based in Beverly Hills. The first Fatburger opened on Western Avenue in Los Angeles in 1947 and gained notoriety when rappers Ice Cube, Tupac Shakur and the Notorious B.I.G. all mentioned the restaurant in songs. Since 2003, Fatburger has been owned by Fog Cutter Capital Group Inc., a Santa Monica investment company of which Wiederhorn is also chairman and CEO. Self-starter : Wiederhorn grew up in a single-parent family in Portland; his father died when he was age 9. In high school, he hired a lawyer to help him get permits to rent out jet-skis on the Willamette River.

"Don't go there," a well-traveled friend said when I mentioned my plans to visit Capri, a sunny island off southern Italy. Why? "You're not going to want to come home," he said. I laughed. My friend, a know-it-all author, loves to give advice. I didn't need it; I already knew I would fall in love with Capri. It's been one of Europe's favorite island getaway for more than 2,000 years, enthralling a cast of characters ranging from Roman emperors to 21st century luminaries and A-listers.

We were opening Christmas gifts last year when my much better half dropped a package on my lap -- a cold, heavy package. Curious (and suddenly chilly), I opened it. Bacon. Six pounds of artisan bacon, ranging from thick-cut hickory-smoked to jalapeño-spiced and apple-cinnamon, varieties hailing from Virginia to upstate New York, Texas to Tennessee. Now if that's not true love, I don't know what is. I'm a bacon fanatic. In or out of the kitchen, sometimes it's all I can think about: the vibrant red as it cooks, the smokiness, the subtle crunch, the sizzle, the wonderful aroma that will not be denied.

BALTIMORE - As long as there are 8-year-olds, there will be baseball. Bud Selig has produced revenue-sharing and value-escalation. He deserves much credit. The mothers of this country have produced a never-ending supply of baseball customers. They deserve more. Once upon a time - Sunday, actually - a grandfather accompanied his 8-year-old grandson to a major league baseball game. His granddaughter was there too, but she had a friend with her. If you are a 10-year-old girl, you cannot be seen in public at a baseball game with your grandpa and little brother without a friend along.

We haven't seen the last of David Beckham. Oh, sure, we may not see him on a soccer field now that he's announced he will retire after Paris Saint-Germain's final game on May 26. But we will see him in many other places - billboards, magazines, TV - for years to come. There are still Beckham-backed shoes, cologne, cell phones and watches to sell. And sports drinks, vitamins, books and clothing lines. There may even be a sewing machine in the works. "Mend it Like Beckham" anyone? "Commercially, David Beckham is the most successful footballer ever produced in England," says David Haigh, chief executive of Brand Finance, a global consultancy firm.

Not many of us will ever get to the fabulous Cannes Film Festival currently taking place in the glamorous French resort town. But there is a way to enjoy the Cannes experience vicariously via the films that have used the international festival as a backdrop for narrative features, TV movies and documentaries. One example is “Seduced & Abandoned," Alec Baldwin and James Toback's documentary chronicling their attempts to raise financing for a project at the 2012 extravaganza. The duo has have returned to the French Riviera this year to screen the film, which has been acquired by HBO. Definitely worth checking out is indie filmmaker Henry Jaglom's "Festival in Cannes," a well-received 2001 satire of the machinations of filmmakers and the art of the deal at Cannes at the 1999 festival.

Wines made in L.A., Malibu and Ventura will be served side-by-side with wines from Rioja, Spain, and Argentina's Uco Valley at the eighth LAWineFest in June. Those who want to sample wine, beer and even some spirits (such as sake made in Rancho Dominguez) can buy tickets for $54, more than a third off the usual price, for a limited time. The deal: Wines featured at the festival come from 15 countries, and Belgian beermaker Stella Artois hosts a beer garden at the event at Raleigh Studios in Hollywood.

It's strange how "scandal" gets defined these days in Washington. At the moment, everyone is screaming about the "scandal" of the Internal Revenue Service scrutinizing conservative nonprofits before granting them tax-exempt status. Here are the genuine scandals in this affair: Political organizations are being allowed to masquerade as charities to avoid taxes and keep their donors secret, and the IRS has allowed them to do this for years. The bottom line first: The IRS hasn't done nearly enough over the years to rein in the subversion of the tax law by political groups claiming a tax exemption that is not legally permitted for campaign activity.

On busy Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu, some well-kept facades conceal a secret. Behind the Mediterranean with wooden doors, the white stucco two-story with a red tile roof, the long wall obscuring a three-structure compound, hides a singular, massive wealth fueled by obsession. This is Larry Ellison territory, where a Bay Area billionaire with seemingly endless patience and resources is buying up the best spots along Malibu's 21 miles of coast. PHOTOS: Expensive things Ellison has bought The Oracle Corp.

BEIJING - With Edward Snowden in Hong Kong dribbling out morsels on U.S. cyber surveillance activities to the press, Chinese authorities have several choices for dealing with him. Their options include offering asylum to the former U.S. contractor, who says he leaked National Security Agency secrets and is expected to face criminal charges; interrogating him; or urging him to leave. So far, officials in Beijing look to be playing it cool by doing nothing - and that, several experts said Friday, is perhaps the savviest thing they could do. With some U.S. lawmakers calling Snowden, 29, a traitor and raising questions about whether he has a relationship with a foreign government, any moves by Beijing to contact Snowden could inflame tension with Washington just days after a summit between President Obama and Chinese leader Xi Jinping.

This story has been updated. See note below. Amanda Demme isn't who she used to be. And that's probably a good thing. Just ask her. She'll tell you she's been in hiding for six years, casting off the pretensions that came with life as a famous (and infamous) Hollywood impresario. "It was a great time," Demme said last week of that raucous era at the Roosevelt Hotel, when A-listers clamored to get into her parties. "But it was a time. Lost my mind. " PHOTOS: Celebrities by The Times FOR THE RECORD: Amanda Demme: In the May 4 Calendar section, an article about photographer Amanda Demme said that Demme's work is being shown at the Venice gallery Oblivion.

NEW YORK - Matt Kemp waited a long time to hit his first home run of the season - 75 homerless at-bats, plus the two minutes and 29 seconds he spent standing at third base while the umpires reviewed video of his opposite-field blast. But Kemp didn't want to talk about his two-run shot off rookie flamethrower Matt Harvey, not with the Dodgers blowing a lead in the ninth inning and falling to the New York Mets, 7-3, on a 10th-inning walk-off grand slam by Jordany Valdespin. "We lost the game," Kemp said.