Hollywood

When I think of actress Lupe Ontiveros, who passed away from liver cancer at 69 Thursday night, what stays with me most is her strength. Her women tended to be strong and resilient, no-nonsense types, whether they were running a theater company as she did in "Chuck & Buck," dealing with a rebellious daughter in "Real Women Have Curves," or picking up after some well-heeled white family, as she did in"The Goonies. "There was a "I have seen it all" quality that danced in her eyes, more bemused by the frailties of the human race than bitter about them.

Wendy Greuel's resume is dotted with the political accomplishments of a politician on the rise. But there was an unconventional detour: her stint as an executive at DreamWorks SKG, working alongside Hollywood titans Steven Spielberg, Jeffrey Katzenberg and David Geffen. Greuel cites the job as evidence that she understands the city's most prominent industry. Her position at DreamWorks, however, was about more than making movies - she was a go-between for the studio to the political, governmental and civic worlds.

Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa spoke publicly for the first time Monday about the breakup of his 20-year marriage, saying he was responsible for the split even as he refused to talk about what caused it. In a somber meeting with reporters at City Hall, Villaraigosa declined to answer questions about whether the break with his wife, Corina, was triggered by another romantic relationship.

“The Tonight Show With Jay Leno” bandleader Rickey Minor and his wife, Karen, have listed their Hollywood Hills compound at $4.95 million. The gated more than half-quarter acre site contains a main house, a detached guest house, a sports court and an infinity-edged swimming pool. Features include a library/study, a den, six bedrooms, eight bathrooms and 7,202 square feet of living space. Grandest pool around? Malibu has it Minor has been the “Tonight Show” bandleader since 2010.

In 1986, lawmakers decided the problem of illegal immigration had to be dealt with. More than 3 million people were living in the United States after crossing the border illegally or overstaying their visas. A new law signed by President Ronald Reagan gave legal status and a path to citizenship to most of those unauthorized residents - helping many secure a slice of the American dream but also giving fuel to critics who sought to turn "amnesty" into a pejorative. Less than 30 years later, the number of immigrants living in the country illegally is thought to have nearly quadrupled, and the freighted baggage of amnesty looms over new efforts to reform the nation's immigration laws.

Rinconia Drive is one of those narrow, tree-shaded roads that snakes up the Hollywood Hills, lined with a mix of older bungalows and towering modern mansions. But when you get to Chris Brown's concrete-and-steel-and-glass Jay Vanos-designed home, the mood changes dramatically. A flashy Lamborghini is parked in front, blocking the sidewalk and part of the street. A creature in a silver spacesuit is perched on a ledge. And on the walls are massive paintings of monsters, standing 8 feet tall in bright neon colors.

Veteran "KTLA 5 Morning News" anchor Michaela Pereira will be leaving the station at the end of May to join CNN's new morning show in New York. Pereira will be the news anchor for the show, which will be hosted by Chris Cuomo and Kate Bolduan. The announcement was made jointly by KTLA and President of CNN Worldwide Jeff Zucker, who is aggressively shaking up the struggling network's lineup and personalities. "I've been looking forward to this announcement since I first joined CNN," Zucker said in a statement.

Casey Kasem, who gained a national radio audience after "American Top 40" launched in 1970, and his wife, Jean, are listing their Westside estate for sale at $42 million. With 12,000 square feet of living space, seven bedrooms and nine bathrooms, the home has been the site of intimate interviews and sleepovers for as many as 20 youngsters a night. The yard has served as the site of elaborate celebrity-studded gatherings and paintball battles. The syndicated radio host bought the property for Jean Kasem in 1989 as a gift.

Three-time Oscar nominee Todd Field is set to direct and co-write the adaptation of Jess Walter's bestselling book "Beautiful Ruins. " Field will team up with Walter to write the screenplay. Beginning in Italy in 1962, the story picks up with a few characters connected to the ill-fated production of "Cleopatra" before jumping forward to present-day Hollywood. The book's ambitious storytelling should present a particular challenge for Field and Walter in finding a way to bring it to the screen.

Connie Wald, an elegant matriarch of old Hollywood known for the low-key dinner parties she held for friends like Clark Gable, Joan Crawford, Fred Astaire and Audrey Hepburn, died of natural causes Nov. 10 at her Beverly Hills home. She was 96. Her death was confirmed by her son, Andrew. The widow of Jerry Wald, who produced Oscar-winning films including "Mildred Pierce" and "Key Largo," Connie Wald was a celebrated hostess, who gathered A-list stars around her dinner table for home-cooked dishes such as roast chicken and bread pudding.

On a warm, Friday morning in Beverly Hills, 150 prospective television producers from around the world gathered at PitchCon 2013 at the SLS Hotel in Beverly Hills to try to sell their projects to 50 of Hollywood's top industry professionals. At one table in the center of the room, Charla Young, 40, of Louisville, Ky., calmly pitched a television executive the idea for her inspirational talk show "Power to Change. " Having already obtained regional syndication in her home state, Young had come to Los Angeles to find national distribution for her show.

A West Hollywood doctor surrendered to federal authorities Monday after being indicted on charges that he illegally prescribed powerful painkillers to patients, according to the U.S. attorney's office in Los Angeles. James William Eisenberg, 72, is accused of writing more than 1,200 prescriptions for addictive painkillers after the Drug Enforcement Administration revoked his authority to prescribe controlled substances, authorities have alleged. Eisenberg was indicted Friday.

A West Hollywood doctor pleaded not guilty Monday to federal charges of illegally prescribing powerful painkillers to patients, according to the U.S. attorney's office in Los Angeles James William Eisenberg, 72, is accused of writing more than 1,200 prescriptions for addictive painkillers after the Drug Enforcement Administration revoked his authority to prescribe controlled substances. Eisenberg's bail was set at $200,000, with home detention ordered, according to the U.S. attorney's office.

There are few designers working today who have had as big an influence on fashion as Giorgio Armani. Founding his company in Milan in 1975, he modernized the suit, giving it a relaxed, soft silhouette, and created a daytime uniform of power and success that defined men's and women's style for two decades. He banished the ugly red-carpet excesses of the 1980s and introduced a modern way of dressing beginning in 1990, when his sleek Oscar-night designs for Michelle Pfeiffer and Jodie Foster transformed Hollywood from tacky to tasteful overnight.

In a Hollywood auditorium, James L. Tolbert tried to induce a room packed with broadcasting and advertising executives to essentially join the civil rights movement in 1963 by pointing out the obvious. "We Negroes watch 'Bonanza' and buy Chevrolets. We watch 'Disney' on RCA sets," proclaimed Tolbert, an entertainment attorney who was speaking to the 125 invited guests in his role as president of the NAACP's Beverly Hills-Hollywood branch. "We buy all the advertised products, the same as you do. " Delivered weeks before the March on Washington, the speech pointed out the absence of African Americans on both sides of the camera.

Chris Robbins could be a poster child for mayoral candidate Eric Garcetti's vision for Los Angeles. Each morning, Robbins straps on a backpack, cues up his iPod and sets out on a short walk to the subway, which whisks him to his downtown public relations job. He and his wife share one car. On the weekends, they like to stay local, savoring their neighborhood's array of new restaurants and bars. Over 12 years as Hollywood's councilman, Garcetti has emerged as a leading champion of "smart growth," which aims to entice residents like Robbins out of cars by densely concentrating new development along transit lines.

A man who built his career on testosterone, who spent years pumping iron and staring at himself in mirrors, who thrived in the egocentric troika of sports, Hollywood and politics is probably not a good candidate for faithful husband. Maria Shriver had to have known that when she married Arnold Schwarzenegger. Arnold and men like him are supreme narcissists. Sure, they are charming, dynamic, seductive, even magnetic, but the world beyond their own minds and bodies is an abstraction.

With frosty mugs of Butterbeer raised in a toast, Universal Studios Hollywood officials announced plans Tuesday to bring the wildly popular Wizarding World of Harry Potter to the California theme park. Details were limited but officials did say the California park would see a Hogwarts Castle and visitors would ride Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey, the marquee attraction at the Florida park. Wizarding World will be built within the existing California theme park, but it was unclear if the new land might be located at least partially on the studio's back lot. > Photos: Top 10 Wizarding World of Harry Potter rides and attractions Wizarding World proved an instant hit when it opened in June 2010 at Universal Orlando's Islands of Adventure theme park.

With its announcement Thursday, Hollywood Park did little to refute the theory that horse racing is a sport in need of hospice. They raced at the Inglewood track Friday, but it wasn't business as usual. Nor will it be the rest of this meeting and the track's final one, which ends Dec. 22. For people in the business, and fans of the sport, the next six months of racing at the place universally known as Hollypark will be an emotional saddle sore. The bulldozers are at the gate.

Everyone knew the day was coming and now it's a reality. After 75 years of horse racing, Betfair Hollywood Park will end its operations following the final race of its autumn meeting Dec. 22. The words "sad day" were repeated often Thursday afternoon at the Inglewood track, where owners, trainers, jockeys and fans reacted somberly to the news. The official announcement came in a letter from track President Jack Liebau sent to the California Horse Racing Board on Wednesday informing them that Hollywood Park Land Co. would not be requesting any 2014 racing dates.