Jack Kyser

Jack Kyser, the ever-quotable dean of Southern California economists, is retiring from the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corp. after decades of postulating about the many diverse sectors that make up the California economy. Although he's leaving during one of the worst economic downturns the region has ever seen, Kyser, 76, says he is optimistic about the future of Southern California. "Los Angeles' best days are still ahead of it — if we manage the economy effectively," said Kyser, founding economist at the LAEDC, which was created to attract and retain jobs in the region.

John A. "Jack" Kyser, the dean of Los Angeles economists who spoke as an expert on Southern California to observers around the world, has died. He was 76. Kyser was found dead of unknown causes Monday at his Downey home, said a longtime friend, Wally Baker. Kyser devoted his long career to focusing on the workings of the region's economy. As the former chief economist of the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corp. he was in steady demand as a speaker at business events and a reliable source who was quick with an insightful quote for reporters on deadline.

Add Jack Kyser, Los Angeles' economic guru, to the list of experts predicting slower growth for Orange County. Kyser, chief economist at the Los Angeles Economic Development Corp., recently released his midyear forecast for the five-county Southern California region. Orange County will finish the year still in the top spot among those counties, Kyser said. For all of 1998, he expects exceptionally strong employment growth of 4.2%, or 51,200 jobs.

Southern California's economy is beginning to gain strength, although local residents may not feel the benefits for many months, according to a forecast to be released Wednesday. Regional employers will be slow to rehire. The housing and construction industries are struggling, and tight credit is crimping consumer and business spending. But tourism is gaining, the entertainment industry is thriving, and international trade projections have jumped since February, the report from the Kyser Center for Economic Research at the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corp.

When the going gets tough, Americans go to the movies. We did it by the millions during the Depression, and the lingering economic crisis that began with the housing bubble's burst (along with higher ticket prices) has inflated Hollywood's current box-office revenues to dirigible dimensions. James Cameron's "Avatar," for example, has sold more than $1 billion worth of tickets in less than a month -- and not just in the U.S. The environmentalist techno-epic is already Russia's highest-grossing film ever with $55.5 million in receipts; it's done $85.6 million worth of business in France, $56.1 million in Germany and nearly that much in Britain.

Southern California's economy is beginning to gain strength, although local residents may not feel the benefits for many months, according to a forecast to be released Wednesday. Regional employers will be slow to rehire. The housing and construction industries are struggling, and tight credit is crimping consumer and business spending. But tourism is gaining, the entertainment industry is thriving, and international trade projections have jumped since February, the report from the Kyser Center for Economic Research at the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corp.

To explore the causes of poverty in the San Fernando Valley and what the future may hold, The Times asked several community and political leaders and social service officials to explore the subject in a round-table discussion. The participants: Jack Kyser, chief economist with the Economic Development Corp. of Los Angeles County; Lew Hollman, senior attorney with San Fernando Valley Neighborhood Legal Services Inc; Bobbi Fiedler, former U.S. representative and a Northridge resident; U.S. Rep.

If the opening day of the holiday shopping season is any guide, this year could end up being a "Costco Christmas." Bargain-hungry Southern Californians swarmed the region's stores Friday, guided largely by a sense of practicality that had thousands rising before sunrise to snap up the best deals on a wide array of gifts.

The ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach are bringing in a surprising new commodity: jobs. The first post-recession surge in employment at the nation's busiest seaport complex began this month and appears to be gathering momentum. There has been as much as a threefold increase in the number of longshoremen finding work on the docks in the first three weeks of February compared with the same period last year, a review of daily employment dispatches shows. Through the first three weeks there was an average of 2,679 longshore jobs a day during the usual three work shifts at the two ports, according to the summaries.

John A. "Jack" Kyser, the dean of Los Angeles economists who spoke as an expert on Southern California to observers around the world, has died. He was 76. Kyser was found dead of unknown causes Monday at his Downey home, said a longtime friend, Wally Baker. Kyser devoted his long career to focusing on the workings of the region's economy. As the former chief economist of the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corp. he was in steady demand as a speaker at business events and a reliable source who was quick with an insightful quote for reporters on deadline.

Jack Kyser, the ever-quotable dean of Southern California economists, is retiring from the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corp. after decades of postulating about the many diverse sectors that make up the California economy. Although he's leaving during one of the worst economic downturns the region has ever seen, Kyser, 76, says he is optimistic about the future of Southern California. "Los Angeles' best days are still ahead of it — if we manage the economy effectively," said Kyser, founding economist at the LAEDC, which was created to attract and retain jobs in the region.

When the going gets tough, Americans go to the movies. We did it by the millions during the Depression, and the lingering economic crisis that began with the housing bubble's burst (along with higher ticket prices) has inflated Hollywood's current box-office revenues to dirigible dimensions. James Cameron's "Avatar," for example, has sold more than $1 billion worth of tickets in less than a month -- and not just in the U.S. The environmentalist techno-epic is already Russia's highest-grossing film ever with $55.5 million in receipts; it's done $85.6 million worth of business in France, $56.1 million in Germany and nearly that much in Britain.

If the opening day of the holiday shopping season is any guide, this year could end up being a "Costco Christmas." Bargain-hungry Southern Californians swarmed the region's stores Friday, guided largely by a sense of practicality that had thousands rising before sunrise to snap up the best deals on a wide array of gifts.

Add Jack Kyser, Los Angeles' economic guru, to the list of experts predicting slower growth for Orange County. Kyser, chief economist at the Los Angeles Economic Development Corp., recently released his midyear forecast for the five-county Southern California region. Orange County will finish the year still in the top spot among those counties, Kyser said. For all of 1998, he expects exceptionally strong employment growth of 4.2%, or 51,200 jobs.

To explore the causes of poverty in the San Fernando Valley and what the future may hold, The Times asked several community and political leaders and social service officials to explore the subject in a round-table discussion. The participants: Jack Kyser, chief economist with the Economic Development Corp. of Los Angeles County; Lew Hollman, senior attorney with San Fernando Valley Neighborhood Legal Services Inc; Bobbi Fiedler, former U.S. representative and a Northridge resident; U.S. Rep.

Walt Disney Co.'s planned Grand Central Creative Campus in Glendale will eventually employ 10,000 workers and include 3.6 million square feet of offices, sound stages and studio production facilities, according to interviews and documents filed with the city of Glendale. In announcing the development in September, Walt Disney Imagineering executives declined to disclose the project size, the number of employees or the dollar value.

After more than two decades of making furniture in California, Mark Popel began moving some of his operations overseas two years ago. The shift started out small. But now, every month, a 40-foot container from China arrives at Popel's warehouse in South El Monte. It's usually loaded with 16 bedroom sets -- about 10% of his company's monthly production. Popel said he wished he didn't have to import.