Lloyd Levine

At ages 26 and 32, respectively, Andrei Cherny and Lloyd Levine are too young to be branded Old Boys. Still, the Democratic candidates for the San Fernando Valley's 40th Assembly District are politically connected beyond their years. Cherny was writing speeches for then-Vice President Al Gore 10 days out of Harvard and helped craft his party's platform in 2000. He also worked for the district's current assemblyman, Speaker Bob Hertzberg (D-Sherman Oaks), whose term expires this year.

The most spirited squabbling in the legal fight over the distribution rights for "Watchmen" had been limited to lawyers for 20th Century Fox and Warner Bros. But now one of the film's producers has joined the fray, urging Fox to drop its case and let the film come out as planned.

The chairman of an Assembly committee that heavily influences California's energy policy announced Saturday that he now opposes construction of an $800-million natural gas processing plant in the ocean about 20 miles off Malibu. Assemblyman Lloyd Levine (D-Van Nuys) said he would fight a terminal proposed by BHP Billiton, one of the largest energy companies in the world, because "it's an environmental problem for the coast."

What appeared to be a straightforward proposal by Assemblyman Lloyd Levine to neuter California's dogs and cats instead met massive opposition and may have spawned a potentially powerful lobby that now plans to play a significant role fighting for pet owners' rights nationwide.

The race to succeed powerful Assemblyman Bob Hertzberg has transformed from the anointing of his handpicked successor to a roiling, no-holds-barred political street brawl. Both Hertzberg's choice for his San Fernando Valley district, Andrei Cherny, and his opponent, Lloyd Levine, are young, ambitious and backed by powerful forces in the Democratic Party. Both are running for office for the first time and are expected to spend more than $500,000 by their party's primary on Tuesday.

State Assemblyman Lloyd Levine is not a vegetarian, is allergic to cats and doesn't own a dog. (He does, however, admit to a "family of dust bunnies" under his bed.) This year, the only legislation that has come close to making him famous -- both "Good Morning, America" and "The Colbert Report" took notice -- is not about protecting animals. It's about banning the sale of incandescent lightbulbs. (Levine dubbed it the "How Many Legislators Does It Take to Change a Light Bulb Act."

What appeared to be a straightforward proposal by Assemblyman Lloyd Levine to neuter California's dogs and cats instead met massive opposition and may have spawned a potentially powerful lobby that now plans to play a significant role fighting for pet owners' rights nationwide.

Lloyd Levin has joined Lawrence Gordon Productions as a key executive. He will supervise all creative affairs and day-to-day operations of the independent production company. Levin was an executive producer for "Die Hard 2" and "Predator 2" when he worked for Gordon previously. * Best Film & Video, producers and distributors of video programming, have named Bill Reilly vice president of marketing, Joe Marziotto vice president of sales, Richard Mendelsohn regional sales manager and Joseph P.

The most spirited squabbling in the legal fight over the distribution rights for "Watchmen" had been limited to lawyers for 20th Century Fox and Warner Bros. But now one of the film's producers has joined the fray, urging Fox to drop its case and let the film come out as planned.

Lawmakers on Tuesday rejected a bill that would have banned the sale of cloned or genetically modified pets in California. Assemblyman Lloyd Levine (D-Van Nuys) called pet cloning harmful to the surrogate animals that nurture the clones and unnecessary in a state that kills more than a million unwanted cats and dogs each year. But members of the Assembly Business and Professions Committee rejected his bill, AB 1428, on a 2-4 vote.

The chairman of an Assembly committee that heavily influences California's energy policy announced Saturday that he now opposes construction of an $800-million natural gas processing plant in the ocean about 20 miles off Malibu. Assemblyman Lloyd Levine (D-Van Nuys) said he would fight a terminal proposed by BHP Billiton, one of the largest energy companies in the world, because "it's an environmental problem for the coast."

State Assemblyman Lloyd Levine is not a vegetarian, is allergic to cats and doesn't own a dog. (He does, however, admit to a "family of dust bunnies" under his bed.) This year, the only legislation that has come close to making him famous -- both "Good Morning, America" and "The Colbert Report" took notice -- is not about protecting animals. It's about banning the sale of incandescent lightbulbs. (Levine dubbed it the "How Many Legislators Does It Take to Change a Light Bulb Act."

The race to succeed powerful Assemblyman Bob Hertzberg has transformed from the anointing of his handpicked successor to a roiling, no-holds-barred political street brawl. Both Hertzberg's choice for his San Fernando Valley district, Andrei Cherny, and his opponent, Lloyd Levine, are young, ambitious and backed by powerful forces in the Democratic Party. Both are running for office for the first time and are expected to spend more than $500,000 by their party's primary on Tuesday.

At ages 26 and 32, respectively, Andrei Cherny and Lloyd Levine are too young to be branded Old Boys. Still, the Democratic candidates for the San Fernando Valley's 40th Assembly District are politically connected beyond their years. Cherny was writing speeches for then-Vice President Al Gore 10 days out of Harvard and helped craft his party's platform in 2000. He also worked for the district's current assemblyman, Speaker Bob Hertzberg (D-Sherman Oaks), whose term expires this year.

Lloyd Levin has joined Lawrence Gordon Productions as a key executive. He will supervise all creative affairs and day-to-day operations of the independent production company. Levin was an executive producer for "Die Hard 2" and "Predator 2" when he worked for Gordon previously. * Best Film & Video, producers and distributors of video programming, have named Bill Reilly vice president of marketing, Joe Marziotto vice president of sales, Richard Mendelsohn regional sales manager and Joseph P.

Conrad's slanderous cartoon could better have originated in the demented and hate-filled minds of the Nazi propaganda ministry. It has no basis in fact. It reflects only his insane hatred of Israel. Enough is enough is enough already. LLOYD L. LEVINE Sherman Oaks

A state Senate committee Thursday stalled a measure that would have charged Californians 25 cents per plastic or paper bag at stores that failed to meet certain bag recycling goals. The Senate Appropriations Committee refused to send AB 2058 by Assemblyman Lloyd Levine (D-Van Nuys) to the Senate floor for a vote. State recycling experts estimated that the measure would require 16 new state positions and cost about $1.5 million a year. The bill would have taken effect in 2011. It won Democratic support in the Assembly, but Republicans attacked it as anti-consumer.