Positions

Often considered the most popular entertainer of the 20th century--his extravagant performances set still-unchallenged attendance records--Liberace (dubbed "Mr. Showman" in tribute to his flashy theatricality) sued a London columnist in 1956 for implying he was gay. He won.

NEW YORK - A major shareholder vote next week has Wall Street abuzz over the power and future of Jamie Dimon, leader of the country's biggest bank. As chairman and chief executive of JPMorgan Chase & Co., Dimon burnished his reputation by steering the bank through the financial crisis virtually unscathed. Charismatic and articulate, Dimon emerged as Wall Street's most public face, an effective spokesman for an industry under siege by lawmakers, regulators and protesters. Now Dimon is facing a shareholder push to strip him of the chairman's job. Tuesday's vote at JPMorgan's annual shareholder meeting in Tampa, Fla., isn't binding, but it has nevertheless become a marquee referendum whose results could rattle nerves across the financial industry.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Sandra Fluke on Wednesday offered a dire vision of the future if Mitt Romney is elected president, one where rape would be redefined, women would be forced to have ultrasounds against their wishes, and access to birth control would be controlled by men. Calling GOP positions “an offensive, obsolete relic of our past,” Fluke told delegates at the Democratic National Convention that “we know what this America would look like...

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.

Gov. George Deukmejian has appointed new members to the Contractors State License Board, to fill three of seven public member positions, in addition to reappointing one board member. They are Stephen H. Lazarian Jr. of San Diego, an attorney and partner in the law firm of Lazarian, Sivas, Martinez & Vanian; Elton (Skip) Michael of Sunland, a detective with the Los Angeles Police Department, and M. Jean Westgard of Union City, a councilwoman.

This is the sixth in a series of stories looking at the top high school football players in the Southland by position. Today: Defensive linemen. Is there a position that doesn't suit Ronald Powell? The Moreno Valley Rancho Verde High star has played defensive end, tight end, defensive tackle, running back, wide receiver and middle linebacker at various points during the last three years. When Powell first stepped on campus as a hulking freshman, Mustangs Coach Pete Duffy thought he might make a nice offensive tackle.

From 1977 to just before Christmas 1981, I was a television news anchorwoman in Los Angeles. By April, 1983, I was on the streets without a place to live--penniless and afraid. I had fallen out of the system, become one of society's discards. Even today, I have not been able to fully reestablish myself. I am hardly a perfect person. But I was never a drug abuser, an alcoholic, a thief or a mental patient. I'm 43.

The Rams, ever trendy, have hired a team psychologist. "It's just to help with concentration and relaxation," Coach John Robinson said. "Sounds like voodoo to me," Bill Bain said. If there are two people at training camp who probably should not meet, they are the psychologist, Dr. Saul Miller of Los Angeles, and the left offensive tackle, Bain.

When I became dean of the Chapman University School of Law almost two years ago, I made a commitment to pursue a mission of ideological diversity at the school. One way to fulfill that mission is through the appointment of visiting professors. For 2008-09, I asked Richard Falk and John Yoo to accept one-semester positions.

Sitting in Jerry Hairston Jr.'s locker in the depths of Dodger Stadium are several gloves, each with a different function. They've been battered during the veteran's 15-year career with nine major league clubs, but provide a certain reliability. Just like their owner. The gloves are black in color, their differences subtle, but each is chosen with a specific purpose for a player trying to master his craft. Make that several crafts. Hairston and his glove collection constitute an underappreciated breed in baseball: the utility player.

WASHINGTON - At a news conference in a rainy Rose Garden on Thursday, President Obama and the Turkish prime minister had weighty matters to discuss - the bloody civil war in Syria, a disastrous Syrian refugee crisis and Turkey's strained relationship with Israel. But before they got too far into that, Obama had something else to say. "With the prime minister's permission, I want to make one other point," Obama said, launching into an appeal for Congress to support more money for embassy security - a not-so-subtle reply to Republicans who've pounced on the president's handling of last year's attack on the diplomatic post in Benghazi, Libya.

President Obama may be engaging in political damage control in proposing that Congress resurrect legislation to protect the confidentiality of journalists' sources. But his call for action on a federal shield law is welcome even if it is inspired by a desire to deflect criticism of the Justice Department's seizure of the phone records of the Associated Press. Although described as a "reporter's privilege," protection for confidential news sources actually benefits the public by making it easier for journalists to obtain information about wrongdoing in government and elsewhere.

A few low, indecipherable noises escaped from the table where Shug McGaughey, trainer of even-money Preakness favorite Orb, sat during the post-position draw Wednesday. The horse had drawn the dreaded No. 1 gate, meaning eight horses will be closing him in as they race toward the shortest path to the first turn. McGaughey, though, was not among those who thought this meant anything significant. "Some people groaned," he said. "I didn't groan. " McGaughey acknowledged a preference to start on the outside of the field - where the jockey and horse can watch the field open up - but said he thought drawing the rail simply didn't matter in a nine-horse field running over a mile and three-sixteenths.

Dallas Willard Influential Christian philosopher taught at USC for 47 years Dallas Willard, 77, an influential Christian philosopher who taught at USC for 47 years and chaired the philosophy department in the early 1980s, died Wednesday in Woodland Hills, the university said. He had cancer. In "The Great Omission," "Renovation of the Heart," "The Divine Conspiracy" and other books, Willard wrote about spiritual formation and Christian discipleship for the general reader, often giving practical advice for living a Christian life in a secular world.

NEW YORK - Say this for the 2013 quarterback class: They've learned how to slide. Four of them were selected in the fourth round Saturday, two of whom - USC's Matt Barkley and Syracuse's Ryan Nassib - were widely believed to be first-round candidates. "I'm a little bit surprised at how long I lasted," said Nassib, who in some mock drafts went eighth to Buffalo, but who actually went 110th to the New York Giants. "Everyone was just hyping me up, I guess. " Philadelphia traded up to make Barkley the first pick of the day, and Nassib was grabbed 12 spots later.

NEW YORK — Andre Ethier hadn't seen his splits with men in scoring position. "I feel it's not good," Ethier said. He was right. Entering Thursday, the player who used to be called Captain Clutch was two for 19. But Ethier managed to single when it mattered most in the final game of the Dodgers' six-game trip, delivering a ninth-inning hit to drive in the go-ahead run in a 3-2 victory over the New York Mets. Ethier didn't know why he wasn't doing this earlier, as he couldn't point to anything wrong with his approach with men on base.

A private foundation has donated $1 million to the city school district to help pay for several academic programs and new positions, officials said Friday. The Wasserman Foundation, headed by entertainment/sports entrepreneur Casey Wasserman, has donated more than $4.3 million to the district since 2009. It now pays for about 10 positions in the district. Numerous philanthropic groups, including the Gates and Walton foundations, and billionaire Eli Broad have made donations to the district to help pay the salaries of mostly senior district officials.

Locked in a close race for the seat representing Pennsylvania in the U.S. Senate, Republican Pat Toomey on Sunday insisted that he is no Christine O’Donnell. O’Donnell, the GOP senatorial candidate in neighboring Delaware, is a “tea party” movement favorite, whose conservative positions allowed her to defeat an establishment Republican for the senatorial nomination. Her campaign in the general election has been become bogged down in a variety of issues, including her campaign ad explaining that she is not really a witch.

More than 25 pro baseball scouts are crowded around the bullpen at Westlake Village Oaks Christian to catch a glimpse of senior right-hander Phil Bickford warming up. Some are holding stopwatches; others are carrying video cameras. It's an all-out study session that will repeat itself each time Bickford steps on the mound. Whether he smiles or frowns, whether he winks or sighs, every reaction is being watched and evaluated. The reason: Bickford has put himself in position to be a possible first-round pick in the June amateur draft.

Trying to bounce back from his miserable start to the season, Dario Franchitti won the pole position for the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach. Franchitti, a four-time champion in the Izod IndyCar Series and winner of the Long Beach race in 2009, turned the quickest qualifying lap of 105.369 mph Saturday. Ryan Hunter-Reay, the reigning champion and 2010 Long Beach winner, will start alongside Franchitti on Sunday after qualifying second at 105.282 mph in his car prepared by the Andretti Autosport team.