Runway

Playa Vista was the last major coastal community in Los Angeles to be built, but a crucial retail development to give it its own downtown was stalled by legal challenges. That's about to change. With court victories in hand, developers have unveiled the design of a long-anticipated shopping and apartment complex they will begin building in June as the key element of the second and final phase of Playa Vista. The $260-million project, called Runway at Playa Vista, is intended to be the commercial and social heart of the planned community that has been under construction for more than a decade on land once controlled by aviation mogul Howard Hughes south of Marina del Rey. Playa Vista already has more than 3,200 residences and 2 million square feet of offices but lacks a commercial and social town center, said Patti Sinclair, co-president of Playa Capital, the master developer of Playa Vista.

In 1944, as head of the Office of Strategic Services in Bari, Italy, George Vujnovich guided a team of agents who worked with Yugoslav guerrilla leader Draza Mihailovich to airlift more than 500 airmen from a makeshift runway carved on a mountaintop in Nazi-occupied Yugoslavia. The World War II air rescue mission, "Operation Halyard," was relatively obscure until the 2007 release of "The Forgotten 500," a book by Gregory Freeman. "We didn't lose a single man. It's an interesting history.

Bob Kahl slips in through a side door of the vast, abandoned hangar and looks at what's left of the assembly plant where he worked for nearly 40 years. He remembers the hum of power tools, the biting aroma of cutting oil, swarms of workers plugging away on a labyrinth of yellow scaffolding. All that's left is a few piles of broken concrete and a sea of colorless dust that coats a Palmdale factory floor the size of two football fields. "Welcome to the birthplace of America's space shuttle fleet," said Kahl, 60, smiling.

Playa Vista was the last major coastal community in Los Angeles to be built, but a crucial retail development to give it its own downtown was stalled by legal challenges. That's about to change. With court victories in hand, developers have unveiled the design of a long-anticipated shopping and apartment complex they will begin building in June as the key element of the second and final phase of Playa Vista. The $260-million project, called Runway at Playa Vista, is intended to be the commercial and social heart of the planned community that has been under construction for more than a decade on land once controlled by aviation mogul Howard Hughes south of Marina del Rey. Playa Vista already has more than 3,200 residences and 2 million square feet of offices but lacks a commercial and social town center, said Patti Sinclair, co-president of Playa Capital, the master developer of Playa Vista.

Nails have replaced the statement necklace, earrings and "it" bag as the accessory du jour. Whether it's a striped metallic or textural "deconstructed" look, the trends in bold nail color and design take a cue directly from designer runways. A California company, Creative Nail Design, is leading the way, conceptualizing and executing some of the most eye-popping nail looks for runway shows in New York, London and Paris by drawing inspiration from a designer's overall vision, color palette and collection.

Maybe he was lost? An alleged drunk driver steered his Jeep onto the runways of Philadelphia International Airport on Thursday morning, startling onlookers and forcing the airport to close for about 30 minutes. Although he didn't make it onto any runways that were in use, Kenneth Mazik caused several flights to be diverted while police worked to intercept his black Jeep Grand Cherokee, Philadelphia police said.  Mazik, 24, allegedly drove through a runway gate fence shortly after 11 a.m. and led police officers and a fleet of emergency workers on a brief chase.

On Oct. 3 in Image, you show the model runway scene ["Spring Forecast," "Bohemian Bliss," "Punk Glamour"]. What I continue to wonder is: If I designed a frilly frock for some woman to wear, I would want it shown on a woman with a shape and a pretty, smiling face. What I would apparently get is a skinny bimbo, built like a 10-year-old boy and a face that looks like she just ate a lemon. How in the world does that sell anything? I spent a lot of years in the sales game when I was young.

Walking into the 85-year-old Compton Airport is like coming upon a secret. There is no massive landmark like the Theme Building at LAX, or lighted letters pointing out the entrance. There aren't even signs on the freeway directing people to the oldest airport in the Los Angeles Basin. "It's a hidden gem. It's also a very important asset to the city," said Dennis Lord, a Los Angeles County aviation commissioner. "Most cities don't have airports. Compton does." Compton/Woodley Airport is one of the survivors in a county that had as many as 75 airports in the late 1950s, when general aviation was hitting its stride.

GERREN TAYLOR was still playing with Barbie dolls when she walked the runway for the first time at Los Angeles Fashion Week in 2003. Just 12 at the time, she was the youngest person ever to be represented by the runway division of L.A. Models. Although most agencies require girls to be 14, it's not unheard of for 12-year-olds to get work. Actress Milla Jovovich made the cover of Vogue at 12, and Brooke Shields, Gisele Bundchen and Kate Moss were all stars before they turned 16. With her long legs and confident walk, Taylor looked as though she would follow in their footsteps.

Say "so long" to short skirts and hello (again) to the 1970s. Get ready to banish black from your wardrobe and get creative with color. Now that the spring runway shows are over in New York, Milan and Paris, it's up to department store fashion directors and boutique owners to package the big ideas. Chanel's garden party, Balenciaga's punk brigade and Marc Jacobs' 1970s show were all memorable on the runways, but will they make it to store racks? Here, retailers offer their takeaways from the season, and ideas about how the trends might trickle down to you. Ken Downing, senior vice president and fashion director, Neiman Marcus Big idea: The vintage Yves Saint Laurent effect, fueled by the major YSL retrospective exhibition that just closed in August in Paris.

Maybe he was lost? An alleged drunk driver steered his Jeep onto the runways of Philadelphia International Airport on Thursday morning, startling onlookers and forcing the airport to close for about 30 minutes. Although he didn't make it onto any runways that were in use, Kenneth Mazik caused several flights to be diverted while police worked to intercept his black Jeep Grand Cherokee, Philadelphia police said.  Mazik, 24, allegedly drove through a runway gate fence shortly after 11 a.m. and led police officers and a fleet of emergency workers on a brief chase.

  In New York, Los Angeles fashion has come of age. New York Fashion Week, which kicked off Wednesday with more than 300 fashion shows and presentations scheduled to take place in the coming days, is not just a platform for New York designers to gain media attention and retail orders. It's a showcase for designers from all over the world - and, notably this year, Los Angeles, which now has a breadth of talent to rival any major fashion city. Twenty years ago, Los Angeles had a reputation for producing clothing that was casual, comfortable and wearable, but not necessarily innovative or runway-worthy.

A Gulfstream jet carrying Rick Hendrick , one of NASCAR's most successful team owners, his wife, Linda , and two pilots ran off a runway in Key West, Fla., on Monday night, but "there were no serious injuries," Hendrick Motorsports said. The G150 airplane was "experiencing brake issues upon landing at Key West International Airport," the team said, adding that all four people "were taken to a local hospital for evaluation. " Four of the leading drivers in NASCAR's Sprint Cup Series drive for Hendrick: reigning champion Jimmie Johnson , Jeff Gordon , Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Mark Martin . The incident occurred seven years after Hendrick's 24-year-old son, Ricky , Hendrick's brother John and two of Hendrick's nieces, along with six others, were killed when their small plane crashed on the way to a race in Martinsville, Va. — Jim Peltz ETC. Fisher says there's no rift in players' union Is there dissension in the NBA players' union?

The photographs of German-born artist Ellen von Unwerth have a certain whimsy, a vaudevillian character that lifts them beyond being fashion photographs or even erotic nudes. There is a sense of performance that might be attributable to her teen years, before becoming a fashion model then a photographer, when she joined the Munich circus. "I joined the circus because I loved the atmosphere and being with the artists," she wrote to The Times via email. "I worked as a number girl, as the assistant to the knife throwers and clowns; this was an amazing time.

For all the Beyoncè, Taylor Swift and Justin Timberlake sightings, and all the peppy clothes in acid-bright colors and arty prints, what really blew my mind at New York Fashion Week was watching Rico the Zombie in a virtual fashion show. The digitized version of the tout-tattooed model-muse strutting the catwalk was just one of the visual delights at Nicola's, a temporary concept store curated by Nicola Formichetti, the magazine stylist-editor, Mugler designer and frequent Lady Gaga collaborator.

A 59-year-old Burbank business owner pleaded not guilty Friday to creating a nuisance and potential danger for aircraft at Bob Hope Airport by feeding hundreds of pigeons near the runway. Charles Douglas appeared in Los Angeles County Superior Court in Burbank with attorneys Bruce Kaufman and Donald Ingalls to answer to the misdemeanor charges of disobeying a court order and creating a public nuisance. They declined to comment about the case, which was continued to Oct. 21 for a pretrial hearing.

The runway at Lindbergh Field was shut down for 18 minutes Wednesday night after a Delta Air Lines jet overshot its landing and ran off the runway. There were no injuries and no damage to either the airplane or the runway, airport authorities said. Flight 867 from Atlanta landed in San Diego at 9:37 p.m., but the Boeing 757 didn't come to a full stop until its nose wheel was already past the end of the runway, said airport Supervisor Don Picht. "He stopped with his main wheels on the runway, and they just towed him back to the gate," Picht said.

Honduran President Manuel Zelaya, ousted a week ago in a military coup, failed Sunday in his attempt to return home to reclaim power, his flight forced to detour after the nation's de facto rulers said it could not land here and placed army trucks on the runway. Thousands of Zelaya's supporters, pressing toward the heavily guarded Tegucigalpa airport in hopes of greeting him, reacted with anger and clashed with soldiers and police who pushed them back.

The future of LAX Re "Upscaling their flight plans," July 3 Los Angeles International Airport officials should consider what other cities have done. San Francisco built a new terminal on top of existing structures, and Denver built a new airport outside the city. LAX could do either. Move the main airport to Palmdale. Perhaps the airport could be reconfigured with long terminals similar to Denver's, with underground connections between terminals. It would mean giving up the 1960s-era curbside arrival and departure and the central parking area for a centralized check-in and security entrance.

Maybe the most amazing part of a JFK airport story involving turtles on the runway is that the reptiles now have their own Twitter feed, @jfkturtles , with more than 2,800 followers and many witty tweets. To catch up the slowpokes here: About 150 turtles crawled onto the runway at New York City's JFK airport Wednesday morning, delaying flights as crews cleared them from the tarmac. The incident occurred about 6:45 a.m. New York time, an FAA spokesman told Associated Press. This has happened before at JFK. In July 2009, a runway was shut down when about 80 turtles crawled from the bay to the tarmac, a seasonal event linked to their  spawning cycle.