Uss Iowa

The USS Iowa won't open to the public until next month, but that doesn't mean you have to wait until then to see the World War II battleship. I took a 45-minute harbor cruise from San Pedro just before sunset Saturday and came within 100 yards of the ship. The views in the soft light were spectacular, and many aboard the boat oohed and ahhed at the sight of the enormous  ship in its temporary home at Berth 51. It's scheduled to move again Saturday to its more permanent location at Berth 87. Tickets are on sale now for the museum, which opens July 7 ($18 for adults; $10 for children 6 to 17)

Quick, where's the lone Civil War museum in Southern California, the third-largest suspension bridge in the state and L.A.'s original ferry building? Meet the LA Waterfront. That's the new name and website branded by the Port of Los Angeles to attract visitors to places such as the Drum Barracks Civil War Museum in Wilmington, the Vincent Thomas Bridge and the Los Angeles Maritime Museum in San Pedro.  The new website provides an interactive map with more than 50 points of interest, a calendar of events and an update on new projects coming to the area.

After the coffee. Before making sure that AARP mailer was sent to the wrong address. The Skinny: Wednesday's headlines include a look at Hollywood's newest neighbor -- the battleship USS Iowa. Also, CNN's latest efforts to get something cooking and the surprising popularity of History Channel's "The Hatfields & the McCoys" miniseries. Daily Dose: The success of History Channel's "The Hatfields & the McCoys" miniseries (see below) should make the broadcast networks rethink their resistance to the genre.

The USS Iowa won't open to the public until next month, but that doesn't mean you have to wait until then to see the World War II battleship. I took a 45-minute harbor cruise from San Pedro just before sunset Saturday and came within 100 yards of the ship. The views in the soft light were spectacular, and many aboard the boat oohed and ahhed at the sight of the enormous  ship in its temporary home at Berth 51. It's scheduled to move again Saturday to its more permanent location at Berth 87. Tickets are on sale now for the museum, which opens July 7 ($18 for adults; $10 for children 6 to 17)

The mothballed, mighty Iowa, one of the world's best-known and most powerful battleships, will be permanently berthed as a tourist attraction in Los Angeles on the San Pedro waterfront, Navy officials announced Tuesday. The World War II-vintage "Big Stick" could open to visitors as soon as next summer, according to supporters of the years-long effort to bring the ship to a berth at the Port of Los Angeles. "This is a huge win for Los Angeles and a huge boost for San Pedro," said Janice Hahn, the recently seated congressional Democrat whose district includes the port.

Quick, where's the lone Civil War museum in Southern California, the third-largest suspension bridge in the state and L.A.'s original ferry building? Meet the LA Waterfront. That's the new name and website branded by the Port of Los Angeles to attract visitors to places such as the Drum Barracks Civil War Museum in Wilmington, the Vincent Thomas Bridge and the Los Angeles Maritime Museum in San Pedro.  The new website provides an interactive map with more than 50 points of interest, a calendar of events and an update on new projects coming to the area.

A day after the stricken battleship Iowa glided silently into its home port, the families and shipmates of 47 sailors killed in last week's gun turret explosion bade a solemn goodby to the sailors President Bush hailed as "the men behind the guns." In an emotional tribute, President Bush told mourners gathered in a cavernous hangar at Norfolk Naval Air Station: "I can only offer the gratitude of a nation, for your loved one served his country with distinction and honor. "We join today in mourning for the 47 who perished, and, in fact, for the 11 who survived," Bush said.

Santi Bisogni's legs have not always worked well since that searing day in the North African desert half a century ago, but Sunday he strode purposefully across a broad sweep of lawn to stand with his memories before two flags at half-staff and the President of the United States. "Who remembers the boys who lie in this ugly but beautiful place?" asked Bisogni, 72. George Bush remembered them Sunday in an elaborate Memorial Day ceremony at the park-like cemetery here for 7,862 American soldiers who died in the World War II invasions of Sicily and Italy.

Certain ships are revered because they participated in historic battles or simply represented the pinnacle of naval power for their time. One example of both is the HMS Victory, Admiral Horatio Nelson's flagship at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805. Another is the Iowa, the lead ship of the last and most powerful line of U.S. battleships ever built, President Franklin D. Roosevelt's shuttle and a World War II workhorse. Yet while the Victory is lovingly maintained as a floating museum that has helped turn Portsmouth, England , into a major tourist attraction, the massive Iowa has been mothballed by the Navy in a tributary of San Francisco Bay. That may soon change.

In an emotional outpouring of support, hundreds of letters and donations are streaming into a private fund set up for the families of the 47 sailors who were killed in the April 19 explosion aboard the battleship Iowa. The cards and letters come primarily from the southeastern Virginia area, near the Norfolk Naval Base, the Iowa's home port. However, letters have come from as far away as New York, Michigan and California. The often-poignant letters range from a message sent by a high-ranking Pentagon official to handwritten cards from elementary schoolchildren.

After the coffee. Before making sure that AARP mailer was sent to the wrong address. The Skinny: Wednesday's headlines include a look at Hollywood's newest neighbor -- the battleship USS Iowa. Also, CNN's latest efforts to get something cooking and the surprising popularity of History Channel's "The Hatfields & the McCoys" miniseries. Daily Dose: The success of History Channel's "The Hatfields & the McCoys" miniseries (see below) should make the broadcast networks rethink their resistance to the genre.

The mothballed, mighty Iowa, one of the world's best-known and most powerful battleships, will be permanently berthed as a tourist attraction in Los Angeles on the San Pedro waterfront, Navy officials announced Tuesday. The World War II-vintage "Big Stick" could open to visitors as soon as next summer, according to supporters of the years-long effort to bring the ship to a berth at the Port of Los Angeles. "This is a huge win for Los Angeles and a huge boost for San Pedro," said Janice Hahn, the recently seated congressional Democrat whose district includes the port.

Certain ships are revered because they participated in historic battles or simply represented the pinnacle of naval power for their time. One example of both is the HMS Victory, Admiral Horatio Nelson's flagship at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805. Another is the Iowa, the lead ship of the last and most powerful line of U.S. battleships ever built, President Franklin D. Roosevelt's shuttle and a World War II workhorse. Yet while the Victory is lovingly maintained as a floating museum that has helped turn Portsmouth, England , into a major tourist attraction, the massive Iowa has been mothballed by the Navy in a tributary of San Francisco Bay. That may soon change.

Santi Bisogni's legs have not always worked well since that searing day in the North African desert half a century ago, but Sunday he strode purposefully across a broad sweep of lawn to stand with his memories before two flags at half-staff and the President of the United States. "Who remembers the boys who lie in this ugly but beautiful place?" asked Bisogni, 72. George Bush remembered them Sunday in an elaborate Memorial Day ceremony at the park-like cemetery here for 7,862 American soldiers who died in the World War II invasions of Sicily and Italy.

A day after the stricken battleship Iowa glided silently into its home port, the families and shipmates of 47 sailors killed in last week's gun turret explosion bade a solemn goodby to the sailors President Bush hailed as "the men behind the guns." In an emotional tribute, President Bush told mourners gathered in a cavernous hangar at Norfolk Naval Air Station: "I can only offer the gratitude of a nation, for your loved one served his country with distinction and honor. "We join today in mourning for the 47 who perished, and, in fact, for the 11 who survived," Bush said.

The SS Lane Victory is San Pedro's other wartime museum ship. The brawny battleship USS Iowa has been a media darling since it was towed to L.A.'s harbor and opened as a museum on July 7. But the Lane Victory, built in Los Angeles in 1945 as an emergency cargo ship and lovingly restored by U.S. Merchant Marine veterans, has been a floating museum since 1989. The ship also served during the Korean and Vietnam wars. And, unlike the Iowa, this one lets you take a spin on it. The ship, a National Historic  Landmark usually found at Berth 46, plans daylong cruises on the open ocean from 9 a.m.-4 p.m. this summer and fall that are designed to re-create the feel of being transported on a cargo ship.