Cover Story
Orcutt podcaster Chris Lambert shares his story and where his hit docuseries on Kristin Smart could take him next
Orcutt might be the last place on Earth you’d expect to find America’s most popular independent podcaster. But that’s where Your Own Backyard creator Chris Lambert grew up, lives, and pieced together the hard-hitting 10-part docuseries that investigates the 1996 disappearance of Kristin Smart. The 33-year-old spent a year and a half researching the unsolved…
NEW FLICKS: RED NOTICE
NEW FLICKS: RED NOTICE Where’s it playing? Netflix What’s it rated? PG-13 Writer-director Rawson Marshall Thurber (Skyscraper, Central Intelligence, Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story) helms this old fashioned action heist comedy about FBI Agent John Hartley (Dwayne Johnson) who’s brought in by Interpol Inspector Urvashi Das (Ritu Arya) to help capture one of the world’s…
NEW FLICKS: FINCH
NEW FLICKS: FINCH Where’s it playing? Apple TV Plus What’s it rated? PG-13 Miguel Sapochnik (Repo Men) directs this family-friendly charmer about an ailing robotics engineer named Finch Weinberg, who lives with his dog, Goodyear (Seamus), and a robot (voiced by Caleb Landry Jones) that he created to take care of the dog after his…
Three Dreamers Farmstand in Buellton dishes out fresh, seasonal produce and handcrafted products from local artisans
Everyone knows it takes two to tango, but how many does it take to mango? In the case of Three Dreamers Farmstand, the answer is one mother and two daughters with mutual aspirations. Although the venue doesn’t carry mangos, per se, it does specialize in a fruit with a similarly yellowish-red tint: pears, which are…
SLO local Julie Torchia curates historic prints and local gems at new Solvang gallery
Given the amount of time Julie Torchia spends perusing rare artworks before putting them on the market, it’s not hard to believe the bittersweet reaction she described when the right buyer comes along. One of the local curator’s most recent attachments is a Henri Matisse piece, Acrobatic Dancer, which is displayed near the front entrance…
Santa Maria Public Library offers free art packs for youth
Local youth are welcome to pick up a free art pack at the Santa Maria Public Library, while supplies last, on one of the pickup dates, which range between Saturday, Nov. 13, and Friday, Nov. 19. Each pack includes a variety of art projects for participants to work on at home. For more info, call…
PCPA returns to the Marian Theatre with ‘The Secret Garden’
The Pacific Conservatory Theatre (PCPA) presents its production of The Secret Garden at the Marian Theatre in Santa Maria, Thursday, Nov. 11, through Thursday, Dec. 23. Although PCPA returned to the Solvang Festival Theater for two shows over the summer, The Secret Garden marks the company’s first show at Marian since spring of 2020. Adapted…
Representation
One thing is clear when it comes to redistricting: Santa Barbara County’s 3rd District doesn’t make sense, and something needs to change! Joan Hartmann’s district—which stretches from Lake Cachuma through the Santa Ynez Valley, down to Isla Vista, over to Lompoc and Vandenberg Space Force Base (I’m never going to get used to that), and…
Dishonest, partisan reporting is guaranteed to harden positions on either side of the COVID-19 vaccine debate
Well, just when we figured that the pandemic was finally in our rearview mirrors, the virus has come roaring back, and the blame is now being focused on all those red-state anti-vaxxers. The pandemic and the vaccine have been politically weaponized. Caveat: It is dumb to refuse vaccination, and I have myself been vaccinated.…
Dignity Health opens doors to new Nipomo-based health clinic, giving patients a closer-to-home care option
After three years of planning and development, Dignity Health opened a new primary health care center in Nipomo. “We are very excited to have another office in a growing community on the Central Coast to provide primary care support and rotating specialists that allows us to do some additional outreach,” said Dr. Scott Robertson, president…
Political Watch: November 11, 2021
• The Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors recently approved the appointment of Antonette Navarro as the new director of the Behavioral Wellness Department. Navarro will assume duties from Dr. Pamela Fisher, who was the interim director following the departure of Dr. Alice Gleghorn in June. Fisher will return to her previous position as the…
Solvang sees potential in valleywide bike share program
Solvang’s bike retailers, pedicabs, and trolley tours could face new competition if city officials follow through with a recent bike share proposition. Introduced by Solvang City Councilmember Mark Infanti during the council’s Nov. 8 meeting, the program’s inspired by Santa Barbara’s electric bike sharing model. Infanti frequently used BCycle, Santa Barbara’s e-bike provider, as an…
Advocates support Santa Maria and Guadalupe unification for redistricting
Santa Maria and Guadalupe high school students wearing MICOP and CAUSE shirts gathered in the Betteravia Government Center on Nov. 3, waiting until 9 p.m. to speak on behalf of a redistricting map that they said could benefit Latinos, immigrants, and persons of color in Santa Barbara County. The United Communities Map proposes that…
