Posted inMusic, Arts & Culture

The Studio satirizes a legacy movie studio struggling to survive in a changing Hollywood

The Studio What’s it rated? TV-MA When? 2025 Where’s it showing? Apple TV+ Hollywood gets a thorough skewering in this ensemble satirical comedy about struggling film production company Continental Studios. Matt Remick (Seth Rogen) is the newly appointed studio head, a self-described cinephile who wants to make important films. Continental’s CEO, Griffin Mill (a hilarious […]

Posted inMusic, Arts & Culture

Tyler Perry’s Straw follows a desperate and marginalized mother struggle to care for her daughter

Straw What’s it rated? Unrated What’s it worth, Anna? Full price What’s it worth, Glen? Full price Where’s it showing? Netflix Writer-director Tyler Perry (Diary of a Mad Black Woman, The Six Triple Eight) helms this psychological crime drama about single mother Janiyah Wiltkinson (Taraji P. Henson) living hand-to-mouth in a rundown apartment with her […]

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Oak Ridge Boys celebrate July 4 with farewell concert at Chumash Casino

Oak Ridge Boys celebrate July 4 with farewell concert at Chumash Casino Iconic American vocal quartet The Oak Ridge Boys will celebrate the United States’ 249th birthday with a farewell concert at the Chumash Casino Resort’s Samala Showroom. Along with Ben James, who joined in 2023, longtime members Duane Allen, William Lee Golden, and Richard […]

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Local photographer Kayla Marie highlights the planet’s natural beauty with her shots of beaches, sunsets, mountains

Picture perfect Kayla Marie has been photographing Santa Barbara County’s landscapes since she was 9 years old. Now a mother of two young children, she shares her pictures, hoping to inspire the next generation. Find her photos on Instagram under @_kayyyyylaaaaaaa_. Find her portfolio online at kaylamariephotography.smugmug.com. Growing up in Pismo Beach, a young Kayla […]

Posted inOpinion

When youth are the target: we must stand up to immigration raids on the Central Coast

Across Ventura and Santa Barbara counties, a deeply disturbing pattern is unfolding—one that echoes the violent immigration enforcement actions taking place in Los Angeles.  Even more disturbing is that they are not isolated incidents. A Massachusetts high schooler was detained after appearing in court. A 9-year-old child from California is now in deportation proceedings. And […]

Posted inOpinion

Chamber danger

How much does it take to fold a chamber of commerce?  In Lompoc, apparently, it takes a little less than $50,000. The Lompoc City Council decided to cut into the amount of funding it provides to the Lompoc Valley Chamber of Commerce—both in cash and in-kind.  The result of that is about a net $60,000 […]

Posted inNews

Political Watch: June 19, 2025

• On June 12, U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla (D-California) was forcibly removed from U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem’s press conference in Los Angeles, while “exercising his duty to perform congressional oversight in the federal government’s operations in Los Angeles and across California,” according to a statement from Padilla’s office. “[Padilla] tried to ask […]

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County Planning Commission recommends urban/rural boundary revision for Famcon’s Orcutt project

A rodeo arena, dog groomer, and trade school surround the rural 4-acre parcel where Famcon Pipe and Supply hopes to build a new Orcutt facility. Located outside of Santa Maria’s city limits near the Elks Event Center, the project’s proposed site raised “no objections from our immediate neighbors,” Famcon agent Gelare Macon told the Santa […]

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