Should transgender students be able to use the bathrooms and locker rooms that align with their gender identities? Should trans women be able to compete in women’s athletics? These are complicated questions that we have been struggling to navigate and answer over the past several years, and we’ve made progress and gained a more complete […]
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In Havoc, an embattled police detective must rescue a politician’s son from the criminal underworld
Havoc What’s it rated? TV-MA When? 2025 Where’s it showing? Netflix Writer-director Gavin Evans (The Raid: Redemption) directs this martial arts-filled, bullet-ridden, and car chase-rich crime thriller about Walker (Tom Hardy), a shady police detective whose personal life is in the shitter and whose professional life is hanging by thread. He’s corrupt but not as […]
The Pitt follows a group of ER medical staff as they hour-by-hour navigate a single work shift
The Pitt What’s it rated? Not rated When? 2025 Where’s it showing? Max The ’90s kid in me practically screamed out loud when I learned that Noah Wyle was back on the bill as an emergency room doctor. Instead of being the plucky new resident, Wyle plays Dr. Michael Robinavich (aka “Robby”), a seasoned ER […]
Gold & Greed: The Hunt for Fenn’s Treasure follows treasure hunters seeking a hidden $2 million cache of gold
Gold & Greed: The Hunt for Fenn’s Treasure What’s it rated? Not rated When? 2025 Where’s it showing? Netflix Forrest Fenn is seen by some as a dangerous trickster and by others as a dream-maker. After hiding a cache of jewels and gold somewhere in the Rocky Mountains, Fenn penned a poem with clues to […]
Dope Thief is a gritty crime drama about two friends trying to survive
Dope Thief What’s it rated? Not rated When? 2025 Where’s it showing? Apple TV+ Created by Peter Craig (The Town, The Batman, Top Gun: Maverick) based on Dennis Tafoya’s 2009 novel of the same name, Dope Thief follows two Philadelphia friends—Ray Driscoll (Brian Tyree Henry) and Manny Carvalho (Wagner Moura)—who pose as DEA agents and […]
The Baltimorons explores an unexpected romance between two misfits
The Baltimorons What’s it rated? Not rated What’s it worth, Anna? Full price What’s it worth, Glen? Full price Where’s it showing? Fremont Theater in SLO on April 27, at 5 p.m.; and the Palm Theatre in SLO on April 28, at 1 p.m. Jay Duplass (The Puffy Chair; Cyrus; Jeff, Who Lives at Home) […]
Pioneer Valley High School students win movie poster design competition
Three students out of 101 entries won the Pioneer Valley High School Digital Arts Movie Poster Design Competition this year. “Judging was especially difficult this year, as the quality of work was exceptional,” Chris Silva, a career technical education and digital arts instructor, said in a press release. “These students demonstrated outstanding dedication, hard work, […]
Buy a painting and raise money for charity at Full of Life Flatbread
Since 2018, local artist Elizabeth Chaney and Full of Life Flatbread have teamed up to raise money for charity. What started with a portrait of Anthony Bourdain and a special menu with Bourdain dishes that donated 20 percent and 10 percent of the proceeds, respectively, to suicide prevention has become a yearly occasion. “We have […]
Pacific Conservatory Theatre seeks housing hosts for its summer internship program
Room to grow Local residents interested in providing accommodations for a PCPA intern can find more information on how the informal housing arrangement works at pcpa.org/housingnetwork. To apply to be a host, visit pcpa.org/hosthousing. Toward the end of May, the Pacific Conservatory Theatre (PCPA) in Santa Maria will welcome more than 70 technical theater interns […]
All mobile home park residents deserve rent control
Rent control in Santa Barbara County mobile home parks only benefits month-to-month tenants; those with leases are exempt from rent control. Rent increases for residents with leases is at the discretion of the park owner and average 4 to 8 percent for up to five years or more. As prices go up, rents go up, […]
It’s high noon for the politicized judiciary and the reckless executive branches of our government
We are approaching a constitutional crisis with a confrontation between a politicized and overreaching judiciary, and a reckless president who is smashing the political norms that have enabled our system to function. The balance of power between the three branches of government is getting shaky. Currently, the Republicans control both the executive and legislative branches, […]
Rules to develop by
Buellton’s about to get one of the only art deco Arco’s in the United States. After seven long years of fighting the city over its Avenue of Flags design requirements, Arco gave in! “I think you guys know me very well by now. We’ve been here many times,” Alex Cuevas told the Planning Commission, which […]

