The nation’s largest airlines lost a combined $46 billion last year as the COVID-19 pandemic brought the travel industry to its knees.During the depths of the slump, airlines laid off or furloughed as many as 82,000 workers, thousands of whom haven’t been rehired, and filled  with several hundred parked planes, many of which are still languishing.Is now really the best time to launch a new airline?Andrew Levy, a former United Airlines executive, thinks so. He is set to begin operating low-fare Avelo Airlines out of Hollywood Burbank Airport on April 28, starting with three planes and 11...…The nation’s largest airlines lost a combined $46 billion last year as the COVID-19 pandemic brought the travel industry to its knees.During the depths of the slump, airlines laid off or furloughed as many as 82,000 workers, thousands of whom haven’t been rehired, and filled  with several hundred parked planes, many of which are still languishing.Is now really the best time to launch a new airline?Andrew Levy, a former United Airlines executive, thinks so. He is set to begin operating low-fare Avelo Airlines out of Hollywood Burbank Airport on April 28, starting with three planes and 11...WW…

For the second time in two months, the Hollywood sign has been altered — this time with the image of a cow’s head placed over the first “o.”Three men in their 20s were arrested Friday after allegedly hanging the image on the iconic sign, according to the Los Angeles Police Department. In February,  after making the sign read “Hollyboob.”Capt. Steve Lurie, commander of the LAPD’s Hollywood Division, said police were called just before 11:30 a.m. Friday after the men were spotted in the area around the sign, which is surrounded by Griffith Park but inaccessible to the public and privately...…For the second time in two months, the Hollywood sign has been altered — this time with the image of a cow’s head placed over the first “o.”Three men in their 20s were arrested Friday after allegedly hanging the image on the iconic sign, according to the Los Angeles Police Department. In February,  after making the sign read “Hollyboob.”Capt. Steve Lurie, commander of the LAPD’s Hollywood Division, said police were called just before 11:30 a.m. Friday after the men were spotted in the area around the sign, which is surrounded by Griffith Park but inaccessible to the public and privately...WW…

Copyright © 2021, Los Angeles Times | | | |AdvertisementNow that counties across Southern California have moved from the most extreme purple tier for COVID-19 restrictions into the red tier — and look to enter the even more permissive orange tier as new cases drop and vaccination rates rise — movie theaters, museums, theme parks and other cultural institutions (with the exception of most live performance spaces) are beginning the reopening process within pandemic guidelines. Call it our spring awakening.Times entertainment photo editor Ken Kwok dispatched photographers Jay L. Clendenin,...…Copyright © 2021, Los Angeles Times | | | |AdvertisementNow that counties across Southern California have moved from the most extreme purple tier for COVID-19 restrictions into the red tier — and look to enter the even more permissive orange tier as new cases drop and vaccination rates rise — movie theaters, museums, theme parks and other cultural institutions (with the exception of most live performance spaces) are beginning the reopening process within pandemic guidelines. Call it our spring awakening.Times entertainment photo editor Ken Kwok dispatched photographers Jay L. Clendenin,...WW…

A black bear was spotted early Sunday in Eagle Rock, only about a mile from where another sighting took place last week.About 2:30 a.m., a “small brown bear” was seen near the 2100 block of Estes Road, according to dispatch audio posted to the Citizen safety alerts mobile app. The state Department of Fish and Wildlife confirmed that it received a call about the sighting.About an hour later, the bear was seen walking into the brush beside the Ventura Freeway during an apparently active morning for Los Angeles’ wild critters. “A coyote is barking at the bear,” a report posted on the Citizen...…A black bear was spotted early Sunday in Eagle Rock, only about a mile from where another sighting took place last week.About 2:30 a.m., a “small brown bear” was seen near the 2100 block of Estes Road, according to dispatch audio posted to the Citizen safety alerts mobile app. The state Department of Fish and Wildlife confirmed that it received a call about the sighting.About an hour later, the bear was seen walking into the brush beside the Ventura Freeway during an apparently active morning for Los Angeles’ wild critters. “A coyote is barking at the bear,” a report posted on the Citizen...WW…

People who have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 may soon be cleared to gather in small groups without masks, according to federal officials.The expected update to public health guidance, announced during a White House COVID-19 task force meeting, would mark the first sign of a return to normalcy since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s leading expert on infectious diseases, said that a small reunion of fully-vaccinated people presents a low risk of spreading the virus.“I use the example of a daughter coming in from out of town who is doubly vaccinated,...…People who have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 may soon be cleared to gather in small groups without masks, according to federal officials.The expected update to public health guidance, announced during a White House COVID-19 task force meeting, would mark the first sign of a return to normalcy since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s leading expert on infectious diseases, said that a small reunion of fully-vaccinated people presents a low risk of spreading the virus.“I use the example of a daughter coming in from out of town who is doubly vaccinated,...WW…

The Los Angeles Police Department has launched an internal investigation after an officer reported that a photo of George Floyd with the words “You take my breath away” in a Valentine-like format was being “passed around” by other officers, Chief Michel Moore said Saturday.Moore said the officer who made the complaint is set to be interviewed Monday, and the department’s goal is to determine exactly where and how the image may have come into the workplace, online or otherwise, and who may have been involved.“Our investigation is to determine the accuracy of the allegations while also...…The Los Angeles Police Department has launched an internal investigation after an officer reported that a photo of George Floyd with the words “You take my breath away” in a Valentine-like format was being “passed around” by other officers, Chief Michel Moore said Saturday.Moore said the officer who made the complaint is set to be interviewed Monday, and the department’s goal is to determine exactly where and how the image may have come into the workplace, online or otherwise, and who may have been involved.“Our investigation is to determine the accuracy of the allegations while also...WW…

The nonconsensual removal of a condom during sexual intercourse would be an act of sexual battery under a bill introduced Monday by Assemblywoman Cristina Garcia (D-Bell Gardens).California’s Civil Code currently characterizes sexual battery as someone who acts with the intent to cause a harmful or offensive contact with an intimate body part of another, and as a result, commits a sexually offensive act. The perpetrator is liable for damages.The bill, AB 453, would add a provision that says a person commits sexual battery if they cause “contact between a penis, from which a condom has been...…The nonconsensual removal of a condom during sexual intercourse would be an act of sexual battery under a bill introduced Monday by Assemblywoman Cristina Garcia (D-Bell Gardens).California’s Civil Code currently characterizes sexual battery as someone who acts with the intent to cause a harmful or offensive contact with an intimate body part of another, and as a result, commits a sexually offensive act. The perpetrator is liable for damages.The bill, AB 453, would add a provision that says a person commits sexual battery if they cause “contact between a penis, from which a condom has been...WW…

The White House on Monday announced that President Biden “clearly opposes” the ongoing recall effort against Gov. Gavin Newsom, adding to a growing chorus of Democrats voicing support for California’s governor in recent days.Press Secretary Jen Psaki issued the statement in a tweet Tuesday afternoon shortly after she fielded a question about Biden’s position on the recall effort during a White House briefing and responded that she had not discussed the matter with the president.“In addition to sharing a commitment to a range of issues with @GavinNewsom from addressing the climate crisis to...…The White House on Monday announced that President Biden “clearly opposes” the ongoing recall effort against Gov. Gavin Newsom, adding to a growing chorus of Democrats voicing support for California’s governor in recent days.Press Secretary Jen Psaki issued the statement in a tweet Tuesday afternoon shortly after she fielded a question about Biden’s position on the recall effort during a White House briefing and responded that she had not discussed the matter with the president.“In addition to sharing a commitment to a range of issues with @GavinNewsom from addressing the climate crisis to...WW…

California has more than $10.2 billion in unclaimed property, and the state wants to reunite that money with its owners.By law, property holders — including banks, insurance companies and businesses — are required to transfer property to the state controller’s office if a customer’s account has been dormant for a certain amount of time, usually three years.“We watch over all sorts of properties you might not know exist, from a rebate that was returned to sender after a move, to bonds your grandmother bought in your name. It is so worthwhile to take a few minutes to search and discover...…California has more than $10.2 billion in unclaimed property, and the state wants to reunite that money with its owners.By law, property holders — including banks, insurance companies and businesses — are required to transfer property to the state controller’s office if a customer’s account has been dormant for a certain amount of time, usually three years.“We watch over all sorts of properties you might not know exist, from a rebate that was returned to sender after a move, to bonds your grandmother bought in your name. It is so worthwhile to take a few minutes to search and discover...WW…

California’s coronavirus case rate is now the lowest in the continental U.S., an achievement that reflects months of hard-won progress against the pandemic in the aftermath of the state’s devastating fall-and-winter surge.The state’s latest seven-day rate of new cases — 40.3 per 100,000 people — is dramatically lower than the nationwide rate of 135.3 and edged only by Hawaii, 39.1, over that same time period,  from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.At the other end of the spectrum is Michigan, which has far and away the highest seven-day case rate in the nation, at 483 per...…California’s coronavirus case rate is now the lowest in the continental U.S., an achievement that reflects months of hard-won progress against the pandemic in the aftermath of the state’s devastating fall-and-winter surge.The state’s latest seven-day rate of new cases — 40.3 per 100,000 people — is dramatically lower than the nationwide rate of 135.3 and edged only by Hawaii, 39.1, over that same time period,  from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.At the other end of the spectrum is Michigan, which has far and away the highest seven-day case rate in the nation, at 483 per...WW…