MAY 19TH, 2025

MONDAY’S VIBES

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CONFIRMED: AIR TAXIS

FOR 2028 OLYMPICS

OH, HELLO 🤙 OPTS + FUN

• Good Morning CuratedLA Family and Happy Monday! While I’ve been vibe coding CuratedLA v3, a few unexpected doors opened and I walked through them with gratitude. Now we’re back, all digitally bunkered in. And here’s our Monday morning dose of Good Vibes to start our week off on the positive/uplifting side. I’ll be back in your inbox Friday, but if you need me before then, just hit reply. Wyatt

ON THIS DAY ⏪️ 

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HOV LANES

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EATS

OPENINGS

BRENTWOOD 🥖 GGIATA

• GGiata Delicatessen, a fast-growing East Coast-style Italian deli, is set to open a new location in Brentwood on San Vicente Blvd, taking over the former New York Bagel space in the Town & Country Shopping Center. GGiata is known for signature sandwiches, salads, and breakfast items, all while bringing a modern twist to classic Italian-American deli fare.

  • Website + Menu + Instagram

SOUTH PASADENA 🍞 CANNONBALL

• Cannonball opened its doors on Mission Street in South Pasadena. The restaurant offers a refined yet approachable menu blending Italian and American influences—think tuna crudo, fideos, NY steak, and olive oil cake. The space features both indoor and patio seating beneath a century-old oak tree, creating a warm, modern ambiance. Cannonball is open Thursday through Monday from 5:00pm to 10:00pm with reservations available via Resy.

  • Website + Menu + Instagram

CULVER CITY 🐔 GOKIGEN TORI

• Gokigen Tori opened in Culver City, bringing an authentic Tokyo-style yakitori experience to our city. The restaurant is centered around a charcoal grill and offers an exclusive omakase menu at the counter with skewers crafted from nearly every part of the chicken, alongside seasonal specialties like fresh sashimi. The à la carte menu includes curations of bacon-wrapped cheese mochi, tamagoyaki, clay pot rice, and blowtorched pollock roe. A sake sommelier is available to guide guests through drinks and experiences.

  • Menu + Instagram

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EVENTS

MONDAY

TUESDAY

THREE FUTURES

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ACTIVITIES

LOS ANGELES 📸 BILLBOARD CREATIVE

• ONGOING - JUNE 5TH: The Billboard Creative’s 11th Annual Exhibition is ongoing through June 5th, turning billboards across Los Angeles into public art displays. Featuring nearly thirty local and international artists, the project brings contemporary art to city streets with works viewable through an online map at thebillboardcreative.com.

BURBANK 🎥 BTS ON NEW EXHIBITS

• ONGOING - JUNE 15TH: Warner Bros. Studio Tour Hollywood just launched two new exhibits and brought back its SoCal Resident Discount through June 15th, giving us locals a chance to explore behind the scenes at a lower price. In honor of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, the Script to Screen exhibit now features costumes from stars like Simu Liu, Mindy Kaling, and Bruce Lee. A newly revealed Superman installation showcases first looks at costumes from the upcoming 2025 film, including David Corenswet as Clark Kent and Rachel Brosnahan as Lois Lane. Tours run daily from morning through mid afternoon 💌 

  • 💌 Submitted by Curators from MikeWorldWide.

PASADENA 🤖 COMIC CON

• FRIDAY: The Pasadena Comic Con returns to the Pasadena Convention Center with a full day of panels, collectibles, celebrity guests and artist showcases for fans of all ages. The event runs from 9:00am to 5:00pm, with early admission options that include exclusive merch like enamel pins and Funko Pops while supplies last. Tickets start at $15 in advance, and kids under twelve get in free, making it a welcoming and family friendly stop for Memorial Day weekend plans.

GARDEN GROVE 🍓 STRAWBERRY FESTIVAL

• STARTS FRIDAY: The 65th Annual Garden Grove Strawberry Festival takes over Village Green Park from Friday through Memorial Day on Monday with free admission, nightly concerts, carnival rides, celebrity meet and greets, and plenty of strawberry shortcake. Friday kicks off with a movie + cake cutting, followed by Saturday’s parade featuring stars like Kate Linder and Sylvia Mendez, while daily contests, music stages, and nonprofit food booths round out the family friendly event. All proceeds benefit local charities, making it a sweet way to give back.

PRIDE SCREENINGS 🏳️‍🌈 WITH PRIME VIDEO 💌

• STARTS JUNE 7TH: Cinespia’s 24th Season continues at Hollywood Forever with a fresh June lineup and a special Pride screening presented by Amazon MGM Studios and Prime Video. The outdoor film series kicks off June 7th with Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, followed by a 30th anniversary Pride celebration of Showgirls on June 14th, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off on June 21st, and Casablanca on June 28th. Tickets are now available 💌 

  • 💌 Submitted by Curators from PR DEPT.

BOOKWORMS 📚️ READING RHYTHMS

• MAY 31ST + JUNE 22ND: Reading Rhythms has quietly become one of the loudest trends in social wellness, now arriving in LA with two upcoming events: May 31st at Burton Chace Park in Marina del Rey and June 22nd at Creature’s Plants and Coffee in Eagle Rock. This is not a book club, it’s a reading party where guests rotate between solo reading and low key conversation, all BYO book. The concept is exploding nationwide, with chapters launching in cities coast to coast and glowing features in the New York Times, Rolling Stone, and the TODAY Show.

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COMMUNITY

HEAT ADVISORY 🌡️ TOMORROW - FRIDAY

• Today begins a stretch of intense heat across LA with valley temps climbing into the high 90s and low 100s by midweek. A heat advisory begins tomorrow through Friday. Gusty winds up to 50mph continue through mountain passes and southern Santa Barbara increasing fire risk in dry brush areas. Tonight’s sundowner winds will bring even warmer drier air into Tuesday. Early morning hours may offer the coolest window for outdoor activity.

LA28 ✈️ AIR TAXIS

• LA28’s car-free vision for the 2028 Summer Olympics now includes electric air taxis, thanks to a new partnership with San José-based Archer Aviation. The four-passenger eVTOL aircraft will shuttle VIPs and fans between venues like SoFi Stadium and LAX in twenty minutes, bypassing L.A.'s infamous gridlock. With plans for a fifty aircraft fleet and vertiports across the city, Archer aims to offer Uber Lux-level pricing through an app-based system. The aircraft, which is said to be both quieter and safer than helicopters, will also support security and emergency services during the Games.

LOS ANGELES 🏡 SELLERS LIST, BUYERS WAIT

• Los Angeles saw a 9.1 percent jump in new home listings this April as hesitant buyers grappled with economic uncertainty and slightly lowered mortgage rates, according to Zillow’s latest report. Despite 39.1 percent more inventory year over year and a modest 1.2 percent rise in home values, pending sales in LA dropped 2.3 percent, reflecting broader statewide trends in Southern California metros like Riverside and San Diego, where listings surged but sales remained flat or dipped. Statewide, California inventory levels now rival those last seen pre-pandemic, but with a cautious buyer pool, homes are sitting longer, and nearly one in four sellers has cut prices to compete.

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DEVELOPMENT

CULVER CITY 🧑‍🌾 PUBLIC MARKET

• New renderings for Culver Public Market show a streamlined redesign for the long-delayed project at Washington Blvd and Centinela Ave. The revised $24m plan—backed by $17m in public funds—features stucco, glass, and metal facades, 13,000 sq. ft. of retail and dining, and a 122-car garage. Expected to break ground in Winter 2025, the project aims to generate over $159k in annual tax revenue and 101 permanent jobs.

VENICE 🧑‍🎨 ARTIST HOUSING

• A new mixed-use project has been greenlit at 1–4 East Market Street in Venice, converting a duplex into a 3,511-square-foot, two-story artist-in-residence hub with a café. Designed by Breakform Design and backed by 60 Market JV, the development includes two live-work units, two guest rooms, and a 555-square-foot restaurant with 38 seats split between indoor and outdoor space. Featuring a flat-roofed, brick-and-stucco design with a removable open-air arcade, the project blends adaptive reuse with modern infill and enhances the pedestrian experience on Market Street.

DUARTE 🏥 $400M CANCER CENTER

• City of Hope has unveiled Hope Plaza, a sweeping $400m outpatient cancer center in Duarte designed to meet the growing needs of younger patients and long-term survivors. The eight-story, 350,000-square-foot facility replaces four older buildings and boosts patient capacity by 69%, supporting 168,000 visits annually with over 100 infusion stations, 84 exam rooms, and dedicated research space. Designed by CO Architects and EwingCole, the structure draws inspiration from the nearby San Gabriel Mountains, featuring a full-glass north face and dynamic metal paneling that shifts color with the sun.

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BUSINESS

CULVER CITY 🎾 PADEL UP

• Culver City just scored a new racquet sport hub with the opening of Padel Up, a sleek indoor padel club that debuted on May 10th. The space blends fitness and social energy with premium courts, a lounge, and a full bar serving beer, wine, and cocktails. Padel Up taps into the fast-growing global sport of padel, a doubles game combining squash and tennis.

WHALAR GROUP 💰️ POWERING CREATOR ECONOMY

• Our friends at Whalar Group have secured strategic funding from Salesforce’s Marc Benioff, Shopify, and Hollywood producer Neal H. Moritz, marking a new chapter in the rise of Creator-led media. The investment supports Whalar’s end to end ecosystem, covering talent management, IP development, gaming, and more. The investment is designed to help creators scale like entertainment companies. Shopify brings its vision for community driven commerce, while Moritz connects creators to Hollywood level IP opportunities.

SANTA MONICA 🔌 TESLA CENTER

• Tesla has renewed its lease on the 82,000-square-foot service center along Colorado Avenue in Santa Monica. While Elon Musk has shifted parts of his business empire, like SpaceX and X to Texas, Tesla’s presence in California remains steady. With industrial space in West and South L.A. now at just 5% vacancy, per Daum Commercial, Tesla continues to invest in the LA Area.

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ENTERTAINMENT

YOUTUBE 🎧️ 1BN PODCAST ENGAGEMENTS

• YouTube just announced it now reaches over 1bn monthly podcast listeners, making it the most used podcast platform in the U.S., thanks to its blend of audio and video that meets users where they are: on phones, computers, and even TVs. This shift is driven by visual-first shows like Club Shay Shay, New Heights, and Rotten Mango, which are changing how people engage with talk and true crime genres. YouTube’s push to onboard podcasters into its revenue-sharing program and boost discovery through its recommendation system has positioned the platform as the go-to place for creators and fans alike, with over 400m hours of podcast content watched monthly on TV screens alone.

CANNES 🤝 JENNIFER LAWRENCE X ROBERT PATTINSON

• Mubi has landed the first major deal of Cannes 2025, acquiring Jennifer Lawrence and Robert Pattinson’s Die My Love for over $23m, its largest buy to date. Directed by Lynne Ramsay and based on Ariana Harwicz’s novel, the film follows a woman’s descent into postnatal depression and is earning early Oscar buzz for Lawrence. Mubi beat out Apple and Neon with a 1,500 screen US theatrical commitment.

WES ANDERSON 👏 STANDING TEARS AT CANNES

• Wes Anderson returned to Cannes with The Phoenician Scheme, earning a seven-and-a-half minute standing ovation and visibly moving first time Anderson-cast Mia Threapleton to tears. Set in 1950 and led by Benicio Del Toro as a billionaire industrialist with a target on his back, the film blends Anderson’s signature whimsy with noir intrigue as his estranged daughter, a nun-in-training, joins a surreal global mission to close a mysterious financial gap and uncover her mother’s murder. Critics praised Del Toro’s command of Anderson’s rhythm, and the all star ensemble includes Michael Cera, Riz Ahmed, Scarlett Johansson, and Kate Winslet’s daughter Threapleton in her breakout role. The film opens in New York and Los Angeles on May 30th with wider release June 6th.

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SPORTS

ANGELS/DODGERS ⚾️ SERIES SWEPT BY ANGELS

• The Angels completed a stunning three game sweep of the Dodgers with a 6-4 win yesterday, highlighted by Travis d’Arnaud’s go ahead homer in the eighth and Shaun Anderson’s clutch two inning relief finish that ended with a strikeout of Shohei Ohtani. Yusei Kikuchi exited with a 4-1 lead after a solid start, but a bullpen hiccup tied the game before d’Arnaud delivered the game winner. Despite sitting last in the AL West, the Angels handed the Dodgers their first series sweep since July 2023 and their first by the Angels in fourteen years.

LA GALAXY/LAFC ⚽️ REUS RESCUES GALAXY

• Marco Reus scored twice, including a clutch 87th minute free kick, as the LA Galaxy drew 2-2 with LAFC in yesterday’s El Trafico. Despite the highlight, the Galaxy remain winless at 0-10-4, extending the worst start in MLS history just days after head coach Greg Vanney signed a contract extension. Denis Bouanga and Nathan Ordaz scored for LAFC, who stretched their unbeaten run to seven games. Gabriel Pec returned from injury and nearly netted a late equalizer, but was ruled offside before Reus salvaged the point.

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GOODIES

PODCASTING 🎧️ PREFERRED PLATFORM

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START THIS WEEK STRONG, LA!

🤙 THANK YOU CURATEDLA CREW
I’LL SEE YOU ALL ON FRIDAY 🚀

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