Art, Culture & Media Image

San Benito County Art, Culture & Media Digest



County Seeks New Librarian

03/25/2024

In the midst of a library expansion and an FBI investigation, San Benito County is considering the hiring of a new head librarian.

Youth Alliance Distributes Donated Laptops

03/12/2024

200 laptop computers were donated to Youth Alliance by AT&T, Monterey Peninsula Foundation and Human-I-T, for distribution to Hollister and Gilroy residents lacking "digital basics".

Photos: The Day the Presses Stopped Running | a Farewell to the Los Angeles Times Olympic Plant

03/11/2024

The March 11 edition of the Los Angeles Times print edition will be its last at the Los Angeles Times Olympic printing plant in Los Angeles.

BenitoLink Reports From the Knight Media Forum

02/27/2024

Each year the James and John Knight Foundation hosts funders and grant recipients in Miami for a forum on the state of journalism. This year was the largest yet.

Film Production Boosting San Juan Bautista Economy

02/21/2024

A sizable number of crew members are working to recast locations near the Mission Plaza as a “Southwestern Town” for the “DL Project,” an as-yet-named film by Paul Thomas Anderson, starring Leonardo DiCaprio.

SBALT Hosts Plein Air Painters on Nyland Property

02/19/2024

Artists sold chosen pieces in celebration of San Benito Agricultural Land Trust’s 30th anniversary.

Hollywood Film Plans to Shoot Scenes in San Juan Bautista

02/09/2024

City Manager Don Reynolds confirmed that he had met with location scouts from Warner Brothers. Mission Plaza, the Zanetta House, the bar at the Plaza Hotel and the Mission itself have been named as likely locations.

The One Thing Reporters and Members Must Fight For

02/07/2024

Journalism and democracy are undeniably intertwined. As the late media critic James Carey put it, “No journalism, no democracy; but, equally, no democracy, no journalism.”

UC Merced to Feature on ‘The College Tour’ Show

02/07/2024

UC Merced will be highlighted on an Amazon Prime show that showcases universities around the world.

Despite Disbanding in 1995, Grateful Dead Make Billboard History

02/05/2024

The Grateful Dead have broken the record for the most Top 40 albums to chart on the Billboard 200.

Was L.A.’s Ellen Beach Yaw the Proto-Taylor Swift?

02/05/2024

She toured the world wowing audiences, and she captured the public’s imagination for decades. No, not Taylor Swift; Ellen Beach Yaw, also known as Lark Ellen.

James Dean Made His Last Stop at This Lonely Gas Station

02/01/2024

James Dean’s last stop before he died in a car crash was at Blackwell’s Corner, a gas station in rural Kern County. His memory isn’t the draw it once was.

Space Shuttle Endeavour Takes Final Position as Star of New Museum

01/30/2024

A shrink-wrapped Endeavour was hoisted and then carefully placed in its final location at the still-under-construction Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center.

Gov. Newsom’s Budget Proposal Calls for Expanding Arts Ed Pathway

01/28/2024

The proposal aims to help working artists become arts teachers in elementary schools.

Hollister Resident Brings His Music to Hollywood

01/27/2024

In several recent films, you may have heard soundtrack music composed by Hollister resident Jared Michael Fry. His most recent film soundtrack, Miramax’s “The Beekeeper,” is playing at Hollister’s Premiere Cinemas.

Collapse of California’s News Industry Is So Severe It’ll Require Taxpayer Support to Rebuild

01/25/2024

A combination of tax credits, revenue sharing and coupons could bring stability, writes Steven Waldman, president of Rebuild Local News.

San Juan Bautista Library Inherits Theater and Literature Collection

01/12/2024

Milt Commons, long-time stage manager for El Teatro Campesino, willed his book collection to the San Juan Bautista City Library, where some volumes will form a new theater studies section.

Pasadena Named Travel Destination for 2024 by NY Times

01/09/2024

Pasadena is the only California city named a travel destination for 2024 by The New York Times. This comes despite the Los Angeles-area city being just the 45th-largest city in the state.

Audacy Bankruptcy Could Impact Six Bay Area Radio Stations

01/08/2024

Philadelphia-based Audacy, which has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy with $1.9 billion in debts, owns six radio stations in the Bay Area. These include 95.7 The Game, KCBS and 102.1 Jams.

American Graffiti is Back: Cruising Now Legal Again in California, But So Are Speed Cameras

12/27/2023

Under new state laws, five cities will test cameras to catch speeding drivers and cruising bans will be lifted statewide. The first is supposed to improve road safety, but critics of the second say it will endanger the public.

California Presses Universities to Return Thousands of Native American Remains and Artifacts to Local Tribes

12/25/2023

State audits of the University of California and the California State University found both systems have failed to comply with decades-old state and federal laws mandating the return of Native ancestral remains and cultural artifacts. Only UCLA and Cal State Long Beach have returned a majority of their collections.

Applications Available for Open Studios 2024

12/18/2023

New in 2024, Open Studios will take place over two weekends: the first, April 20-21, will feature artists based in San Juan Bautista and Aromas; the second tour, for artists based in Hollister, will take place April 27-28.

“The Fabric of Life” Mural Dedicated in San Juan Bautista

12/02/2023

As a small group of local dignitaries and residents gathered at the corner of Washington and 7th Streets on Dec. 1 in San Juan Bautista, the artists were putting the finishing touches to the new mural.

Hollister Ponders Biker Rally in 2024

12/01/2023

The Hollister City Council continued discussions on having a biker rally in July 2024. The city has not hosted a rally since 2017 because of public safety liability concerns and COVID-19.

Creative Architecture Thrives in Los Angeles

11/20/2023

With its hilly terrain, parts of Los Angeles aren’t always the easiest to build in. But that didn’t stop an architect from building a unique structure in Silver Lake.

El Teatro Campesino Stage Manager Milt Commons Dies at 96

11/17/2023

The longtime stage manager and associate of San Juan Bautista’s El Teatro Campesino was respected for his work in Teatro founder Luis Valdez’s landmark play “Zoot Suit,” as well as “La Pastorela” and “La Virgen de Tepeyac.”

A Major California Paper That’s Now Alden-Owned Might Be Dying

10/31/2023

The San Diego Union-Tribune, which has operated for 154 years, sold to controversial Alden Global Capital last year. It’s not looking great for the paper’s future.

Remembering Robert Irwin: Influential Artist Dies at 95

10/30/2023

Robert Irwin, an artist and MacArthur genius grant recipient, died in San Diego at 95 on Oct. 25. Michael Govan, who heads the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, offers a colorful retrospective on Irwin's work.

Local artist joins Elections Department

10/27/2023

Venecia Prudencio, an artist known for her socially resonant works, will lend her talents to the department with the help of the San Benito County Arts Council and a grant from the Central Coast Creative Corps.

California State Parks and Partners Launch ‘Arts in California Parks’ Program

10/26/2023

Through this new program, artists, culture bearers, and California Native American tribes will be eligible to receive funding to create artwork throughout state and local parks.

San Benito County Arts Council Launches 2023-24 Artists in the Schools Program

10/23/2023

Every school day, 10 Arts Council teaching artists are deployed to all TK-8 elementary school sites throughout the district.

Teatro Campesino Veteran Stages Thanksgiving Play

10/20/2023

Estrella Esparza-Johnson is the first Latina director of a main Western Stage production at Hartnell Community College, “The Thanksgiving Play,” which runs through Oct. 29.

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