Magic Mike and Foxcatcher star Channing Tatum has revealed what he considers to be one of his worst decisions he’s made during his acting career. Although his filmography speaks for itself, and he’s starred in plenty of major Hollywood productions, there’s one project he regrets not taking on: Guillermo del Toro‘s unrealized adaptation of the classic tale Beauty and the Beast.
Tatum is currently promoting his latest movie, the crime caper Roofman co-starring Kirsten Dunst. The film, which marks Tatum’s return to comedy after previously finding success in the genre with 21 Jump Street and The Lost City, sees him play Jeffrey Manchester, the real-life thief with a fixation on McDonald’s and Toys “R” Us.
Tatum and Dunst sat for a recent interview with Vanity Fair which covered a variety of topics, including working with Roofman director Derek Cianfrance. Cianfrance is also known for directing Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams in the 2010 romantic drama Blue Valentine, and as revealed in the interview, Tatum was an early frontrunner for the part that ultimately went to Gosling. “At that point in my life, it was such a sad story, and I had not had a sad relationship like that,” said Tatum. “I just don’t think I could have done it.”
When asked about other roles he regrets not accepting, Tatum talked about del Toro’s Beauty and the Beast. The film, simply titled Beauty, had Emma Watson in the role of Belle, but when del Toro dropped out, Disney decided to continue with Watson under their production label. As Tatum said:
“One of the biggest mistakes of my career: Guillermo del Toro wanted to do Beauty and the Beast, his version of the Beast. And I’d just had a baby, I was on a movie that was absolutely killing me, and the script wasn’t totally there yet. I was just in a place in my head that I was like, ‘I don’t think I can do this right now.’ It was the biggest mistake, because I’m the biggest Guillermo fan ever. And I think Guillermo doing Beauty and the Beast would’ve been the sickest movie ever.
“He didn’t do it. He’s got a billion other things that he wants to do. He’s such a creator. I’ll probably never forgive myself on that one, but I hope we get to work together one day.”
Guillermo del Toro Is Going for Another Classic This Year
Netflix
Del Toro’s Beauty and the Beast project never came to fruition, but it’s safe to assume his vision would have tilted toward the darker aspect of the story. It would have been fascinating to see what he could have done with the fairytale.
The director’s decision to drop the project came more than ten years ago; since then, del Toro’s career has significantly evolved. He’s won Academy Awards and earned enough Hollywood clout to pursue passion projects such as his upcoming take on a different classic story: 2025’s Frankenstein, produced for Netflix and set to begin its limited theatrical run on Oct. 17 before coming to the streaming service on Nov. 7.
From the Shelbys to the Sopranos, there have been a ton of iconic TV crime families that we couldn’t help loving. A crime family is a great focus for a TV drama, because the writers can mix the high-stakes action of the criminal lifestyle with the universal relatability of a family. We’ve seen that combination in everything from Ozark to Yellowstone.
15
The Falcones
The Penguin
Sofia stands over a family dinner in The Penguin episode 4
If you think your family is bad, just look at Sofia Falcone’s story in The Penguin. When Sofia begins to suspect that her mob boss father, Carmine, is the notorious serial killer “The Hangman” — the same serial killer who she believes killed her mother — he retaliates by framing her for the murders and having her locked in Arkham Asylum.
Upon her release, Sofia is ready and willing to disown her family. None of them did anything to help her when she was enduring years of abuse and psychological torment for her father’s crimes, so she crashes a family dinner and massacres every last one of them. It’s a surprisingly empowering story that allows Sofia to rebuild the family on her own.
14
The Donovans
Ray Donovan
Ray walking away from his father in Ray Donovan
Ray Donovan is as much a father-son drama as it is a pulpy neo-noir. The title character is a professional fixer who arranges bribes and cleans up crime scenes. His life gets a lot more complicated when his dad, Mickey, is unexpectedly released from prison. Liev Schreiber and Jon Voight’s on-screen chemistry anchors the series in a tangible emotional reality.
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The Thompsons
Boardwalk Empire
Steve Buscemi in Boardwalk Empire
What makes the story of the Thompson family so heartbreaking is that they weren’t always a crime family. The Thompsons as we see them in Boardwalk Empire go back three generations of Catholic Irish-Americans living in Atlantic City. The men traditionally worked for the Sheriff’s Office, and some had even held the office of Atlantic County Sheriff themselves.
That all changed when Nucky came along and got involved in the criminal underbelly. Nucky became Atlantic County Treasurer and the boss of a political and criminal organization dubbed the Atlantic City Empire. Rather than policing and protecting the city as his ancestors had done, Nucky controlled the city as a crime boss.
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The Crowders
Justified
Boyd and Ava inspecting a body in the Justified episode Ghosts
The back-and-forth between Raylan Givens and Boyd Crowder made for one of the most compelling hero-villain dynamics in television history: two Southern charmers on opposite sides of the law. As we’re introduced to Boyd’s extended family — his dad Bo, his cousin Johnny, his sister-in-law Ava — they all turn out to be just as fascinating and unscrupulous as him.
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The Gerhardts
Fargo
Floyd (Jean Smart) and Bear (Angus Sampson) standing in a kitchen in Fargo.
Just casting Jean Smart in the role of a matriarchal mob boss was enough to earn Fargo’s Gerhardt family a place on this list. Smart’s Floyd is thrust into a position of power after her husband’s untimely passing, and has to contend with three ambitious sons all vying to take their father’s place.
The second season of Noah Hawley’s anthology series sees Floyd out for blood when her youngest son is killed in a hit-and-run incident. Smart gives a phenomenal performance as a loving mother balancing her drive for revenge with her larger business interests.
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The Tellers
Sons Of Anarchy
Sons of Anarchy season 3 Clay (Ron Perlman) and Jax (Charlie Hunnam) talking to each other.
The tragic family dynamics in Sons of Anarchy are taken from Shakespeare. Kurt Sutter set out to retell Hamlet through the eyes of a modern-day biker gang. After John Teller’s passing, his brother-in-arms Clay swoops in to usurp his place. He marries John’s wife Gemma and gets into a power struggle with his son Jax.
Meanwhile, Jax faces conflicts of his own as he and his wife Tara try to raise their own kids to avoid the life of crime he was born into. On the surface, Sons of Anarchy is an action-packed biker drama. But at its core, it’s a Shakespearean family tragedy.
The Codys from Animal Kingdom are one of the few TV crime families to be based on an actual crime family. The film that the TV series was adapted from was inspired by the real-life exploits of the Melbourne-based Pettingill family. We’re introduced to their world through an estranged outsider, J, which makes the story all the more gripping.
8
The Bluths
Arrested Development
The Bluth family on a boat in the Arrested Development pilot episode
In the pilot episode of Arrested Development, the patriarch of the Bluth family — George, Sr. — is arrested on all kinds of charges: fraud, conspiracy, racketeering, evidence tampering, theft, grand theft, petty theft (and he may have committed some light treason). The Bluths aren’t a crime family in the way that the Sopranos or the Tellers are; their focus is white-collar crime.
After George, Sr. is arrested, it’s up to the good son, Michael, to clean up the books and legitimize the family business. He’s got his work cut out for him, because the corruption is deeply embedded in the company, and he seems to be the only member of the family who actually has a conscience (and even that’s pretty shakable).
7
The Whites
Breaking Bad
Bryan Cranston as Walter White with his wife Skyler and son Walter Jr in Breaking Bad season 1
The Whites didn’t start out as a crime family. Initially, Walt wanted to keep his criminal dealings a secret until his untimely death, when his family would receive a fortune in blood money to support themselves. But it didn’t end up working out like that. Eventually, Walt had to bring in his wife Skyler as his partner-in-crime.
The most dramatically interesting thing about this partnership is that Walt and Skyler had a much more successful relationship as illegal business partners than they had as spouses. They had a toxic, unhappy marriage, but their business association was the perfect melding of twisted, conniving minds.
6
The Duttons
Yellowstone
John walking with a funeral procession after Lee Dutton’s funeral in Yellowstone
Watching Yellowstone is essentially like watching Shane from the perspective of the land barons plotting to drive people out of their homes and expand their own empire. So, it’s a testament to how compelling the cast’s performances are that audiences actually wanted to follow those characters and their story for years.
The Duttons are determined to hold onto their property and not yield any land to the encroachers coming for them. But there are plenty of internal conflicts between them. This constant infighting makes it tough for them to come together and focus on a common goal.
Not even a mini heatwave could deter thousands of Inland Empire residents from showing up to a local música Mexicana festival.
On a Saturday afternoon in May, when the temperature peaked at 100 degrees, dozens of banda fans filed into an ever-growing line outside downtown Riverside’s John W. North Park as they waited to enter La Tardeada. It’s a banda festival going on its second year and organized by Division 9 Gallery — a community arts space that hosts citywide Latino-focused cultural events.
Many of the attendees opted out of wearing comfortable summer attire, despite the intense heat, and instead put on their best vaquero outfits: a mix of leather botas, cowboy jeans held by intricately designed belts, embroidered blusas, plaid button-down shirts and classic tejanas.
For hours, the main stage was crowded with dressed-up dancers embracing cheek to cheek, moving to the sounds of trumpets, guitars and the occasional accordion. They only stopped to lift their micheladas and Modelos into the air as the lead singers shouted them out for braving the heat.
“If this were a monthly thing, I feel like I would be there all the time,” said Cielo Ramirez, an event-goer who had just left the main stage minutes earlier.
Lalo Cruz performs on the Puro Parti’ Stage at the La Tardeada Festival.
(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
La Tardeada’s success, in being able to draw around 4,000 attendees throughout the day and with the crowd’s excitement to participate in the festivities, is a reflection of the large impact the genre has had on the region. It also showcases how the Inland Empire and its residents have played a key role in música Mexicana’s rapid growth across the United States.
It’s no secret that the regional Mexican genre has exploded in popularity in recent years. A report by entertainment data analysis company Luminate, released at the end of 2024, found that it’s the largest Latin subgenre in the U.S., with on-demand streams almost tripling since 2021. A Spotify report also showed that música Mexicana streams on its platform have grown worldwide by more than 440% in the last five years. In the U.S., Latinos make up 83% of the genre’s listeners, according to a 2023 Luminate report.
The region has also produced some of the genre’s largest stars: The hitmakers of Fuerza Regida proudly rep their home turf of San Bernardino in many of their songs and visuals. “Sierreño sadboy” Ivan Cornejo is a Riverside native. Romantic balladeer DannyLux comes from the Coachella Valley. Cumbia pop queen Estevie was raised in Beaumont.
The Inland Empire’s demographics also make it a major market for the genre.
Riverside and San Bernardino counties, according to the Pew Research Center, are home to the sixth- and eighth-largest Latino populations in the U.S., respectively, and are both in the top 10 list for counties with the largest Latino population increase between 2010 and 2020. People of Mexican descent make up 86% of the region’s total Latino population, the center also found.
This large Latino demographic in the Inland Empire is, in part, due to its large rural sectors and lower cost of living, according to Xóchitl Chávez, an associate professor at UC Riverside’s department of music. Apart from being a musician, she’s also spent years documenting how Mexicans have maintained their cultural traditions after migrating to the United States. She said the area, for decades, has attracted migrants looking to replicate their birthplace’s culture. She’s also found that the two counties have been a major música Mexicana market for decades before its recent mainstream boom.
“There are a lot of working-class folks who are willing to invest their money in the region,” Chávez said. “People were able to actually buy land, and now they’ve been able to convert that land into spaces.”
She pointed to the many family-owned restaurants, ranches and music venues — bars like El Rodeo in Moreno Valley, rodeo arenas like Rancho Imperial in San Bernardino, and restaurants like A Mi Hacienda in Norco — that have been an informal circuit for local regional Mexican artists. These circuits, she explained, are considered informal because artists have learned about these spots, or were contracted by these smaller venues, through word of mouth.
Festivalgoers enjoy banda music at the La Tardeada Festival.
(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
Many other events she’s visited for research have taken her to rented-out parking lots behind warehouses or on privately owned ranchos, she added. However, while at La Tardeada, Chávez said the event could be the city’s largest banda festival and that it also highlighted a larger mainstream market shift seen throughout larger venues and concert halls.
“The casinos were probably the first ones to pick up on that right before the pandemic,” Chávez said. “This is something that is new because there is an income. Vaquero culture, banda culture is expensive, and people don’t give that credit.”
In the last few years, the Yaamava’ Resort and Casino in Highland, Morongo Casino Resort, as well as the Spa in Cabazon and Fantasy Springs Resort Casino in Indio, have regularly hosted a wide variety of música Mexicana artists. Icons like Grupo Firme played at the Highland-based casino late last year while Los Ángeles Azules and popular Mexican band La Arrolladora Banda El Limón are scheduled to perform in their concert hall in the coming months.
Local cover artists, like Mariangela Nobre, also regularly perform at these venues. Nobre has been covering the late regional Mexican artist Jenni Rivera at these casinos since 2021. The Inland Empire audience has shown her the most admiration, she explained, as fans repeatedly come to Nobre’s shows to sing along to their favorite Rivera tracks.
“I think it’s a community that pays attention to the artist, and that’s very rare,” Nobre said.
The Inland Empire is also home to the Toyota Arena. An 11,000-seat venue located in the city of Ontario, the Toyota Arena has hosted some of the genre’s top stars in the last few years. The venue most recently went viral in 2022, when Fuerza Regida played a sold-out concert after blocking the westbound 10 Freeway as part of a marketing stunt.
The arena itself has also long been a hot spot for música Mexicana, according to Mark Ocegueda, an assistant professor of history at Brown University, who grew up in San Bernardino and is writing a book on the history of Latinos in the region.
He explained that, back in the 1930s, San Bernardino had the second-largest Mexican community within the Greater Los Angeles region. That large population, he believes, pushed the entire region to be a go-to spot for Mexican artists — recalling that the Toyota Arena hosted Vicente Fernández back in the early 2010s.
“There has always been a recognition that it’s a strong market,” Ocegueda said. “The way that genre is visible and thrives in the I.E., I think it’s a really important space for that genre of music.”
In the opening shots of Fuerza Regida’s music video for “Mi Vecindario,” clips of the downtown San Bernardino nightlife play between shots of the group’s frontman, Jesús Ortiz Paz, or JOP, riding around in a Rolls-Royce. The group also references Rancho Cucamonga and Colton, two prominent San Bernardino County cities, in the first 30 seconds of the song “El Walks.”
Even in the cover art for their debut studio album, “Del Barrio Hasta Aquí,” the group has highlighted its connection to the region. The photo emulates the Beatles’ “Abbey Road” album photo, but replaces the London streets with the city’s Santa Fe smokestack and rail yard.
That location is a historically important space for the region’s Mexican American immigrants, according to Ocegueda.
“When the Mexican Revolution was going on, you had a lot of Mexican immigrants coming into these railroading hubs and centers like the Inland Empire, like San Bernardino,” Ocegueda said.
For decades, these newly immigrated workers would be segregated into the neighborhoods surrounding the smokestack, he added, leading to the growth of a large multigenerational Mexican community.
“The fact that Fuerza Regida has taken that picture is paying homage to that particular history on the west side,” he said. “It just seems really appropriate because it ties in present-day immigrant communities with the longer history of Mexican immigrant communities.”
Festivalgoers form a line to dance to banda music.
(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
The success of the genre and the region’s biggest stars has also influenced the region’s first-generation youth to pursue musical careers in the rapidly growing genre.
At La Tardeada, on a community stage yards away from the main dance floor, four teenagers called Herencia Firme stepped up for their set.
The quartet has been performing together for about two years, the group’s frontman, Enrique Ibarra, explained. They hail from Moreno Valley, went to the same high school together and created the group because of their shared love of the genre.
“A person I really respect is the singer of Fuerza Regida,” Ibarra said. “Seeing them at No. 1 for such a long time was crazy because that just means that there is more than one opportunity for our group.”
So far, they’ve primarily performed at family parties, quinceañeras and as opening acts at informal rancho festivals. Their hourlong set at the downtown Riverside festival would be their most prominent gig yet. Around 50 event-goers walk onto a small wooden dance floor while another 50 stand in the back, ready to listen to the band dressed in all-black streetwear. They are prepared to play a range of cover songs from contemporary and older corrido artists, but Ibarra quickly calls an audible onstage to start with some cumbias after seeing the small dance-hungry crowd.
Slowly, they transition back into their original setlist, playing songs like Fuerza Regida’s “Tú Name” and Clave Especial’s “Tu Tu Tu” as the banda fans start to migrate onto the grass to sit and listen to the artist’s first large festival performance.
They held the audience’s attention without any major issues. Later that afternoon, the organizers offered Herencia Firme another time slot on the same stage to continue performing for the crowd.
“The Inland Empire provides a lot of opportunities,” Ibarra said. “As long as you are a good group, you’ll find a lot of work.”
The Baja California Prosecutor’s Office is investigating a reported banner found in the border city of Tijuana containing alleged threats from a criminal group against Mexican regional music star Junior H, state authorities confirmed to Billboard Español on Wednesday (Sep. 10).
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A spokesperson for the prosecutor’s office told Billboard that the banner with the alleged threats against the Mexican-American artist was found early Tuesday morning (Sep. 9) on a ramp in the Buena Vista neighborhood, near the Universidad Autónoma de Baja California. The banner urged the singer-songwriter not to perform on November 8 at the Explanada del Estadio Caliente in the city, where he is scheduled to kick off the Mexican leg of his $AD BOYZ LIVE & BROKEN TOUR 2025.
Although there has been no formal complaint from the singer so far, the state prosecutor’s office confirmed that an investigation has already been opened. Billboard has not been able to independently verify the authenticity, origin, or authorship of the banner’s content.
The Baja California Prosecutor’s Office said that state authorities “will provide full security” to the singer if he goes to Tijuana. Junior H’s office in Mexico told Billboard Español that, for now, there is no official statement from the artist.
This isn’t the first time a corrido singer has reportedly received threats from drug cartels in Tijuana. In September 2023, Mexican superstar Peso Pluma had to cancel six concerts in the country, including his scheduled performance in the border city in October of that year, after alleged threats against him were issued by criminal groups. Earlier in February, Grupo Firme also canceled their performance at a carnival in the Mexican state of Sinaloa following the appearance of a banner in their hometown of Tijuana containing alleged death threats, reportedly linked to a drug cartel.
Born in the Mexican state of Guanajuato and known for hits like “Y Lloro,” “El Hijo Mayor,” and “Lady Gaga” featuring Peso Pluma, Junior H has enjoyed unstoppable success over the past three years, including two sold-out shows at the BMO Stadium in Los Angeles last October and a performance on the main stage at the Coachella festival in April.
He is currently on the U.S. leg of his $AD BOYZ LIVE & BROKEN TOUR, which kicked off on August 31 in Tinley Park, Illinois. In Mexico, he has more than a dozen shows scheduled, including three dates at La México (formerly Plaza de Toros México) in the capital, where tickets are already sold out.
Erin and Ben Napier have strict rules when it comes to celebrating their kids’ birthdays.
The couple revealed they are “anti-giant birthdays” in an interview with Today.com published on Tuesday, September 9. “Our rule is, until they’re old enough to plan it themselves, it’s supper at grandparents,” Ben told the outlet, noting that his daughters’ school requires every kid in a student’s class be invited to each other’s birthday parties.
“If your 4-year-old’s birthday party looks like a wedding, what do they have to look forward to?” Erin added. “Maybe this is an unpopular opinion, but I think there’s a lot of moms out there who feel the same way I do.”
The HGTV stars share 7-year-old Helen and 4-year-old Mae. Before becoming parents, Erin and Ben said they agreed that their kids’ birthday celebrations would be family-only occasions, as opposed to having “100 kids running around, losing their minds.”
“It’s stressful and loud. I was like, ‘We’re not doing this,’” Ben recalled.
An example of their smaller celebrations, Erin and Ben threw a Christmas-themed gathering for Mae’s 4th birthday in May, per her request. The get-together was attended by the kids’ cousins and featured holiday tunes and a homemade strawberry cake.
Erin has continued on her mother-in-law’s tradition of making homemade birthday cakes. The tradition is so meaningful to Ben that he made Erin a cake stand with leftover wood from Helen’s baby crib.
“Ben’s mom always made homemade birthday cakes,” Erin shared, noting that she sometimes will elevate a box cake mix with some extra ingredients.
Erin and Ben maintain their children’s privacy on social media by not featuring their faces in photos. Ben did so while sharing several new snaps of their little ones in honor of Erin’s 40th birthday last month.
“40! Celebrating my girl! The queen of the blonde beach babes!” he captioned his August 30 Instagram post, which featured many photos of Erin with her loved ones. “The one my girls look to and look like! Happy birthday @erinapier!!”
Courtesy of Ben Napier/ Instagram
Erin made another parenting revelation earlier this month. In a since-deleted post, the Home Town star shared that she and Ben decided to homeschool their kids.
“Homeschool was our dream from the day Helen was born, but work was busy, then Mae was born and we just kept saying ‘someday we will,’” she wrote, per EntertainmentNow. “After 3 years at an amazing little school, the dream wouldn’t leave me alone and we weren’t ready to let this summer of being together and having fun end. So, here we go. My painting studio became a classical school overnight.”
Recently, Berry and Chmerkovskiy shared bits of their perimenopause experiences and mental health struggles in a heartfelt conversation on The Drew Barrymore Show. It brought recognition to the psychological issues that arise with shifting hormones, wherein the celebs ranged from late-in-life personal tales about working for self-acceptance to freedom.
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The talk on The Drew Barrymore Show opened the doors for one massive historic discourse breaking decades of silence around menopause. Halle Berry and Val Chmerkovskiy had a rather frank conversation about the effects of perimenopause on one’s mind, with the revolutionary women’s feedback from around the web being so wild and free!
Berry, who formed the platform for menopause wellness, Respin, gave, “Exactly the ugly side of menopause.” “I was 54 and felt like I got dropped into hell. Nobody ever talked about this subject with me. I was scared, I was alone, had no one to talk to. I didn’t know what to do. I thought I was losing my mind.” She went on to say she was deep into depression: crying so much; just thought she was growing old, then realized it was a perimenopause chemical reaction.
Chmerkovskiy stated: “I want to add my own perspective-whatever that means, I didn’t wake up cracked open ‘free’ until I’m 64 years old. I was a people pleaser for far too long. After everything that had happened to me last year, I’m done. I’m done. I’m going to put myself first now. I have to care about myself.” Then the two of them proceeded to somewhat embody women’s science: The diminution of estrogen basically downregulates oxytocin production-so, that alone changes the way women view others’ opinions.
The comments section exploded in a wave of recognition and relief. Another user wrote, “Love how you talk so openly about it! High time!” Another one commented: “Nothing personal just scientific ❤️🙌love how Halley explained it” which sparked a mini-debate in the comments about whether hormone therapy or antidepressants should be preferred.
The most empowering comments came from these women themselves regarding their journeys. “I was like this until HRT,” one comment said “My HRT keeps me employed and engaged in life. I love being a parent again too. I had lost all hope before this and was passively suicidal. Perimenopause is no joke.” Those honest words expose to life how greatly hormonal changes can interfere with ones’ mental health and consequently impair their daily functioning.
Younger women came in as well: “Started to go through it at 23 due to genetic disorder and I’ve never understood why something we all will have to experience NEVER gets talked about.” Her separate and isolated journey through early menopause underscores the importance of these talks at all ages.
Liberation was truly a theme that hit deep. Women rejoiced in their newfound freedom from caring about other people’s opinions, a few stating, “I love how I dont care about being liked anymore ha ha 😂😂” and “Not caring about what other people think is the best part about it!” Group adoption of self-prioritization probably represents a silver lining for a large portion of women on the menopause journey.
Then they came up with real-life suggestions. “I will tell you at age 58 that yoga three to four times a week plus a beautiful yoga community has saved my sanity during this glorious stage of my life🤍,” one lady said, reiterating the power of community and movement to ground herself in turbulent times hormonally.
This wholesome interaction uncovered another major difference. Berry had a very strong period at 54, while other women reported very mild symptoms much, much earlier. “I was like 38-40 when it started,” said one woman, with another one adding, “I noticed significant changes at 45 but now that I know more, I had symptoms before then.” This diversity makes awareness even more necessary on a universal level.
Maybe the most soul-shaking and heartbreaking story was of one of the women who went through surgical menopause. “I had a hysterectomy at 43 years old. The staff forgot to give me hormone replacement after the surgery. I LITERALLY couldn’t drive because my short-term memory was so poor… The depression, memory loss, sleep deprivation, and emotional instability were unimaginable!” The long recovery of hers that went on for years underscores just how much dramatically hormonal changes impact their cognitive functions and overall quality of life.
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What makes it such a milestone is who’s having the conversation. Berry and Chmerkovskiy are spokespersons for a new wave of celebrities who are slowly chipping away at the shame and silence which have surrounded this biological experience for generations. By discussing depression, cognitive changes, and emotional instability, they dissolve the stigma associated with symptoms all these women endure in solitary.
Altadena’s Christmas Tree Lane Assn. relies on more than 100 volunteers to install its annual holiday light display and organize its free winter festival and lighting ceremony, scheduled for Dec. 6 this year.
But with the community in ruins and more than half of its volunteers displaced by the Eaton fire in January, will the association have enough helpers — and heart — to get the job done?
Actually, says association President Scott Wardlaw, the bigger concern now is whether the organization will be deluged with volunteers when work begins this month hanging long strands of lights on the massive droopy limbs of the 135 deodar cedars that line either side of Santa Rosa Avenue, a.k.a. Christmas Tree Lane, for nearly a mile.
The 135 deodar cedars lining both sides of Santa Rosa Avenue, a.k.a. Christmas Tree Lane, in Altadena survived pretty much intact after the Eaton fire in January, except for a few large branches that were broken by the fierce winds that fueled the fire.
(Jeanette Marantos / Los Angeles Times)
That’s why this year — the event’s 105th anniversary — association leaders are asking for volunteers to sign up ahead of time, Wardlaw said, so they can ensure that they have enough helpers and enough jobs for those helpers over the next 10 to 12 weekends it generally takes to put up the lights.
The association started getting inquiries this summer from people around Southern California, said Mikayla Arevalo, the association’s volunteer coordinator and communications director. People wanted to know if the trees survived the fire that destroyed more than 9,400 structures in Altadena and whether they could help the popular winter festival and lighting ceremony return again this year.
One of the miracles of the fire is that the cedars did survive, mostly intact except for a few limbs that were broken in the fierce winds. Some residents credit the massive trees for sheltering the homes beneath from the wind-driven embers that destroyed many other structures.
The lights were still on the trees when the winds began in January, but several strings were broken. Most of the association’s equipment survived in storage bins despite their proximity to other structures that burned.
In November 2024, Christmas Tree Lane volunteers Casty Fortich, from left, and Temple City High School student Patience Cam try to swing strands of lights onto one of the massive deodar cedars that line the road, while volunteer Feli Hernandez, far right, waits with another strand. In the center, Scott Wardlaw offers advice and encouragement.
(Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)
Things didn’t go so well for Christmas Tree Lane’s longtime Santa, Jim Vitale. The 1905-era home, where he and his wife, artist Dale LaCasella, had lived since 1993, burned along with all their belongings.
Despite the aftermath of the fire, the longtime volunteers for the association will be back this year at the festival, even though they now live 25 miles east in La Verne. Vitale and LaCasella started playing Santa and Mrs. Claus, respectively, for the winter festival about 15 years ago.
Jim Vitale sits in his living room wearing his personal Santa Claus costume in 2023, about 13 months before his home and costume pieces were destroyed in the Eaton fire.
(Dale LaCasella)
Vitale’s elaborate Santa costume, including his 130-year-old strand of brass sleigh bells and hand-carved belt, were all destroyed in the fire, along with LaCasella’s handmade green-and-red felt elf shoes and vest.
“We managed to leave the site with two cars, two laptops, our cat and the clothes on our backs,” Vitale said. “All our buildings, my [backyard] winery, my wife’s studio in our old carriage house, my library with 10,000 volumes about architecture and the history of California … all gone.”
LaCasella, a retired attorney, said she and her husband decided against rebuilding “because we’re too old. I’m almost 80 and I decided I couldn’t wait two years in some temporary location” until the house was rebuilt. But she’s still very involved in her old community as the president of the senior center, which was destroyed in the fire.
She drives into Altadena a few days a week to teach art classes and help find a new place for the seniors to meet until the center can be rebuilt.
Vitale, a retired home inspector and accessibility specialist for the state, is busy reassembling Santa costume parts. He has played Santa for years at various locations in Southern California, including Riverside’s Mission Inn, but his daylong volunteer stint as Altadena’s Christmas Tree Lane Santa is dearest to his heart.
Jim Vitale and his wife, Dale LaCasella, visit the barren remains of their Altadena front yard in August, seven months after their 1905 Craftsman home and outbuildings were destroyed by the Eaton fire. They believe they’re too old to rebuild, and now live in La Verne, 25 miles east.
(Marcus Ubungen / For The Times)
“As long as I can still walk and talk, and whether I live in La Verne or wherever, I’ll will always be their Santa until the Lord says, ‘Hang it up,’” Vitale said. “It’s for the love of Altadena and the history behind Altadena. You see other [communities] where people aren’t talking to each other and they have walls all around, but that’s not what Altadena and Christmas Tree Lane are about. It’s about talking to your neighbors and welcoming people. There’s just a sense of pride you don’t see in other places, and I want to preserve that history and that feeling.”
It’s hard to pinpoint what makes Christmas Tree Lane’s bare-bone light display so popular. Visitors won’t experience any flashing lights, dancing elves or blaring carols. It’s just a quiet drive beneath a near mile of stately cedars bedecked with strings of multicolor lights.
“I think the simplicity is what really draws people,” Arevalo said. “That and the tradition. … We’re a historical landmark, and I think people just love the small town feel. When you’re driving through, it seems like you’re out in the woods somewhere, not in a city. It just feels magical.”
A vintage postcard bearing a 1947 postmark, from Times writer and columnist Patt Morrison’s collection, tells the story of Altadena’s Christmas Tree Lane. If that year was the 22nd lighting, then the 100-year anniversary in 2025 is quickly approaching.
Christmas Tree Lane attracts thousands of visitors every year, who slowly drive for nearly a mile under a quiet canopy of massive cedar branches and lights. “I think the simplicity is what really draws people,” said volunteer coordinator Mikayla Arevalo.
(Los Angeles Times)
But creating that magic requires weeks of strenuous work, Arevalo said. Volunteers typically start stringing lights the second weekend of September, but the start date hasn’t been set yet this year because the association is still trying to finalize its required permits with the county.
Volunteers work every Saturday and Sunday from 8 a.m. to noon until the work is finished, usually by early November. The workers check and replace the large plastic bulbs on the long strings of lights and then use pulleys and hoists to hang and sometimes muscle those long strands of faceted lights onto the branches.
This year, workers will also need to assemble new 15-foot-strands of lights because many were broken during the windstorm that fueled the Eaton fire, Wardlaw said. Volunteers need to be at least age 13 to help. Many local high school students are regular volunteers at the light-stringing sessions and earn the 40 volunteer hours they need to graduate.
That’s how Warren and Isabelle Skidmore’s family got involved many years ago, when their daughters Hannah, 19, and Tessa, 17, started helping as freshmen at John Muir High School. Ultimately, the girls earned more than 400 volunteer hours, primarily from working on Christmas Tree Lane.
Hannah Skidmore, 19, left, and her sister, Tessa, 17, have been devoted, longtime volunteers of Christmas Tree Lane and intend to continue this year although their Altadena home was destroyed in the Eaton fire. They now live in Sierra Madre until their childhood home can be rebuilt.
(Marcus Ubungen / For The Times)
Initially, they showed up just to get their hours, Hannah said. But they soon came to realize that the work they were doing was continuing a tradition they had loved as little kids — and taken for granted, never realizing how many people it requires year after year to make it happen.
“When you see thousands of people show up [for the lighting ceremony], it feels good to know you helped make it happen,” Hannah said.
Tessa said she was initially motivated to put in all those extra hours for the challenge of earning the 200-hour volunteer medallion offered at the high school, but by the end, she said, “We were doing it for the love of being on the lane.”
It’s not like the Skidmores aren’t busy. Their home — the only home the girls have ever known — was one of some 6,000 destroyed in the Eaton fire, so now the family is basically camping out in a Sierra Madre apartment until their house can be rebuilt. Warren, an astrophysicist, is acting as the subcontractor for their rebuilding project, but he also accepted a new job in Hawaii right after the fire as deputy director of NASA’s Infrared Telescope Facility at the University of Hawaii.
Warren comes home to Altadena as many weekends as he can manage, but Isabelle said she stayed in Sierra Madre to be his “boots on the ground,” making sure the various jobs are completed, while their daughters go to school at Pasadena City College.
Isabelle Skidmore, left, her husband, Warren, and their two daughters Hannah, 19, (in the tree) and Tessa, 17, have been longtime volunteers for Christmas Tree Lane and intend to continue this year.
(Marcus Ubungen / For The Times)
Tessa, who was the valedictorian at John Muir High School in June (see her speech here starting at 45:40), entered college as a sophomore because of all the college credits she earned in high school (“I like challenging myself,” she said). Tessa wants a career in criminal justice, and Hannah is an aspiring graphic artist and musician who plays bass in a local band, Exit 23.
Despite their schedules, finding time to work on Christmas Tree Lane feels more important than ever this year, Tessa and Hannah said, because they realize the tradition could have been lost along with so many other things destroyed in the fire.
Hannah said one of her and her sister’s first thoughts after the fire was about the fate of Christmas Tree Lane.
“I just think this community, Altadena, is so special,” Hannah said. “It’s like what Joni Mitchell says, ‘You don’t know what you have until it’s gone.’ That’s why we’re so tight-knit, even though we’ve been so dispersed. We know what we had, and that’s why it’s so valuable to us.”
Associated British Foods (LSE:ABF) was the worst-performing FTSE 100 stock today (10 September) after the group released a trading update for the second six months of its current financial year that’s due to end on 13 September (H2 25).
Although the group’s chief executive was “pleased” with the performance, he said the market was “challenging” and “characterised by consumer caution, global uncertainty and inflation”.
The group has two distinct business units. One includes Primark, the low-cost fashion retailer and the other comprises its grocery, ingredients and sugar businesses.
Primark’s UK trading was described as “improved”, and “strong sales growth” was reported for the US. By contrast, Europe was said to be “softer”.
The group’s food division performed in line with expectations.
Reading this, it’s hard to understand why the share price tanked. But a closer look reveals a number of issues that appear to have spooked investors.
A bitter taste
Of most concern, is its sugar business, which includes Silver Spoon.
During the second half of the year, sales and profitability declined significantly in the UK and Spain due to lower European sugar prices and the higher cost of beet. The upshot is that full-year adjusted operating profit is likely to be close to breakeven (removing the impact of a major plant closure) and sales are expected to be 10% lower.
A restructuring has resulted in a £200m impairment charge including £50m of cash costs that will be spread over 2025 and 2026.
And the outcome is a little gloomy. The group has secured lower beet prices via long-term contracts but sugar prices remain lower than expected.
Cheap but not so cheerful
As for Primark, like-for-like sales in the almost-at-an-end H2 25 are expected to be 2% lower compared to the same period in 2024. Even so, in the UK and Ireland it’s managed to improve its market share from 6.6% to 6.8%.
In 2024, the retailer accounted for 47.2% of group revenue and contributed 55.6% to adjusted operating profit.
When it comes to embracing the internet, Primark has lagged behind most of its rivals. However, its ‘Click and Collect’ service is now operating in all of its 187 British stores.
The group’s also planning to expand into the Middle East with a franchise partner. Its first store is due to open in Kuwait in October.
Final thoughts
It’s been a turbulent 12 months for the group’s share price. Before today’s tumble, the stock was changing hands for marginally more than in September 2024. However, the stock’s now 20% below its 52-week high.
One advantage of this is that new investors could enjoy a yield of 4.6%. Of course, there are no guarantees when it comes to dividends.
Despite the reaction to the trading update, Shore Capital remains positive. It said: “When the stars align across ABF’s divisions, it is a most compelling entity from earnings, cash generation and returns perspectives.”
Unfortunately, it’s unclear to me when the stars will move into more favourable positions. On this basis, I would prefer to wait until the group’s full-year results are announced on 4 November before revisiting the investment case.
Today, the streets of Kathmandu felt worlds apart from just 12 hours before.
Gone were the thousands of protestors rejoicing as they saw the symbols of Nepal’s political class in flames. Gone were the cries of “revolution”.
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2:04
Sky’s Cordelia Lynch is in Kathmandu, where Nepal’s prime minister KP Sharma Oli has resigned after violent anti-corruption protests.
The roads were quiet, a silence punctuated only by the sound of military vehicles passing.
The army, who were strikingly absent yesterday as politicians and government buildings came under attack, were back out in force – guarding those institutions and enforcing a curfew.
Image: Soldiers stand guard outside Nepal’s parliament, damaged from a fire set during the previous night’s protests, 10 September 2025
They vowed to bring things under control and there was at least a sense of calm.
But inside parliament, we saw the stark aftermath of protests that almost wiped out the ruling elite. The building was full of mangled metal, charred filing cabinets and shattered glass. The air was still thick with smoke.
Image: Nepal’s parliament was badly damaged by a fire that broke out during the protests
Looking around at the destruction, I wondered if it would hurt or further Gen Z’s cause. They made their leadership look exposed and unseated. It’s too early to see if this is a moment for democratic renewal or the start of democracy unravelling.
Outside, some young campaigners have turned up to clear away the mess, lamenting what had so suddenly unfolded.
Rubina Shrestha, 26, has come with her four relatives to help. She looks forlorn and frustrated.
Image: Rubina Shrestha, third from the right, regrets that the protests turned violent
“It’s very sad to see our country like this, because this is not what we hoped for, not what we imagined, not what we wanted,” she says.
“We just wanted a peaceful protest but everything turned into violence, everything turned into negativity.”
Umesh Shah, 30, is sweeping the floor, his hands full of ash, sweating in the sun and looking reflective.
Image: Umesh Shah, 30, cleans up debris from outside the Nepalese parliament, following a night of violent protests, 10 September 2025
“We felt so bad, we were crying all night – everywhere totally collapsed,” he says, rattling off a long list of the institutions of power that the protesters had targeted.
But the rage that sparked this moment still burns deep in Nepal. It is fuelled by a young generation that believes its leadership is corrupt, self-serving and nepotistic – lining their own families’ pockets while leaving the rest of the country in the dust.
They want to see real meaningful change, and they’ve created a political vacuum they believe they can fill.
There are some signs of dialogue: the army’s Chief of Staff has invited Gen Z leaders for talks.
It’s unclear what might emerge from them but there will have to be concessions, some shifts in the power players at the top and the way they lead, to placate the many young people who took to the streets and could well do so again.
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1:30
Demonstrators say security forces were heavy-handed after 19 people were killed.
It does feel quieter in Kathmandu, perhaps a sign that some stability has been restored. But many people are also taking the time to work out what to do next.
The unrest has unsettled the country, and its consequences are still playing out. At Dillibazar prison we watched as hundreds of prisoners who tried to escape during the protests were piled onto vans and taken to another jail.
They’d set alight to the building and tried to make a run for it. One man told us that other inmates had escaped from other prisons, so why shouldn’t they?
Image: The remains of a burnt-out bus at Nepal’s Dillibazar prison, 10 September 2025
This was more than a fleeting episode in Nepal’s political history. It has shown the power of the youth here. Quite what that power translates into, though, remains very unclear.
President Trump arrives for dinner at Joe’s Seafood in Washington D.C. on Tuesday, along with Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Vice President Vance.
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President Trump made a rare visit to a D.C. restaurant on Tuesday night, where he was met with heckles and protests.
The president ventured one block from the White House to Joe’s Seafood, Prime Steak & Stone Crab, a Miami-based chain with a rich history of celebrity patrons (including Trump himself, who visited its Florida location in the ’90s, according to owner Stephen Sawitz).
It was Trump’s first D.C. restaurant outing of his second term, and arguably of his presidency: During his first term, he ate out only at the since-shuttered steakhouse inside his former hotel. However, the timing of Tuesday’s outing is no coincidence.
Trump’s dinner came exactly a month after he declared a crime emergency in D.C., which has seen National Guard troops patrolling the streets and local police working with federal law enforcement to stop people at traffic checkpoints— as well as widespread protests against them. His control of D.C. police is set to expire after Wednesday.
Trump has in recent days touted a complete drop in crime in the nation’s capital, which data shows is down (compared to last August) but not gone altogether. He made similar claims of success outside the restaurant, flanked by Vice President Vance, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
“I wouldn’t have done this three months ago, four months ago, I certainly wouldn’t have done it a year ago,” Trump told reporters. “This was one of the most unsafe cities in the country. Now it’s as safe as there is in the country, so we’re here with Cabinet members having dinner, and everybody should go out.”
Trump’s arrival drew a mixture of cheers and boos from bystanders outside the restaurant, according to videos from the scene. As he walked inside he received a warmer welcome, with video posted by the White House capturing loud cheers and applause from his fellow diners.
“We have a safe city now,” Trump told them. “Enjoy yourselves, you won’t be mugged going home.”
But as Trump and his aides walked over to their table, their victory lap was punctured by protests. Several people who later identified themselves as members of the feminist group CODEPINK stood inches away from the president, chanting: “Free D.C., Free Palestine, Trump is the Hitler of our time.”
Videos posted by the group show Trump listening with his head cocked, then raising a finger to signal for the protesters’ removal. The White House has not responded to NPR’s request for comment about the interaction.
Speaking afterward from the street, protester Olivia DiNucci said, “we need troops out of everywhere,” naming Gaza — where the U.S. supports Israel in its war with Hamas, but doesn’t have troops on the ground — as well as Venezuela and Puerto Rico, where the U.S. has stepped up military operations in recent weeks.
“So we were in there saying: He will absolutely not be able to have dinner in peace,” she added.
Joe’s, the restaurant, has since been flooded with one-star reviews and Trump-related comments on its Facebook page, many critical of the president and the restaurant for hosting him. In an email to NPR, it declined to comment on Trump’s visit.
Trump is no stranger to being heckled at public outings. Just days earlier, his presence at the U.S. Open men’s finals in New York City on Sunday drew mixed cheers and boos from the half-empty stadium as enhanced security measures kept many ticketholders stranded outside in long lines.
Trump plans to attend another high-profile sporting event in New York on Thursday, with White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt telling reporters that he will be in the stands at a Yankees home game after commemorating the anniversary of the Sept. 11 terror attacks at a Pentagon ceremony.
Trump says D.C. restaurants are booming, but many are struggling
On his way to dinner, Trump told reporters that D.C. restaurants “are now booming.”
“People are going out to dinner where they didn’t go out for years, and it’s a safe city,” the president said.
But the data — anecdotal and otherwise — paints a mixed picture.
August is typically a slow month for D.C. dining, given that Congress — and many residents — are out of town for recess. But data from the online dining platform OpenTable showed that D.C. restaurant reservations dropped by an average of 24% year-over-year in the week after Trump declared a crime emergency on Aug. 10.
Part of that drop might be explained by the fact that Summer Restaurant Week was held during that period last year. The event is a celebration of the local dining scene put on by the Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington (RAMW), in which hundreds of participating restaurants offer multi-course meals at fixed prices.
But, as NPR reported last week, some locals have intentionally avoided dining out because of the extra law enforcement officers deployed across the city. Others, though, say they feel safer on their trip to dinner than they did before.
Reservation traffic has largely rebounded in the days since, including during this year’s Summer Restaurant Week, which started on Aug. 18. RAMW extended it for an extra week this year, running through the end of August.
Shawn Townsend, president and CEO of RAMW, told NPR earlier this month that restaurants were already struggling with increased costs, from labor to rent control to food itself.
“My folks are just trying to get through the next couple weeks,” he said.
