This is a nicely balanced weekend — about the same number of events on both Saturday and Sunday, covering most of the big interest groups – art, music, home and garden, community celebrations, and more.
It all starts on Saturday morning with not just one, but two big estate sales, in the same block. 
The first is at 602 N. Las Palmas, and runs Friday-Sunday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. According to the organizers, items for sale include wing back chairs, sofas, mid-century hutch, bar stools, coffee table, 1940s dining table and six chairs, an ebony Yamaha GH1 baby grand piano, modern bar cart, art, 10×14 Safavieh jute rug, Anthropologie king-size bed, file cabinets, day bed and cushions, amoire, desks, antique children’s school desks, accordian, two canopy beds, Vizio 38” TV, name-brand ceramics, glassware and dishes, office equipment, fabric, baskets, DVDs and CDs, women’s clothing, shoes and accessories, jewelry, hat boxes, fragrances, sports equipment, stroller, children’s clothing, toys and other items…and much more.
The second estate sale is at 634 N Las Palmas, and runs Friday-Sunday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Items from the 50-year resident include antique furniture, an antique oak cabinet with wrought iron hinges, Sony flat screen TV, washer and dryer, china, crystal, jewelry, cameras, Scandia Mid-Century Modern table and chairs (chairs need refinishing), antique dining room table with 6 chairs, three marble top tables, wooden loveseat, vintage wrought iron chaise lounge, records (LPs and 78s), large antique spinning wheel, women’s clothes and shoes (size 8.5-9), towels, linens, tea cup collection, some hand tools, Christmas decorations, books, Lenox, cut glass, Amana stove in like new condition. Washer and two dryers, hi-fi equipment, 35mm cameras, vintage rugs, old quilts, and more.
If you’d rather be outside on Saturday morning, LADWP is offering a free California Friendly ® Landscape Training class, from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m., for Los Angeles residents. Learn how to use a holistic approach to gardening, build a “living soil sponge,” understand the elements of your landscaping site, select the right plants, capture rainwater and manage irrigation. Registration is required. Parking is free. (Note that the workshop address will be provided when you complete and confirm your registration by e-mailing [email protected] or calling (800) 544-4498 (select option “5”). You’ll need to provide your name, the date of the class you want to attend, your LADWP service address, phone number, and the name of your guest, if you’d like to bring one (limit one).
Also for the garden-minded, the Two Dog Organic Nursery, 914 S. Cloverdale Ave., will be holding its annual Here Comes Summer Open House, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday. No appointments necessary, just stop by and bring your gardening pals (though no dogs, please). Cookies and lemonade will be served. Street parking is available.
Moving on from garden to home improvements, the West Adams Heritage Association will be hosting a “Before and After: Restoration Tales — Historic Homes Tour,” from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday. Over the past few decades, many period homes in the Historic West Adams District have been lovingly restored by their owners. But how did they do it? Find out on Saturday, as four historic homes open their doors, and the owners share stories of their restorations and show you some DIY restoration techniques. According to WAHA, “Each of the featured homes had great bones, but needed someone to love and restore them.” You’ll also be able to see “before” photos of each project, learn why one owner is “unflipping” a recently modernized bungalow, and learn how another owner peeled away stucco to reveal original wood siding and shingles. Also included is the landmarked “South Seas” House (the quintessential “before” story — owned by the City but abandoned for more than a decade, once occupied by squatters who set it on fire, and later the setting for a successful community fight to have it restored and turned into a neighborhood public space). This is a self-guided walking tour. Advance tickets are $25, through the Eventbrite link above. Additional tickets will be available on the day of the event for $35 (cash or check only). The event will be held rain or shine. Check-in is at 2286 W. 23rd St., from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., and doors close at 3 p.m.
If cars are more your thing, then head over to the Original Farmers Market between 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. on Saturday, for the 25th Annual Gilmore Heritage Auto Show. This year, the show will feature iconic American muscle cars. It’s free and open to the public, and visitors can walk among the more than 100 classic cars on display, and visit with their owners. The show “salutes Los Angeles’ rich automotive history, nurtured through the efforts of The Gilmore Oil Company. Gilmore Oil, which was the largest independent oil company west of the Mississippi until 1948, originated in 1900 at the corner of Third and Fairfax — now home of The Original Farmers Market — when the Gilmore family struck liquid gold on what was then a dairy farm.”
On Saturday evening, and shifting from automotive to fine arts, the Craft Contempoary will host an opening reception, from 6 to 9 p.m., for its two new shows, “The Riddle Effect,” and “On the Inside.” The Riddle Effect highlights artist John T. Riddle Jr.’s (1933–2002) sculptural work from Los Angeles collections and examines his influence as a foundational member of the Black Arts Movement in Los Angeles. “On the Inside” is a group exhibition of LGBTQ+ artists who are currently incarcerated. Admission is free for Craft Contemporary members, and $12 for the general public. The two shows will be on view from June 2 through September 8.
Finally, on Saturday night, for some vintage film fun, head up to the Egyptian Theater, 6712 Hollywood Blvd., where the American Cinematheque will present a Malcolm McDowell double-feature – Cat People and Time After Time, with a live discussion with the actor between films. Starting time is 7:30 p.m. See the link above for tickets and details.
On Sunday morning, a big heads-up (largely for traffic reasons) that the Herbalife24 Triathlon will make its way through our area on its way from Venice Beach to Downtown. Participants will be traveling west on Venice Blvd. to La Brea, north on La Brea to Olympic Blvd., and east on Olympic to Hoover, as they move on to points further east. See the link above for the full route map and other details.
Later on Sunday morning, join Metro at the La Brea Tar Pits for a big “Half Way to La Cienega” celebration of reaching the half-way point in construction of Section 1 of the Purple Line Subway Extension, running under Wilshire Blvd. from Western Ave. to La Cienega Blvd. The eventwill run from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., and will include live entertainment, games, giveaways, food trucks and a family fun zone. Free food samplings will be provided by Metro’s Eat Shop Play partners Continental Kitchen, Rocco’s Neighborhood Pizza, Milk Jar Cookies and Book My Lot’s Happy Ice.
Meanwhile, starting at 11:30 a.m. on Sunday, Knowles Karate Academy, 4378 W. Third St., will hold a Women’s Self Defense Fundraiser for Alexandria House. Participants will learn and practice some simple but effective standing, striking and ground techniques. The cost is $25, and all proceeds will go towards the transitional housing programs for women and children at Alexandria House.
Also, for those of you who live west of La Brea, don’t forget that elections for the Mid-City West Community Council will be held at the Pan Pacific Senior Activity Center, 141 Gardner St., on Sunday from 12 to 6 p.m. There are 55 candidates running for the 35 seats on the MCWCC board. Information about each of them and about the election in general, can be found at http://www.midcitywest.org/mcwcc-2019-elections-see-our-list-of-candidates/
Moving into Sunday evening, LACMA will celebrate the 29th anniversary of its Sunday night concert series, with Sundays Live: A Retrospective and Beyond, starting at 6 p.m. The Sundays Live series presents weekly classical chamber music concerts and recitals by premier professional artists from Southern California and around the world. At this event, an ensemble of past and present performers, alumni, and emerging musicians will perform, with soloists Althea Waites (piano), Phillip Levy (violin), and Douglas Masek (saxophone). The program will include: Bloch: “Fugue,” from Concerto Grosso with piano obbligato (Ms. Waites, solo); Mozart: “Adagio,” from K. 287, and “Rondo,” K. 373 for violin and orchestra (Mr. Levy, solo). Neal Stulberg will also lead the ensemble in a surprise symphony by Haydn. As with all Sundays Live events for the last 29 years, this one is also free and open to everyone.
And just a bit later on Sunday, you could head back to the Egyptian Theater, where the Cinematheque will present a free screening of an episode of the TV show, “Good Girls,” described as “mixing a little Thelma & Louise with a bit of “Breaking Bad,” starting at 7 p.m. In the episode shown, Beth (Christina Hendricks), “has just returned home to find Rio (Manny Montana) in her dining room, with a gun trained on her bloodied and beaten husband, Dean (Matthew Lillard).” What happens next “has life changing consequences that ripple through the entire season for Beth and her fellow grocery store robbers Ruby (Retta) and Annie (Mae Whitman).” After the screening, there will be a panel discussion with with writer-executive producer Jenna Bans, and actors Christina Hendricks, Mae Whitman, Retta, Matthew Lillard and Manny Montana. And then, after the discussion, there will also be a screening of the 1980 comedy classic, “9 to 5,” starring Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin and Dolly Parton.
Finally, if you’re looking for more events in the coming week, be sure to check our Larchmont Buzz calendar every day. Also, if you have an event to add, just go to https://larchmontbuzz.com/calendar and click on “Add Your Event“!
Have a great weekend!
