Coronavirus is wreaking havoc on schools, stores, businesses and events. With in-person concerts, talks, comedy shows, food festivals and other gatherings cancelled, we have turned our events column into a “nonevents” column. It will remain this way as long as social distancing and stay-at-home orders are in effect.

During this difficult time, please consider contributing to your local arts organizations or to individual artists and performers.

Remember Kobe Bryant on 8/24. Watch a tribute to director Lynn Shelton. Laugh along with the creators of The Black Lady Sketch Show. Celebrate a decade of the Hollywood Babble-On podcast. Commemorate the Chicano Moratorium’s 50th Anniversary. Learn about Ray Bradbury’s dystopian vision — and figure out if we’re living in it.

Monday, Aug. 24

Kobe Bryant Day
In 2016, after 20 years with the Lakers, the Los Angeles City Council declared 8/24 Kobe Bryant Day in Los Angeles in honor of the two numbers he wore whilw playing with the team. Last week, Orange County supervisors approved the same honor. Bryant, who passed away in a helicopter crash in January (yes, just earlier this year), would have turned 42 on August 23. The Lakers will debut new Mamba theads during their game against Portland on Monday. Nike launches “Mamba Week” this week, with activities and special releases. And closer to home, Ike’s Love & Sandwiches is offering a Kobe Tribute Sandwich.

Monday, Aug. 24; 7 p.m. PDT

A Black Lady Sketch Show + Q&A
The American Cinematheque presents an evening focusing on this Emmy-nominated HBO series, which features sketches performed by a core cast of black women. It includes a Zoom Q&A with creator and star Robin Thede and director Dime Davis. Your RSVP confirmation will include a link to watch the show before the discussion. The Zoom link will be sent the day of the event.
COST: $10 – $14; MORE INFO

Monday, Aug. 24; 8:30 p.m.

Hollywood Babble-On Live Podcast
Vineland Drive-In
443 Vineland Ave. City of Industry
The comedy podcast hosted by filmmaker Kevin Smith and former KROQ morning show funny man Ralph Garman celebrates its 10th anniversary at the drive-in. ArcLight presents the duo live and on the big screen as they do their anniversary show, riffing on pop culture, movies, TV and celebrities. Please follow all safety protocols. Each car gets a free ArcLight Caramel Corn.
COST: $100 per car; MORE INFO

Monday, Aug. 24

SKAM 24
This 24-hour livestream DJ event technically starts at 11:59 p.m. on Sunday night and lasts all day and night. Check out sets and tunes spun by Lil Jon, Pete Wentz, Samantha Ronson, Irie, Chase B, Baby Yu, Crooked, DJ Five, Eric DLux, Ever, Gusto, Jerzy, Justin Credible, Lezlee, Quiz, Richard Vision, Ross One, Sour Milk, Trauma and Triple XL. The party will be available to watch on Twitch.
COST: FREE; MORE INFO

Monday, Aug. 24; 4 p.m. PDT

Chicano Moratorium 50th Anniversary (1970-2020)
Explore an episode of L.A. history that still resonates. On August 29, 1970, more than 20,000 students held a peaceful march in East L.A. to protest the Vietnam War as part of the National Chicano Moratorium movement. The march was violently interrupted by law enforcement. Prominent Mexican American journalist Ruben Salazar was one of four people who were killed that day. The UCLA Film & Television Archive streams a chronological selection of short works examining pivotal moments of activism in East L.A., from the student walkouts of 1968 to the march in 1970. The event is hosted by Chon Noriega, director of the UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center and author of Shot in America: Television, the State, and the Rise of Chicano Cinema. It features a post-screening discussion with artist, writer and educator Harry Gamboa Jr. and Los Angeles Times staff writer Carolina Miranda.
COST: FREE; MORE INFO

Monday, Aug. 24; 7 p.m. PDT

En Casa con La Plaza: Cocina
Lucy Thompson-Rivera, co-owner of downtown L.A.’s Pez Cantina, shows attendees how to prepare a shrimp and avocado salad, a late summer tomato pico de gallo and an essential Mexican cocktail. Watch on Zoom or Facebook Live.
COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO

Tuesday, Aug. 25; 6 p.m. PDT

Vroman’s Live: DJ Waldie
The writer and cultural historian discusses his latest book about L.A. and its environs: Becoming Los Angeles: Myth, Memory, and a Sense of Place. Waldie examines the city’s history (and conflicted past) and its aspirations. Waldie’s first book, Holy Land: A Suburban Memoir, details his 1950s childhood in Lakewood, which at the time was California’s largest planned suburb. The event will be livestreamed on Crowdcast.
COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO

Tuesday, Aug. 25; 7 p.m. PDT

Lynn Shelton Tribute + Panel Discussion
The indie filmmaker died earlier this year, leaving behind an impressive body of work in TV, film and writing. The American Cinematheque hosts a virtual tribute to Shelton with a panel discussion featuring Mark Duplass, Jon Hamm, Eddie Huang, Gillian Jacobs, Marc Maron, Kevin Murphy, Mikaela Wakins, Kerry Washington and Reese Witherspoon. Those who attend the live tribute will get a free screener for Little Fires Everywhere, as Shelton directed several episodes of the show.
COST: FREE; MORE INFO

Wednesday, Aug. 26 – ongoing

“Cayton Creators” Outdoor Community Program
Outside the Cayton Children’s Museum
Santa Monica Place, Level 3
395 Santa Monica Place, Santa Monica
Every Wednesday and Saturday, from 10 a.m. to noon, the Cayton Children’s Museum holds a series of family programs outdoors. The activities are designed around physical distancing and are focused on emphasizing the visual and performing arts, communal artmaking and play for kids up to age 10 and their families. Advance registration required.
COST: FREE; MORE INFO

Wednesday, Aug. 26

Los Angeles Zoo Reopens
Get ready to rawr once again with the animals: After closing its gates in March, the zoo is ready to get back to business. Staffers have modified the experience to conform with COVID-19 health protocols, which include limiting the number of guests, timed ticketed entry, face covering requirements and the closure of indoor and high-touch spaces. All guests, including members, must now reserve timed tickets online before visiting.
COST: $17 – $22 for nonmembers; MORE INFO

Thursday, Aug. 27; 5 p.m. PDT

El Cap Throwback: Movie Trivia
El Capitan Theatre holds a remote trivia night focusing on Walt Disney Studios animation. This is a family-friendly, all-ages event.
COST: $10 per log-in; MORE INFO

Thursday, Aug. 27; 10 – 10:30 a.m.

Wright Virtual Visits: Hollyhock House & Monona Terrace
The Frank Lloyd Wright Building Conservancy has started a new video series in which two of Wright’s sites will be paired side by side on a Facebook Live video. Each week, the organization focuses on a theme, contrasting the designs of both buildings. This week, the Hollyhock House in Barnsdall Park will be compared to the Monona Terrace Community and Convention Center (Madison, Wisconsin), examining the garden terraces and vistas. The video will stream live on both venues’ Facebook pages.
COST: FREE; MORE INFO

Thursday, Aug. 27; 7 p.m. PDT

Fairytales For Days of Reckoning
KCRW’s Steve Chiotakis guest stars in this evening of children’s off-the-rails tales. This half-scripted and half-improvised event starts with Mother Goose and ends wherever comedians decide to take the audience. Grandmas and grandpas may blush; children may be freaked out so this show is rated PG-16. Zoom link will be sent the day of the event to registered guests.
COST: FREE for KCRW members, $1 donation and up for everyone else; MORE INFO

Thursday, Aug. 27; 7:30 p.m.

Adam Pascal
The Muckenthaler Cultural Center
1201 West Malvern Ave., Fullerton
The Tony nominee performs at The Muck as part of its drive-in concert series. Pascal starred as the original Roger Davis in the Off-Broadway, Broadway and London Productions of Rent. He was also the original Radames in Broadway’s Aida. To help ensure safety, there’s a contactless ticketing system and a mask requirement anytime guests exit their vehicles.
COST: $30 per car; MORE INFO

Thursday, Aug. 27; 6:30 p.m. PDT

Are We Living in a World Ray Bradbury Tried to Prevent?
Zócalo Public Square, the Fowler Museum and ZYZZYVA present a program around the works of the late Ray Bradbury, who would have turned 100 on August 22. In Fahrenheit 451, Bradbury imagined a world where truth, knowledge and the written word had no value and people were glued to screens. He also wrote about the promises of a carnival-hawker con man in Something Wicked This Way Comes. A panel discussion delves into issues such as censorship and xenophobia while discussing Bradbury’s life and work. Register to receive updates and the streaming link.
COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO

Thursday, Aug. 27; 7 p.m.

Reflecting on Tipping Point
The Catalina Island Museum presents a virtual event and talk with Elizabeth Turk, sculpture artist and MacArthur “Genius” Fellow. She’ll chat with Julie Perlin Lee, executive director of the museum, about the ongoing Tipping Point exhibition, which explores extinction. Watch on Zoom.
COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO

Thursday, Aug. 27; 7 p.m. PDT

Architecture & Beyond – Discovering Griffith Park
Los Angeles Public Library’s Los Feliz Branch welcomes Modern Hiker’s Casey Schreiner for an online presentation about L.A.’s most famous city park. The slideshow and discussion is based on Schreiner’s book, Discovering Griffith Park. RSVP required for Zoom link.
COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO

Thursday, Aug. 27; 2 – 3:30 p.m.

We Zoom Your Room
Families are invited to an interactive live performance on Zoom with Frankie Martin and Forest DerrMartin of the arts group Pumpernickel Palace. Watch as the performers lampoon infomercials that results in a new Zoom background, created during the call. In exchange for the Zoom room decor, participants must be ready with a family-friendly joke. RSVP is required and space is limited.
COST: FREE; MORE INFO

Dine & Drink Deals

Who doesn’t miss going out to eat or stopping by a bar for a drink? Here are a few options from restaurants and bars as we work our way back toward normal.

• It’s National Dog Day on Wednesday, and Golden Road Brewing will deliver their newest brew, Hazy Pup IPA, directly to people’s homes, alongside (adoptable) pups from local dog rescue Wags & Walks. Proceeds from Hazy Pup will benefit the rescue year round, but for a donation of $50, fans will get two six-packs of the brew, a Golden Road discount code and puppy playtime at delivery. Deliveries take place from Thursday to Saturday from 12 to 4 p.m. MORE INFO
• Descanso Restaurant in Costa Mesa introduces weekly happenings including Wine Wednesday beginning Aug. 26 from 3 to 9 p.m., and new happy hour specials available al fresco Monday through Friday from 3 to 6 p.m. The taqueria also recently expanded its 1,500 square-foot outdoor patio.
• Dine at Roundtable Pizza in Lakewood on Thursday from 5 to 9 p.m., and the restaurant will donate 20% of your bill to spcaLA.
• Beauty brand Summer Fridays teams with Craig’s Vegan to create a limited-edition Vanilla Cloud ice cream. It’s a cashew-based non-dairy frozen dessert, infused with madagascar vanilla bean. In Los Angeles, pints will be available exclusively on Postmates ($10 – $20).