''Los Angeles Reader'' was a weekly paper established in 1978 and distributed in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
, United States. It followed the format of the (still-active) ''
Chicago Reader
The ''Chicago Reader'', or ''Reader'' (stylized as ЯEADER), is an American alternative weekly newspaper in Chicago, Illinois, noted for its literary style of journalism and coverage of the arts, particularly film and theater. It was founded by a ...
''. The paper was known for having lengthy, thoughtful reviews of movies, plays and concerts in the L.A. area.
James Vowell was its founding editor. Among its writers were Keith Fitzgerald, Nigey Lennon, Lionel Rolfe, Lawrence Wechsler,
Mick Farren,
Richard Meltzer
Richard Meltzer (born May 10, 1945) is an American rock critic, performer, writer and songwriter. He is considered by some rock historians to be the first to write real analysis of rock and roll and is credited with inventing "rock criticism".
B ...
, Heidi Dvorak,
Chris Morris,
Jerry Stahl, Steven Kane, Andy Klein, Allen Levy,
Jim Goad
James Thaddeus Goad (born 1961) is an American author and publisher. Goad co-authored and published the zine ''ANSWER Me!'' and ''The Redneck Manifesto''.
Personal life Early life
Goad grew up in Philadelphia, describing himself as a loner, mi ...
, Kirk Silsbee, Henry Sheehan, Samantha Dunn, Natalie Nichols, Steve Appleford, Eric Mankin (also editor), Paul Birchall, Eddie Rivera (who wrote the paper's first cover story), Amy Steinberg, Henry Sheehan,
Dan Sallitt, Myron Meisel, David Ehrenstein, Tom Davis, Dave McCombs, Mark Leviton, Bruce Bebb,
Stuart Goldman
Stuart Goldman is an American journalist, author and screenwriter. A former critic for the ''Los Angeles Times'' and the '' Los Angeles Daily News'', he later penned a column for the ''Los Angeles Reader''.
Career
Goldman's early career ini ...
, Ernest Hardy, Kevin Uhrich,
Erik Himmelsbach, David L. Ulin,
Lance Loud,
J. Michael Straczynski
Joseph Michael Straczynski (; born July 17, 1954) is an American filmmaker and comic book writer. He is the founder of Synthetic Worlds Ltd. and Studio JMS and is best known as the creator of the science fiction television series ''Babylon 5'' ( ...
,
and Laurence Vittes (Classical Music Critic, 1991–1998).
It is famous for being the first newspaper to publish
Matt Groening's cartoon strip ''
Life in Hell
''Life in Hell'' is a comic strip by Matt Groening, creator of ''The Simpsons'', ''Futurama'', and ''Disenchantment'', which was published weekly from 1977 to 2012. The strip features anthropomorphic rabbits and a gay couple. The comic covers a w ...
'', on April 25, 1980. James Vowell hired Groening as his assistant editor in 1979. Groening was also originally a ''Reader'' music critic. It also ran a cartoon strip by
David Lynch
David Keith Lynch (born January 20, 1946) is an American filmmaker, visual artist and actor. A recipient of an Academy Honorary Award in 2019, Lynch has received three Academy Award nominations for Best Director, and the César Award for Be ...
(director of
''Blue Velvet'') called ''
The Angriest Dog in the World
''The Angriest Dog in the World'' is a comic strip created by film director David Lynch.
Background
The strip was conceived by Lynch in 1973 during a period when he was experiencing feelings of great anger. First published in the ''LA Reader'', ...
'', a strip notable for having exactly the same drawing panels for its entire run. James Vowell and his wife Codette Wallace bought the ''Reader'' from the ''Chicago Reader'' in February 1989. They sold the ''Reader'' to
New Times Media
Village Voice Media or VVM is a newspaper company. It began in 1970 as a weekly alternative newspaper in Phoenix. The company, founded by Michael Lacey (editor) and Jim Larkin (publisher), was then known as New Times Inc. (NTI) and the publicati ...
in 1996, which merged it with the ''Los Angeles View'' to form ''
New Times LA''.
References
External links
An archived article from the L.A. Reader
Newspapers published in Greater Los Angeles
Weekly newspapers published in California
{{California-newspaper-stub