Los Angeles Times

Moviegoers and movie critics have come away from "Oblivion" raving about the vavoom vehicles in the box-office hit starring Tom Cruise -- especially lead character Jack's futuristic folding motocross bike. Known on the set as "Jack's moto bike," the wispy ghost-white bike wheelies its way across a landscape of desert salt flats -- actually, volcanic sand in Iceland -- and transports the hero into and out of trouble throughout director Joseph Kosinski's dystopian film. The "moto bike," though, was a Honda CRF450X before local motorcycle-fabricator-to-the-stars Justin Kell started transforming it. Kell, whose Glory Motor Works has built or restored bikes for "The Master," "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" and " G.I. Joe 2 ," among many others, said his company built three futuristic motorcycles for Cruise and Kosinski's stunt crews to ride in "Oblivion.

Strong winds and subfreezing temperatures are expected in inland and mountain areas across Southern California on Thursday in the wake of a winter storm that dumped snow and rain on the region. Temperatures are expected to range from the upper 20s to low 30s from interior valleys in San Luis Obispo County to the Antelope, San Fernando and San Gabriel valleys in Los Angeles County, according to the National Weather Service. The frigid temperatures are a result of a cold, dry air mass.

Labor groups are continuing to choose sides in some of next year's hot congressional contests: --The  California Assn. for Professional Employees has decided to back Rep. Brad Sherman (D-Sherman Oaks) over Rep. Howard Berman (D-Valley Village) for the newly drawn 30 th District, in what many expect will become one of the costliest, hardest fought House races in history. Continue reading > > -- Jean Merl, Los Angeles Times Photo: Rep. Brad Sherman (D-Sherman Oaks)

Hollywood's actors unions are on track to complete a merger agreement by the end of next month, Screen Actors Guild President Ken Howard said. Emerging from a two-day meeting with representatives of SAG and its smaller sister union, American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, Howard said Tuesday that the labor groups have made considerable progress and expected to meet a Jan. 22 deadline for completing a merger agreement, a proposed constitution...

More than three years after California voters approved a ban on same-sex marriage, an appeals court on Tuesday is set to decide whether Proposition 8 violates the federal Constitution. During oral arguments more than a year ago, the three-judge panel of the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals appeared to be leaning toward ruling against Proposition 8 but expressed concern about procedural matters. Rallies are planned across California after the judges hand down their decision.

A federal appeals court Tuesday struck down California's ban on same-sex marriage, clearing the way for theU.S. Supreme Courtto rule on gay marriage as early as next year. The 2-1 decision by a panel of the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals found that Proposition 8, the 2008 ballot measure that limited marriage to one man and one woman, violated the U.S. Constitution. The architects of Prop. 8 have vowed to appeal. The ruling was narrow and likely to be limited to California. Continue reading > > FULL COVERAGE: Proposition 8 2010: Prop.

California motorists who use cellphones are considered a bigger danger to fellow travelers than those who speed or drive aggressively, a new survey has found. Nearly 40% of 1,801 motorists interviewed said their most pressing safety concern was other drivers who text or talk on their cellphones, according to a second annual survey from the state Office of Traffic Safety. The survey was conducted over the summer at gas stations in 15 counties across the state. Last year's survey showed 18.3% of motorists considered cellphones a top danger while 21.5% said wreckless and fast driving were the main threats to road safety.

The Historic Highlands district is prototypical of the Pasadena-Altadena aesthetic: turn-of-the-century Craftsman homes next to 1920s Spanish bungalows across from grand colonial-revival mansions, set amid a forest of mature oaks, eucalyptus and jacaranda trees. The tidy north Pasadena neighborhood resounded Thursday with the whine of chain saws biting into many of those trees, as residents dug out after a night of howling winds turned palm fronds into missiles and launched limbs into backyards.

Organized labor is divided when it comes to having to choose between two of its longtime allies, Democratic Reps. Brad Sherman and Howard Berman, who are competing for the same newly drawn San Fernando Valley congressional district seat. On Wednesday, Berman scored the endorsement of Service Employees International Union California, which represents some 700,000 janitors, social and healthcare workers, and school, city, county and state employees. Earlier, Berman had announced backing from the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, Moving Picture Technicians, Artists and Allied Crafts of the United States.

It's not enough to be a clothing store, grocer, pharmacy, auto servicer and more. It looks as if Wal-Mart Stores Inc. now plans to play doctor too. The largest retailer in the country recently sent out a request for information to potential partners to help it offer a range of medical services without the traditionally steep prices. In the 14-page document, Wal-Mart said that it “intends to build a national, integrated, low-cost primary care healthcare platform that will provide preventative and chronic care services … in an affordable and accessible way.” Continue reading > > ALSO: Foes of Burbank Walmart undaunted by Brown veto Walmart to ask Burbank resident what they want from store -- Tiffany Hsu, Los Angeles Times Photo: A woman leaves a Wal-Mart in Rosemead.