Events
Roger Daltrey with Judd Apatow
Tuesday, October 23, 2018
8pm
Roger Daltrey
in conversation with Judd Apatow
discussing his memoir,
Thanks a Lot Mr. Kibblewhite: My Story
Aratani Theatre
Japanese American Cultural & Community Center
244 S. San Pedro Street
Downtown Los Angeles, CA 90012
PURCHASE TICKETS
$55 Orchestra Section Seat + copy of the book
$45 Balcony Section Seat + copy of the book
We’re honored to be the host event for the launch of Roger Daltrey’s memoir! The frontman of one of the greatest bands of all time tells the story of his rise from nothing to rock ‘n’ roll megastar, and his wild journey as the voice of The Who.
Roger Daltrey is the lead vocalist and founding member of The Who. His career has spanned more than 50 years, with a solo career producing eight studio albums. A daytime worker at a sheet metal factory, he first assembled The Who in 1961, recruiting John Entwistle and agreeing to John’s proposal that Pete Townshend should join. Daltrey was the band’s voice, a powerhouse frontman known for his stage presence and energy. As a member of The Who, Daltrey was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990 and received a Kennedy Center Honor in 2008.
“It’s taken me three years to unpack the events of my life, to remember who did what when and why, to separate the myths from the reality, to unravel what really happened at the Holiday Inn on Keith Moon’s 21st birthday,” says Roger Daltrey, the powerhouse vocalist of The Who. The result of this introspection is a remarkable memoir, instantly captivating, funny and frank, chock-full of well-earned wisdom and one-of-kind anecdotes from a raucous life that spans a tumultuous time of change in Britain and America.
Born during the air bombing of London in 1944, Daltrey fought his way (literally) through school and poverty and began to assemble the band that would become The Who while working at a sheet metal factory in 1961. In Daltrey’s voice, the familiar stories―how they got into smashing up their kit, the infighting, Keith Moon’s antics―take on a new, intimate life. Also here is the creative journey through the unforgettable hits including My Generation, Substitute, Pinball Wizard, and the great albums, Who’s Next, Tommy, and Quadrophenia. Amidst all the music and mayhem, the drugs, the premature deaths, the ruined hotel rooms, Roger is our perfect narrator, remaining sober (relatively) and observant and determined to make The Who bigger and bigger. Not only his personal story, this is the definitive biography of The Who.
Mr. Kibblewhite was Daltrey’s “draconian headmaster” during the singer’s rebellious teenage years.
Judd Apatow is a writer, director, and producer. His films include the romantic comedies The Big Sick, Trainwreck, and This is 40. For television, he is the producer of HBO’s Crashing, Love on Netflix, and was the executive producer of Girls. Recently, he released his first stand up special Judd Apatow:The Return for Netflix and directed the new HBO documentary The Zen Diaries Of Garry Shandling.
Michael Beschloss
6:30-7:30pm Reception
Michael Beschloss
in conversation with Terrence McNally
Presidents of War
Ann and Jerry Moss Theatre
New Roads School
Herb Alpert Educational Village
3131 Olympic Blvd.,
Santa Monica, CA 90404
PURCHASE TICKETS
$50 Reserved Section Seat + Book
$20 General Admission Seat
$30 Reserved Section Seat
$95 Reception (6:30-7:30pm), Reserved Section Seat & Book
Michael Beschloss is the author of nine books on presidential history, including, most recently, the New York Times bestsellers Presidential Courage and The Conquerors, as well as two volumes on Lyndon Johnson’s White House tapes. He was also editor of the number-one global bestseller Jacqueline Kennedy: Historic Conversations on Life with John F. Kennedy. He is the NBC News Presidential Historian and a PBS NewsHour contributor and has received an Emmy and six honorary degrees. He is on Twitter at @BeschlossDC.
“In this brilliant work, Michael Beschloss burnishes his already bright reputation. He tells a gripping tale of courage and mendacity as well as recurring defiance of the constitutional requirement to seek congressional approval for making war. A monumental and profoundly important achievement.” —Ron Chernow, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Grant
“In this monumental book, the incomparable Michael Beschloss tells the riveting story of how, through history, our Presidents came to be so powerful and to lead Americans into waging major wars. With his new research discoveries and unerring eye for human detail, Beschloss has brought us an unforgettable narrative. Presidents of War is a landmark book about power, leadership and human nature itself.” —Jon Meacham, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Soul of America
“Once again, Beschloss captures our Presidents in terms both historic and human, showing that whoever holds the office will fearlessly—or fearfully—impact our world.” —Tom Hanks, author of Uncommon Type
Ten years in the research and writing, Presidents of War is a fresh, magisterial, intimate look at a procession of American leaders as they took the nation into conflict and mobilized their country for victory. It brings us into the room as they make the most difficult decisions that face any President, at times sending hundreds of thousands of American men and women to their deaths.
From James Madison and the War of 1812 to recent times, we see them struggling with Congress, the courts, the press, their own advisors and antiwar protesters; seeking comfort from their spouses, families and friends; and dropping to their knees in prayer. We come to understand how these Presidents were able to withstand the pressures of war—both physically and emotionally—or were broken by them.
Beschloss’s interviews with surviving participants in the drama and his findings in original letters, diaries, once-classified national security documents, and other sources help him to tell this story in a way it has not been told before. Presidents of War combines the sense of being there with the overarching context of two centuries of American history. This important book shows how far we have traveled from the time of our Founders, who tried to constrain presidential power, to our modern day, when a single leader has the potential to launch nuclear weapons that can destroy much of the human race.
Terrence McNally is a communications consultant who helps organizations tell better stories. You may recognize him as the longtime host of Free Forum on KPFK. He now hosts a weekly interview show on the Progressive Voices Network on TuneIn and a monthly podcast for a science institute at Harvard. All his podcasts can be found at iTunes and TerrenceMcNally.net
Pete Souza
Sunday, October 21, 2018
3pm (Reception 2-2:45pm)
An Afternoon with
Pete Souza
discussing his upcoming book,
Shade: A Tale of Two Presidents
Frost Auditorium
Culver City High School
4401 Elenda St,
Culver City, CA 90230
PURCHASE TICKETS
$55 Reserved Section Seat + book*
$45 General Admission Section Seat + book*
$150 Premium Section Seating + Pre-Reception (2-2:45pm)
+ 2 books (Shade* and the coffee table book, Obama: An Intimate Portrait)
* each copy of Shade comes with a signed/specialized book plate
We welcome Pete Souza back to our stage. We hosted him in January 2017 for his book, Obama: An Intimate Portrait. That event sold out very quickly, so get your tickets early.
Pete Souza was the Chief Official White House Photographer for President Obama and the Director of the White House Photo Office. Previously Souza was an Assistant Professor of Photojournalism at Ohio University, the national photographer for the Chicago Tribune, a freelancer for National Geographic, and an Official White House Photographer for President Reagan. His books include the New York Times bestsellers Obama: An Intimate Portrait and The Rise of Barack Obama. Souza is currently a freelance photographer based in Washington, D.C., and a Professor Emeritus at Ohio University’s School of Visual Communication. Follow him on Instagram and Twitter.
René Redzepi and David Zilber
René Redzepi and David Zilber
in conversation with Jessica Koslow
discussing their new cook book,
The Noma Guide to Fermentation: Including koji, kombuchas, shoyus, misos, vinegars, garums, lacto-ferments, and black fruits and vegetables (Foundations of Flavor)
Ann and Jerry Moss Theatre
New Roads School
Herb Alpert Educational Village
3131 Olympic Blvd.,
Santa Monica, CA 90404
THIS EVENT IS SOLD OUT.
Video will be posted on our site a week after the event.
PURCHASE TICKETS
$60 Reserved Section Seat + Book
$50 General Admission Seat + Book
$20 General Admission Section Seat
René Redzepi is the chef and co-owner of Noma in Copenhagen, four times recognized as the world’s best by the World’s 50 Best Restaurants. Redzepi has twice appeared on the cover of Time magazine (and been named one of Time’s 100 Most Influential People in the World); been featured in publications from the New York Times to Wired; and been profiled in two feature-length documentaries and countless national and international media outlets. His first book, Noma: Time and Place in Nordic Cuisine, was an IACP and James Beard Award winner. He is also the author of A Work in Progress. He lives with his wife, Nadine Levy Redzepi, and their three children. Find him on Instagram @reneredzepinoma and @nomacph.
David Zilber is a chef and photographer who hails from Toronto, Canada. He has cooked from coast to coast across North America, most notably as a sous-chef at Hawksworth Restaurant in Vancouver. He has worked at Noma since 2014 and has served as director of its fermentation lab since 2016. He enjoys Jamaican patties and quantum physics. Find him on Instagram @david_zilber.
“With The Noma Guide to Fermentation, René and his team have written the definitive guide to creating fermented foods. We’re all smarter for the years of research that went into this book, and I’m thrilled that home cooks and professionals alike have access to this information.”
—David Chang, chef/founder of Momofuku
At Noma—four times named the world’s best restaurant—every dish includes some form of fermentation, whether it’s a bright hit of vinegar, a deeply savory miso, an electrifying drop of garum, or the sweet intensity of black garlic. Fermentation is one of the foundations behind Noma’s extraordinary flavor profiles.
Now René Redzepi, chef and co-owner of Noma, and David Zilber, the chef who runs the restaurant’s acclaimed fermentation lab, share never-before-revealed techniques to creating Noma’s extensive pantry of ferments. And they do so with a book conceived specifically to share their knowledge and techniques with home cooks. With more than 500 step-by-step photographs and illustrations, and with every recipe approachably written and meticulously tested, The Noma Guide to Fermentation takes readers far beyond the typical kimchi and sauerkraut to include koji, kombuchas, shoyus, misos, lacto-ferments, vinegars, garums, and black fruits and vegetables. And—perhaps even more important—it shows how to use these game-changing pantry ingredients in more than 100 original recipes.
Fermentation is already building as the most significant new direction in food (and health). With The Noma Guide to Fermentation, it’s about to be taken to a whole new level.
Jessica Koslow is a Los Angeles area native, bestselling cookbook author, and the James Beard Award-nominated chef-owner of SQIRL, the internationally celebrated, East Hollywood breakfast-lunch cafe that has been called “forward-thinking,” “downright revolutionary,” and home to “everything I want, on one plate, over and over again.” Her restaurant has appeared on Condé Nast’s Where In the World to Eat, Eater’s 38 Best Restaurants in America, and Jonathan Gold’s 101 Best Restaurants list.
Beth Comstock with Krisztina Holly
8pm (6:30-7:30pm Reception)
Beth Comstock
in conversation with Krisztina Holly
Imagine It Forward:
Courage, Creativity, and the Power of Change
Ann and Jerry Moss Theatre
New Roads School
Herb Alpert Educational Village
3131 Olympic Blvd.,
Santa Monica, CA 90404
PURCHASE TICKETS
$50 Reserved Section Seat + Book
$45 General Admission Seat + Book
$30 Reserved Section Seat (available Aug 31, 10am)
$20 General Admission Seat (available Aug 31, 10am)
$95 Reception (6:30-7:30pm), Reserved Section Seat & Book
From one of today’s foremost innovation leaders, an inspiring and practical guide to mastering change in the face of uncertainty.
Beth Comstock is the former Vice Chair of GE, where for twenty-five years she led GE’s efforts to accelerate new growth. She built GE’s Business Innovations and GE Ventures, which develops new businesses, and oversaw the reinvention of GE Lighting. She was named GE’s Chief Marketing Officer in 2003. She served as President of Integrated Media at NBC Universal, from 2006-08, overseeing the company’s digital efforts, including the early formation of Hulu. She is a corporate director of Nike. Written about and profiled extensively in the media, from the New York Times to Forbes, Fortune
and Fast Company, she has been named to the Fortune and Forbes lists of the World’s Most Powerful women.
“If there is one skill that more individuals and companies need to hone it’s imagination. And if there is one person who can teach us how to do it, it’s Beth Comstock. Woven together through own journey, Comstock offers us simple and practical steps on things we can all do to prepare ourselves for the future…or even invent it.”—Simon Sinek, Optimist and New York Times Bestselling Author of Start With Why and Leaders Eat Last
“This book is full of wisdom about how to thrive in a bureaucracy—and then transform it into an innovation machine. Beth Comstock is one of the most effective and admired executives of our time, and she tells the engrossing inside story of how she rose to the upper echelons of GE and spearheaded a sea of change.”—Adam Grant, New York Times bestselling author of Originals, Give and Take, and Option B with Sheryl Sandberg
“Beth Comstock is just as creative and bold in her approach to writing a business book as she is in running a business. Unafraid to get candid and personal, unusually generous in sharing her insights, this is a book for anyone who wants to see around corners — and to vanquish the fear that holds them back from acting on what they see.”—Susan Cain, author, Quiet
“This book is a rare gift… an honest, behind-the-scenes look at power, success and influence, combined with vulnerability and practical advice. A book you won’t soon forget.”—Seth Godin,author,Linchpin
The world will never be slower than it is right now, says Beth Comstock, the former Vice Chair and head of marketing and innovation at GE. But confronting relentless change is hard. Companies get disrupted as challengers steal away customers; employees have to move ahead without knowing the answers. To thrive in today’s world, every one of us has to make change part of our job.
In Imagine It Forward, Comstock, in a candid and deeply personal narrative, shares lessons from a thirty year career as the change-maker in chief, navigating the space between the established and the unproven. As the woman who initiated GE’s digital and clean-energy transformations, and its FastWorks methodology, she challenged a global organization to not wait for perfection but to spot trends, take smart risks and test new ideas more often. She shows how each one of us can—in fact, must — become a “change maker.”
“Ideas are rarely the problem,” writes Comstock. “What holds all of us back, really—is fear. It’s the attachment to the old, to ‘What We Know.’”
Change is messy and fraught with tension, uncertainty and failure. Being “change ready” calls for the courage to defy convention, the resilience to overcome doubts, and the savvy to know when to go around corporate gatekeepers to reinvent what is possible.
Among the practical takeaways Comstock offers: The power of discovery—bringing the outside into your organization, about turning the world into a classroom; finding a spark—provocateurs who challenge established ways of thinking can be a powerful catalyst for change; giving yourself permission—every change maker must learn to give herself permission to push outside expectations and boundaries.
Confronting today’s accelerating change requires an extraordinary degree of problem-solving, collaboration, and forward-thinking leadership to unlock every person’s potential. Imagine It Forward masterfully points the way.
MIT-trained engineer, tech entrepreneur and adventurer, Krisztina “Z” Holly is the host of The Art of Manufacturing podcast and Founder & Chief Instigator of MAKE IT IN LA, a non-profit launched out of LA Mayor Garcetti’s office. She is known for curating and hosting the first ever TEDx (TEDxUSC) in 2009 and founding two innovation centers at MIT and USC. She has an instinct for finding and amplifying undiscovered talent and ideas, whether it’s helping dozens of faculty spin out new venture-backed startups, or curating nearly a hundred different speakers whose talks have garnered 14 million views online; ten have appeared on TED.com.
Early on, she played key roles at tech startups, such as Stylus innovation (acquired by Artisoft), Direct Hit Technologies (acquired by Ask Jeeves), and Jeeves Solutions (acquired by Kanisa). She started her career as an undergraduate researcher at the MIT Media Lab and a member of the Space Shuttle Main Engine advanced manufacturing team. She served as Vice Provost for Innovation at USC and has been advisor to nearly two dozen companies and organizations, including the River LA, World Economic Forum, and the Obama Administration. She has two engineering degrees from MIT.
Eric Idle with Bob Saget
Thursday, October 11, 2018
8pm
Eric Idle
in conversation with Bob Saget
discussing his memoir,
Always Look on the Bright Side of Life:
A Sortabiography
Frost Auditorium
Culver City High School
4401 Elenda St,
Culver City, CA 90230
PURCHASE TICKETS
$55 Reserved Section Seat + signed book
$45 General Admission Section Seat + signed book
$25 General Admission Seats (tickets on sale Sep 10, 10am)
We welcome Eric Idle back to our stage. In Nov 2o14 he interviewed John Cleese when Cleese’s memoir came out, and the video from that event is our most viewed in our YouTube channel — over a million views. Watch it here, and get your tickets early!
Eric Idle is a comedian, actor, author, and singer-songwriter who found immediate fame on television with the sketch-comedy show Monty Python’s Flying Circus. Following its success, they began making films that include Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975), Life of Brian (1979) and The Meaning of Life (1983). Eric wrote, directed, and created The Rutles, the world’s first-ever mockumentary, as well as the Tony Award-winning musical, Spamalot (2005). Follow him on Twitter: @EricIdle