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Kids & Family

Thursday's Scoop: Sunset Strip Is Place to Be

The Sunset Strip Music Festival kicks off tonight with a special tribute to The Doors. Plus the Sunset Strip Market is back for its weekly visit and Book Soup has an author talking about motorcycle drag racing.

Greetings and welcome to City Scoop. Today is Thursday, August 16, the 229th day of 2012. Here’s what’s going on in West Hollywood today.

Sunset Strip Music Festival

Today is the 35th anniversary of the death of Elvis Presley. Today is also the first night of the 5th annual Sunset Strip Music Festival, the three-day event featuring over 100 bands. This year’s festival will “light your fire” by honoring The Doors whose 1966 performance at the Whisky a Go Go helped land them a deal with Elektra Records and then international stardom. The City of West Hollywood has declared today “The Doors Day” and the surviving members of the band will perform a special show at the . Other bands performing today as part of the Sunset Strip Music Festival are Quiet Riot at the , Peter Murphy at the Roxy Theatre, Great White at the and Future Villains at the .

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Motorcycle Drag Racing

Motorcycle drag racing is a sport you either love or don’t understand at all. John Stein’s coffeetable book, Motorcycle Drag Racing: A History successfully manages to honor the sports for devotees yet also explain it to the uninitiated. Filled with exciting photos, anecdotes and tributes, the book will leave you anything but bored. Stein discusses and signs copies of the book starting at 7 p.m. at

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Sunset Strip Market

The Sunset Strip is the happening place on Thursday nights thanks to the , a certified farmers’ market that also features live music and cooking demonstrations. This week the market will be especially lively as the Sunset Strip Music Festival is also getting underway. Live music is by The Wellspring, Jo Krasevic and Rachel Goodrich. Open 5-9 p.m., the is in the old Tower Records overflow parking lot, just east of Horn Avenue.

Boards and Commissions

  • The Urban Arts Subcommittee of the Arts and Cultural Affairs Commission meets at 5 p.m. in Items on the agenda include the civic art project connected to the new automated parking garage scheduled to be built behind City Hall.
  • The Planning Commission meets at 6:30 p.m. in the Council Chamber in the Items on the agenda include a proposal to limit the number and location of banks/financial institutions along the Sunset Strip.

Bands Playing in Town

  • Quiet Riot with DC4, LA Velvet, Betty Moon, Liftoff, Octane Mob, Faded Sun, Some Fear None, Truth & Lies, Vyrus, Barbarian Overlords, Gemini Ryan and Ever X at the Key Club. Doors open at 6 p.m., show at 6:30 p.m.
  • Future Villains with Lady Sinatra, the Black Marquee, Gunpowder Secrets and Diamonds Under Fire at the Viper Room. Doors open at 7:30 p.m., show at 8 p.m.
  • Peter Murphy with Our and DJ Kevin Bronson at the Roxy Theatre. Doors open at 7:30 p.m.
  • Great White with Faster Pussycat, the Hard Way, Wizeguy Theory, Madsin Hatter and Everyday Like Sunday at the Whisky a Go Go. Doors open at 8 p.m.
  • The Doors at the House of Blues. Show at 8 p.m. 
  • Nick Urata’s “Ruby Sparks” soundtrack release show at Largo. Doors open at 7:15 p.m., show at 8:30 p.m.
  • OTR with Kid Peace, Dance Hall Pimps, Cosmic Sucker Punch and Tommy Johnson at the Roxy Theatre. Doors open at 8:30 p.m.
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