Home Care In Lena, LA

Could the next “MCU” be the Mattel Cinematic Universe?

After “Barbie” scored the biggest domestic opening weekend of 2023, earning an estimated $155 million in the United States and Canada, Mattel Films is eager to translate a rich toy line to cinema gold.

MGM’s “Polly Pocket” — starring Lily Collins as the micro-doll — is in development, with “Girls” creator Lena Dunham writing and directing.

In 2018, Mattel brought in Ynon Kreiz as the new chief executive. He envisioned a Mattel for the big screen, and after the massive success of “Barbie,” the sky seems to be the limit.

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Numerous new projects are in development with A-listers attached, according to Variety. “Barney,” “Thomas and Friends,” “American Girl” and “Polly Pocket” are just a few — and “Barbie” sequels aren’t out of the question, either.

“Successful movies lend themselves to more movies,” the CEO told the outlet. “Our ambition is to create film franchises.”

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July 24, 2023

The Oscar-nominated producer at the helm of Mattel Films, Robbie Brenner, told Variety that the company was hopeful “Barbie” would become the success it did, so they could look to the Barbie universe for possible sequels. Toy lines that could become franchise gold, like “Masters of the Universe” and “Hot Wheels,” are also at the forefront of Brenner’s vision for Mattel Films.

“That’s the hope — that it goes on and on and it’s a gift that keeps giving,” Brenner continued. “But, in this day and age, you just want to get the first one right.”

Brenner also confirmed to Variety that there was a “Polly Pocket” script, adding that it’s a “great” script.

“First of all, they are two of my favorite ladies ever,” Brenner told the outlet of Collins and Dunham. “It’s been an amazing collaboration. Lena is so collaborative and rolls up her sleeves and really likes to roll around in notes and listen. She’s incredible. Lily is so smart and so specific and so productorial. It’s just been an incredible collaboration, so we are thrilled about it. Hopefully, we’ll be making that at some point in the future.”

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The iconic purple dinosaur Barney has also been confirmed, backed by producer Daniel Kaluuya, who starred in the horror hit “Get Out.”

Mattel described “Barney” as an “A24-type” of “surrealistic” film. And Brenner dished to the outlet, “I don’t know that it’s necessarily going to be darker. It’s just going to be unique — more of like a ‘Being John Malkovich’ or an ‘Adaptation.’ ”

“There are no goblets, but there are some wine glasses,” Lena Headey tells Dwell of her California bungalow, now listed for $1.945 million with Zoe Rudolph of John Aaroe Group, according to Trulia.

To our dismay, the actress known to fans of HBO’s Game of Thrones as Queen Cersei Lannister does not spend her days plotting the demise of her enemies from the tower of a Westerosi castle. Instead, the English expat can often be found poolside, hanging out with her son, Wylie, 6, and daughter, Teddy, 1, in a shockingly normal neighborhood in California’s San Fernando Valley, just north of L.A. “One of my oldest pals said it’s like the neighborhood in E.T.,” she tells Dwell of her choice to forgo the city’s more star-studded enclaves. “It’s kid heaven.”

The modern-bohemian home — which she rehabbed and helped to design — is gorgeous enough to make you forget there are no stores of wildfire in the basement or dragons flying overhead. Get a sneak peek below.

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When Headey bought the house, it was a mid-century fixer upper with less than delightful details like faux-turf indoors and out, a low-ceilinged living room featuring a massive curved bar and a pizza oven. But she was romanced by the size and space of the house. “In England, we live in boxes that you pay millions for,” she says. “So when I got to L.A., I was like, ‘My god, everything is huge.’” Though the actress purposefully avoided what she calls “grand Los Angelean” features. “It’s not my vibe,” she says.

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While it’s far from a centuries-old castle, the home does feature a surprising number of old-world details. Headey and project manager Ted Broden laid herringbone floors made of wood reclaimed from an old Kentucky farm (“It feels so good on your bare feet; it’s really soft wood.”) and left rustic structural beams exposed (“They have writing on them and rusty old bolts”).

The makeover was not without its drama. When Headey handed Broden a binder filled with her ideas and inspiration, the first page showed a picture of a woman holding a kitchen knife and crying, below which she’d written, “This is me if you f— it up,” she recalls with a laugh. “I have a biting sense of humor, but I wasn’t kidding.” Lucky for both parties, the results are inarguably stunning, family-friendly, and a another world from what you’d expect.

See the full home tour in the current issue of Dwell, on newsstands now.

WhenWhen the elevator at the Ritz-Carlton Los Angeles lands on the 24th floor, allowing diners to step into the new skyline-high restaurant Sendero, it’s best to take a moment to glance behind the host stand at the enlarged map of the Americas. There’s a bold single line on the map, tracing a journey that starts in Los Angeles and ends at the tip of Argentina.

The map illustrates an adjusted route of the Pan-American Highway, the road network that links through North, Central, and South America. Sendero is meant to trace this journey with its menu, though it deviates slightly from this historic route to follow a more coastal path, outlining chef Kevin Luzande’s travels. Those flavors have now landed at Sendero, which houses his two restaurants and a forthcoming eight-seat chef’s table space, as well as a mezcal library — all tucked into the restaurant spaces that previously housed Wolfgang Puck’s WP24 and Nest at WP24.

Of the four options at the new all-encompassing Sendero, seafood-focused Corteza and Argentine-inspired steakhouse Leña open first, launching tonight, February 23. The Agave Library opens in March as a space to sample rare and small-batch collections of tequila, mezcal, and other agave-based spirits, while Volante — a chef’s table with an open kitchen — starts booking seats at the end of the year. And just like its previous tenant, Sendero boasts a striking north, east, and western view of LA, though the interiors have been completely overhauled by EDG Design.

The journey begins with Corteza, which fills the front end of the sprawling space and tracks through the Sea of Cortez between Baja California and central Mexico. Luzande places emphasis on seafood with a Peruvian tiradito/crudo with Hokkaido scallops, ceviche Nikkei, and a tuna tostada that takes cues from Mexico. For entrees, Luzande prepares a mushroom/huitlacoche tamal with mole negro, and a black truffle preserve. All desserts — including a vegan panna cotta and a chocolate skull Dia De Los Muertos confection that melts in dramatic fashion — are by veteran Bottega Louie and Pendry Hotel pastry chef Francois Behuet.

When walking through Corteza to visit Leña, the future sites for the Agave Library and Volante are nestled directly in the center. Leña has floor-to-ceiling windows, private dining areas, and dark, moody lighting in comparison to the adjacent Corteza. Luzande’s Argentine-native sous chef Pedro Passalacqua developed a menu where some traditional and newer spins are on display, from the Argentine provoleta (grilled provolone) to the seafood platter “macho” filled with crab claws, oysters, lobster, and large shrimp. The corta de gaucho includes a wagyu double tomahawk carved tableside with a choice of four side dishes, including wild mushrooms in Madeira cream sauce and herbs, or a Spanish tortilla with provolone.

Both Corteza and Leña’s cocktail menus are exactly the same. The spirits range from tequilas to rums to Brazilian cachaca, while drinks like the palo santo are made with Bookers Unfiltered bourbon, amaro, bitters, vermouth, and a lot of palo santo smoke. The agave goddess Mayahuel cocktail — named for the Aztec goddess of agave — uses Casamigos Blanco tequila, Banhez mezcal, carrot, Ancho Reyes poblano liqueur, and lemon.

If chef Kevin Luzande sounds familiar, that’s because the chef spent years leading in LA kitchens like Acabar and Playa Restaurant, which now houses Petty Cash Taqueria. He left the industry in late 2019 and took a position in construction building houses, but has returned to cooking as of 2022, though it wasn’t without some thought. In fact, he turned down the Sendero position twice before accepting the job, but ultimately took the job in part because he felt that he could be a mentor for a new kitchen crew.

“I’m trying to build them up and see them work at great restaurants,” says Luzande. “I want to turn dishwashers into cooks, cooks into junior sous [chefs], and sous into great chefs.”

Corteza and Leña are open daily from 5 p.m. to midnight. When it opens next month, the Agave Library will open Tuesday through Saturday from 5 p.m. to midnight.

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900 West Olympic Boulevard, , CA 90015 (213) 743-8824 Visit Website

After what seems like years of L.A.-bashing, Lena Dunham may be trading in her New York hustle-and-bustle for a little bit of that City of Angels lifestyle.

Rumors have been floating around that the Girls creator is about to close on an almost-$3-million-dollar house in Hollywood, which is a major change from her current digs in Brooklyn. The star isn't commenting on why she's making the switch, but it would make sense that she's finding herself in Tinseltown more and more these days. Either that or she found that a New York City without Beyoncé and Jay Z is not a New York City worth living in.

Regardless, Dunham's legions of fans are no doubt sitting on pins and needles wondering what her soon-to-be L.A. life is going to be like. Well, wonder no more, because we have obtained an exclusive (fake) diary entry of her West Coast day. This never-before-seen (because it exists only in our minds) day-in-the-life provides an insight into Lena's (imaginary) newly-enlightened psyche.

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6 a.m. I wake up early, thanks to the fact that my body is still on East Coast time. Plus, I am a highly intelligent human being whose brain runs far more than the average person. I take a second to jot in my dream journal about the vision of riding horseback along the beach with Larry David that came to me last night. Must put in my upcoming feminist manifesto, tentatively titled Actually Maybe I Am That Kind of Girl.

8 a.m. I finally rouse myself from bed (made with fair-trade organic sheets, of course) and pad into the kitchen for a breakfast of the bagels I have flown in from Brooklyn every morning. Angelenos are kidding themselves if they think these soggy, tiny bread rounds they call "New York-style bagels" are remotely edible.

8:02 a.m. I enter the kitchen to find Taylor Swift, dressed inexplicably in a 1950s polka-dot swimsuit and a kicky beret, covered in flour and baking what appears to be her 17th batch of cookies. "What are you doing here?" I ask as I rub the sleep out of my eyes. "I let myself in with the key you didn't know I had, silly!" she replies, as she adjust the wall full of portraits of the two of us that was not there yesterday. "I knew you were sleeping thanks to my surveillance feed, so I thought I would surprise you with cookies. We're besties, remember?" She finishes with a maniacal giggle.

9:00 a.m. After I'm done sampling Tay Tay's (she asks me to call her that) handiwork, I decide it's time to get dressed and seize this beautiful Los Angeles day. I open my drawer full of my new Kale sweatshirts in every color—today I pick green, to celebrate the fact that I saw my first blade of grass.

10 a.m. Time to take Lamby for a hike at Runyon Canyon. If you can't beat 'em, join 'em.

11 a.m. A quick stop at Juice Press, for further assimiliation.

12 p.m. It's time for my Tay Tay-mandated Taylor Swift music dance break. For today's three-song requirement, I choose "Shake It Off," "Love Story," and "22." I Instagram a video of myself dancing and make sure to include "bestie" in the caption.

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1 p.m. - 4 p.m. I spend the afternoon stalking Beyoncé reading The New Yorker.

5 p.m. I try out a new acro yoga studio, but am thrown off by how busy it is. Everyone in Brooklyn was too busy drinking PBR and complaining about the G train to exercise, which made for a very serene practice. Mark this studio down as a maybe—ample parking is a plus, but I felt as though the clientele was judging me for the candy bar wrapper that accidentally fell out of my purse before class.

7 p.m. I cruise up and down Sunset Boulevard in Silver Lake hoping to discover the next new love interest for Girls. I see a few prospects, but so far no one's clothes are tattered enough, nor did I see any beards the perfect median between Tattoo Artist and Elderly Amish Man.

9 p.m. I return home, and spend a solid 20 minutes running up and down my hallways yelling and screaming, because for the first time in my life I actually have hallways. Tomorrow I will do the same in my closets (plural!).

10 p.m. I end the night in bed watching a hardcore porno film as research for the next Girls sex scene. We're alway trying to go above and beyond. Maybe tomorrow I will visit one of Hollywood's famous strip clubs before my appointment with my tarot card reader. God Bless Los Angeles.

LENA, La. (KALB) - It has been just under a week since videos of Cypress Arrow Kennel and K9 Academy in Lena went viral, showing alleged dog mistreatment. As the Rapides Parish Sheriff’s Office continues its investigation into this alleged abuse, another dog owner is stepping forward.

Carmen Cloute and her husband, Jared, sent their Cane Corso, Fenixx, to Cypress Arrow for advanced training on July 15. While their dog was still in Lena, the couple said they were sent a video of Fenixx being hit with an object multiple times.

The video showcased two people on opposite sides of Fenixx, pulling her with leashes while one of them continuously hit the dog with an object. Carmen described what it was like seeing that video for the first time and her first contact with Tina Frey, Cypress Arrow’s owner, afterward.

“When I opened that email and that video, my blood ran cold,” Carmen said. “We called Tina. I said ‘Tina, what is this’ and she said ‘oh, that’s the correction training.’ We gave Cypress Arrow permission to make any corrections to any behavior that she was exhibiting. We would have never agreed to that method. The thing that’s just going on in my head is why, if she is a professional, didn’t she say ‘hey Mr. and Mrs. Cloute, I’m going to use this method. It’s going to look controversial. Do I have your permission?’ We would’ve never said yes to that.”

After seeing the video, the couple then drove from Texas to pick Fenixx up early from training at Cypress Arrow. Frey was there as the Cloutes reunited with their dog, and this is what they said she mentioned about the video:

“She mentioned something to me that they didn’t show me the beginning and the ending, all they show is that little snippet. For a split second, I was like okay, I see what she’s saying. But at the same time, it’s like Tina, you have to understand, in our eyes, we’re the dog parents and that looks pretty bad.”

The Cloutes shared that they did not see any visible markings or welts on their dog when they picked her up in Lena, but are taking Fenixx to a vet to get fully checked out. They said they did give a statement to authorities about seeing the video of Fenixx at the academy.

RPSO said it is continuing its investigation and said no arrests have been made and no animals have been removed from the facility by any authorities.

Since we were made aware of the allegations last Thursday, we have made multiple attempts to contact Cypress Arrow Kennel and K9 Academy, as well as Tina Frey, but have not yet gotten a response.

Related:

RPSO investigating social media videos depicting alleged animal abuse in Lena

More owners speak out about animal abuse in Lena, RPSO investigates claims

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