Lynne Westmore Bloom died last week. In 1966, her giant pink naked lady appeared over the Malibu Canyon tunnel, delighting many, and pissing off local officials. ... Sanden Totten, of science podcast Brains On, takes us to Joshua Tree and explains how its shrubs, animals, and Joshua Trees survive. ... The Formosa Café just closed, so we'll talk about its role as a creative shorthand for evoking the glamour of Old Hollywood. ... 8-Bit music, the sound of old school video games, is s now a genre for musicians who like its simplicity and the era it evokes. We’ll tell you about an 8-bit music festival happening this weekend in LA.

Marc Haefele considers "Breaking News" at the Getty Center, which shows how broken newsgathering has often been; In "Broke," KPCC's Rina Palta and Priska Neely look at California's growing homeless problem; Taylor Orci talks pastrami and deli menus with Norm Langer; and Gustavo Arellano tells hipster chefs to look away from Mexico for inspiration in 2017.

Donovan, Fitz and the Tantrums, John Cale, Joel Grey, Brian May, Lou Adler, and more as Off-Ramp rings in the new year with our best music interviews.

Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol" -- the Lionel Barrymore version, plus new takes on the classic.

Your favorite celebrities read "The Night Before Christmas" for Off-Ramp ... "Andy Rooney" doesn't like Christmas ... Marc Haefele pays tribute to author James Salter ... EatLA and Craft Beer ... Judy Chicago treats Frida Kahlo like an artist in her new book ... Life isn't easy as Isaac Haille Selassie ... Black Facts and Wax museum ...

Lamont Dozier on writing "How Sweet It Is," "Stop in the Name of Love," and "Sugarpie, Honeybunch" ... Dinner Party Download ... Downtown Women's Center's New Home ... Van Dyke Parks, American composer ... B'way Deli closes ...

John visits This Old House's set - a home renovation in Silverlake - and talks with the show's founder, who also produced The French Chef and Victory Garden ... another OCMA Biennial artist ... Frank Romero is painting offramps and selling his Frogtown studio ... Mark Peel lamb bastes chicken breast ... Seth Menachem's mysinglepeeps.com -- like dating sites, but without the lies ...

"Walking Out of History," John Rabe's NPR documentary about Sir Ernest Shackleton's 2-year odyssey on the Antarctic ice.

Actress Gwendoline Yeo on her new one-woman show ... Off-Ramp's new series Hard Times meets Laurel Holliday, mother of three, living in a foreclosed house ... Marc Haefele: Not much new in Twain autobio, but a "magnificent browse" ... Luke Butler, OCMA Biennial artist and Trekkie ... Aztlan Underground ... Browsing 7th Street in Downtown LA ... Dinner Party Download meets actor Sally Hawkins

An intimate and bawdy conversation: Gwendoline Yeo and Off-Ramp host John Rabe on Yeo's new show, "Laughing With My Mouth Wide Open"