We walk Skid Row with VA chief Bob McDonald; how Vidiots changed journalist Elina Shatkin’s life; a classical bassist who went to New Guinea to study a singing and composing tribe.

We spend a few minutes in the Idle Hour; talk bars with atmosphere with 1933 Group's Bobby Green; talk judges' robes with Kevin's dad; and meet radical quilters.

Meet a non-denominational exorcist who works out of a guest house in Van Nuys ... 5 Every Week gets you off the couch and on the streets ... climate change and creatures in the Mojave ... Brains On tells us how the salamander grows back limbs, and home come we can't?

One of Philip K. Dick's editors - Marc Haefele - reviews Amazon's "The Man in the High Castle;" the Triforium in downtown LA gets new life; how to be a good gentile at a Hanukkah celebration; listeners try out the LAPD's shooting simulator; 5 Every Week helps you be social and smart.

What goes on after Thanksgiving? Shopping, sure. And you can watch a game, or go ham on some leftover turkey. But ask any local: Los Angeles — world class city that it is — offers much, much more. This week, Off-Ramp focuses on the weekend after Thanksgiving.

Pixar's Sanjay Patel tells us how he made "Sanjay's Super Team," a tribute to his father ... Josh Stamberg in David Mamet’s “American Buffalo” ... 5 Every Week gives you the keys to the city ... an immigrant's Thanksgiving comes days after the JFK assassination

In-deep with "The Office" star Rainn Wilson ... Joey Arias does the best Billie Holiday impersonation you'll ever hear ... Gregg Turkington is Neil Hamburger in "Entertainment" ... 5 Every Week keeps you busy ... and Brains On tells you how salamanders regenerate lost limbs.

Hollywood Fights Back!, an ill-fated stand against HUAC ... 5 Every Week joins the Off-Ramp lineup ... SoCal winemakers shameful past ...

This week, Off-Ramp finds out what’s under the bed when the lights go off. Stories from "In the Shadow of Edgar Allan Poe," a new collection of great old under-appreciated horror stories. The program will be recorded Thursday at the Crawford Family Forum.

Pico Union, Pico Boulevard, Pico Rivera … so who was Pico? Actors playing zombies don’t need acting classes. El Nino is bringing welcome rain, but also a highly venomous sea snake. The only group allowed to bring notorious, wonderful EC Comics to life on the stage. And we go to the Arboretum to see if it’s finally the right time to rip out your lawn.