Community Corner

Top 5 Westside Stories: Alice Gruppioni, Munchkin's Passing, Paul McCartney, Tigers and Development

Check out these five stories that led Patch sites this past week.

Finish up the weekend with a handful of stories that topped Westside Patch sites in the past week:

  • Mourning a Venice Crash Victim: Alice Gruppioni, a bride from Italy on her honeymoon, died when Nathan Campbell reportedly drove down the boardwalk, injuring 16 other people in the tragedy. A West L.A. resident paid homage to the victims by playing Taps.
  • Farewell to a Munchkin: Margaret Pellegrini, who played the flowerpot Munchkin in the 1939 classic The Wizard of Oz, died earlier this week. She was just 15 when she landed one of the 124 Munchkin roles in the movie.
  • Sir Paul McCartney in SaMo: The former Beatle will be performing Shakespeare on Sept. 25 at Santa Monica's Broad Stage for The Shakespeare Center of Los Angeles’ 23rd annual Simply Shakespeare benefit. Joining him will be William Shatner, Rita Wilson and Tom Hanks.
  • Tigers Near Malibu?: That's something on the table according to a filming proposal, which has a neighborhood in a bit of an, um, uproar. The proposal is up for public comment through Aug. 26. Comments should be sent to Jay Dobrowalski at County of Ventura, RMA, Planning Division, 800 S. Victoria Ave., Ventura, Calif. The documents can be reviewed online at ventura.org/rma/planning.
  • New Project in WeHo: Demolition is scheduled to start next week to clear space for a pair of developments dubbed the Sunset La Cienega Project. The developments will be located at 8490 Sunset Blvd. and 8500 Sunset Blvd.


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