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The Old School Cruise 2022

Be a part of all the fun Cinco De Mayo Weekend aboard the all new Carnival Radiance for The Old School Cruise 2022! Sailing out of Long Beach, April 29th through May 2nd. Have the time of your life with legendary Old School artists like Zapp, Midnight Star, Stevie B, Rose Royce, Evelyn “Champagne” King and many more! Book now with this exclusive offer, just for our Old School family - Use promo code “JIMMY100” and receive a $100 Holiday Discount! You can book at  TheOldSchoolCruise.com  or by calling (888) 639-8888. Don’t wait, as this offer is VERY limited and will sell out. Let’s make some memories on the Old School Cruise 2022!

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Old School Cruise II 2024

What: old school cruise 2.0, when: may 3-6, 2023, port of call: long beach, ca.

Introducing the OLD SCHOOL CRUISE 2.0 with the biggest line-up in concert cruise History.  The Old School Cruise 1.0 and 2.0 will be sailing next to each other and making Music History as the biggest Concert Cruise ever.   

GO TO WWW.OLDSCHOOLCRUISE.COM OR CALL 888-629-8880

Wednesday Pre-Sale includes:

Only $50 DOWN

As low as $85 monthly

Choose the BEST cabins

Guarantee your cabin to Sail aboard the Carnival Radiance May 3-6, 2024, and depart Long Beach, CA.  Truly the greatest 3 day Cinco De Mayo weekend of your life.

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Old School Cruise II 2024

  March 13, 2023

By   ExoticDJ

What: Old School Cruise 2.0

When: may 3-6, 2023, port of call: long beach, ca.

Introducing the OLD SCHOOL CRUISE 2.0 with the biggest line-up in concert cruise History.  The Old School Cruise 1.0 and 2.0 will be sailing next to each other and making Music History as the biggest Concert Cruise ever.   

GO TO WWW.OLDSCHOOLCRUISE.COM OR CALL 888-629-8880

Wednesday Pre-Sale includes:

Only $50 DOWN

As low as $85 monthly

Choose the BEST cabins

Guarantee your cabin to Sail aboard the Carnival Radiance May 3-6, 2024, and depart Long Beach, CA.  Truly the greatest 3 day Cinco De Mayo weekend of your life.

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Restaurants Food and Drink | Italian food in Long Beach goes deliciously old…

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Restaurants food and drink, subscriber only, restaurants food and drink | italian food in long beach goes deliciously old school at this restaurant.

One of the best reasons to arrive early at Tarantella on 4th (formerly La Tarantella Osteria), and to park several blocks away, is so you can take a leisurely stroll down Retro Row (which maps less poetically refer to as the 4th Street Corridor). It’s a journey through memory-strewn years gone by.

There’s a Kit-Cat Klock, with eyes that move back and forth along with the tail. (We always had one in our kitchen.) There’s a vintage copy of Mad magazine, which my folks tossed out so I’d take my studies more seriously. (I didn’t.) There are baseball cards, encased in plastic. I ate a lot of bubble gum that came with my baseball cards – all lost over the years.

And there’s Tarantella, serving the sort of wonderful, tasty, soul-affirming down-home Italian cooking we’ve been eating forever and a day. The calamari fritti. The lasagna de Mama Bertha. The Mama Menu spaghetti & meatballs. The chicken parmigiana and cioppino.

There are no pizzas, but there are flatbreads — topped with a choice of chicken Alfredo; marinara with parmesan and mozzarella; roasted garlic and cheese; and pepperoni with cheese and sauce. Pizza can get soggy. Flatbread doesn’t. It’s pizza given a reboot, and better for the experience. With crème brûlée, tiramisu, five gelati and four bombas for dessert. And Peroni on draft. This is a very happy restaurant.

It’s a long, narrow storefront of sundry parts and pieces. There’s a dining area on the street in front that allows you the chance to admire the high-steppers as they leave the vintage clothing shops with their vintage treasures .

There’s an inside dining room in the front, adjacent to the bar and kitchen. It’s a space decorated with a curious world of wall paintings — Leonardo Da Vinci, the canals of Venice, a cobbled wine cellar. There’s an outdoor patio in the back, with live music under the stars … if there are any.

Dinner and live music – at Tarantella on 4th in Long Beach, musicians perform on select nights. (Photo by Merrill Shindler)

The decor at Tarantella on 4th in Long Beach includes a variety of artwork, including a scene featuring the canals of Venice and, here, a Leonardo Da Vinci portrait. (Photo by Merrill Shindler)

Tarantella on 4th in Long Beach is an old school, red sauce Italian restaurant, with many pasta options, served a space with street seating, a few tables inside, and lots of tables on the back patio. (Photo by Merrill Shindler)

Wherever you sit, there are many wines, most of them Italian. There’s a basket of toasted bread — such a simple and tasty touch — served practically as soon as you sit down. And there are dishes that appeal, from top to bottom — truly something for everyone.

Begin with the wonderfully crispy calamari fritti, and fried artichoke hearts. Which kick off the theme of red sauce on or with everything. When we speak of red sauce Italian, it’s Tarantella that fits the bill.

More Merrill: Asian-inspired seafood is a delight at this Long Beach restaurant

But of course, not always. The bruschetta only uses fresh tomatoes, no sauce, along with basil pesto and balsamic. The caprese, with its tasty buffalo mozzarella, also sticks with fresh toms. There are no toms at all on the carpaccio; but lots of shaved parmesan. The crab cakes come with a lemon saffron sauce. And what a treat the crispy sun-dried tomatoes are in the Chanita Salad, along with sliced pears and balsamic — an inspired combination.

But when we turn to the pastas — referred to  as “Primi” in the traditional Italian menu verbiage — there’s red sauce aplenty. On and in the lasagna — a complexity of ground pork and beef, ricotta, parmigiana and mozzarella. Lubricating Mama Mena’s meatballs and spaghetti. Coating the roasted eggplant. Drenching the lobster over pappardelle. Intrinsic to the fur cheese tortellini with truffle oil.

Of course, it’s the underpinning of the cioppino — a fish stew worthy of its roots on the San Francisco docks. And it gives the chicken parmigiana its zip. And what would the flatbread with pepperoni be like without marinara?

There are other sauces, of course: pesto on the gnocchi, garlic and white wine sauce on the clams, wild boar ragu on the pappardelle, risotto with fresh mushrooms — and a classic spaghetti carbonara.

To any of the pastas, you can add chicken, shrimp, meatballs, pancetta or sausage. At Tarantella, too much is never enough. But like the street on which it dwells, this is, at heart, a retro dining experience.

For old-timers, it’s a return to roots. For youngsters, it’s just pleasure. For everyone, it lasts longer in memory than that fedora you might find at one of the thrift shops. We can dream of being Mastroianni. Bogart … not so much.

Merrill Shindler is a Los Angeles-based freelance dining critic. Email [email protected].

Tarantella on 4th

• Rating: 3 stars
• Address: 2120 E. 4th St., Long Beach (Retro Row)
• Information: 562-343-5728; www.tarantellaon4th.com
• Cuisine: Old school, red sauce Italian, with lotsa pastas, served in an oddball space with street seating, a few tables inside, and lotsa tables on the back patio, with live music. It’s a gem of a restaurant surrounded by quirky antique shops .
• When: Dinner, Wednesday through Sunday
• Prices: About $35 per person; reservations important
• On the menu: 10 Antipasti ($13.95-$42), 3 Insalate ($13.25), 14 Pastas ($22.50-$26.50), 5 Entrées ($25.50-$35), 4 Flatbreads ($14.95-$18.95), 4 Dolce ($8.95- $9.95)
• Credit cards: MC, V
• What the stars mean: 4 (World class! Worth a trip from anywhere!), 3 (Most excellent, even exceptional. Worth a trip from anywhere in Southern California.), 2 (A good place to go for a meal. Worth a trip from anywhere in the neighborhood.) 1 (If you’re hungry, and it’s nearby, but don’t get stuck in traffic going.) 0 (Honestly, not worth writing about.)
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News | The first-timer’s go-to guide for the best…

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News | the first-timer’s go-to guide for the best grand prix of long beach experience.

It’s just about time for 49th annual Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach.

The event, dubbed Southern California’s 200-mph beach party, will offer Grand Prix veterans and first-timers countless offerings from Friday to Sunday, April 19-21.

There’s so much to see and do at this event — which takes over a big chunk of Long Beach’s downtown and waterfront — it might be hard to figure out how to make the most of the experience.

But never fear. The Southern California News Group has you covered with a go-to guide to get the most out of Long Beach’s biggest party this weekend.

Take a look.

Getting there

The Grand Prix might be all about driving — but it’s probably best you leave that to the professionals this weekend. Instead, opt for an alternative means of transportation.

There are plenty of options at your disposal to avoid dealing with street closures and parking pains caused by the influx of nearly 200,000 spectators the event is expected to draw.

Consider taking the Los Angeles Metro. The A Line, formerly the Blue Line, will get you from Union Station to Downtown Long Beach in a pinch.

Disembark the train at the Downtown Long Beach Station and walk the rest of the route (about half a block) to the Grand Prix’s entrances along Ocean Boulevard.

Regular fare is $1.75 per person.

Long Beach Transit also has more than 30 bus routes and plenty of stops in the city — including near the Grand Prix’s entrances.

Check lbtransit.com to plan your specific route, or use the Moovit app, which is available in the Apple App Store and on Google Play.

If you’re feeling a little fun, you might also try Long Beach Transit’s water taxi routes — the AquaLink and AquaBus.

The AquaLink will ferry you from the the Alamitos Bay Landing to Rainbow Harbor at Aquarium Dock 4, near the Grand Prix, for just $5.

The earliest boat departs Alamitos Bay at 8:30 a.m. and the last trip departs the Aquarium Dock at 7 p.m. It’s about a 40 minute ride either way.

The AquaBus, a shorter and even more affordable ride at just $1 for a one-way ticket, will get you to the Grand Prix from the Queen Mary.

Those trips will kick off at 9 a.m., with the last AquaBus scheduled to depart the Queen Mary at 7:20 p.m.

More information about the AquaLink and AquaBus schedules and parking near the Alamitos Bay Landing is available on LB Transit’s website .

For ridesharers: The Grand Prix has an official Uber, Lyft and taxi drop-off point on First Street, between Elm Avenue and Long Beach Boulevard.

And don’t forget about the Long Beach Bike Share, which has several pick-up points throughout the city and near the Grand Prix.

It costs $7 for an hour for pay-as-you-go riders; pre-payers can get three hours of riding time for $21 dollars. Find a bike near you at  longbeachbikeshare.com .

If — despite all the warnings — you plan to drive, prepare yourself to deal with extra traffic and street closures.

On-site parking at the Grand Prix is limited, but there are some options available.

One-day and three-day passes for parking on the west end of Shoreline Drive are available for purchase on the Grand Prix’s website.

One-day parking passes are $20; three-day passes total $50.

The Pike Outlets also offers parking — but only for a three-day package. Those passes cost $60, and are also available on the Grand Prix’s website.

Make a checklist

These are by no means mandatory — but here’s few things you might consider bringing to the Grand Prix to help your weekend run smoothly.

You can never go wrong with a battery bank to keep your mobile devices charged. It’s also a good idea to bring a reusable water bottle and sunscreen, and wear layers of comfortable clothes so you’re prepared for hot and cold weather.

A good pair of walking shoes are highly recommended. And don’t forget the earplugs — the Grand Prix is loud.

The next list of items, though, are prohibited by the Grand Prix, so don’t bring them unless you want to get booted:

• Alcoholic beverages, glass bottles and cans.
• Weapons (knives, guns, mace, stun guns).
• Folding stadium seats, large umbrellas, lawn furniture, ladders and step stools.
• Bikes, skateboards, hoverboards, skates and rollerblades.
• Powered scooters and bikes.
• Hand-drawn wagons.
• Pets (except service animals).
• Banners and signs.
• Ice chests larger than 14 inches.
• Drones or RC aircraft.

Where to watch the races

The Grand Prix’s spectator gates will open at 7:30 a.m. each day.

The type of ticket you have will determine which parts of the event you’ll have access to.

General admission attendees, for example, won’t have reserved seats in the event’s various grandstands — but there is a GA viewing location sandwiched between the Pike Outlets and the Hyatt Regency Hotel.

General ticket holders also get free access to non-racing entertainment, including the Grand Prix’s Friday Fiesta concert and Saturday evening concert.

Don’t forget to check out the Grand Prix’s usual attractions, including the lifestyle expo and a family fun zone at the Long Beach Convention & Entertainment Center.

Those who purchased tickets with reserved seating will be given further information about which grandstand to head to on race days. A map of concourse is available on the Grand Prix’s website, gplb.com .

Between the races

Once you, inevitably, need a break from the noise and all the walking, Marina Park is a great place to relax and recharge, or just kill some time until the next race starts.

Grand Prix-goers can also check out the event’s Lifestyle Expo at the Convention Center.

The expo includes displays from more than 100 retailers featuring automotive, home, recreation, travel and entertainment products — and it’s a great place to get an air-conditioned break from the outside.

And the Family Fun Zone is there as well, with kids able to enjoy inflatables, a bungee jump, a rock-climbing wall and electric-powered cars.

Attendees can also take a tour of Rainbow Lagoon, near Turn 6 and the Hyatt Long Beach Hotel, in swan boats — which are available to rent on site.

Hungry yet?

There’s plenty to eat — and drink — at the Grand Prix.

This year, King Taco, one of the Grand Prix’s most beloved food vendors, will celebrate it’s 50th anniversary — and 30th catering the event.

They’ll have several locations around the Grand Prix, including a spit in the Food Truck Village, located behind Grandstand 31 near Shoreline Village.

There’s also Bistro Row, to the east of Vendor Row and across from the NTT IndyCar Series Paddock, which offers a variety of other food choices and places to sit nearby.

Modelo will also have two sports bar popups at the Grand Prix — one in Marina Park behind Grandstand 31 and the other on the Promenade near the Long Beach Convention Center.

The Pike Outlets, Shoreline Village and downtown Long Beach itself also have myriad food options available, including Gladstone’s, Hooters, Bubba Gump Shrimp Co., California Pizza Kitchen and Island’s.

Refreshments like Pepsi, NOS energy drinks and Aquafina water are available all around the circuit — and the Long Beach Water Department will bring its Quench Buggy, a mobile water-refilling station, to the Grand Prix to help attendees stay hydrated.

There’s an app for that

If everything you just read still feels like a lot to keep track of — well, there’s an app for that.

Grand Prix organizers, last year, unveiled an event-specific app for the first time, aimed at helping attendees keep track of and plan out their weekends.

With the app, you can create a personalized race weekend schedule, easily find food and beverage options near by, and quickly access a map of the area.

The app is available on both Apple’s App Store and Google Play.

Make a plan

Everyone loves to dabble in spontaneity — but if you want the most out of the three-day experience, it’s best to plan ahead. And remember, have fun!

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The Old School Cruise 2022!

Be a part of all the fun Cinco De Mayo Weekend aboard the all new Carnival Radiance for The Old School Cruise 2022! Sailing out of Long Beach, April 29th through May 2nd. Have the time of your life with legendary Old School artists like Zapp, Midnight Star, Stevie B, Rose Royce, Evelyn “Champagne” King and many more! Book now with this exclusive offer, just for our Old School family - Use promo code “JIMMY100” and receive a $100 Holiday Discount! You can book at  TheOldSchoolCruise.com  or by calling (888) 639-8888. Don’t wait, as this offer is VERY limited and will sell out. Let’s make some memories on the Old School Cruise 2022!

Old School Cruise 2022

Be a part of all the fun Cinco De Mayo Weekend aboard the all new Carnival Radiance for The Old School Cruise 2022! Sailing out of Long Beach, April 29th through May 2nd. Have the time of your life with legendary Old School artists like Zapp, Midnight Star, Stevie B, Rose Royce, Evelyn “Champagne” King and many more! Book now with this exclusive offer, just for our Old School family - Use promo code “JIMMY100” and receive a $100 Holiday Discount! You can book at  TheOldSchoolCruise.com  or by calling (888) 639-8888. Don’t wait, as this offer is VERY limited and will sell out. Let’s make some memories on the Old School Cruise 2022!

A glimpse at Delray Beach's renovated Crest Theatre at Old School Square

DELRAY BEACH — Recently renovated, Old School Square's Crest Theatre has a fresh look for its lobby, reception area and entry restrooms for guests.

"We are proud to have been able to bring these renovations to the community, returning this important city asset to the community, so that the rich cultural and artistic heritage of the Crest Theatre can be enjoyed by all," Public Works Director Missie Barletto said.

The modernization of the building, which is at Swinton Avenue and Northeast First Street and is nearly a century old, brings it up to current building codes. Here's what else is new at the theatre:

Delray's Crest Theatre features a venue for culinary arts classes

Improvements were made to the theater's kitchen, which will allow for more flexible use of meeting spaces, and adds a venue for future culinary arts classes. The repurposing of a restroom created an American with Disabilities Act-accessible bathroom and the remodeling of a meeting room allowed for a reception area with a bar. An expansion was made to the venue's lounge room, too.

Renovations were completed in January. But future renovations in the auditorium will be required, Barletto said. These will restore the auditorium to a modern performing arts venue that is, again, available for public use.

RELATED: Monthly wellness Coco Market now at Old School Square in Delray Beach

How long has the Crest Theatre been around?

Delray Beach's Crest Theatre is housed in Old School Square's restored 1925 Delray High School Building. In 1993, it was dedicated as the Square's performing arts center. Before then, it had been the high school's auditorium.

Originally, the stage was just 12 feet deep. After being remodeled into what is now the Crest Theatre, two stories of additional space were added to provide backstage, dressing room and storage areas.

Now a state-of-the-art facility, the Crest Theatre seats 323 guests, and its original proscenium, or the part of the stage in front of the curtain, remains a significant historic feature.

The beautiful machine: Delray show salutes the great American muscle car

What else will be available to the public at the Crest Theatre?

While no events will be planned until the auditorium's renovations are complete, the Crest Theatre will, again, serve as a venue for community organizations, groups and schools to present their own productions and presentations once it's re-opened to the public.

Surrounding the theatre, there are nine restored classrooms, available for use as meeting, workshop, reception and class spaces.

There is no set timeline for when the auditorium's renovations will be complete, city officials say.

Jasmine Fernández is a journalist covering Delray Beach and Boca Raton for The Palm Beach Post. You can reach her at  [email protected]  and follow her on X (formerly Twitter) at  @jasminefernandz . Help support our work.  Subscribe today .

Jurors deadlocked on murder charge for Long Beach school officer who shot woman to death

A pr. 16—Jurors could not reach a unanimous verdict Tuesday, April 16 over the murder charge against a Long Beach Unified School District safety officer who shot an 18-year-old woman to death as she sat in the passenger seat of a car fleeing a parking lot near Millikan High School nearly three years ago.

After deliberating for almost three days, the jury was unable to find consensus over the second-degree murder charge facing the former schools officer, 54-year-old Eddie Gonzalez of Orange.

Jurors were deadlocked, 7-5, the jury foreperson told Superior Court Judge Richard M. Goul. The majority favored guilt.

Goul declared a mistrial. It was not clear Tuesday whether the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office would pursue a new trial of Gonzalez.

Prosecutors at the Governor George Deukmejian Courthouse declined comment. The D.A.'s office also did not immediately return a request for comment about whether prosecutors would continue to pursue the case.

The mistrial comes after about a week of testimony dissecting why Gonzalez ultimately fired at the car, which he was trying to stop after just seeing the driver, Rafeul Chowdhury, and his girlfriend, Manuela "Mona" Rodriguez, fighting a Millikan student in the street outside the high school on Sept. 27, 2021.

Gonzalez fired two shots at Chowdhury's car — one shot came from behind as the car pulled away from Gonzalez. The bullet pierced the rear passenger side window and the headrest of the passenger seat, hitting Rodriguez in the back of her head. She later died at a hospital.

The jurors watched video of the shooting over and over during the trial.

Prosecutors asked the jury to focus on the fact that Gonzalez was no longer in danger when he fired: After placing his hand on the hood while pointing his handgun at the windshield, Gonzalez sidestepped the car as Chowdhury drove forward. Gonzalez was on the side of the car when he fired the first shot, and was fully behind the vehicle when he fired the second.

Gonzalez's attorneys, on the other hand, asked the jury to consider what the school officer would have perceived in the limited amount of time he had to react.

"This didn't happen in slow motion," said Michael Schwartz, the lead attorney defending Gonzalez, during his closing arguments last week. "Life doesn't happen in slow motion."

Immediately after the hearing Tuesday, some jurors said Schwartz convinced others on the jury that Gonzalez was still reacting to the car pushing forward and screeching its tires, even as he got out of the way, when he fired the fatal shot at Rodriguez.

"There were still certain people holding on to this idea of self-defense," said one juror, who asked not to be identified due to the sensitivity of the case.

The juror said the five who voted not guilty on second-degree murder were all men. The juror said the seven who voted for guilt were six women and one man.

The juror, a woman, said Gonzalez's guilt on the murder charge was clear to her.

"Absolutely," she said. "Without a shadow of a doubt in my mind."

Jurors appeared closer to finding Gonzalez guilty of voluntary manslaughter, the lesser charge available to them if they reached a unanimous not-guilty verdict on the second-degree murder charge.

When Goul asked about the split in the vote, the foreperson initially said the five jurors voting against second-degree murder wanted to vote for voluntary manslaughter.

But Goul told the jury they must reach a verdict on the murder charge first. Without consensus on that charge, the judge was forced to declare a mistrial.

Schwartz has defended numerous police officers accused of excess and deadly force while on the job over several decades. He successfully defended one of the two Fullerton police officers accused of beating Kelly Thomas to death in 2014.

Schwartz declined comment Tuesday.

"We're looking at a retrial," he said.

Gonzalez has been out of custody since posting bail in July 2022, six months after a judge ruled there was enough evidence to have him stand trial on a murder charge.

Gonzalez was fired from LBUSD a week after the shooting, when the school board ruled he was out of policy when he fired two shots. The shooting was caught on two cellphone videos and a surveillance camera at an L-shaped strip mall.

Rodriguez and Sabrina Ramos, a then-15-year-old Millikan student, had fought and ended up in the southbound lanes of Palo Verde Avenue when Gonzalez pulled up in a marked SUV and separated them. Gonzalez sat Ramos down on the curb and went after Rodriguez, Chowdhury and his younger brother as they got inside Chowdhury's sedan.

Gonzalez went up to the front-passenger side of the car and slammed on the hood twice, then pointed a handgun at the windshield in an attempt to get the attention of the driver.

Videos caught the sound of screeching tires as the car started moving. Gonzalez lowered his weapon and stepped away from the car, prosecutors said, then lifted it again and fired from behind the sedan.

Schwartz also told jurors that Chowdhury lied to detectives, telling them the three were in the area from their San Pedro home to pick up a pair of Adidas shoes they had bought for their 5-month-old child through OfferUp. While driving, Chowdhury told detectives, they noticed Ramos, who had feuded with Rodriguez through social media after fighting with a relative days prior.

Instead, Schwartz said, they were specifically seeking Ramos at the high school and followed her after she left wrestling practice.

Schwartz argued Gonzalez had reason to detain the three in the car because Ramos told him they had taken her cellphone and that Rodriguez had threatened to kill her family.

But prosecutors countered that Gonzalez "responded to youthful disobedience with deadly force" — and he would stop at nothing to stop the car.

A week later, Rodriguez was taken off of life support.

Gonzalez was arrested about a month later by Long Beach police on suspicion of murder.

Before being hired at Long Beach Unified in January 2021, Gonzalez had brief stints with the Los Alamitos and Sierra Madre police departments. In a civil lawsuit, Rodriguez family members claimed Gonzalez hadn't passed the probationary period with either department and that the school district complicated matters by failing to train him properly.

Last year, an attorney representing the family announced a $13 million settlement in the case.

(c)2024 Press-Telegram, Long Beach, Calif. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.