Newsletter: Essential California: Sexual harassment allegations grow in Hollywood and beyond

Good morning, and welcome to the Essential California newsletter. It’s Monday, Oct. 23, and here’s what’s happening across California:

TOP STORIES

A director’s long trail of allegations

Thirty-eight women have come forward to accuse writer-director James Toback of sexual harassment. In a hotel room, a movie trailer, a public park, meetings framed as interviews or auditions quickly turned sexual, according to the women who in separate interviews told the Los Angeles Times of similar encounters they had with Toback. When contacted by The Times, he denied the allegations. Los Angeles Times

Weinstein’s fashion connection

Harvey Weinstein is best known for his pioneering career in the independent film industry, but over the last two decades he has also carved out a significant business in fashion — executive-producing the television show “Project Runway.” Nearly a dozen people with ties to the industry said that he used fashion as a pipeline to women. They said that models, oftentimes young and working overseas far from home, were particularly vulnerable. Los Angeles Times

More:

-- Will the outrage bring real change this time? Los Angeles Times

-- Why the powerful get to spend years openly abusing people and only get fired when it goes public. Washington Post

-- Meanwhile, over at Fox News. New York Times

No warning, no time to escape for some in fire zone

The escape from the rural hamlet of Redwood Valley began with no evacuation orders, no reverse-911 alerts, no warning whatsoever from authorities. Residents were left on their own to flee for their lives. Eight people didn’t survive. Los Angeles Times

Worst fires were decades in the making

The Northern California fires have not surprised experts, and as state and local officials begin to comb through the debris to see how and why this tragedy occurred, one expert knows that the answers will not be hard to find. “We’re not seeing something utterly new or alien,” he says, “just a ramping-up of what has gone on for a long time.” Los Angeles Times

More:

-- A wet winter could bring a lot more misery to wine country. Napa Valley Register

-- Clues at where the fires began. San Francisco Chronicle

L.A. art mystery

A missing masterpiece of 18th century painting, lost for more than 100 years, has apparently been hanging in a Los Angeles home since the mid-1950s. Los Angeles Times

L.A. STORIES

LAX noise: Thousands of people come every year to meditate and reflect at the Peace Awareness Labyrinth and Gardens, a South L.A. center that dubs itself “a spiritual oasis in the city.” But this year, the tranquility of its green gardens and burbling fountains has been broken by a new and unwelcome sound: the repeated drone of passing jets and airplanes, often only minutes apart. Many in the path of LAX say the noise is getting worse. Los Angeles Times

Trump and South L.A.: “Do you notice anything different?” Lawrence Tolliver asked Thursday when Times columnist Steve Lopez walked into his South Los Angeles barbershop. Many things — mostly notably the political landscape. Los Angeles Times

Movie makers: The next big move for BuzzFeed is into movies and television in the shadow of the big studios. New York Times

Gas leak follow-up: Two years after the Porter Ranch gas leak, many questions remain, and residents remain fearful of the effects on their health. L.A. Daily News

UCLA questions: After scientists at UCLA created a breakthrough treatment for prostate cancer, it generated more than half a billion dollars for the university. But deals struck with drugmakers also obligated university officials to help pursue patent protection for the drug around the world. Now, consumer activists claim that UCLA’s efforts are propping up the drug’s high prices — which can top $130,000 a year for a cancer patient in the U.S. — and keeping poor patients in less-developed nations from getting cheaper versions. Los Angeles Times

POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT

Milo ally wins: In a closely divided election, a UC Irvine student who led an insurgency against establishment politics won a bitter battle Saturday for control of the California College Republicans, a triumph for provocative conservatism over a more moderate approach. Los Angeles Times

Bannon speaks: Stephen K. Bannon told California Republicans, whose state party has fallen in membership and political influence, that their salvation lies in putting aside their differences and getting to work — just as they’d done to help move President Trump to his surprise victory in November. Los Angeles Times

Political prediction: Willie Brown thinks Dianne Feinstein will be hard to beat. San Francisco Chronicle

O say can you see: When anthem protests roil an exclusive Silicon Valley prep school. Mercury News

CRIME AND COURTS

Director’s fears: Director F. Gary Gray was so frightened by threats from former rap mogul Marion “Suge” Knight during the filming of “Straight Outta Compton” that he later refused to cooperate during a grand jury hearing, according to Los Angeles County prosecutors. Los Angeles Times

Tech CEO arrested: Zain Jaffer, a 29-year old CEO of a Silicon Valley tech firm, was fired this week after his arrest on charges of sexually assaulting a child and battery of an officer, authorities said. Jaffer’s father reportedly called police to the family house in Hillsborough. Los Angeles Times

Under scrutiny: In Fresno there are questions about a pitch to create a Hmong homeland in Southeast Asia. Fresno Bee

CALIFORNIA CULTURE

Big hits: During the 28 years the Dodgers were absent from the World Series, you think you have watched every second of the greatest moment from the last time they were here, from the video of Kirk Gibson’s 1988 walk-off home run that inspired a championship. You might think you’ve seen it all, Times columnist Bill Plaschke says, but you have not. Los Angeles Times

1988 versus 2017: Which Dodgers are the best Dodgers? Los Angeles Times

And: It will be Dodgers versus the Astros beginning Tuesday. Los Angeles Times

Western White House: How Palm Springs became a playground for ex-presidents. Is Obama next? Desert Sun

Water-wise: In a sign of the times, a new Palm Springs enclave is replacing a golf course with an olive grove. They call it an “agri-hood.” Orange County Register

Bike memories: In 1917, a group of bicyclists set a world record by cycling from Sacramento to Lake Tahoe. Here’s how cyclists today commemorated that milestone. Sacramento Bee

CALIFORNIA ALMANAC

Los Angeles area: Sunny and 101. San Diego: Sunny and 90. San Francisco area: Sunny and 78. Sacramento: Sunny and 85. More weather is here.

AND FINALLY

This week’s birthdays for those who made a mark in California:

Singer-songwriter “Weird” Al Yankovic (Oct. 23, 1959), Rep. Brad Sherman (Oct. 24, 1954) and singer-songwriter Katy Perry (Oct. 25, 1984).

If you have a memory or story about the Golden State, share it with us. Send us an email to let us know what you love or fondly remember about our state. (Please keep your story to 100 words.)

Please let us know what we can do to make this newsletter more useful to you. Send comments, complaints and ideas to Benjamin Oreskes and Shelby Grad. Also follow them on Twitter @boreskes and @shelbygrad.