Newsletter: Essential California: Producer Gary Goddard accused of sexual misconduct by 8 former child actors

Good morning, and welcome to the Essential California newsletter. It’s Wednesday, Dec. 20, and here’s what’s happening across California:

TOP STORIES

Accusations against Goddard

To the young male actors in his retinue in Santa Barbara in the 1970s, Gary Goddard was an exalted figure. A successful former theater prodigy, Goddard returned through his 20s to direct and mentor child actors in his hometown, vowing to bring the most talented with him to Hollywood. He attracted a constant orbit of devoted boys others referred to as the “Goddardites.” But the seemingly idyllic setting of privilege and promise had a dark edge for several members of the theater group. Four decades later, many of them say they have been haunted by their encounters with Goddard. Since actor Anthony Edwards wrote in an online essay last month that Goddard sexually abused him as a pubescent actor in Santa Barbara, seven others from the theater group told the Los Angeles Times that their former mentor molested or attempted to molest them as boys. His publicist disputed the allegations. Los Angeles Times

Fires keep going

After a brief respite from the relentless gusts that have driven the deadly Thomas fire for more than two weeks, powerful winds are expected to return Wednesday, adding to the challenges facing firefighters working to contain the mammoth blaze. The fire, which began near Santa Paula in the foothills above Thomas Aquinas College on Dec. 4, had burned through 272,000 acres as of Tuesday, making it the second-largest in modern California history. Los Angeles Times

Plus: They leapt into a pool to save themselves from fire and their story went viral. Now they are starting over. Los Angeles Times

And: Here’s how local farmers are coping with the devastating Thomas fire. Los Angeles Times

Strange bedfellows

When their vision of creating a scenic cycling trail through a protected alpine backcountry hit a snag, San Diego area mountain bikers turned to an unlikely ally: congressional Republicans aiming to dilute conservation laws. The frustrations of the San Diego cycling group and a handful of similar organizations are providing tailwind to the GOP movement to lift restrictions on the country’s most ecologically fragile and pristine landscapes, officially designated “wilderness.” Los Angeles Times

L.A. STORIES

McDonnell responds: Los Angeles County Sheriff Jim McDonnell learned for the first time about misconduct by some of his own deputies from a Times report this month that examined a confidential roster of problem officers, he said. Los Angeles Times

Another leak! Southern California Gas Co. late Monday reported a leak at the Aliso Canyon natural gas storage facility during a routine operation to pressurize equipment after maintenance. Los Angeles Times

Scandal fallout: Here’s how the Mario Batali and Ken Friedman sexual harassment allegations are affecting their L.A. restaurants. Los Angeles Times

IMMIGRATION AND THE BORDER

See you in court: The American Civil Liberties Union has filed a lawsuit on behalf of the San Bernardino woman who spent a day in immigration custody despite repeatedly telling them she was a U.S. citizen. Los Angeles Times

POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT

The tax bill vote: A dozen California Republicans joined their colleagues to pass a tax overhaul Tuesday, saying the plan would give most of their constituents a tax cut even as it slashed popular deductions. Two — Darrell Issa and Dana Rohrabacher — voted against the plan. Los Angeles Times

About those taxes: Here’s a quick look at what some of the biggest changes in the newly passed tax bill might mean for average Californians. Los Angeles Times

Interesting study: California colleges and universities do a better job protecting free speech than their national peers but they still need to improve, a new study has found. Los Angeles Times

Dababneh fallout: “Los Angeles-area Congressman Brad Sherman says none of his staff ever complained about longtime aide and California Assemblyman Matt Dababneh, who’s been accused of sexual harassment while working in the congressman’s district office. Eight former aides said the environment in Sherman’s D.C. and California offices was so toxic, it was laughable to think junior staff would have felt comfortable raising concerns about harassment – or anything else.” McClatchy

Plus: The sexual harassment training given to state lawmakers is widely viewed as a joke. Associated Press

CRIME AND COURTS

That’s not leather: “The owner of a vintage-clothing boutique on San Francisco’s Haight Street copped to misdemeanor charges Monday that she sold clothes made from the fur of cheetahs, leopards and other protected species.” San Francisco Chronicle

Listen: “Carrying a Weed Conviction in California? There May Be a Fix for That.” NPR

THE ENVIRONMENT

So sad: The Lilac Fire that tore across North County killed at least 46 horses at San Luis Rey Downs, transforming a place brimming with life into one devastated by death. Los Angeles Times

Follow the river: Deep in the Mojave, the Amargosa River defies the desert. New York Times

CALIFORNIA CULTURE

Kobe returns: “It was 20 years of greatness in a single night of magic. Kobe Bryant returned to midcourt at Staples Center on Monday night for the first time in nearly two years as Lakers history fluttered around him like bits of dazzling confetti,” writes columnist Bill Plaschke. Los Angeles Times

Cool! “Nuevo mariachi is telling the story of one man’s California experience.” PRI’s The World

Weekend getaway: Palm Springs is experiencing a revival. There’s a guide for that. Wall Street Journal

CALIFORNIA ALMANAC

Los Angeles area: partly cloudy, 59, Wednesday; sunny, 66, Thursday. San Diego: partly cloudy, 61, Wednesday; sunny, 65, Thursday. San Francisco area: sunny, 54, Wednesday; partly cloudy, 57, Thursday. Sacramento: sunny, 55, Wednesday; sunny, 56, Thursday. More weather is here.

AND FINALLY

Today’s California memory comes from Craig Hoover:

“I was born to a service family. My Dad rented a house in Santa Maria from a co-worker and relocated my Mom, my three siblings and me there for a year while he was deployed to Vietnam in the late ’60s from England. It was a culture shock for us kids, and being without my Dad was hard on us all, but I remember Pismo Beach, fresh strawberries, great weather and the stucco house a couple of blocks from Santa Maria High School where I attended class on a split schedule. My grandfather drove out from New York at Christmas and took us kids camping at Lopez Lake, and my brother and I learned what poison oak was the hard way as our faces swelled up like balloons. My mom wasn’t too happy. We had pets as well as each other to care for, and the time flew by. We visited Disneyland twice, we were active in Boy Scouts, the local church, took in all the culture we could. I found photos of our family at the Santa Barbara Mission among keepsakes last year while cleaning out my Dad’s house prior to his selling it.

“Thirty years ago I moved from Idaho, where we were sent after that year, back to California to take a job and lived once again in Santa Barbara County within walking distance of the mission in Santa Barbara. While there, my work acquainted me with an individual who said he had my father as a teacher at the Air Force Academy and, sure enough, proved it by showing me his yearbook from the time that he was there. Life doesn’t get any stranger than that. I saw another fire affect Santa Barbara when I lived there and a flood that washed a retired judge out of his bed and killed him. It’s terrible to watch the effects of these disasters upon individual lives, and I hope that we learn lessons from these situations and make note so that these problems can be avoided in the future.”

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.