Quick Takes: Keith Olbermann knocks NBC

Keith Olbermann finally responded Monday to his two-day suspension, which MSNBC imposed on him after discovering that he’d made unauthorized political donations to three Democratic candidates.

In an open letter to his fans, which his management team sent to The Times and other media, the “Countdown” host criticized NBC for enforcing a donation policy that was “inconsistently applied” and insisted that he wasn’t aware of the network’s standards.

Olbermann credited his fans for getting him cleared to return to the air Tuesday night with what he called a “ground-rattling” outpouring of support from viewers. He apologized for “having precipitated such anxiety and unnecessary drama,” though he also said that the public uproar “should remind us of the power of individuals spontaneously acting together to correct injustices great or small.”

—Melissa Maerz

The music stops for Spaceland

The blue-and-silver curtain will drop for good on

the Silver Lake indie rock institution Spaceland in March.

The club, founded as a weekly night in 1993 by promoter Mitchell Frank, hosted some of the earliest L.A. performances by Beck, Foo Fighters, Arcade Fire, Elliott Smith and Weezer, among many others.

It became synonymous with both a revitalized rock scene in that area and the neighborhood’s changing demographics, hosting thousands of shows and serving as an essential launch pad for local and international artists even as Frank expanded to newer venues, including the Echo (2001) and the Echoplex (2007).

But as of March, the venue will operate under a new club name, the Satellite, and will sever affiliation with Frank’s and business partner Jeff Ellermeyer’s Spaceland Productions for in-house booking.

“It just reached a point where it was time for us to move on,” Frank said in a statement Monday.

Spaceland’s final shows will include a monthlong Melvins residency and the L.A. debuts of British bands the Vaccines and Yuck.

—August Brown

‘The Illusionist’ won’t disappear

A federal judge in L.A. ruled that “The Illusionist,” the forthcoming feature by Academy Award-nominated director Sylvain Chomet, does not infringe on the trademark of an earlier film with the same title, according to court papers obtained Monday.

U.S. District Judge Dolly M. Gee denied a request by the rights holders of the 2006 film “The Illusionist” for a temporary restraining order blocking the Christmas Day release of Chomet’s animated film.

Gee rejected the argument that the public has come to identify the title “The Illusionist” only with the 2006 film starring Ed Norton, Jessica Biel and Paul Giamatti.

—City News Service

Finally

Renewed: AMC has ordered a 13-episode second season of its zombie drama, “The Walking Dead.”

Cirque: “Iris,” the new Cirque du Soleil production that will set up shop at Hollywood’s Kodak Theatre, is scheduled to begin preview performances on July 21, organizers said. Tickets go on sale Nov. 22.