My beloved 405 Freeway

Call for Brentwood/Westside Bloggers, Reporters, Videographers, Columnists and More!

As you probably already know, I'll be joining AOL's Patch.com next week to build, run and grow Los Angeles' new Brentwood.Patch.com, which I plan to launch before the end of the year.

This means I need Brentwood-located and Brentwood-conversant bloggers/freelancers/columnists/critics/reporters to write about sports, arts, food, schools, health, business, government, roads, politics, culture, films, real estate, local business, restaurants, playgrounds, parking and more. Everything you'd want in a "hyperlocal" news source, we're gonna have it. Videos! Photos! Cartoons! What do you have to add to the community conversation?

This may not be for you but it may be for yours. Patch.com pays fast and fairly and a bird in the hand, etc. Recent grads? Bloggers? Opinionated person? Prep sports freak? We want you!

If you're in Brentwood, or have friends in Brentwood, please forward them this blog post and ask them to email me, dennis.wilen@patch.com with a brief bio and pitch.

Here are my recent contributions to local Patch.com sites: -- check 'em out and you'll see the kind of stuff we're looking for. Videos, too!

As you can see, we are an Equal Opportunity Employer and do not discriminate on the basis of home planet.

Ping our people and we'll ping yours!

VIDEO: L.A. Youth Orchestra Opens Season at Saban Theatre, Beverly Hills

The Los Angeles Youth Orchestra (LAYO) opened their first season at the Saban Theatre Sunday with Beethoven, Mozart, Berlioz and international star Theodore Bikel.

The Oscar-nominated actor and musician joined Los Angeles Philharmonic violinist Mitchell Newman in a new orchestral piece commissioned by the Daniel Pearl Foundation. "Stories From My Favorite Planet," written by LAYO maestro Russell Steinberg, highlights the words of the Encino journalist (and youthful violinist) who was killed by terrorists.

The Concert Orchestra played works by Beethoven, Berlioz, Chopin and Tschaikovsky, the LAYO Chamber Orchestra offered up Mozart and Mendelsohn. Members of the LAYO Brass Quintet entertained during intermission.

Video by Dennis Wilen for BeverlyHills.Patch.com

It's Not Hogwarts, But Short Avenue Elementary is Full of Enchantment

The French Club meets in the new Wonder of Reading Library, funded by the Annenberg Foundation.

• Parents, teachers and community join forces and neighborhood school magically rises to head of the class

A magic triangle of committed teachers, involved parents and knowledge-hungry students has moved Del Rey's Short Avenue Elementary School close to the top in California's Academic Performance Index (API) ratings.

Story continued @ MarinaDelRey.Patch.com

I made an emotional video with Jennifer Aniston

Short Life Affirming Film starring a laughing Jennifer Aniston, Ricki Lake, Corbin Bernsen, Amanda Pays, Rocki Gardener, Larry Law, Beach Dickerson, Daniel McDonald, Dukie Flyswatter, and see how many more celebrities you can find.

Theodore Bikel and Dr. Judea Pearl in Beverly Hills

Theodore Bikel (l) and  Judea Pearl

‎Judea Pearl (right) and Oscar-nominated Theodore Bikel posed together at the Los Angeles Youth Orchestra Concert (LAYO) Sunday at the Saban Theatre in Beverly Hills.

LAYO played conductor Russell Steinberg's "Stories From My Favorite Planet," based on articles written by Daniel Pearl, Judea's son.

Bikel narrated and the LAPhil's Mitchell Newman guest-soloed on violin.

My video of the event will be online soon @ beverlyhills.patch.com.

Another one bites the Patch

I'm pleased to announce I'll be joining the local Patch.com operation next month.

If it all works out as planned, I'll be building, running and growing brentwood.patch.com, here on Los Angeles' West Side.

The Brentwood neighborhood stretches from the Bel Air on the east, the San Fernando Valley on the north, Pacific Palisades to the west and Santa Monica and West Los Angeles to the south and is home to families and horses, small homes and huge estates, small business and big corporations, struggling college students and megamillionaires.

My aim -- as I detailed a year ago in this blog -- is to use the Web to give all my neighbors a voice online and that's exactly the Patch.com business plan.  It's a perfect fit as far as I'm concerned!

I'm especially enthusiastic because Patch.com is what's known as a "pure Internet play." The online presence is all there is; unlike my previous gigs as the Web guy for  LACMA.org,  JewishJournal.com, SpinalTap.com, EndWorldTerror.com,  there is no associated museum, newspaper, band/movie or art project underlying the site. We're electric, in the air, in the cloud 24/7.  No atoms, just electrons.

I don't know how much time I'll have for this blog, or hanging out on Facebook, but you know where to reach me. Until then, I hope your Thanksgiving will be as joyous as mine.