On Monday, Gov. Gavin Newsom delivered encouraging news for residents who have been whipsawed by moves to push ahead with a patchwork reopening process and surging case numbers.

The state’s average number of new cases each day over the past week had decreased, as had intensive care admissions. The state’s average positivity rate over the past two weeks decreased to 7 percent.

But Mr. Newsom cautioned that the numbers aren’t a sign that the state should consider easing restrictions again.

“It’s good to see this number trending down, not trending up,” he said. “We need to see another few weeks of this kind of data coming in to feel more confident about where we are as a state.”

People watching performers from the Zoppe Italian Family Circus during the live drive-in event “Concerts In Your Car” at the Ventura County Fairgrounds and Event Center last month.

Full article here: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/04/us/biden-vp-karen-bass-kamala-harris.html

VENTURA, Calif. — The days of catching a show and watching your favorite band perform live may seem impossible since large gatherings are not allowed. But there may be a temporary answer to fill your concert needs: drive-in concerts.

Los Angeles’s mid-20th century culture was defined by drive-in attractions. In the 1950s, there was the popular Gilmore Drive-In, now The Grove, while the Van Nuys Drive-In Theatre was recreated for Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood.

In the COVID-19 era, The Concerts in Your Car series at the Ventura County Fairgrounds recently hosted a drive-in concert which featured Los Angeles rock bands Fishbone and Ozomatli. The cost to attend a drive-in concert at the Fairgrounds costs $99 per car, and 500 cars were allowed at the venue.

Some families, wearing face masks, climbed on the roof of their cars to get a better view, while others stayed in and ate pizza as they enjoyed the performance over a well-synched FM radio signal. Concertgoers even honked their approval at the end of songs, all while following social distancing rules.

Full article here: https://www.baynews9.com/fl/tampa/la-times-today/2020/08/04/drive-in-concerts-bringing-new-hope-for-live-music

LOS ANGELES, July 30, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — Decades after it was shot, and just in time for the 2020 presidential election, indie film “Chief Zabu” is set to be released August 7 on streaming channels Vudu, Amazon, Google and Apple iTunes. The socio-political comedy was inspired in part by a real estate mogul named Donald Trump, who in mid-Eighties New York City already had earned a reputation for an outsized ego and political designs.

Full article here: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/just-in-time-for-the-election-a-political-satire-inspired-by-donald-trump-chief-zabu-launches-on-vod-august-7th-301102757.html