"Paradise Springs" Book Talk at Linda Vista Library

Rest in Peace Jonathan Joss

Justin Chapman performed in "Walker, Texas Ranger" with actor Jonathan Joss in 1997. Justin played young Chuck Norris. Jonathan went on to voice the character John Redcorn in "King of the Hill." He was tragically killed in San Antonio on June 1, 2025. Justin sends his love and condolences to Jonathan's family and friends.

Watch their scenes together below:

Screenshots:

See below for some photos of Justin Chapman on the "Pasadena as a Character" panel at 2025's LitFest in the Dena:

Justin Chapman will read from and present on his book, Paradise Springs, at two book events in June. See the flyers below for more information. Read more here. Watch a news brief from Pasadena Media about the June 7 event here.

Read the May 2025 issue of Justin Chapman's free Substack email newsletter, featuring Justin's Hometown Media Award win for his interview with Gerry Adams on his show "Well Read with Justin Chapman," his two finalist nominations in the LA Press Club journalism awards, flyers for his two upcoming Paradise Springs book talks on June 7 and June 28, the latest episode of "Pasadena Monthly with Justin Chapman," book recommendations, and more.

https://justinchapman.substack.com/p/justins-newsletter-may-2025

Justin Chapman writes, produces, and hosts an award-winning monthly TV talk show on Pasadena Media's TV channel, called "Pasadena Monthly with Justin Chapman," formerly known as "NewsRap Local with Justin Chapman." The twenty-ninth episode aired Friday, May 23, 2025, and featured a discussion with Ellen Snortland, award-winning writer and filmmaker. Watch the full episode below:

Justin Chapman has won a Hometown Media Award from the Alliance for Community Media! The winning episode featured an interview with legendary Northern Irish politician Gerry Adams. This is a national contest for community media, community radio, and local cable programs.

Watch the episode here:

Award-Winning Writer Ellen Snortland To Join Friday’s Episode Of “Pasadena Monthly With Justin Chapman”

Justin Chapman has been nominated as a finalist in two categories in this year's Los Angeles Press Club journalism awards. One is in the Obituary category for his story on former Pasadena Weekly editor Kevin Uhrich, and the other is in the Local Political/Government Reporting in Broadcast category for his TV show, "Pasadena Monthly with Justin Chapman."

Winners will be announced on June 22.

Read the April 2025 issue of Justin Chapman's free Substack email newsletter, featuring Justin's upcoming panel in Litfest in the Dena, the latest episode of "Pasadena Monthly with Justin Chapman," book recommendations, and more.

Pasadena Now Managing Editor to Join Friday’s Episode of “Pasadena Monthly With Justin Chapman”

4/21/2025

Pasadena Media’s award-winning local TV talk show “Pasadena Monthly with Justin Chapman” continues this Friday, featuring guest André Coleman, managing editor of Pasadena Now.

Coleman previously served as deputy editor of Pasadena Weekly, staff reporter at Pasadena Star-News and co-host of “NewsRap” on Pasadena Media. He also wrote and directed the movie “Milestone” and the audio series “Blackbirds” and wrote two books, A Liar’s Tale and Blackbirds: Volume 1.

“Pasadena Monthly” airs at 5 p.m. PT on the fourth Friday of every month on Pasadena Media’s Arroyo Channel and streaming apps, available on channel 99 on AT&T U-verse, channel 32 on Charter Spectrum, YouTube, Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV and Roku.

The show is written, hosted and produced by Chapman, directed and edited by Jeffrey Stanfill, supervised by producer Jasiri Jenkins-Glenn, executive produced by Chris Miller and chief executive produced by George Falardeau, CEO and executive director of Pasadena Media.

“‘Pasadena Monthly’ is must-watch television each month for everyone who cares about this city,” Falardeau said.

Last year, “Pasadena Monthly” won a 1st place award in the Talk Show category at the Alliance for Community Media West’s WAVE (Western Access Video Excellence) Awards. Chapman also won a 3rd place journalism award in the Talk/Public Affairs category of the LA Press Club’s 66th Annual Southern California Journalism Awards, for hosting “Pasadena Monthly.” He has won a dozen LA Press Club journalism awards, including three 1st place awards.

Guests on “Pasadena Monthly” (and its previous iteration, “NewsRap Local”) have included Congressmember Judy Chu; Congressmember Adam Schiff; Assemblymember Chris Holden; Pasadena Mayor Victor Gordo; Pasadena City Manager Miguel Márquez; LA County Supervisor Kathryn Barger; JPL director Laurie Leshin; former Congressmember Katie Hill; and many others.

Chapman was the youngest elected official in LA County when he served on the Altadena Town Council at age 19. He has served on a number of local boards and written hundreds of articles for dozens of print and digital publications, including KPCC/LAist, Alta Journal, Huffington Post, LA Weekly, Irish Post, Berkeley Political Review, Pasadena Weekly, Pasadena Star-News, Pasadena Now and many others. He is the author of Saturnalia and Paradise Springs.

He was a professional child actor who starred in dozens of movies, TV shows, commercials and plays. He previously served as Communications Officer for USC Annenberg’s Pacific Council on International Policy think tank and currently serves as the District 6 Council Liaison/Field Representative to Pasadena Councilmember Steve Madison.

Learn more at justindouglaschapman.com and pasadenamedia.org.

Come check out LitFest Pasadena on May 2 & 3. Justin will be on a panel at 4 p.m. on May 3, discussing "Pasadena as a Character" and his latest book, Paradise Springs.

https://www.litfestinthedena.org/schedule

Read the March 2025 issue of Justin Chapman's free Substack email newsletter, featuring Justin's interview in the "Arroyo Now: Rise from the Ashes" TV show, the latest episode of "Pasadena Monthly with Justin Chapman," book recommendations, and more.

Justin Chapman writes, produces, and hosts an award-winning monthly TV talk show on Pasadena Media's TV channel, called "Pasadena Monthly with Justin Chapman," formerly known as "NewsRap Local with Justin Chapman." The twenty-seventh episode aired Friday, March 28, 2025, and featured a discussion with Daniel Rossman, the new executive director of the One Arroyo Foundation. Watch the full episode below:

Justin Chapman writes, produces, and hosts an award-winning monthly TV talk show on Pasadena Media's TV channel, called "Pasadena Monthly with Justin Chapman," formerly known as "NewsRap Local with Justin Chapman." The twenty-sixth episode aired Friday, February 28, 2025, and featured a discussion with Union Station Homeless Services CEO Katie Hill, former member of Congress. Watch the full episode below:

Read the February 2025 issue of Justin Chapman's free Substack email newsletter, featuring reflections on and news about the Eaton Fire, his new Pasadena Now article about Bright Eyes, the two latest episodes of “Pasadena Monthly with Justin Chapman” featuring interviews with Altadena Town Council Vice Chair Nic Arnzen and former Congressmember and new CEO of Union Station Homeless Services Katie Hill, news about Justin's three video award nominations for his two TV shows, book recommendations, and more.

https://justinchapman.substack.com/p/justins-newsletter-february-2025

 
Indie Rock Band Bright Eyes Plays Eaton Fire Relief Concert in Glendale and Brings Down the House at the Wiltern

By Justin Chapman, Pasadena Now, 2/27/2025 (Photos by Mercedes Blackehart)

This month, 3-time Grammy Award winning indie rock band Bright Eyes joined the chorus of musical acts putting on performances to benefit those impacted by the LA fires. On February 8, the eclectic band performed three songs at the “I Love LA” Eaton Fire Relief 2025 show at the Glendale Presbyterian Church, alongside many other musicians including actor John C. Reilly, whose Altadena home burned down in the Eaton Fire. Proceeds will go to Sweet Relief Musicians Fund, to benefit musicians affected by the fire.

Many bands have stepped up to help in the wake of the devastating LA fires, which damaged or destroyed more than 16,000 homes and other structures and claimed at least 29 lives. Pop punk band blink-182 also held a benefit concert at the Hollywood Palladium this month, with proceeds going to the Pasadena Humane Society, the California Fire Department, LAFD Foundation and the Anti-Recidivism Coalition Firefighter Fund.

Bright Eyes was also back on stage at the Wiltern in Los Angeles this month following the cancellation last fall of a large chunk of their 2024 tour due to singer/guitarist Conor Oberst’s “vocal problems,” for which he underwent multiple tests.

“It’s come to light that he has developed a condition that is exacerbated by excessive singing, requiring both treatment and recuperation,” the band said in a statement at the time. “We are confident that with a successful regimen, and continued medical attention, we will be able to return to the road next year.”

And return they did. There was no sign of those vocal problems as Oberst led the band through an electrifying 22-song set featuring crowd-pleasing oldies and several brand new songs from their latest, self-produced, 11th studio album, Five Dice, All Threes, released by indie label Dead Oceans on September 20, 2024. 

Originally scheduled for October 12 at the Bellwether, a fairly new downtown LA venue that has featured or will soon feature such powerhouses in the alternative/indie scene as Modest Mouse and Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Bright Eyes moved their act to the Wiltern at Wilshire Blvd. and Western Ave. in LA on February 7 instead. The Bellwether has a capacity of about 1,600 and the Wiltern of about 2,300, but the Wiltern was still packed that night.

At the Wiltern, after the solo opening act of singer/guitarist Christopher Owens, a large, literal sign behind the stage informed the crowd: “You are now at a Bright Eyes concert.” Six band members (Oberst, Mike Mogis, Nate Walcott, MiWi La Lupa, Alex Levine and Conor Elmes), several of whom played multiple instruments, tore through the 22 songs from at least nine different albums. They brought the house down with crowd-pleasers “Road to Joy,” “First Day of My Life,” “Method Acting,” and “Let’s Not Shit Ourselves (to Love and to Be Loved),” which closed out the show on a raucous, inspirational note. The songs from the new album were also well received by the crowd.

Fans of Bright Eyes typically have a deep, personal connection to the band’s music. Perhaps part of the reason for that is that Oberst is one of the great lyricists of his generation. He’s a poet, weaving different topics together seamlessly with beautifully written lines that put his unique way of viewing the world on display. He wears his heart on his sleeve. Part of Bright Eyes’ message is finding beauty in the broken, imperfect things in life.

Some of Bright Eyes’ lyrics seemed to hit differently, and perhaps a little more relevantly, after the fires:

“The world is on fire, California is a crucible

We’re running out of water, they already stole all the gold”

—“El Capitan”

“Hot in LA tonight, real feel 105

If the grid don’t give out, maybe we will survive”

—“Real Feel 105°”

“And you’ve got a lot to learn

Living on planet Earth

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times

It was the worst

It was the worst

In Los Angeles

It was the best

In LA

I love her soul”

—“Bas Jan Ader”

Bright Eyes, founded in 1995 by a 15-year-old Oberst in Omaha, Nebraska, has nearly 60 more shows on the docket this year through July, all over the United States and Europe. Hopefully Oberst’s vocal chords got enough rest. His unique, crooning voice betrayed no sign of distress at the Wiltern. Considered one of the most influential indie rock bands of the 2000s, Bright Eyes utilizes a wide range of instruments beyond guitars and drums to produce its unique sound, including pianos, organs, keyboards, banjos, mandolins, pedal steels, dulcimers, dobros, synthesizers, trumpets, flugelhorns and more. Five Dice, All Threes is a worthy contribution to the band’s impressive canon, and the recent local shows show that Bright Eyes has still got it.

Starting February 26, Bright Eyes launched the Poison Oak Project, named after one of their songs, in which they are partnering with PLUS1 and Propeller to raise money for local LGBTQ+ advocacy organizations in every city they play for the rest of their U.S. tour, as well as for the LGBT National Help Center nationwide.

“Our friends, families and neighbors are under attack,” Oberst said in a statement announcing the project. “The actions of the current administration’s sole purpose is to dehumanize and terrorize the most vulnerable populations in our society. Today in America we are witnessing a heartbreaking march towards authoritarianism and what could end up being the most powerful fascist state in human history.

“While many of us are shocked by these developments, it is not without precedent. They are working from a well-trod historical playbook. It is an attempt to scapegoat the defenseless to hide their own misdeeds. To use cruelty to make things incredibly difficult for anyone they deem unworthy of living free as their true selves. And to push the marginalized so far into the shadows that they cease to exist. Though it is tempting to despair or disengage, now is the time to organize and fight back against this wholly un-American and dangerous ideology.

“That is why we are asking you to join us in demanding equality for our transgender citizens and an end to this targeted bigotry. We recognize the basic human dignity of all people on this earth and will not stand by as a small group of billionaire extremists attempt to dismantle and destroy our way of life. Now is the time to lift each other up above this tidal wave of ignorance and hate. We will walk together, unafraid, toward brighter days.”