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BURBANK - Six months into the city's tough anti-smoking ordinance - and more than 250 citations later - some downtown business owners are banding together to fight it. They say the smoking ban scares away customers, and that it's too harsh, forcing renegade smokers to appear in court. "It's ridiculous," said Jessica Ullo, manager of Picanha Brazilian Bar and Grill. "Everybody here smokes, and it's like where are we supposed to go for our breaks?" Barry Kessler, 48, owner of a downtown jewelry store bearing his family name, has led the charge against the anti-smoking ordinance. In the coming weeks...

After more than a half-century, NBC Universal is dropping the curtain on "beautiful downtown Burbank." The media company plans to announce Thursday that it is selling much of the 30 acres it owns in Burbank, including its legendary NBC Studios at 3000 W. Alameda Ave., home to such iconic programs as "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" and before that, "The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson." NBC Universal intends to relocate the network and local news operations that are in Burbank to a new headquarters in a massive complex planned on Lankershim Boulevard, across the street from its Universal Studios...

During World War II the Army Corps of Engineers needed to hide the Burbank Lockheed Aircraft Plant to protect it from Japanese air attack. They covered it with camouflage netting and trompe J'oeit to make it look like a rural subdivision from the air. (Pictures at web site)

Intermountain Power Plant Expansion Threatens Tourist "Views," Not Health - Serves Burbank, Glendale, Pasadena Preface: A proposal to extend the energy contracts for Burbank, Glendale, and Pasadena from 2025 to 2050 to accommodate expansion of the Intermountain Power Plant in Delta, Utah for a third coal-fired module has met with stiff resistance by the National Resources Defence Coucil (NRDC), the Sierra Club and other environmental organizations who have cited this as a "moral cause." The power plant's 710 foot stack, which is a technological marvel, removes 99.75 percent of all the particulates that would have gone into the atmosphere in...

Federal prosecutors began their racketeering case Thursday against a street gang with testimony from a Burbank police officer who was badly wounded in a shootout that killed a fellow officer. Detective Gregory Campbell said he called for backup after smelling marijuana coming from a Cadillac Escalade in the parking lot of a motel. After Officer Matthew Pavelka arrived, the driver began firing at Campbell from five feet away, he testified. ``I recall yelling out, 'gun,''' said Campbell, who went down after being shot in the stomach and head. He didn't see what happened next but recalled hearing more than two...

(CBS) BURBANK, Ill. A 15-year-old southwest suburban boy and his friends are wondering what could have made a group of teens beat him, then take his prosthetic leg and use it as a weapon on a friend who came to his rescue. As CBS 2’s Kristyn Hartman reports, D.J. Choate of Burbank is now without his leg after losing it in a scuffle his friends call unthinkable. Choate and some friends were outside near 79th Street and Nagle Avenue when a group of teens drove past and almost hit him on Monday morning just after midnight. Choate said he and...

BURBANK -- Protests and demonstrations at the Home Depot day labor center have racked up law enforcement costs of more than $46,000, prompting worries that the extra costs are a burden on city coffers. Between Sept. 30 and April 21, Burbank Police responded to 11 incidents involving anti-illegal immigration protests against center, which offers employment assistance to workers who are often not United States citizens, according to a Burbank Police memo. The memo has raised questions from residents about the purpose of the $94,000 annual fee that Home Depot pays to the city, intended to cover costs related to the...

Paul Gleason, who played the go-to bad guy in "Trading Places" and the angry high school principal in "The Breakfast Club," has died. He was 67. Gleason's wife, Susan, says her husband died Saturday at a Burbank hospital of mesothelioma, a rare form of lung cancer linked to asbestos. Gleason appeared in over 60 movies, including "Die Hard," "Johnny Be Good," and "National Lampoon's Van Wilder." Most recently, he made a handful of television appearances in hit shows such as "Friends" and "Seinfeld." A native of Miami, Gleason was an avid athlete. Before becoming an actor, he played Triple-A minor...

(AP) LOS ANGELES The immigrant day laborers who wait for work on street corners across the United States have families and attend church regularly, and the people who hire them are more likely to be individual homeowners than construction contractors. The first nationwide study of day laborers also found that one in five has been injured on the job and nearly half have been cheated out of pay. The study, the most detailed snapshot to date of the mostly Hispanic and often undocumented immigrants who've become a focal point in the immigration debate, was based on interviews of 2,660 workers...

Burbank City Councilman Todd Campbell urged patience in the "process" Tuesday regarding accusations that he is under investigation for physically abusing his girlfriend. Campbell responded from the dais after three residents remarked during oral communications at the City Council meeting that Campbell was under investigation for an incident of domestic violence. I have not seen these allegations," he said. "I need to see them before giving an informed comment. I ask you to let the process work itself out. I ask for your patience on that." Campbell, who grew up in Burbank, was elected to his council seat in 2003....

Days after dozens of protesters rallied at a day laborer site in neighboring Glendale, Burbank officials are preparing to celebrate the grand opening of a Home Depot and an adjacent hiring center. They are also preparing for protests. The City Council took the unusual step of requiring Home Depot to construct the hiring hall as a condition of building the store, sparking a contentious public debate with some accusing the council of catering to illegal immigrants. The store and the center are scheduled to open Thursday. Protesters plan to attend the council's meeting tonight, when the panel is expected to...

Former Burbank City Councilwoman Stacey Jo Murphy pleaded guilty Thursday to a felony count of possessing cocaine and one misdemeanor count of child endangerment, the District Attorney's Office announced. As part of a plea agreement, Murphy, 47, also will enter a drug-diversion program, attend drug counseling sessions and return to court for progress reports, said Deputy District Attorney Thomas Krag. Murphy also agreed to attend parenting classes and be supervised by the courts for five years. "This is an appropriate resolution for a defendant who was a leader in the community, but whose drug use clouded her judgment and put...

A Glendale man who fled the scene of a collision that left Burbank man, 18, dead has been captured at the Canadian border, apparently on his way to Armenia. Andranik Manukovich Atshemyan, 23, was detained at the Canadian border last week, according to the Burbank Police Department. Canadian authorities said Atshemyan's travel plans included a flight to Armenia. The collision occurred Nov. 19 about 9:40 p.m. at Columbus Avenue and Riverdale Drive, police said. The scene left two men in critical condition. Oscar Torres, 18, of Burbank died five days later. Glendale homicide detectives are expected to return with...

The boyfriend of a former Burbank city councilwoman pleaded guilty Thursday to a charge he traded a gang member two handguns in exchange for cocaine. Scott Schaffer, 51, of Glendale, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge John Walter to one count of using a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. He scheduled to be sentenced in June. Schaffer and his longtime girlfriend, 47-year-old Stacey Murphy, were arrested in July. Murphy, the mother of three and a former Burbank mayor, was taken into custody shortly after Schaffer was arrested and was ultimately charged with felony cocaine possession and misdemeanor...

Under pressure to slash costs, Warner Bros. Entertainment confirmed late Tuesday that it had fired 250 to 300 employees at its Burbank studio. At least 100 additional people will lose their jobs in the studio's international operations, according to a senior company executive who spoke on condition of anonymity. Warner's cuts are among the deepest by a studio this year and come as Hollywood is being forced to deal with spiraling costs while the once-hot DVD market cools off and TV syndication dries up. Warner spokeswoman Sue Fleishman, who confirmed the layoffs on the Burbank lot, did not provide a...

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Entering a fight over union rights that could have national implications, Sen. John Kerry warned Thursday that a ballot initiative backed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger could tip the balance of democracy by muzzling the voice of working people. Proposition 75 would force public employee unions, such as those representing teachers, firefighters and prison guards, to seek written permission from members before using dues for political purposes. Kerry, speaking outside a downtown firehouse, said the initiative would condemn workers to "a completely unfair system." The proposal "represents part of an ongoing effort by the Republican Party to...

BURBANK, Calif. -- Burbank firefighters are battling another blaze that broke out Thursday in the Wildwood Canyon wilderness area above the city. The fire flared up again Friday afternoon, and firefighting resources are spread thin because of the Topanga Fire. Officials say no homes are threatened by the Burbank fire. At 3:45 p.m., the fire had scorched 500 acres and reached the top of the Verdugo Mountains. Crews are attempting to prevent the fire from cresting the peak, but authorities said the fire is expected to grow until dusk. Authorities issued an evacuation warning for the Country Club Canyon area....

A Jet Blue aircraft just did a low altitude flyby of Long Beach airport after reporting some concern with their forward gear. The television helicopter caught an image of it - the gear is turned sideways and tilted. Aircraft is heading out towards the ocean to drop fuel, will turn around, and attempt a 'soft field' landing, keeping the nose up as long as possible.

LOS ANGELES, Calif. -- Burbank City Councilwoman Stacey Jo Murphy pleaded not guilty Thursday to felony possession of cocaine and misdemeanor child endangerment. Murphy, 47, is due back in court Sept. 28, when a date will be set for a hearing to determine if there's enough evidence for her to stand trial. Bail for Murphy had been set at $100,000, but Judge Janice Croft altered that arrangement this morning, releasing her on her own recognizance. The former Burbank mayor, who has served on the Burbank City Council since 1997, was arrested July 13 after a federal search warrant was served...

Photo Gallery - Tuesday Tuesday morning started in Bakersfield bright and early on the air with Channel 29 Eyewitness News Daybreak. Afterward we met with supporters and media outside the studios of KERN 1410 AM. Then, it was on the air at KERN. The caravan then left Bakersfield for the trip to Los Angeles. The first stop was the studios of KFI 640 AM in Burbank. Burbank photos courtesy of MAF friend John Thompson. From Burbank the caravan drove on to join the Al Rantel Show at KABC 790 AM in Los Angeles, and then went on to meet...