Las Fotos

A Picture is Worth 1000 Palabras

Exclusive: Obama preps ‘zingers’ for debate with Romney (photo)

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(PNS reporting from WASHINGTON, D.C.) Pres. Barack Obama, stung by criticism of his lackluster performance in the first debate, is hard at work prepping for tonight’s encounter with Gov. Mitt Romney. Sources tell PNS that First Lady Michelle Obama is helping out with flashcards of “zingers” and furnished this exclusive photo.

POCHO ÑEWS SERVICE PNS IS A WHOLLY-FICTITIOUS SUBSIDIARY OF POCHISMO INC., A CALIFORNIA CORPORATION, WHO IS A PERSON ACCORDING TO THE SUPREME COURT.  DON’T ASK US, WE JUST WORK HERE.

Obama dedicates César Chávez monument and we were there (photos)

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President Barack Obama and I met up yesterday in Keene, a pueblito of a town in Kern County, CA. Obama was there to dedicate a monument to César Chávez and I was there to witness. See — that’s me with the President in the background!

After a groggy three-hour drive started at the crack of dawn, I stood in what seemed like a mile-long line along with several thousands of other UFW supporters and Obama backers in the dusty, windy Tehachapi morning.

We came to witness the President’s dedication of the 398th Federal National Monument, known as La Paz, and now the Cesar Chavez National Monument in Keene, built on the site of an old tuberculosis hospital in the Tehachapi Mountains. UFW co-founder and labor icon Chavez is buried on the grounds of his longtime HQ. It is idyllic, and a little dusty.

Dancers danced. Mariachis played. Labor Secretary Hilda Solis spoke, also Interior Secretary Ken Salazar and Paul Chavez, son of Cesar. I took my family to make sure our three kids got to witness history and see the first African-American president in the flesh. Also historical!

Mas…Obama dedicates César Chávez monument and we were there (photos)

BFFs Mitt, Darryl visit Latino sites for Hispanic Heritage Month (photos)

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They hooked up Tuesday when the candidate visited a Denver-area Chipotle.

Then GOP presidential candidate and Latino-lover Mitt Romney and new BFF Darryl went on a bromance tour of other important Latino institutions to mark Hispanic Heritage Month, as seen in this photo of their visit to Sophia Vergara’s breasts. (She recently described her chi-chis as a “pain in the ass.“)

Inspired by Vergara, the duo made a few more estops:

Mas…BFFs Mitt, Darryl visit Latino sites for Hispanic Heritage Month (photos)

Elvis Presley, undocumented worker: ‘Fun in Acapulco’ (photos,video)

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The year is 1963 and Elvis is on a roll. As his star rises on the American music scene, Hollywood lifts its head and takes notice: he gets signed for a fun Mexican adventure romp entitled Fun in Acapulco.

While gorgeous exterior shots are completed on location in Mexico, Elvis shoots his scenes in “Mexico,” a Hollywood backlot commissioned by Hal Wallis Productions and through the magic of less-than-spectacular editing and rear-projection shots seems to dance and sing his sad way (he’s mourning the accidental death of his brother he may have caused) through this somewhat harmless farce.

Of course (as I’ve written many times before), you’ve got to be a fool to turn to Hollywood for accurate portrayals of “foreign spaces”–still, Fun in Acapulco is not half bad.

The kid in the clip below gives new meaning to the word irony, as Elvis, “American,” conspires to work as an “illegal alien” in Mexico.

Mas…Elvis Presley, undocumented worker: ‘Fun in Acapulco’ (photos,video)

Ramiro says his name is Antonio – here is his life so far (photos)

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Installation artist and painter Ramiro “Jay” Gomez continues to populate the streets of Southern California with immigrant laborers painted on cardboard.  His quest? To make visible the invisible people who keep L.A. — and Beverly Hills — running.

Here, in the artist’s photographs, is the life story of Ramiro’s newest creation, the guy who sells tourists Maps to the Stars Homes. Ramiro says his name is Antonio. He works his trade at the eastern edge of Beverly Hills, at Santa Monica Boulevard and Doheny, on the border with West Hollywood. Will he be there Thursday morning?

Does the woman with the stroller and the smartphone even know he’s there?

Mas…Ramiro says his name is Antonio – here is his life so far (photos)

AZ Gov. Jan Brewer unwraps her roots in Guanajuato, MX (photo)

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(PNS reporting from MEXICO) In a bid to rehabilitate her image with Latinos, Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer visits her old friends in Guanajuato, Mexico.

RELATED:

POCHO ÑEWS SERVICE PNS IS A WHOLLY-FICTITIOUS SUBSIDIARY OF POCHISMO INC., A CALIFORNIA CORPORATION, WHO IS A PERSON ACCORDING TO THE SUPREME COURT.  DON’T ASK US, WE JUST WORK HERE.

Hot improv mob gets all wet Hermosa at Black Tie Beach Party (photos)

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Those intrepid improvisationalists from GuerillaLAImprov (photo, right) staged their Second Annual Black Tie Beach Party at Hermosa Beach Saturday, and POCHO amigo and ace photog Dan Cooke was there.

Black Tie Beach? Huh? You get all dressed up like you’re going to the prom and then you go swimming. What’s so hard to understand about that? Especially in this weather.

Peep these big versions of the shenanigans and check out the link to the complete Beach Tie Beach Party photo album:

Mas…Hot improv mob gets all wet Hermosa at Black Tie Beach Party (photos)

Mexclusive: Curiosity’s cameras photograph possible alien life-form

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BREAKING NEWS: The Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena has just released the first in a series of photographs from the Curiosity Mars Rover that appear to show a strange alien life-form on the surface of the Red Planet. POCHO is following the story and will bring you updates as they come in.

New listing: 23rd Century Aztec pychedelic pyramid hilltop estate

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Mayans and Aztecs are the new black and now it’s only $1,949,000 for the Aztec/Mayan psychedelic pyramid estate of your dreams, right here in Pocho Estates (A Gated Community.)   Here’s the listing and a mini photo gallery:

ARE YOU LOOKING FOR EXCITEMENT? Want to be transported from the Aztec Pyramids of the 16th Century, into a 23rd century architectural wonder? A monumental sculpture moves from one end of the infinity pool to the other, like Aztec steps leading to an array of futuristic marvels. As you float in this pool, youre at the top of a Mayan empire, surrounded by mountains. Its just you & nature.The first floor is 6700 square feet of openness,with a kitchen floating in the middle, awash in rich wood cabinets, and a breakfast area with four huge windows,all facing those magnificent mountains. Acid washed concrete floors link each area, interspersed with slate-wrapped pillars. Both the living area and master bedroom boast a 4-sided fireplace, wrapped in Italian tiles.

Mas…New listing: 23rd Century Aztec pychedelic pyramid hilltop estate

My photos from Comic-Con 2012 San Diego (and some extras)

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Can you spot the drunken alien?

I made my regular trek to San Diego this past weekend for the Comic-Con orgy of cosplay and mass-media promotion and I’ve got the pics to prove it.

I had signings, slideshows, spoke at an inner-city “Counter Con” to promote the comic arts to kids and grabbed super chingon Simpsons creator Matt Groening and begged him draw a sketch at MY signing. (Sorry, Matt.) I also chased nerdos y nerdas in their Latino-inspired costumes and snapped photos of them.

I undertake this trying mission to document parts of the ultra-crowded convention so that you don’t have to go and get constantly elbowed in the knees by ewoks. Or have to hear fundamentalist Christian preachers warning throngs of people dressed as aliens that they are “going to burn in hell.”

Live long and prosper, and enjoy the show!

Peep the photo gallery here:

Mas…My photos from Comic-Con 2012 San Diego (and some extras)

Local pochos punk Internet with prom photo gallery prank

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Redondo photo from 2011 appeared on TropicalGazette.com. This Florida site says the photo is from 1982.

A couple of Redondo Beach Union High School pochos punked online photo galleries across America by submitting the same prom picture over and over for inclusion in local listings. 2011 prom photos of Albert Morales and Gabriela Peraza appeared on sites in Florida, New Jersey, Atlanta, and Minnesota among others.

“We just wanted to have the prom pictures to be published and as seen by many people as possible. … Just trying to have fun by remembering good prom memories,” Morales told NJ.com, which unravelled the hoax last week.

Check out these screenshots of newspaper photo galleries displaying images of the happy couple:

Mas…Local pochos punk Internet with prom photo gallery prank

Cinco de Mayo installation art in Beverly Hills (video and photos)

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Ramiro Gomez is an installation artist who makes the invisible visible by inserting cardboard versions of usually-overlooked Mexican laborers into actual settings. Last night he emailed:

Fresh piece I just installed this afternoon on the westbound corner of Mountain Drive and Sunset Boulevard in Beverly Hills. If you’re driving around that part of town, stop by and check it out before it’s inevitably taken down.

Like Gomez wanted, POCHO stopped by the intersection the morning of Cinco de Mayo and shot this video. It reminded us of a Folgers Crystals instant coffee commercial: “We’ve secretly replaced your ordinarily-invisible immigrant gardener with a cardboard replica. Let’s see if anyone notices!”  And we have photos from Gomez, below.

Mas…Cinco de Mayo installation art in Beverly Hills (video and photos)

Mexican garden statues get up, stand up and go on tour (photos)

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(PNS reporting from the HATE STATE OF ARIZONA) The “Sleeping Mexican” statues of Tucson we featured last week snooze no more. Buoyed by the online support they received after POCHO publicized their plight, these hombres woke up, stood up, dressed up and went on tour across Los United Estates to tell their story.

From their early untold history — hanging out backstage with Frank Sinatra — to their recent appearances at the Academy Awards, the Mexican garden gnome hombres (AKA gnombres) are on the move, getting out the word and straight up representing! Look for them in a garden near you, or in the photos below.

Mas…Mexican garden statues get up, stand up and go on tour (photos)

Photos: ‘Sleeping Mexican’ garden statues? What’s racist about that?

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sleepingmexArizona sure loves its Mexicans!

Taos-based author and photographer John Hamilton Farr went to Tucson on family business and was stunned by the “Sleeping Mexican” statues all around his mom’s old hood. He photographed these guys “within a two or three block radius of my mother’s old place…less than 10 minutes!”

He brought the statuary to the attention of official neighborhood Arizonians. Their reply? “What’s racist about that?”

People are asking the same question in San Antonio and Tucscon.

Nine big versions of Farr’s photos are below.
And can you answer the trick question: What’s racist about that?

Mas…Photos: ‘Sleeping Mexican’ garden statues? What’s racist about that?

Photos: He’s a real nowhere man lost in paletero land

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The Mexican ice cream man, or paletero (he sells paletas)

Artist Ramiro Gomez, Jr. makes the invisible visible as he inserts cardboard images of hardworking Latinos into the landscape of Los Angeles and documents his installation art with photos. At half-past midnight he emailed POCHO:

I went up to Hollywood Blvd. this afternoon and put up my newest cardboard installation. It is on the corner of Hollywood Blvd. and Curson Ave. I went back tonight and it has not been taken down yet, hopefully, the location I chose allows it to ride for a while.

The big versions of Gomez’ photos are below.

Shoutout to Hollywood peeps: Is the paletero still there? Please share your updates in the Comments section below. Gracias!

Mas…Photos: He’s a real nowhere man lost in paletero land

KPCC radio billboard ‘Occupied’ by KPFK radio listener

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Much L.A. radio hay was made over the placing of a KPCC 89.3 FM billboard advertising its “Ideas not ideology” slogan practically on top my radio station’s studios at KPFK 90.7 FM, where I host the Pocho Hour of Power every Friday at 4 PM.

As I walked in today, I was alerted that someone had replaced the KPCC billboard with our own KPFK billboard. Didn’t know we had such a substantial advertising budget. 

Nice job! (above photo by KPFK’s Ernesto Arce) Here’s the before picture:

Mas…KPCC radio billboard ‘Occupied’ by KPFK radio listener

You can see all the stars as you walk down Hollywood Boulevard

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Hollywood and Formosa looking West (Google street view)

“You can see all the stars as you walk down Hollywood Boulevard, some that you recognise, some that you’ve hardly even heard of. People who worked and suffered and struggled for fame, some who succeeded and some who suffered in vain,” according to the Kinks.

But artist Ramiro Gomez Jr. — whose art installations make the invisible visible — will have none of that. That’s why, on Sunday, Oscar Day, on Hollywood Boulevard, he positioned an image of one of the ubiquitous but unacknowledged Latinos who survive on the fringes of “The Industry.” One of those dudes you see hanging out on corners selling tourists “Maps to the Stars’ Homes.”

Mas…You can see all the stars as you walk down Hollywood Boulevard

Organizations just about as diverse as the Oscars Academy of 2012

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The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), commonly known as “the Academy,” has been recently profiled in the Los Angeles Times and, not surprisingly, exposed as one of the most exclusionary organizations in the United States.

The Academy is 94% white, 77% male and the average age of its voters is 62.

Basically the Academy is full of rich old white guys, and has a hard time explaining why it is not a modern day example of Apartheid.

POCHO researchers, however,  have discovered that it’s not as bad as it looks, because there are other organizations that are only slightly less diverse than the Oscars Academy of 2012:

National Public Radio

Mas…Organizations just about as diverse as the Oscars Academy of 2012

Look y LOL: Lin-sanity caption chingazos for white athletes

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ESPN? Oh no you you di'nt!
Chinese-American NBA rookie superstar Jeremy Lin has famously inspired some silly and fun “Lin-sane” punnery.

ESPN editor Anthony Federico penned a controversial Lin-spired headline (screencapture, right) that used the word “chink,” as in “Chink In The Armor” and got fired for writing a dopey racist headline and/or for being lazy and publishing the first crappy thing that popped into his mind.

POCHO contributor Edward Rueda has created this series of Caption Chingazos featuring an array of Caucasian athletes, with the modest proposal:

What if white athletes had to deal with Lin-sensitive media headlines?

Mas…Look y LOL: Lin-sanity caption chingazos for white athletes

The astounding ‘installation art’ of Ramiro Gomez, Jr.

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Artist Ramiro Gomez, Jr. makes the invisible visible as he inserts paper images of hardworking Latinos into the landscape of Los Angeles — a gardener with a leaf blower, a housekeeper with a mop. There are many more images on his Happy Hills blog where he describes himself this way:

I live and work as a male nanny in West Hollywood, Beverly Hills and the Laurel Canyon area of the Hollywood Hills. Happy Hills is my body of work documenting the predominantly hispanic workforce, who work tirelessly behind the scenes to present the beautiful images of the ideal Hollywood Hills homes.

Mas…The astounding ‘installation art’ of Ramiro Gomez, Jr.

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