PJ Ochlan

The Audio Publishers Association (APA), the premiere trade organization of audiobooks and spoken word entertainment, announces today the winners of last night's annual awards gala, The Audie Awards. The event was hosted by Queer Eye fashion expert, upcoming memoirist and audiobook narrator, Tan France, who lent his charming personality and delightful wit to the evening's festivities. The Audies recognizes outstanding achievement from the authors, narrators, publishers, and producers of the most talked-about audiobooks in the industry. This year's most prestigious award, Audiobook of the Year, has been named Tomi Adeyemi's Children of Blood and Bone, published by Macmillan Audio.

As the topic of guns in society becomes more and more prominent during the upcoming election season, Stephen Sondheim's controversial 1990 Off-Broadway and off-beat musical Assassins has increased in its relevancy. Rarely staged today, Assassins is an event that commands attention, and last week, we traveled to the Pico Playhouse in Los Angeles to see their version of the show, which also featured several performers familiar to Ventura County audiences.

On Saturday, November 15th, 2008, Universal Hilton and Tower Ballroom played host to a distinguished panel of toasters to celebrate the extraordinary career of Broadway legend and icon-Carol Channing.