Photo: from city of Burbank website

I don’t know if Burbank Mayor Gary Bric plays any street basketball, but it’s pretty clear he can trash talk. Earlier in the week, I popped over to Jim Carlile’s Burbank blog and discovered a post from last Tuesday, June 30 about some caustic e-mails he got from the mayor. The town is abuzz with chatter about these e-mail zingers.

Mayor Bric apparently got steamed under the collar after reading one of Carlile’s letters in the Mailbag section of The Burbank Leader newspaper. Here’s a sampling of the mayor’s e-mails to Carlile.

“Jim or may I call you Jimmy like your mommy probably did. Never heard back from you and even left you a phone message, you do return calls don’t you. I’ll forward this to Chris at the Burbank Leader so next time you submit a letter to the “MAILBAG” they can get additional info on you and we can find out more about you. Look forward to hearing and meeting with you, I won’t need much of your time, trust me.. Have a nice day.”  Your friend Mayor Gary Bric 6/24/09.

“Hope mommy didn’t take your computer away, still haven’t heard back from you. Your quite the letter writer with WORD PRESS.COM. Are you still having problems sleeping at night, please let me help you with your problem (s), I’m their for you pal.” Your friend Gary.

“…  Don’t forget let’s hook up for coffee one morning, I’ll make you some hot chocolate. Don’t know if I told you but I’m learning more and more about you every day, can’t wait till the reader’s at the Leader learn about you, any skeleton’s in your closet old pal, old buddy. Health and happiness always.” Your friend Gary.

You know, it sounds like the Burbank mayor is threatening to “out” this Burbank Blogger. Gee, what happened to free speech? Also, is this really the kind of conduct you expect from a top city official?  The two men have never met face to face. From the vinegar in these e-mails, I guess one can understand why Carlile hasn’t accept the mayor’s invite for a coffee date.

Meanwhile, Carlile tells me he’s taking this e-mail barrage from Bric very seriously:”In all my years of city-watching, this is the first time I have ever heard of a Burbank resident being threatened by the mayor because of protected activities like ‘letters to the editor.’ And threaten me Bric did– he clearly stated that he was going to get the Leader to smear me because of my criticisms, and twice he also physically threatened me. First he claimed that if I was having a hard time sleeping at night, he would help me get to sleep– which sounds like a line in a Humphrey Bogart movie, right before they throw him in the trunk of a car.”

Carlile had a letter to the editor published in The Burbank Leader on June 20, 2009 and that appears to be the one that made Bric flip-out. In his letter, Carlile takes the Burbank City Council to task for its decision to remove newly-appointed police commissioner John Brady, allegedly because Brady is on probation for a DUI. Carlile’s letter dishes out some specific criticisms of Council Members Gary Bric and Anja Reinke for their involvement in Brady’s ouster.

If Bric thought his e-mails would silence Carlile’s well he was wrong. Carlile posted another story about the mayor on Wednesday, July first and it’s a doozy. Carlile points out that Bric’s restaurant doesn’t really have a Burbank address. It’s actually in Sun Valley. The website for Gary Bric’s Ramp claims the restaurant is Burbank’s #1 steakhouse. The site lists the address as 7730 North Hollywood Way, Burbank 91505.

Carlile is not the only one who has noticed this discrepancy. Apparently some city business owners have been complaining for a while, because Bric’s restaurant has been allowed to enter The Burbank Leader’s “Best of Burbank” contest. The Ramp restaurant is not the only business pretending to be in Burbank, but it’s probably the most high profile offender because, you guessed it, the owner is the mayor of Burbank!  

Photo courtesy Jose Sandoval — some of the players and coaching staff

Burbank Volunteer Coach Jose Sandoval probably would have preferred to spend this morning out at a sunny park, teaching some local kids how to swing a bat or throw a baseball. Instead, Coach Sandoval was in Burbank Superior Court at 8:30 a.m. today, to face a charge of misdemeanor battery arising from an altercation during a little league baseball game at McCambridge Park on May 18, 2009.

After a heated exchange over a disputed call, Sandoval says he headed for the dugout followed close on his heels by an umpire. When Sandoval turned around to face the ump, apparently the two men brushed up against each other. In most places, and with most folks, that would have been ignored. Not in this case. Sandoval got thrown out of the game and suspended from coaching for a year. Also, the Burbank City Attorney’s Office hit Sandoval with a criminal case.

I dropped by the Burbank Superior Court this morning and was surprised to find more than 50 other citizens along with Coach Sandoval, his wife Nancy and their two girls. Also, George Garcia and his two kids were there to show support for Sandoval. Folks with traffic violations got their cases heard first. As the clock ticked away, more and more defendants arrived in the courtroom to present their cases before Commissioner Dennis L. Shanklin. I was not able to stay for Coach Sandoval’s case, but he updated me this afternoon.

With a public defender representing him, Sandoval pleaded not guilty to the misdemeanor battery charge and was ordered back to court on August 18, 2009 for a preliminary hearing. Sandoval is now collecting evidence and the names of witnesses to build his case and prepare for that hearing.

To say that Sandoval loves baseball is an understatement. For the past 16 years, he has been a volunteer coach for the Burbank Parks & Recreation Department. He speaks with affection about the five teams and 80 kids he coaches, or was coaching, until that controversial incident on a park field this spring. While he probably would rather be thinking about or playing baseball this evening, Sandoval is gearing up to defend himself in a criminal case.

Photo: Cover of the funeral service program

Family and close friends of Farrah Fawcett gathered yesterday at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in Downtown Los Angeles to say farewell to the actress. Among the celebrities at the private funeral, former “Charlie’s Angels” co-star Kate Jackson and ex-supermodel Cheryl Tiegs.

Photo:  Kirk McKoy/Los Angeles Times

 Fawcett’s long time companion, Ryan O’Neal, was one of the pallbearers. Fawcett’s father was there as well.  A Los Angeles judge gave Fawcett and O’Neal’s son, Redmond, permission to attend the funeral. The 24-year-old has been in jail on a drug charge since last April.

Fawcett died last Thursday, June 25, after a brave battle with cancer. She was 62. 

Photo: Pete Souza/the White House

Last Friday, President Obama met with a very special  group of visitors at the White House. The guests and their canine companions were from the Helen Keller National Center in Atlanta, Georgia. The center offers intensive rehabilitation training for deaf-blind youngsters and adults. The five students, two staffers, and three volunteers from the center were on tour in Washington, DC.

Last week was Helen Keller Deaf-Blind Awareness week. The Helen Keller National Center was established in the late 1960s by Congress. Helen Keller, a deaf and blind author, political activist, and lecturer died at the age of 87 in 1968. As a child, Keller’s world of isolation was opened up with language by her teacher, Anne Sullivan. That breakthrough is at the heart of the famous play and movie called, “The Miracle Worker.”

Convicted swindler Bernard Madoff will spend the rest of his life behind bars. Today a New York Judge sentenced 71-year-old Madoff to the maximum term, 150 years. Many of Madoff’s victims, who were in court, broke out in applause when the sentence was announced.

Earlier in the proceedings, Madoff apologized to his victims for what is estimated to be at least a $50 billion fraud. Madoff was convicted of running the largest Ponzi scheme ever. In court today, some of his victims spoke bitterly of how the scheme had wiped out their finances and damaged their lives.

Last Friday, in a $170 billion legal judgment against Madoff, the government reportedly seized all of his property, which will now be liquidated and used to pay back some of the money owed to more than a thousand investors.

“Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen” seriously cleaned up during its first five days of domestic release. Since opening on Wednesday, the sci-fi action sequel has earned an estimated $201 million, the biggest five day opener behind, “The Dark Knight.” For the weekend, “Transformers 2″ raked in around $112 million. So without a doubt, “Transformers 2″ is the new number one movie in America.

The “Transformers” series is based on a group of novels, toys, and cartoons dating back to 1984.  In “Transformers 2″ alien robot-type creatures that can morph into machines, vehicles, and other mechanical objects battle it out on Earth; caught in the middle are the humans. “Transformers 2″ stars Shia LaBeouf, Megan Fox, Josh Duhamel, and Tyrese Gibson.

Last weekend’s top flick, the romantic comedy “The Proposal” still managed to woo enough moviegoers to land in second place with around $18.4 million. Another comedy, “The Hangover” followed in third with about $17.4 million.

The Disney animated 3D film, “Up” came in fourth with an estimated $13 million, followed by the new movie, “My Sister’s Keeper,” in fifth place with around $12 million. This is a family drama about Anna, a young girl who is conceived as the genetic match for her older sister stricken with leukemia. However, when asked to donate a kidney to her sister, Anna sues her parents for medical rights to her own body. The movie stars Alex Baldwin and Cameron Diaz. “My Sister’s Keeper” is based on the 2004 novel of the same title by best selling author, Jodi Picoult.

Photo: Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times — Fans line up to view Michael Jackson’s star and pay their last respects.

Photo: Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times — a fan reaches under a barricade to touch the star of Michael Jackson in front of Grauman’s Chinese Theatre on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Photo: Barbara Davidson/Los Angeles Times — Fans celebrate the life and music of Michael Jackson in the Leimert Park area of L.A.  

 Funeral arrangements are underway for Pop Idol, Michael Jackson. Last night at around 9:30 p.m., the Los Angeles County Coroner released Jackson’s body to a local mortuary. An autopsy was completed yesterday, but L.A. County Coroner’s Office Spokesman Craig Harvey said more tests are needed to determine the exact cause of death. Harvey stated there was no sign of trauma or ”… indication of foul play.”  Those toxicology tests will take an extra 4-to-6 weeks.

The King of Pop died suddenly on Thursday. Jackson was rushed from his rented West Los Angeles home to UCLA Medical Center by paramedics. The 50-year-old singer had apparently stop breathing. Doctors tried to revive him, but failed. Jackson was pronounced dead at 2:26 p.m.

The reaction to the superstar’s death has been overwhelming. Internet websites crashed from the huge traffic, radio stations have been playing his music nonstop, and fans around the world have gathered to remember the legendary entertainer’s incredible career and body of work. Jackson reportedly sold 750 million albums worldwide, 100 million of those were for “Thriller,” considered the best-selling album of all time. The night before he died, Jackson was working on a spectacular comeback tour and rehearsing in the Los Angeles area.

Meanwhile, there continues to be speculation that prescription drugs played a part in Jackson’s death. Police are reportedly trying to reach Dr. Conrad Murray, who was Jackson’s live-in physician. Murray was reportedly at Jackson’s home when he died. Investigators spoke with Murray on Thursday, but want to question him again. Murray’s car, which was parked at Jackson’s home, has been impounded by police because it may contain evidence that could help unravel the mystery of what killed the music icon.

More photos related to the death of Michael Jackson on the Los Angeles Times website.