You Can Own a Piece of Original Luna Luna Merch, and Other News

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You Can Own a Piece of Original Luna Luna Merch

The revival of Luna Luna, polymath André Heller’s long-lost art carnival featuring rides designed by the likes of Kenny Scharf and Keith Haring, verges on miracle given how most of the original attractions sat in storage for 35 years after the park closed. It turns out that DreamCrew, the entertainment firm that helped bring the park back to life in an L.A. warehouse this season, also unearthed merch created by the original cohort of Luna Luna artists. During the 1987 fair, Heller asked each participant to create their own moon graphic to be developed into T-shirts and posters. These items, unseen for just as long as the rides, were discovered in the first shipping container opened by the Luna Luna team when restoration work began in early 2022.

Newly reissued as the 87 Archive collection, the trove of shirts, accessories, prints, and ephemera comprise the final stock of memorabilia produced for the festival’s debut. Each item was thoroughly inspected and restored by Luna Luna’s conservationists over nearly two years. A second collection toasts the revival of Heller’s dazzling vision by reinterpreting the 87 Archive through a contemporary lens, encompassing a black hoodie, cap, and tote bag. We may never relive the summer of 1987, but Luna Luna’s communal spirit is certain to live on. —Ryan Waddoups

The Orlando Museum of Art’s lawsuit against its ex-director is delayed until next summer.

The Orlando Museum of Art’s lawsuit against its ex-director and the owners of questionable Jean-Michel Basquiat paintings may not be resolved until summer 2025, racking up further legal costs for the museum potentially exceeding half a million dollars. Both sides accuse each other of damaging the art’s value and seek unspecified compensation, while additional wrinkles like self-representation requests and ownership disputes muddy the path to a potential settlement.

Stefan Simchowitz, an art dealer with unorthodox views, is vying for a U.S. Senate seat.

Stefan Simchowitz, a Los Angeles art dealer with unorthodox views, is running for the U.S. Senate seat vacated by the late Dianne Feinstein. Despite facing stiff competition from established Democrats, he aims to introduce a “centrist way of thinking” focused on economic issues like homelessness and inequality. His proposals include federalizing homelessness solutions and implementing modern monetary theory, while downplaying social issues like civil rights. Simchowitz’s outsider status and unconventional ideas may not guarantee victory, but he hopes to spark dialogue and influence the national conversation.

Mercedes tests equipping self-driving cars with turquoise lights in California and Nevada.

Turquoise is about to light up some Mercedes cars in California and Nevada, becoming the first official traffic light color for self-driving vehicles. This move aims to avoid confusion and panic by clearly signaling to other drivers and law enforcement when a Mercedes is operating on autopilot, hands-free and eyes elsewhere. Expect to see turquoise-tinged vehicles cruising California highways soon, with Nevada joining the party in 2026. While not mandatory yet, this color code might just become the standard for self-driving cars as the technology advances.

Sasaki will convert the Santa Monica Airport into a sprawling new green space by 2028.

The soon-to-close Santa Monica Airport is being transformed into a “Great Park” after 2028, with Sasaki Associates crafting a detailed plan through extensive public consultation over five phases. Starting with a framework and progressing to alternative scenarios, the final “Preferred Scenario Vision Book” will guide the park’s implementation. This ambitious project, leveraging Sasaki’s experience in airport conversion, will nearly triple Santa Monica’s current park space and reshape the city’s landscape.

Safety rules “written in blood” helped save lives in the recent Japan Airlines collision.

A Japan Airlines plane collided with a Coast Guard aircraft on landing in Tokyo, killing five crew members on the smaller plane. Miraculously, all 379 people on the JAL Airbus A350 survived thanks to a combination of modern safety features, rigorous airline training, and swift crew action. Japan Airlines’ proactive culture of safety, instilled after a 1985 accident killed 520 people, prioritizes learning from incidents and constantly refining procedures. While the cause of the Tokyo collision is still under investigation, the successful evacuation highlights the critical role of trained crew and well-maintained aircraft in saving lives.

Today’s attractive distractions:

An Oklahoma teenager becomes the first player to ever “beat” original Tetris.

Silvio Berlusconi’s odd art collection speaks to the Italian premier’s soft side.

You can own San Francisco’s only private island for $25 million (and a catch).

Nubz, a toeless chicken, receives 60 pairs of tiny shoes from kind strangers.