News and Notes

The store is packed with bargain hunters getting next year's Christmas and Hanukkah goods, and I'm in the office, contemplating when it's acceptable to start drinking afternoon coffee. Like for instance, do I have to wait until the afternoon? It's cold here, and that's fueling my desire for something warm. Here are some things to discuss while I brew a pot:

• Harold Pinter, playwright, anti-Iraq war activist, and Nobel laureate, has passed away.

• Eartha Kitt, signer, actress, and author, has passed away. In addition to playing Catwoman on the 1960s TV series "Batman," Kitt held the strangest book signing I've ever seen. It involved little people, a limousine, and a lot of alcohol. Publicists, sales reps, booksellers, and readers still talk about it to this day.

• All about Benjamin Button.

• Amanda Fortini at Slate.com on the new book Smogtown, a history of LA's pollution problem. We're hosting the authors of this book on Saturday, January 10.