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Unconfirmed sighting of mountain lion in Griffith Park recalls L.A.’s favorite big cat, P-22

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The mountain lion was caught in the Tesla’s headlights. Vladimir Polumiskov moved both quickly and slowly, not wanting to draw unwanted attention.

He put his 2-year-old son back in the car seat and got behind the wheel and quietly closed the door. His wife, Anastasiia Prokopenko, was in the passenger seat; she couldn’t believe what they were seeing.

“No way. No way,” she said. “Get in the car. Get in the car.”

The family, just back from a sushi dinner on Tuesday night, had pulled into a parking space at their apartment complex off Barham Boulevard in the Hollywood Hills. Living on the western edge of Griffith Park, they were accustomed to seeing wildlife — coyotes, bobcats, deer, foxes — wandering into their backyard. But a mountain lion was extreme.

“We’re not getting out,” Prokopenko said.

Less than 13 feet away, the cat was sitting on the low-angled trunk of an oak tree, partly hidden by weeds, his blond coat set off by the bright lights. Polumiskov, 30, reached for his phone and started shooting video.

“This guy was huge,” he said.

Though the sighting has not been confirmed by the National Park Service, which oversees the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area and has also studied wildlife in the 4,000 acres of Griffith Park, the possibility of a mountain lion making its home in this island wilderness may give many Angelenos a sense of déjà vu all over again.

The mountain-lion king of Griffith Park — a cat known as P-22 — roamed these hills for 10 years. Captured in December 2022, he was euthanized after a team of doctors determined that because of internal injuries and infection, he was too sick to return to the wild.

A few months before, Polumiskov said he had seen P-22 skulking through the same parking lot before running off. “I had the same reaction then,” he said. “That doesn’t change. It was shocking.”

“Los Angeles misses P-22,” said Beth Pratt of the National Wildlife Federation, perhaps his most ardent champion.

In February 2023, Pratt helped organize at the Greek Theatre a sold-out celebration of his improbable life in Griffith Park, drawing more than 6,000 people wanting to pay their respects to the charismatic cat who, surrounded by development, freeways and cemeteries, lived peaceably in the center of Los Angeles.

Seven months later, the eighth annual official P-22 Day festival drew 15,000 attendees.

When Pratt first heard of this new sighting, she felt slightly overcome.

“It does my heart good,” she said . “It felt like P-22 had sent someone back to us — just to keep the hope alive that we hadn’t entirely banished the wildness in our lives.”

The National Park Service, which has reviewed Polumiskov’s video, is taking the claim seriously, according to spokesperson Ana Beatriz Cholo.

The park service has been studying the mountain lion population in the Santa Monica Mountains since 2002, when it collared its first cougar, which was given the name P-1 (P is for puma). Since then, it has tracked and collared 121 of the animals throughout the park.

If collared, the big cat in last week’s video would be P-122.

Video of a mountain lion spotted on Tuesday near Barnham Boulevard in Toluca Hills, new Hollywood. (Vladmir Polumisko)

“I’m a scientist at heart, but there is something almost mystical about this,” said Pratt, referring to the coincidental possibility that the two cats in Griffith Park would share so similar a number.

Park Service researchers are conducting interviews and combing through footage from wildlife cameras positioned throughout Griffith Park.

“We obviously want to make sure we confirm this is the real thing,” Cholo said. “Hopefully we’ll get that in the near future.”

But hope aside, she added, there is no guarantee that the mountain lion will stick around. Pumas need up to 200 square miles of habitat, and Griffith Park offers a little more than eight.

After shooting the video, Polumiskov put the Tesla in reverse and found another parking space far away from the mountain lion. Two hours later, he returned with a friend, and the cat was still there.

“He was still sitting in that tree, looking at us,” he said. “He is a beautiful, beautiful animal, young and healthy, perhaps the biggest mountain lion I’ve seen in my life.”

Four months earlier, Polumiskov had seen — while driving — what he believed was also a mountain lion. But without evidence, his family and friends doubted him. Now he had something more tangible.

The next day, he got a call from Jeff Sikich, a wildlife biologist and mountain lion specialist with the park service, who asked him a few simple questions — where and when — and reminded him to play it safe.

“He definitely educated me,” Polumiskov said.

“While it is exciting to see a wild animal,” said Cholo, “if you see a mountain lion, give it space. Don’t follow it. As tempting as it might be, this is a big cat and its behavior can be unpredictable.”

The total number of mountain lions in California is estimated to be between 3,200 and 4,500. About a dozen of the cats are said to live in the Santa Monica Mountains, and they are at risk for extinction because of low genetic diversity.

The current construction of a wildlife corridor over a 10-lane stretch of the 101 Freeway at Liberty Canyon in Agoura Hills promises to be a critical lifeline for the endangered species. When completed in 2026, it will be the largest — 200 feet long and 165 feet wide — and most expensive bridge of its kind in the world.

“The Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing is critical” for the survival of the species, Pratt said . “But Griffith Park also needs safe routes for its wildlife trying to navigate the city.”



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For sale: A piece of California’s country music history

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The famed Buck Owens Crystal Palace, where music legends including Willie Nelson, Dwight Yoakam, Garth Brooks and a young Taylor Swift have played, is up for sale, with the foundation that runs the Bakersfield venue planning to list it for $7 million on Monday.

The nightclub, museum and steakhouse was owned by its namesake Buck Owens, the country music trailblazer who bucked the slick commercial melodies of Nashville for a distinctly West Coast twang. Owens opened the Crystal Palace in 1996, watching it become a premier venue for the biggest names in country music, including himself. Buck and the Buckaroos played there every Friday and Saturday night until his death in 2006.

Jim Shaw, a member of the Buckaroos and a director of the Buck Owens Private Foundation, said that after 28 years of running the famed venue, the Owens family plans to step back and find new owners amid a challenging business climate. The foundation said in a statement that “since Buck’s passing in 2006, we’ve tried to maintain the excellence that he expected, even as it became more and more difficult during these challenging times of increasing food and labor costs.”

The venue is not closing and scheduled events will continue as planned, Shaw said.

“It’s business as usual for now,” Shaw said. “Ideally, someone who wants to keep it exactly as it is will come forward.”

Owens’ youngest son, Johnny Owens, wrote on Facebook that the family’s hope “is that a buyer steps forward with a vision for the future and a reverence” for his father and the Bakersfield Sound.

The Crystal Palace, located on Buck Owens Boulevard, is a major tourism staple for Bakersfield. The 18,000-square-foot venue is next to the city’s downtown entrance.

“It’s the No. 1 tourist attraction in Bakersfield,” Shaw said. “There are people stepping forward and we are waiting to see what happens. I am getting a lot of phone calls. I’m anxious to see what happens.”



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2nd local radio host says they were given questions ahead of Biden interview

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A second local radio host on Saturday told ABC News that he was provided a list of questions in advance of his interview with President Joe Biden this week.

“Yes, I was given some questions for Biden,” Earl Ingram of CivicMedia told ABC News. Ingram, a prominent host of a Wisconsin radio station, interviewed Biden this week in the wake of his debate performance.

Ingram said he was given five questions and ended up asking four of them.

“I didn’t get a chance to ask him all the things I wanted to ask,” he said.

Ingram is the second interviewer who now says they were provided questions by Biden aides to ask the president this week. Earlier today, another local radio host who interviewed Biden this week told CNN she was given questions to ask Biden before the interview.

PHOTO: President Joe Biden speaks to supporters during a campaign rally at Sherman Middle School, on July 5, 2024, in Madison, Wisconsin.  (Scott Olson/Getty Images)PHOTO: President Joe Biden speaks to supporters during a campaign rally at Sherman Middle School, on July 5, 2024, in Madison, Wisconsin.  (Scott Olson/Getty Images)

PHOTO: President Joe Biden speaks to supporters during a campaign rally at Sherman Middle School, on July 5, 2024, in Madison, Wisconsin. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)

“We do not condition interviews on acceptance of these questions, and hosts are always free to ask the questions they think will best inform their listeners,” the Biden campaign told ABC News on Saturday.

Ingram told ABC he didn’t see anything necessarily wrong with the practice. “To think that I was gonna get an opportunity to ask any question to the President of the United States, I think, is a bit more than anybody should expect,” he said.

He continued that he was grateful for the opportunity to interview Biden at all.

“Certainly the fact that they gave me this opportunity … meant a lot to me,” Ingram said.

MORE: Wealthy Democratic donors sound alarm over Biden staying in race

On CNN earlier today, Andrea Lawful-Sanders, the host of WURD’s “The Source,” said Biden officials provided her with a list of eight questions ahead of their interview with Biden.

“The questions were sent to me for approval; I approved of them,” she said.

“I got several questions — eight of them,” she continued. “And the four that were chosen were the ones that I approved.”

Responding to Lawful-Sanders, Biden campaign spokesperson Lauren Hitt said in a statement that it’s not “uncommon” for interviewees to share topics they would prefer. She noted that Lawful-Sanders was “free” to ask any questions she saw fit. She also noted that it was the campaign who sent over the questions and not the White House as other reports claim.

Lawful-Sanders did note in her interview with CNN that she ultimately “approved” the questions provided.

“It’s not at all an uncommon practice for interviewees to share topics they would prefer. These questions were relevant to news of the day – the president was asked about this debate performance as well as what he’d delivered for black Americans,” the statement said.

“We do not condition interviews on acceptance of these questions, and hosts are always free to ask the questions they think will best inform their listeners. In addition to these interviews, the President also participated in a press gaggle yesterday as well as an interview with ABC. Americans have had several opportunities to see him unscripted since the debate.”

A source familiar with the Biden booking operation told ABC News that moving forward they will “refrain” from offering suggested questions to interviewers.

“While interview hosts have always been free to ask whatever questions they please, moving forward we will refrain from offering suggested questions.”

2nd local radio host says they were given questions ahead of Biden interview originally appeared on abcnews.go.com



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President George W. Bush turns 78 years old

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George W. Bush, born on July 6, 1946, in New Haven, Connecticut, was the 43rd President of the United States.

Bush was born to parents Barbara Bush and former President George H. W. Bush. He has five siblings; Jeb Bush, Marvin Bush, Neil Bush, Dorothy Bush Koch and Pauline Robinson Bush. Pauline was diagnosed with leukemia and passed away at age three.

He was formerly the Republican Governor of Texas from 1995 to 2000.

WHY FORMER PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH IS WINNING … THE POST-PRESIDENCY

Bush was first elected to the White House in November 2000, and officially began his first term as president in January 2001, after he defeated Democrat Al Gore during the presidential election. Bush was reelected to his second term as the incumbent in November 2004, when he prevailed over Democrat John Kerry, and led the United States until January 2009 before handing over his torch to former President Barack Obama.

Bush married Laura Bush on November 5, 1977, the day after her 31st birthday, in her hometown of Midland, Texas. The couple were engaged in September 1977, and married less than two months later in a Methodist church. Bush and Laura met at a barbecue, and he took her to play mini-golf on their first date. 

The Bush’s share twin daughters, Barbara Pierce Bush and Jenna Bush Hager, born on November 25, 1981. Today, the couple also share four grandchildren; Mila, Poppy, Hal and Cora.

GEORGE BUSH, FORMER FIRST LADY ISSUE STATEMENT ON AFGHANISTAN WITH MESSAGE TO US TROOPS, VETERANS

During his presidency, Bush cared for his English springer spaniel, Spot Fetcher, who accompanied him to meetings in the Oval Office and on adventures throughout the White House. The dog was born to his parent’s dog, Millie.

On September 11, 2001, less than one year into Bush’s presidency, the Twin Towers in New York City were attacked by terrorists when airplanes hit both buildings, causing a collapse and thousands of lives lost. At the time, Bush was reading to elementary-aged children at a school in Sarasota, Florida. He was calmly and quietly advised of the attacks and quickly returned to Washington, where he was briefed alongside Vice President Dick Cheney.

Bush was regarded highly for his poise while learning of the attacks and for his demonstration of patriotism and leadership in the uncertain days and weeks following the hijackings of multiple planes on the day that shook America to her core.

SADDAM CAPTURED ‘LIKE A RAT’ IN RAID

On December 30, 2003, during Bush’s first term as POTUS, Saddam Hussein, the Iraqi leader and executor of the 9/11 attacks on the U.S., was captured by the American military

In the early morning of December 30, 2006, during Bush’s presidency, Hussein was hanged and executed for his crimes against humanity. Americans across the nation celebrated the death of Hussein and applauded Bush for promising the country he would take him out and following through.

While Bush was regarded for his dealings with the terrorist attacks, the signing of No Child Left Behind Act and the Patriot Act and the creation of the United States Department of Homeland Security, many Americans were unhappy with the sanctions of interrogation techniques, the war in Iraq and taxes while he was president.

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