Page 2 September 27, 2018
Entertainment
Check It Out
The Thrilling Adventures of Lovelace and Babbage:
The (Mostly) True Story of the First Computer
Calendar of Events
Deadline for Calendar items is the prior
Thursday by noon. Calendar items are $1 per
word. Email listings to marketing@heraldpublications.
com. We take Visa and MasterCard.
THURSDAY, SEP. 27
• Chess for All Ages, 4:00 PM., free, Crenshaw
Imperial Branch Library, 11141 Crenshaw
Blvd., Call: 310-412-5403.
• Sip & Read Adult Book Club, 4:00 PM.,
free, Crenshaw Imperial Branch Library,
11141 Crenshaw Blvd., Call: 310-412-5403.
• Adult Coloring, 4:00 PM., free, Inglewood
Public Library, 101 W. Manchester Blvd.,
Call: 310-412-5380.
• Makerspace Coding with Minecraft, 4:00
PM. – 6:00 PM., free, ages 6-12, Sign up
at reference desk, Only 20 spaces available,
Hawthorne Library, 12700 Grevillea Ave.,
Hawthorne, Call: 310-679-8193.
FRIDAY, SEP. 28
• STEAM, 3:00 PM., free, ages 18 & below,
Inglewood Public Library, 101 W. Manchester
Blvd., Call: 310-412-5380.
• Teen Club, 4:00 PM. – 5:30 PM., Inglewood
Public Library, 101 W. Manchester Blvd.,
Call: 310-412-5380.
SATURDAY, SEP. 29
• Household Hazardous Waste and E-Waste
Recycling Roundup, 9:00 AM. – 3:00 PM.,
Lawndale High School - Lloyde Parking Lot,
14901 S. Inglewood Ave., Call: 1-888-238-
0172 for more info.
• Creating with Clay, 3:00 PM., free, Sign-ups
required, Crenshaw Imperial Branch Library,
11141 Crenshaw Blvd., Call: 310-412-5403.
• Family Story Time – Saturdays, 1:00
PM. – 1:45 PM., free, Inglewood Public
Library, 101 W. Manchester Blvd., Call:
310-412-5380.
• Family Story Time, 11:30 AM. – 12:00 PM.,
Hawthorne Library, 12700 Grevillea Ave.,
Hawthorne, Call: 310-679-8193.
MONDAY, OCT. 1
• Baby Story Time, 10:30 AM., for ages 0-18
mos., Crenshaw Imperial Branch Library,
11141 Crenshaw Blvd., Call: 310-412-5403.
• Toddler Story Time, 11:30 AM., for ages 18
mos. to 3 yrs., Crenshaw Imperial Branch
Library, 11141 Crenshaw Blvd., Call: 310-
412-5403.
• STEM, 3:00 PM., free, ages 4-12, Crenshaw
Imperial Branch Library, 11141 Crenshaw
Blvd., Call: 310-412-5403.
TUESDAY, OCT. 2
• Brick Building, 3:30 PM., free, Crenshaw
Imperial Branch Library, 11141 Crenshaw
Blvd., Call: 310-412-5403.
• Family Movie - 4:00 PM. – 5:30 PM., free,
Inglewood Public Library, 101 W. Manchester
Blvd., Call: 310-412-5380.
• Chess for Adults, 6:00 PM., free, Inglewood
Public Library, 101 W. Manchester Blvd.,
Call: 310-412-5380.
WEDNESDAY, OCT. 3
• Building Bricks/Board Games, 4:00 PM.,
free, Crenshaw Imperial Branch Library,
11141 Crenshaw Blvd., Call: 310-412-5403.
• Smarty Pants Story Time, 10:30 AM. – 11:00
AM., Hawthorne Public Library, 12700 Grevillea
Ave., Hawthorne, CA. 90250
• Children’s Chess Club, 5:00 PM., children 18
& below, free, Inglewood Public Library, 101
W. Manchester Blvd., Call: 310-412-5380.
• Inglewood Visionaries Toastmasters Club
#4404 Meeting, 6:00 PM., Inglewood
Center for Spiritual Living, 525 No.
Market St., For more info: www.ing4404.
toastmastersclubs.org.
THURSDAY, OCT. 4
• Chess for All Ages, 4:00 PM., free, Crenshaw
Imperial Branch Library, 11141 Crenshaw
Blvd., Call: 310-412-5403.
• Preschool Story Time, 1:00 PM., for ages 3-5
yrs. old, Crenshaw Imperial Branch Library,
11141 Crenshaw Blvd., Call: 310-412-5403.
• Sip & Read Adult Book Club, 4:00 PM., free,
Crenshaw Imperial Branch Library, 11141
Crenshaw Blvd., Call: 310-412-5403. •
Reviewed by Zachary Lee, Library
Assistant, El Segundo Public Library
Computer coding may seem like an invention
of the modern era, but did you know that its beginnings
can be traced back to thinkers in the 18th
century? Sydney Padua’s The Thrilling Adventures
of Lovelace and Babbage recounts the
computer’s humble beginnings as the brainchild
of Ada Lovelace, daughter of the famed poet
Lord Byron; and Charles Babbage, unrenowned
tinkerer and host of elaborate Victorian parties.
Ultimately, Babbage’s and Lovelace’s so-called
Analytical Engine never came to fruition. We
know this because the computer as we know it was
invented in the 1940s. Padua’s story, however,
fancifully ignores the fact that Lovelace died
at age 36 and that Babbage was a life-long
procrastinator. Instead, she imagines an alternate
reality where they build the engine and use it to
fight crime. What else would they use it for in a
steam punk-inspired spinoff of their true lives?
Padua’s beginnings as an animator shine
through in her work’s playful caricatures, detailed
backgrounds and comedic timing. The vast puns
on computers and technology, however, are
what really make this book a great read. Not a
coder yourself? No worries. The book is lined
with footnote after footnote of Padua’s intensive
research -- a feature of which Ada Lovelace,
a chronic footnoter herself, would be proud.
The Thrilling Adventures of Lovelace and
Babbage is available for check out at the El
Segundo Public Library with your free library
card. For help finding more graphic novels or
any other great books, don’t hesitate to contact
our reference staff! •
Zachary Lee
Icon Remembered in Love, Gilda
to acknowledge her influence on female
comedians. Her fearlessness in her performances
on SNL paved the way for
future women to fight for their airtime, and
showed that women are meant to be more
than just background or setting. In 1978
Gilda won an Emmy for Outstanding Supporting
Actress for SNL, highlighting her
genius that was truly one in a million.
Love, Gilda ultimately touches on the
performer’s personal search for love, which
she would find with the equally-iconic and
hilarious Gene Wilder -- as well as her battle
with an illness that would claim her life much
too early. Love, Gilda is a perfect summation
of a life spent doing what she loved: spreading
laughter and love. She wanted her life
story to be neatly packaged, with all loose
ends tied up and a happy ending to follow.
But perhaps Gilda said it best when she
criticized herself for idealizing “the perfect
ending” and instead had the epiphany, “…
the beauty in life is not knowing, having
to change, taking the moment and making
the best of it without knowing what will
happen next.”
88 minutes. Love, Gilda is not yet rated.
Now playing at the Landmark Nuart Theater. •
Film Review
Ashley DeFrancesco
By Ashley DeFrancesco
for www.cinemacy.com
The moment she stepped onto a stage,
Gilda Radner – with her big-hearted comedic
characters – had the uncanny ability to
create a strong, personal connection with
any audience. Radner’s comedic style was as
brilliant as it was influential. In her first feature
Love Gilda, Courtesy of Magnolia Pictures.
documentary, Love, Gilda, Lisa D’Apolito
highlights the performer’s amazing life that
would entertain and inspire generations. Seeing
her most famous characters from Saturday
Night Live – Roseanne Roseannadanna and
Baba Wawa among others – as well as her
offstage struggles searching for love and selfacceptance…
and her battle with the illness
that would claim her life much too soon, Love,
Gilda introduces a whole new audience to her
comedic genius while giving devoted fans a
deeper appreciation of her incomparable and
enduring legacy.
Love, Gilda showcases the comedian’s life
from beginning to end, using voiceover narration
spoken by Radner herself from found
audio clips, as well as hearing a variety of
celebrity talents and Radner fans read pages
from her notebook to recount the story of
her life. Amy Poehler, Melissa McCarthy,
Bill Hader and Maya Rudolph are among
the notables.
Having read her memoir when I was in
high school and dreaming of being the next
Gilda Radner, it seems that these audiotapes
and notebook pages could have been drafts
and ideas that she had prepared for a memoir
(which was released the same year she died).
The seamless weaving of Radner’s experience
with the fresh perspectives of fellow
cast mates – including Laraine Newman and
Chevy Chase – creates a beautiful tapestry
that shows Radner’s influence through multiple
generations.
Radner herself realized that “to be a girl
and be funny means you have to sacrifice a
lot of things because of your loud mouth. “
As a lifelong lover of Gilda, it is essential
“Life is about not knowing, having
to change, taking the moment and
making the best of it, without knowing
what’s going to happen next.”
– Gilda Radner
The Thrilling Adventures of Lovelace and Babbage by Sydney Padua