Larger class sizes and fewer hours for teachers are among the cost saving measures recently approved by the Oak Park Unified School District Board of Education. The changes were made to help offset deep reductions in state funding for public schools. More...

A total of three deaths in Los Angeles County have been confirmed due to the A H1N1 virus, or swine flu, Jonathan E. Fielding, the county's director of public health said. All three deaths occurred in people with pre-existing health conditions. More...

10 to 11:30 a.m. at outdoor amphitheater, Peter Strauss Ranch, 30,000 Mulholland Hwy., Agoura Hills. Nature of Wildworks presents live local wildlife species. Mollie Hogan discusses how humans can coexist with wild animals. Free program, parking. More...

Diane's Beachwear at The Commons in Calabasas will host an event to help women keep their bodies looking bikini ready at the store's new location at 4719 Commons Way, Ste. A on Sat., Aug. 1. "The Bikini Chef" Susan Irby from KTLK-AM 1150 will be serving lowcal dishes and sharing tips on keeping slim from 1 to 3 p.m. More...

Eight teens have been selected as Rhodes junior apprentices for the Kingsmen Shakespeare Festival at California Lutheran University. The program is named in honor of Rick Rhodes, an Emmy Award-winning composer from Oak Park who coordinated the curriculum for many years before he died in 2005 from a brain tumor. More...

NATIONAL CHAMPS—The Westlake Baseball Association Pinto B Division Champions celebrate their win. Back row from left, coaches Wayne Liu, Roger Thai, John Batiste, Steve Chen and Ed Rosen. Middle row: Ryan Bough, Jonathan Batiste, Daniel Cashdan, Sterling Jackson and Zach Boyce. Front row: Corbin Stern, Taylor Chen, Blaise Liu, Joey Rosen, AJ Urban and Hayden Thai. More...

Whether a pet cat enjoys the outdoors or prefers the inside, it's important to protect it from what may be a surprising risk. A number of fragrant flowers can be deadly for cats. "Certain types of lily are extremely poisonous to cats if eaten or if the pollen is ingested," said Michele Gaspar, DVM, veterinarian and feline specialist for Feline Pine. More...

Agoura Hills A woman found a semiautomatic gun in the bathroom of a business in the 30200 block of Canwood Street July 2. Vandals caused more than $800 in damages to a car parked in the 29600 block of Kimberly Drive July 3. More...

Two Westlake Village priests died unexpectedly Monday. The Rev. Patrick O'Dwyer, pastor at St. Maximilian Kolbe Catholic Church, was found lifeless in his office around 7 p.m. on Mon., July 13. The Rev. More...

Parents, be advised: Playgrounds are dangerous. I'm the father of a 5-year-old boy who loves playing at the playground. But my wife and I had to look for alternative ways to have fun because a local kid allegedly fell off the monkey bars at a nearby park and broke his arm. Now the playground is under public scrutiny and, we're told, off limits. More...

The war flick's had to reinvent itself over the last halfcentury. Back in the day when John Wayne, Van Johnson, Dana Andrews and Robert Ryan were charging up charred hillsides, all very gallant and noble, the war film made war actually look— well, More...

People are concerned about the cellphone towers located on school property and the possibility of hazardous radiation and the lowering of property values. The amount of radiation that gets to the ground around those towers is next to nil. More...

It's a mad world. As of this writing, there's a governor who left his heart in Buenos Aires, a pop star who left his looks in the plastic surgeon's office and our kids, who left their sense of reality in their Gucci bags. More...

If it's not one thing, it's another. While nobody discounts the danger of radio waves in concentrated doses (never, ever stick your head in a microwave oven), it's a stretch to say there's a direct correlation between the placement of cellphone towers on school campuses and innocent students dying from disease. More...