(Amir Mrzae / For The Times)
Did culture peak in 1997 to 2003? These L.A. spots will take you back, Juicy Couture and all
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Though L.A. is a relatively young city, many of the places that encompass it pull inspiration from the past. Every decade seems to have representation here, whether in midcentury Googie diners or Art Deco-embellished swing dancing halls or ’80s-themed thrift stores.
And now the Y2K era is getting in on the action.
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The turn of the millennium — dating from roughly 1997 to 2003 — was a time when the future felt close and incredibly exciting. Designers across mediums embarked on love affairs with techy colors like silver and ice blue, using the kind of stark, metallic materials one would expect inside of a spaceship or computer monitor.
But as much as the era looked toward the internet as a gateway to what would come next, it still had a firm grasp on the ephemera of the years prior. CDs and VHS tapes weren’t yet extinct, landlines were still common and digital cameras were used more for gatherings than selfies. It was an epoch of innocence and celebrity, when girl bands and boy bands reigned and all things miniature (skirts, purses, cars, dogs) were courted.
In fashion, Y2K has been making a comeback for years, but there are other ways in which our city still bears the bite mark of the millennium bug. From old-time computer and video stores to the new home of Juicy Couture, here are places across Los Angeles where you can escape 2025 and travel back to a time when the online world felt like an exciting new frontier.
Behold the most famous Y2K-era building in Los Angeles
Downtown L.A. Architecture
(Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)
As the 1990s melded into the early 2000s, no architectural project in Los Angeles was more closely watched than the Frank Gehry-designed Walt Disney Concert Hall. Originally conceived in 1987 with a $50-million donation from Walt Disney’s widow, the actual construction of the downtown L.A. building didn’t begin until the early 1990s and would take nearly a decade before its completion in October 2003. Once finished, traffic along Grand Avenue (as well as the nearby Hill Street exit on the 110 Freeway) experienced months of congestion as curious Angelenos flocked to see the striking creation.
Gehry’s futuristic, stainless steel-paneled marvel is the result of blobitecture, or curvilinear architecture, merging with deconstructivism, evident in the concert hall’s silver millennium hues and contoured silhouette. The way in which the building was designed also heralded a new reliance on technology — another hallmark of the Y2K era — as Gehry and his associates created hundreds of digital models to conceive the space and push the limits of technical possibility.
Those keen on witnessing both the exterior and interior of Los Angeles’ arguably most famous Y2K building can attend a performance by the L.A. Philharmonic or sign up for a docent-led or self-guided audio tour of the space.
Gehry’s futuristic, stainless steel-paneled marvel is the result of blobitecture, or curvilinear architecture, merging with deconstructivism, evident in the concert hall’s silver millennium hues and contoured silhouette. The way in which the building was designed also heralded a new reliance on technology — another hallmark of the Y2K era — as Gehry and his associates created hundreds of digital models to conceive the space and push the limits of technical possibility.
Those keen on witnessing both the exterior and interior of Los Angeles’ arguably most famous Y2K building can attend a performance by the L.A. Philharmonic or sign up for a docent-led or self-guided audio tour of the space.
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Access your old mixtapes at the Los Angeles Central Library's DIY Memory Lab
Downtown L.A. Technology
(Los Angeles Public Library)
Is archaic technology holding your memories captive because you no longer possess the appropriate equipment to access them? Perhaps you have a mixtape burned for you on a CD by a first boyfriend that you wish you could listen to again. Or maybe your baby’s first steps or an important high school basketball game are trapped on standard 8 mm camcorder videotape cassettes.
Whatever the medium — slides, floppy discs, photo negatives, Super 8s, VHS, CDs, DVDs, vinyl records, minidiscs or even reel-to-reel audio tapes — the Octavia Lab’s DIY Memory Lab at the Central Library can help you access and convert them to digital files.
The service is free, but you’ll be the one doing the file transferring (although Octavia Lab staff members are always there to help). All that is required is a library card, a reservation and prior attendance of the lab’s online orientation, which teaches you how to work the equipment that was donated in 2019 by KCET and KJLA Studios.
Each appointment lasts up to four hours, so while there is no cap on how much content you can bring in, you might need to return a second or even third time if you have decades of material to transfer. The types of digital files you’ll leave with are dependent on what’s being converted, but most patrons end up with .jpegs and .tiffs — and loads of once-forgotten memories.
Whatever the medium — slides, floppy discs, photo negatives, Super 8s, VHS, CDs, DVDs, vinyl records, minidiscs or even reel-to-reel audio tapes — the Octavia Lab’s DIY Memory Lab at the Central Library can help you access and convert them to digital files.
The service is free, but you’ll be the one doing the file transferring (although Octavia Lab staff members are always there to help). All that is required is a library card, a reservation and prior attendance of the lab’s online orientation, which teaches you how to work the equipment that was donated in 2019 by KCET and KJLA Studios.
Each appointment lasts up to four hours, so while there is no cap on how much content you can bring in, you might need to return a second or even third time if you have decades of material to transfer. The types of digital files you’ll leave with are dependent on what’s being converted, but most patrons end up with .jpegs and .tiffs — and loads of once-forgotten memories.
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Shop for a Juicy Couture velour tracksuit
Glendale Shopping
(Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times)
Juicy Couture is back in business in case you didn’t know. While the brand no longer has bricks-and-mortar stores in the U.S., those seeking to nab a jewel-toned tracksuit can visit their nearest JCPenney to try on the brand’s latest line: Juicy by Juicy Couture.
Juicy Couture first unveiled its brightly colored velour sets in 2001 as a bespoke one-off for Madonna. After the star wore it out in public, the brand’s popularity took off and continued to reign in women’s fashion until the recession hit, leading to the closure of all U.S. stores.
But now, thanks to the power of nostalgia and social media, including influencer-promoted hashtags like #JuicyForever and #JuicyBack, the brand is experiencing a renaissance. Fans can once again nab this colorful comfort apparel via Juicy’s relaunched online store or at their nearest JCPenney, including the Glendale Galleria location (marked on this map).
Juicy by Juicy Couture has been sold by JCPenny since 2021. Dusty lavender velour hoodies, icy blue track shorts, mini purses with gold chains and checked satchels donning the classic Juicy crown motif can be purchased for less than what you remember paying for Juicy Couture. There’s also a broader range of sizes, making this line accessible to more fashionistas.
Adding to the Y2K vibe, JCPenney also recently launched a collaboration with Hollywood designer Bob Mackie. Jewel-toned cocktail dresses or taffeta A-lines, anyone?
Juicy Couture first unveiled its brightly colored velour sets in 2001 as a bespoke one-off for Madonna. After the star wore it out in public, the brand’s popularity took off and continued to reign in women’s fashion until the recession hit, leading to the closure of all U.S. stores.
But now, thanks to the power of nostalgia and social media, including influencer-promoted hashtags like #JuicyForever and #JuicyBack, the brand is experiencing a renaissance. Fans can once again nab this colorful comfort apparel via Juicy’s relaunched online store or at their nearest JCPenney, including the Glendale Galleria location (marked on this map).
Juicy by Juicy Couture has been sold by JCPenny since 2021. Dusty lavender velour hoodies, icy blue track shorts, mini purses with gold chains and checked satchels donning the classic Juicy crown motif can be purchased for less than what you remember paying for Juicy Couture. There’s also a broader range of sizes, making this line accessible to more fashionistas.
Adding to the Y2K vibe, JCPenney also recently launched a collaboration with Hollywood designer Bob Mackie. Jewel-toned cocktail dresses or taffeta A-lines, anyone?
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Visit the so-called birthplace of the internet at UCLA
Westwood University
(ROBYN BECK/AFP via Getty Images)
While we now know Y2K as a wide-reaching cultural moment, in 1999 those three characters were indelibly tied to the “millennium bug” that threatened to destroy older computer systems as the clock ticked closer to midnight on Jan. 1, 2000. So for this list, it just seems fitting to include the so-called birthplace of the internet, which happens to be on UCLA’s south campus.
Room 3420 at Boelter Hall is where a team of students led by school of engineering professor Leonard Kleinrock successfully sent the first message over an early predecessor of the internet to Stanford Research Institute on Oct. 29, 1969. The message was intended to be “LOGIN,” but the system crashed after the first two letters were sent, making the first-ever word sent via the internet “LO” — as in “Lo and behold!” — a fitting mistake.
Room 3420 is not open to the public, but there’s a window in the door that provides ample viewing of this shrine to the internet, which is set up to look exactly as it did on that fateful day 56 years ago.
While in Boelter Hall, make sure to look for the coded message on the floor near the southeast second-floor entrance to the Student Creativity Center. Installed in 2011, the peculiar arrangement of gray and greige floor tiles uses binary code to spell out “Lo and behold!” The design was sneaked in by the architect and went unnoticed until an eagle-eyed student posted his discovery of the message on a UCLA Reddit forum in May 2013. The key to deciphering it is treating the dark tiles as zeros and the light tiles as ones, a concept that sounds just as arcane as sending a message over the internet did in 1969.
Room 3420 at Boelter Hall is where a team of students led by school of engineering professor Leonard Kleinrock successfully sent the first message over an early predecessor of the internet to Stanford Research Institute on Oct. 29, 1969. The message was intended to be “LOGIN,” but the system crashed after the first two letters were sent, making the first-ever word sent via the internet “LO” — as in “Lo and behold!” — a fitting mistake.
Room 3420 is not open to the public, but there’s a window in the door that provides ample viewing of this shrine to the internet, which is set up to look exactly as it did on that fateful day 56 years ago.
While in Boelter Hall, make sure to look for the coded message on the floor near the southeast second-floor entrance to the Student Creativity Center. Installed in 2011, the peculiar arrangement of gray and greige floor tiles uses binary code to spell out “Lo and behold!” The design was sneaked in by the architect and went unnoticed until an eagle-eyed student posted his discovery of the message on a UCLA Reddit forum in May 2013. The key to deciphering it is treating the dark tiles as zeros and the light tiles as ones, a concept that sounds just as arcane as sending a message over the internet did in 1969.
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Get film developed at an old-school photo lab
Koreatown Photo Lab
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Tom’s One Hour Photo Studio & Lab.
(Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
If you’re yearning to capture snapshots like it’s 1999, but wonder if you’ll be able to access those memories later on, do not fear. Los Angeles is rife with photo printing labs, many of which were around long before the millennium. In Koreatown, there’s Tom’s One Hour Photo (marked on this map), which has been open since 1991 and became a social media darling after country singer Kacey Musgraves developed behind-the-scenes tour photos and staged a photoshoot there. Photo Center in Beverly Grove has been in business since 1964 and Samy’s Camera has been turning negatives into positives since the late 1970s. From Pico-Union (J&F Photo Lab), Valley Village (Valley Photo Service) and Torrance (Photo World) to Glendale (Digital Photo Printing and Studio), Burbank (Color Images Copy & Print) and Woodland Hills (Woodland Hills Camera and Telescopes), there are plenty of photo developing labs to choose from.
No list would be complete without mentioning one of L.A.’s longest-running photography businesses, Freestyle Photo & Imaging Supplies, which has been in Hollywood since 1946. Family-owned to this day, Freestyle offers photo developing services through its partnership with Richard Photo Lab in Santa Clarita and is known for being a top supplier of darkroom supplies to high schools and colleges across the country. Their Sunset Boulevard shop is stocked with everything from the raw chemistry required to develop your own photos to inkjet printers and both new and used digital and film cameras. Don’t miss the analog photo booth, which will spit out a strip of fully developed darkroom prints for just $7.
No list would be complete without mentioning one of L.A.’s longest-running photography businesses, Freestyle Photo & Imaging Supplies, which has been in Hollywood since 1946. Family-owned to this day, Freestyle offers photo developing services through its partnership with Richard Photo Lab in Santa Clarita and is known for being a top supplier of darkroom supplies to high schools and colleges across the country. Their Sunset Boulevard shop is stocked with everything from the raw chemistry required to develop your own photos to inkjet printers and both new and used digital and film cameras. Don’t miss the analog photo booth, which will spit out a strip of fully developed darkroom prints for just $7.
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Buy a vintage fruit-hued iMac G3 from DV Warehouse
Hollywood Computer Store
(Getty Images)
DV Warehouse in Hollywood is essentially an Apple computer museum minus the displays, exhibits and placards. Started in 2001 by Gino Joukar and Carol Ravaghi, a married couple who sensed longevity in Apple products early on, the store is a go-to source for anyone needing older desktops, laptops, displays or replacement parts that are no longer being manufactured by Apple. You can even find the occasional fruit-hued Apple G3 desktops from 2001 here.
Thanks to planned obsolescence, in which companies (including Apple) intentionally stop producing parts or lower the quality of their products to keep customers coming back for more, DV Warehouse’s niche as a refurbisher and supplier of vintage tech continues to pay off. In fact, around the year 2004, Steve Jobs even became a customer when he needed to source hard-to-find parts for his clamshell iBook laptop.
DV Warehouse is constantly acquiring new stock, purchasing older models from corporate companies, Apple and directly from consumers through its website sellamac.com. Devices are refurbished through a two-step system or simply stripped for parts. If DV Warehouse doesn’t have a specific legacy model in stock, customers can put in a request and employees will do their best to track one down and get it back to working condition.
Thanks to planned obsolescence, in which companies (including Apple) intentionally stop producing parts or lower the quality of their products to keep customers coming back for more, DV Warehouse’s niche as a refurbisher and supplier of vintage tech continues to pay off. In fact, around the year 2004, Steve Jobs even became a customer when he needed to source hard-to-find parts for his clamshell iBook laptop.
DV Warehouse is constantly acquiring new stock, purchasing older models from corporate companies, Apple and directly from consumers through its website sellamac.com. Devices are refurbished through a two-step system or simply stripped for parts. If DV Warehouse doesn’t have a specific legacy model in stock, customers can put in a request and employees will do their best to track one down and get it back to working condition.
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Rent a movie at one of L.A.’s remaining video stores
Sawtelle Video Store
(Jess Stephens / For The Times)
Angelenos may no longer be able to walk into a Hollywood Video and Blockbuster Video, two stores that dominated the video rental market in the Y2K era, but there are still plenty of L.A. places to find a new release or classic film without having to resort to streaming services.
Browse the carefully categorized racks at CineFile (marked on this map), one of the oldest video stores in West L.A., where the DVDs, Blu-rays and 4Ks are divided into sections by directors or niche subcategories like “mumblecore,” “cavemen,” “shade tipping” (videos with sunglasses on the cover) and “holy f— s—” (films that defy other genre definitions). CineFile was formed in 1999 by a band of former clerks from Vidiots, another video store that used to be in Santa Monica but reinvented itself as a video-store-slash-revival-theater in Eagle Rock. Pro tip: Both shops offer better rental deals if you sign up for a membership.
Perhaps you’ve noticed cars with bumper stickers that say: “Follow Me To Vidéothèque”? Those are from Vidéothèque, another long-standing video store that recently relocated from South Pasadena to Highland Park. Stocked with new releases and quirky vintage films (including black-and-white porn from the silent film area), its racks are watched over by a fluffy shop cat named Jules. Other bastions in the film rental scene include Echo Park’s Whammy! Analog Media; Be Kind Video located on Burbank’s Magnolia Avenue; and Video Depot in Santa Clarita, a mom-and-pop shop that also offers notary services.
With so many nostalgic, geeky video rental shops to choose from, why stream at all?
Browse the carefully categorized racks at CineFile (marked on this map), one of the oldest video stores in West L.A., where the DVDs, Blu-rays and 4Ks are divided into sections by directors or niche subcategories like “mumblecore,” “cavemen,” “shade tipping” (videos with sunglasses on the cover) and “holy f— s—” (films that defy other genre definitions). CineFile was formed in 1999 by a band of former clerks from Vidiots, another video store that used to be in Santa Monica but reinvented itself as a video-store-slash-revival-theater in Eagle Rock. Pro tip: Both shops offer better rental deals if you sign up for a membership.
Perhaps you’ve noticed cars with bumper stickers that say: “Follow Me To Vidéothèque”? Those are from Vidéothèque, another long-standing video store that recently relocated from South Pasadena to Highland Park. Stocked with new releases and quirky vintage films (including black-and-white porn from the silent film area), its racks are watched over by a fluffy shop cat named Jules. Other bastions in the film rental scene include Echo Park’s Whammy! Analog Media; Be Kind Video located on Burbank’s Magnolia Avenue; and Video Depot in Santa Clarita, a mom-and-pop shop that also offers notary services.
With so many nostalgic, geeky video rental shops to choose from, why stream at all?
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Nab Y2K styles at vintage stores and flea markets
Elysian Valley Clothing store
(Singulier Vintage)
Seeking oversized boho belts, raw-hem miniskirts and embellished tanks that were actually produced in the Y2K era? L.A. has a plethora of spots to go hunting.
For the budget shopper, and anyone looking to secure millennial fashion in bulk, downtown is the place to head. One block northwest of Santee Alley in the Fashion District is a little-known gem called Darius Meets Fashion that was put on the map by trendsetting TikTokers sharing hauls of the deadstock clothing and accessories they scored from the store on sale.
On the other side of the 10 Freeway is Factory Outlet. Envision racks of 2000s throwbacks like asymmetrical club dresses, velour lounge suits and pastel polos. You can’t miss the nearly 10-foot-tall light-up sign that says “Y2K.”
On the weekends, plenty of early-aughts items can be found at two of the city’s most beloved swap meets: Vintage Land on the outskirts of Echo Park and Silverlake Flea. Prices will vary from vendor to vendor, and it’s common practice to negotiate.
Those yearning to sift through racks of pleated micro minis and low-rise jeans should head to Girlcoded in Long Beach, a locally owned, all-Y2K vintage clothing store decked out entirely in shades of baby pink and posters from the era.
Have a bigger budget? Hire a stylist from the Chinatown-adjacent vintage store Shop Silver to curate a “style bundle” based on your aesthetic and size, or browse the impeccably selected millennial fashion at Singulier Vintage in Frogtown (marked on this map). Stocked with higher-tier Y2K, Eurotrash and early 2000s runway designer pieces (think Roberto Cavalli and Dolce & Gabbana), Singulier is also the place to nab bespoke beaded Apple iPod Shuffle necklaces. The artist — Frey Mudd — will even make custom pieces using customers’ own iPod Shuffles.
For the budget shopper, and anyone looking to secure millennial fashion in bulk, downtown is the place to head. One block northwest of Santee Alley in the Fashion District is a little-known gem called Darius Meets Fashion that was put on the map by trendsetting TikTokers sharing hauls of the deadstock clothing and accessories they scored from the store on sale.
On the other side of the 10 Freeway is Factory Outlet. Envision racks of 2000s throwbacks like asymmetrical club dresses, velour lounge suits and pastel polos. You can’t miss the nearly 10-foot-tall light-up sign that says “Y2K.”
On the weekends, plenty of early-aughts items can be found at two of the city’s most beloved swap meets: Vintage Land on the outskirts of Echo Park and Silverlake Flea. Prices will vary from vendor to vendor, and it’s common practice to negotiate.
Those yearning to sift through racks of pleated micro minis and low-rise jeans should head to Girlcoded in Long Beach, a locally owned, all-Y2K vintage clothing store decked out entirely in shades of baby pink and posters from the era.
Have a bigger budget? Hire a stylist from the Chinatown-adjacent vintage store Shop Silver to curate a “style bundle” based on your aesthetic and size, or browse the impeccably selected millennial fashion at Singulier Vintage in Frogtown (marked on this map). Stocked with higher-tier Y2K, Eurotrash and early 2000s runway designer pieces (think Roberto Cavalli and Dolce & Gabbana), Singulier is also the place to nab bespoke beaded Apple iPod Shuffle necklaces. The artist — Frey Mudd — will even make custom pieces using customers’ own iPod Shuffles.
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Acquire the ultimate Y2K status symbol: a Chihuahua
Lake Elsinore Animal Shelter
(Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)
From Taco Bell’s “Yo quiero” commercials to Paris Hilton’s iconic blond sidekick Tinkerbell to Elle Woods’ pocket-sized companion Bruiser Woods in “Legally Blonde,” there’s no denying that Chihuahuas were top dog in the early 2000s. Even this reporter was not immune to the trend, successfully convincing her parents to purchase a teacup Chihuahua she found on the internet in 2004.
Although the breed has been around for ages — the Chihuahua is believed to descend from the Techichi, bred by the Toltec people of ancient Mexico — the millennium helped these small canines attain prominence as status symbols and fashion accessories. After all, what pairs better with a mini purse and miniskirt than a mini dog?
These days, Chihuahuas are less sought after, and along with pit bulls and German shepherds, are the most commonly seen dogs in our animal shelters. Southern California in particular has a startlingly high rate of these pups ending up in shelters because of overbreeding and lack of affordable spaying and neutering services.
Not only are Chihuahuas primed to soak up the rays of our hot climate, they also make for funny, loyal and smart companions. Those thinking of adopting one can reach out to Lucky Chi Dog Rescue in Lake Elsinore, which has made it their mission to save Chihuahuas from death row since 2014. Another great resource is the Facebook group “Chihuahuas of California needing urgent rescue, foster, adoption & pledges,” which regularly posts alerts of Chihuahuas in California’s shelter system in need of a hero and loving home.
Although the breed has been around for ages — the Chihuahua is believed to descend from the Techichi, bred by the Toltec people of ancient Mexico — the millennium helped these small canines attain prominence as status symbols and fashion accessories. After all, what pairs better with a mini purse and miniskirt than a mini dog?
These days, Chihuahuas are less sought after, and along with pit bulls and German shepherds, are the most commonly seen dogs in our animal shelters. Southern California in particular has a startlingly high rate of these pups ending up in shelters because of overbreeding and lack of affordable spaying and neutering services.
Not only are Chihuahuas primed to soak up the rays of our hot climate, they also make for funny, loyal and smart companions. Those thinking of adopting one can reach out to Lucky Chi Dog Rescue in Lake Elsinore, which has made it their mission to save Chihuahuas from death row since 2014. Another great resource is the Facebook group “Chihuahuas of California needing urgent rescue, foster, adoption & pledges,” which regularly posts alerts of Chihuahuas in California’s shelter system in need of a hero and loving home.
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Visit Canterbury Records, an old-school music store
Pasadena Record Store
(Canterbury Records)
Ever since Napster launched in the summer of 1999, the practice of heading to your local music store to pick up a new release has gone by the wayside. But a few large-scale, multimedia music institutions are still standing in L.A. You already know about Amoeba Music in Hollywood and you’ve probably heard of Fingerprints Music in Long Beach, but do you know about Canterbury Records in Pasadena?
Quite possibly the oldest music store in Los Angeles, this nearly 70-year-old shrine to music and pop culture sells new and used records, CDs, Blu-rays, DVDs, cassette tapes and VHS. Walking down its meticulously categorized aisles organized by artists and genres brings back memories of other much-loved yet no longer in operation L.A. music stores like the Virgin Megastore and Tower Records that once graced Sunset Boulevard and Westwood Boulevard’s long-forgotten Wherehouse Music. Even the exterior of Canterbury Records is a blast from the past, with its poster-plastered windows and vintage blade sign on the roof.
While you can easily hop on Spotify or Apple Music to listen to a new song, you won’t get that challenging tactile experience of peeling off the thin cellophane wrapped around your new CD. And if you’re trying to identify a song you only know a few words to, it’s comforting to know there are still some shops where you can turn red in the face with embarrassment as you hum to an employee eager to help you locate that album.
Quite possibly the oldest music store in Los Angeles, this nearly 70-year-old shrine to music and pop culture sells new and used records, CDs, Blu-rays, DVDs, cassette tapes and VHS. Walking down its meticulously categorized aisles organized by artists and genres brings back memories of other much-loved yet no longer in operation L.A. music stores like the Virgin Megastore and Tower Records that once graced Sunset Boulevard and Westwood Boulevard’s long-forgotten Wherehouse Music. Even the exterior of Canterbury Records is a blast from the past, with its poster-plastered windows and vintage blade sign on the roof.
While you can easily hop on Spotify or Apple Music to listen to a new song, you won’t get that challenging tactile experience of peeling off the thin cellophane wrapped around your new CD. And if you’re trying to identify a song you only know a few words to, it’s comforting to know there are still some shops where you can turn red in the face with embarrassment as you hum to an employee eager to help you locate that album.
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Party like it’s 2000 at Hollywood’s Zero Lounge (and peep the DJ booth decked with Furbies and Bop Its)
Hollywood Bar/Nightclub
(Stan Lee)
When was the last time you enjoyed a refreshing “Tamagotchi Tea” or puckered your mouth after a swig of a rum-filled “Spice Girl Sour”?
The answer is probably never if you have yet to visit Los Angeles’ first millennial-themed bar, Zero Lounge. Those lucky enough to have come of age during the early aughts will be flooded with aesthetic and aural memories when visiting this Hollywood venue that plays music strictly from the late-’90s to mid-2000s. The futuristic decor, designed to make you feel like you’re inside of a computer, is accentuated by chrome surfaces, sleek lines and exposed cables dangling from the ceiling. The DJ booth has its own Y2K theme, intended to look like a teenager’s bedroom complete with Furbies, Bop It games and nostalgic movie albums from the times.
Alcoholic and nonalcoholic drinks with cheeky Y2K-inspired monikers (“Titanic Tea,” “Nokia Nectar”) are prepared by a staff of millennials to a soundtrack of club hits and mall tunes from the 2000s. Come on a Saturday to witness the bar’s flagship Y2K night, often led by DJ Robot Dream who, despite the computer monitor atop his head, is able to finesse the turntables and even play the sax.
The answer is probably never if you have yet to visit Los Angeles’ first millennial-themed bar, Zero Lounge. Those lucky enough to have come of age during the early aughts will be flooded with aesthetic and aural memories when visiting this Hollywood venue that plays music strictly from the late-’90s to mid-2000s. The futuristic decor, designed to make you feel like you’re inside of a computer, is accentuated by chrome surfaces, sleek lines and exposed cables dangling from the ceiling. The DJ booth has its own Y2K theme, intended to look like a teenager’s bedroom complete with Furbies, Bop It games and nostalgic movie albums from the times.
Alcoholic and nonalcoholic drinks with cheeky Y2K-inspired monikers (“Titanic Tea,” “Nokia Nectar”) are prepared by a staff of millennials to a soundtrack of club hits and mall tunes from the 2000s. Come on a Saturday to witness the bar’s flagship Y2K night, often led by DJ Robot Dream who, despite the computer monitor atop his head, is able to finesse the turntables and even play the sax.
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Find the most iconic public art of the 2000s: the angel statue
Public Art
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(Ken Lubas / Los Angeles Times)
At the turn of the 21st century, hundreds of six-foot angels took over Los Angeles.
Made of fiberglass and painted by different artists, the exciting large-scale public art project was conceived by the Volunteers of America and the Catholic Big Brothers and made a reality thanks to the L.A. Convention & Visitors Bureau and the mayor’s office.
The project, called “Community of Angels,” riffed on the city’s name by scattering literal angels across the city. It was said to be inspired by Chicago’s 1999 public art display of a similar theme: “Cows on Parade.”
If you lived in Los Angeles in the early 2000s, it was impossible not to see these angels. Unfortunately, the project only took flight for a short time, with the statues eventually being auctioned off to benefit youth programs around the city. A little over $100,000 was raised with the remaining angels sold online.
Twenty-five years later, most are now in the hands of private collectors and businesses who proudly display them in their offices, but there are still a few to be found in public if you know where to look. Santa Monica tends to have a few scattered around, including one in front of the XYZ Media building on Olympic Boulevard. One angel still stands in its original spot at the main entrance to Los Angeles General Medical Center, and the so-called Travel Angel, created by artists Dean and Laura Larson, is tucked away in a corner of the Original Farmers Market. Further out, an angel statue can be found at the 27-acre Century Villages at Cabrillo campus in Long Beach, and there’s one in Claremont’s Mallows Park.
There are more angels out there in the wild, but to date there is no updated database of where they are.
Made of fiberglass and painted by different artists, the exciting large-scale public art project was conceived by the Volunteers of America and the Catholic Big Brothers and made a reality thanks to the L.A. Convention & Visitors Bureau and the mayor’s office.
The project, called “Community of Angels,” riffed on the city’s name by scattering literal angels across the city. It was said to be inspired by Chicago’s 1999 public art display of a similar theme: “Cows on Parade.”
If you lived in Los Angeles in the early 2000s, it was impossible not to see these angels. Unfortunately, the project only took flight for a short time, with the statues eventually being auctioned off to benefit youth programs around the city. A little over $100,000 was raised with the remaining angels sold online.
Twenty-five years later, most are now in the hands of private collectors and businesses who proudly display them in their offices, but there are still a few to be found in public if you know where to look. Santa Monica tends to have a few scattered around, including one in front of the XYZ Media building on Olympic Boulevard. One angel still stands in its original spot at the main entrance to Los Angeles General Medical Center, and the so-called Travel Angel, created by artists Dean and Laura Larson, is tucked away in a corner of the Original Farmers Market. Further out, an angel statue can be found at the 27-acre Century Villages at Cabrillo campus in Long Beach, and there’s one in Claremont’s Mallows Park.
There are more angels out there in the wild, but to date there is no updated database of where they are.
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