| You can buy virtually anything, anywhere, anytime in LA. The big
department stores or the exclusive Rodeo Drive will have it if the
ubiquitous run-of-the-mill retailers don't, and if all else fails try
LA's massive malls , which often resemble self-contained city suburbs as
much as shopping precincts. The antiseptic CityWalk mall at Universal
Studios distills a dozen LA neighborhoods into cutout facades fronting
all the national chain stores, complete with a sandy beach. At the
central seven-acre Beverly Center , at Beverly and La Cienega boulevards,
you'll find designer stores, fourteen cinemas and ample opportunities
for star-spotting, all above a giant parking garage. Another local
favorite is the Century City Mall , 10250 Santa Monica Blvd, Century
City, aimed at middle-class and upscale - but unpretentious - buyers.
West Hollywood and Melrose Avenue hold many of the city's trendier
boutiques, but if you're after a first edition of Shirley MacLaine's
autobiography, old movies stills or a rare Beatles "butcher cover" LP in
mint condition, try one of the places we've listed.
Books
Acres of Books 240 Long Beach Blvd, Long Beach tel 562/437-6980. LA's
largest, and most disorganized and confusing, secondhand collection -
well worth a trip down the Blue Line.
Book Soup 8818 Sunset Blvd, West Hollywood tel 323/659-3110. Packed to
the gills with an eclectic selection, this shop is as good for spotting
celebs as it is for browsing.
Either/Or 124 Pier Ave, Hermosa Beach tel 310/374-2060. Known for its
fiction and New Age sections, and once the haunt of Thomas Pynchon. Open
until 11pm nightly.
Hennessey and Ingalls 1254 Third St Promenade, Santa Monica tel
310/458-9074. An impressive range of expensive, hard-to-find art and
architecture books, plus rare posters and catalogs.
Koma Books 1764 N Vermont Ave, Hollywood tel 323/665-0956. Mayhem, true
crime, fanzines and loony conspiracy theories; everything the others are
too shocked to sell. A small shop with a large mail-order clientele,
favored by tabloid TV researchers. Now publishing its own authors.
Larry Edmunds Book Shop 6644 Hollywood Blvd, Hollywood tel 323/463-3273.
Stacks of books on every aspect of film and theater, plus movie stills
and posters.
Midnight Special 1318 Third St Promenade, Santa Monica tel 310/393-2923.
Excellent for lefty politics, social sciences and general fiction and
literature; open late.
Norton Simon Museum Bookstore 411 W Colorado Blvd, Pasadena tel
626/449-6840. Inexpensive prices for art books, given the pricey LA
market. Good selection, too.
Records
Aron's Records 1150 N Highland Ave, Hollywood tel 323/469-4700. One of
the best places in LA for secondhand discs - huge stock, all styles, all
prices.
Moby Disc 28 E Colorado Blvd, Pasadena tel 626/449-9975. Secondhand and
deletions, centrally located in Old Pasadena shopping district.
Record Surplus 11609 W Pico Blvd, West LA tel 310/478-4217. Hands down
the best spot for used music in LA, or anywhere for that matter, loaded
with ancient LPs, out-of-print CDs, new releases and all manner of
assorted junk you have to see to believe - even 8-tracks.
Rhino Records 1720 Westwood Blvd, West LA tel 310/474-8685. The biggest
selection of international independent releases, plus the full selection
of Rhino's music catalog.
Vinyl Fetish 7305 Melrose Ave, Hollywood tel 323/935-1300. Besides the
punk and post-punk merchandise, a good place to discover what's new on
the LA music scene and purchase a cheesy T-shirt or two.
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