Weekend Pointers

Hollywood Santa Parade: If you like your stars D-list, your Kasems Casey and your parades in Hollywood, then the first annual Hollywood Santa Parade -- the phoenix rising from the ashes of the now-defunct Hollywood Christmas Parade -- is for you.

"Stars" include: Dancing with the Stars' Edyta Sliwinksa, Louis van Amstel, Kym
Johnson, and Alec Mazo; High School Musical's Kaycee Stroh and Olesya Rulin; Entourage's Rex Lee; The Dog Whisperer's Cesar Millan; Cheetah Girls' Adrienne Bailon and Kiely Williams; Casey and Jean Kasem; Vicki Lawrence; Fred Willard; and Dick Van Patten.

Bob Barker is grand marshall. Parade takes place Sunday, Nov. 25, starting at Hollywood and Orange, traveling east to Vine, south to Sunset Boulevard and then west back to Orange.

Programming Notes: Check out the 1995 documentary "Things That Aren't Here Anymore" Saturday night at 7 p.m. on KCET/Channel 28.

Hosted by the late Ralph Story, the program looks at a variety of vanished Los Angeles icons, from the Brown Derby restaurants to the Red Cars.

Also, fans of Ira Glass' "This American Life" will want to check out KCRW/89.9 FM on Thursday and Friday. The station is running a marathon of "Life" episodes from noon to 5 on both days.

No word on whether any of those episodes will include the interview with Jonathan Gold, who recently recounted his culinary trek down Pico. (An inspiration, as you well know, for last Saturday's Great Los Angeles Walk.

Finally, KTLA is going retro this weekend, with a 60-hour marathon of classic TV shows. Programming will include episodes of black-and-white entries such as "The Jack Benny Program," "The Honeymooners" and "The Munsters," as well as 70s fare like "CHiPs," "Happy Days" and "Wonder Woman," 80s entries such as "Charles in Charge" and "Doogie Howser," and more recent shows including "Friends" and "Fresh Prince of Bel Air."

Station will also air classic kids shows, including "Time for Beany, "Popeye & Friends" and "Underdog." Marathon starts at 10 p.m. tonight and continues until Monday morning.

DWP Festival of Lights: I personally find the Griffith Park event rather sad; the lights are lackluster, particularly if you're stuck in your car for several hours waiting to drive through the display. (I've seen better in small towns.)

Nonetheless, if you're gonna check it out this year, go now, as cars aren't allowed in until Nov. 25. The walk would do ya good, anyway. (BTW, Evan and I got a sneak peak the other day, as we were driving home on Sunday at around 5 p.m. after an afternoon at Shane's Inspiration in Griffith Park. Many of the lights were on... and sorry to say, it looks the same as it does every year. Blogger Toddler was not impressed.)