by Abel Salas Jonathan Sanchez, co-founder of Eastern Group Publications (EGP), a chain of newspapers that, until a recent consolidation, included the Eastside Sun , the Northeast Sun , the Mexican American Sun , the Bell Gardens Sun , the City Terrace Comet , the Commerce Comet , the Montebello Comet , the Monterey Park Comet , the ELA Brooklyn Belvedere Comet , the Wyvernwood Chronicle and the Vernon Sun , took his leave on December 23rd, 2016. Associate Publisher and Chief Operating Officer at the vaunted East Side media organization, Sanchez was 64. A life-long Eastside community spokesperson and advocate, Sánchez helmed the business alongside his partner and wife Dolores, with whom he established the business in 1979. He shared his last moments with loved ones after a brief but courageous battle with cancer. Born to José Vicente Sánchez and Juanita Beltrán Sánchez in 1952 as one of nine in the lively Sánchez brood, the native Angeleno was raised and later established r

Left - right: Jimmy Gómez, Wendy Carrillo, María Cabildo and Arturo Carmona By Abel Salas With the appointment of former Congressman Xavier Becerra to a post as the California State Attorney General, the seat he leaves vacant has drawn a crowded field of congressional contenders. A contest in which no clear front-runner has emerged from among the 23 Washington D.C. hopefuls seeking to replace Becerra in the 34th U.S. Congressional District, the race is as much about redefining the soul of Latino leadership in Los Angeles as it is about effective fundraising and the community-building required to generate enough ground-level campaign momentum between now and the April 4th special primary election. The top two primary candidates, regardless of party affiliation, will appear on the ballot in the general election on June 6th, 2017. In what might be best described as a densely populated political fray, the 23 candidates represent a broad swath of experience, leadership styles and

Michael Torrenueva as Aladddin and Sarah Kennedy as Princess Jasmine at Casa 0101 . Photo by Luis Gaudi. by Abel Salas Extended through March by popular demand, Aladdin: Dual Language Edition , one of several official adaptations of Disney's hit Broadway musical, has become the most successful musical theater production to ever debut on the Eastside of Los Angeles. Staged by TNH Productions in a co-presentation with venerable community playhouse Casa 0101, the play has wowed audiences from throughout greater Los Angeles since opening on January 13th and continues to attract sell-out crowds. Under the direction of TNH (Teatro Nuevos Horizontes) founder and Artistic Director Rigo Tejeda, the production—based on the 1992 animated Disney film and featuring the film's musical score—has garnered rave reviews while delighting both neighborhood theater-goers and visitors who have flocked to Boyle Heights in record numbers just to attend the show. Presented in association with

By Alci Rengifo, Staff Writer/Associate Editor In an age when big budget, multiplex cinema is saturated with special effects behemoths, indie filmmaking is tackling what matters. Such is the case with Dante Betteo’s The Other Barrio , a gritty pulp noir that explores gentrification in San Francisco. Filmed in stylish tones and gothic shadows, The Other Barrio is a detective story with a clear, cutting social message. It also vibrates with a proud Latino identity while celebrating the overall diversity of a city, beset by corporate interests. The film’s story follows a San Francisco housing inspector named Roberto Morales (Richard Montoya), who finds himself investigating a suspicious fire at a residential hotel in the Latino Mission District. A native of The Mission, Morales laments the take over of his boyhood home by expensive condos for tech workers, this as local residents are being slowly pushed out. Morales suspects the fire, which has killed seven people, can be tied to t