Tag: oakland

The Bay Area Black Comedy Competition has returned to Oakland, bringing comedians from across the country to the historic Henry J. Kaiser Center for the Arts, where this year’s winner will be crowned Sunday in the Calvin Simmons Theatre.

The annual festival, based in Oakland, has long served as a launching pad for rising comics. Past participants have included Jamie Foxx, Katt Williams, Nick Cannon, Matt Rife and more. 

Organizers say the event draws talent from around the world. Angelia Walker traveled from Texas for a chance to compete.”I’ve basically been doing comedy for 20 years, and to have the opportunity, this is my first time in the Bay Area,” Walker said.

The competition resumed after being paused mid-event in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. On the opening day of this year’s festival, finalists from 2020 returned to complete their run.

After a six-year delay, comedian Mario Hodge emerged as the 2020 winner.

“I started comedy late, in my 40s, so this is my first time ever doing a comedy competition, and I just so happened to win,” Hodge said.

The festival awards cash prizes and offers performers opportunities to connect with talent scouts and producers.

Founder Tony Spires said he created the competition after experiencing racial discrimination at comedy clubs in San Francisco during the 1980s.

“That was what motivated me in the first place to start this thing, because we were being rejected,” Spires said. “I said, this isn’t right, so what we been doing now is, yes, giving our comedians a voice. We created it for our people, but we welcome everybody.”

This year’s event also marks a return to the Henry J. Kaiser Center for the Arts for the first time since the venue’s 2005 closure. Event organizer Erroll Jackson said maintaining the festival’s connection to the site is important.

“It’s really important that that kind of culture, and that kind of history, that identifies with Oakland, stays that way,” Jackson said. “And so we are really excited to be a part of it, and bringing it back to the Henry J.”

Hodge said he believes the long wait to claim his title will pay off.

“I look forward to be in movies, you’ll see a comedy special from me, and you’ll see a lot of Mario Hodge,” he said.

The 2026 competition winner will be announced on Sunday in Oakland at the Henry J. Kaiser Center for the Arts. 

A person died after a shooting in Oakland on Wednesday, police said.

Oakland police said responded to the 9800 block of International Boulevard after receiving reports of a shooting just after 6:45 p.m.

There, authorities report officers found a person suffering from an apparent gunshot wound. Medical personnel confirmed the person died at the scene, according to police.

Authorities say this is an ongoing investigation and ask anyone with information to contact the Homicide Section at 510-238-3821, the TIP LINE at 238-7950, or email cidvideos@oaklandca.gov. They add the report number for this case is 26-006571.

The long-awaited Henry J. Kaiser Center for the Arts has officially reopened in Oakland, marking a major milestone for the city’s cultural scene after two decades of closure.

Located next to Lake Merritt, the historic venue was once one of the Bay Area’s most prominent concert halls. Over the years, it hosted legendary performers including Elvis Presley, James Brown and Tina Turner. The Grateful Dead alone played at the venue more than 50 times.

After a hiatus lasting more than 20 years, the building was once again welcoming the public, complete with music, dancing and celebration on Saturday, the venue’s opening day.

Vanessa Whang, chair of Oakland’s Cultural Affairs Commission, said the venue holds deep personal meaning for her. She previously helped coordinate concerts at the center and was eager to see how it looked after years of restoration.

“Such a beautiful building,” Whang said.

She added that while the center has been modernized, its original spirit remains intact.

“The feel of it, it feels very much the same,” Whang told CBS News Bay Area. “I’m happy that they kept the character, the architectural details.”

Originally named the Oakland Auditorium, the building was constructed in 1914 and opened a year later. Over the decades, it became a major gathering place for concerts, graduations and historic moments, including an appearance by Martin Luther King Jr.

For many Oakland residents, the reopening brings back powerful memories.

“I saw James Brown here for the first time,” said Sherron Conway, who grew up in Oakland. “And [I had] my high school graduation [here], Castlemont [High School], 1968.”

Terri Trotter, CEO of the Henry J. Kaiser Center for the Arts, said the building was once the largest public assembly space west of the Mississippi River.

The venue closed in 2005 and underwent an extensive renovation and restoration process that cost about $100 million. The revitalized center includes an arena, the 1,400-seat Calvin Simmons Theater and three ballrooms.

“This is the HJK arena.  And this is our largest space,” Trotter said as she gave CBS News Bay Area a tour. “It will seat anywhere from 3,000 to 6,000 people, depending on how it’s configured.”

Trotter said she hopes the Calvin Simmons Theater will become a hub for more intimate performances and gatherings.

“The Calvin Simmons Theater has been completely restored and renovated,” she said. “We can do everything in here from a lecture, to a theatrical show like you’re seeing on stage now, to a Broadway show.”

Looking ahead, Trotter emphasized that the center’s success will depend on drawing audiences from across the region, not just within Oakland.

“I see a renaissance happening around us,” Trotter said. “I think this building will be part of that and will benefit from that. But I also think this building is really going to help drive that.”

Whang echoed that sentiment, saying artists and performers can play a key role in revitalizing the city.

“I hope that it becomes a vibrant center for the community, for artists, artists from all over,” she said.

Still, some community members noted that the city must continue working to ensure people from outside Oakland feel safe attending events and spending money in the city.

The Henry J. Kaiser Center for the Arts will host a Super Bowl watch party and fan zone on Feb. 8. The event is free, but attendees must RSVP, as seating is limited.

After a drop in violent crime last year, Oakland is seeing a deadly start to 2026.

Five people have been killed in the first four days, including three during a triple shooting at a convenience store.

“It’s scary and I frequent the store. It’s just, it’s bad,” said Nicole Turner, a customer at Sky Market on International Boulevard where the early triple shooting occurred early Saturday. “So it’s not an easy feeling living here.”

In addition to Saturday’s incident, two people were killed in unrelated shootings on New Year’s Day.

Mayor Barbara Lee said the city will continue working with police and other partners to curb gun violence.

Oakland had a low of 67 murders last year compared to 86 and 126 homicides in the previous two years.

Skyline High School alumni held a tribute for the late coach John Beam Saturday afternoon at The New Parkway Theater. 

Many of them knew Beam, who was a football coach and gym teacher at the high school from the 1980s until 2003. He then took a coaching job at Laney College, where he was working when he was shot and killed last month.

Christina Macalino is determined to make sure his memory lives on for generations to come. 

“He is our Skyline legend,” said Macalino. “Period.”

Beam gained nationwide notoriety after Laney College’s football team was featured in “Last Chance U.” He was the head coach at the time. 

But before taking the job at Laney, he coached and taught at Skyline High School from the mid-80s until 2003.

“He provided love, support, opportunity, and inspiration, and that’s just the epitome of being an educator,” Macalino explained. “That’s what we all strive to be as educators.”

Macalino is an educator herself; she worked at Skyline High School as a teacher and assistant principal.

But before that, she was a student at the school, and Beam was her gym teacher.

“He always had that beard even when I was at Skyline from ’97-2000,” said Macalino.

On Saturday night, her high school class held a 25th reunion with a tribute to Beam. They had a screening of the Netflix series, “Last Chance U.” Proceeds went to a teacher appreciation grant called “Once a titan, always a titan.”

Watching Beam on the big screen brought back memories for Macalino.

“It was a class full of freshmen and sophomores and there was like maybe five of us seniors there and he would totally call us out when we weren’t doing what we were supposed to be doing,” said Macalino, remembering her experience 25 years ago. 

Charles Lassey was also in one of Beam’s classes at Skyline.

He says watching the documentary in the community made the void feel a little bigger

“It makes us that much more emotional for all of us to see that we really lost a gem,” said Lassey. “And a gem not just for skyline, but for Oakland, for Alameda County, for California.”

Lassey was part of the Class of 2000 reunion organizing committee, he says, without Beam’s passing, they wouldn’t have had a reunion.

“We planned this for maybe four weeks, and it gave us a reason to come together every week or so,” said Lassey. “I told them if Coach Beam wasn’t taken away from us, we wouldn’t be hanging out and planning this event. “

Beam died from a gunshot wound after he was shot on the Laney College campus on Nov. 13.

Macalino says while she’s devastated by his passing, everyone needs to learn from the life he lived.

“We do need to step up as a community,” Macalino stated. “I mean, yes, he was one person, but yet he was doing the work of 50 plus and so I think it’s a calling to Oakland that we need to come together and we got to pitch in for our town.”