April 4, 2025 The Best Source of News, Culture, Lifestyle for Culver City, Mar Vista, Del Rey, Palms and West Los Angeles

Friends of late reporter Rick Orlov gather at Los Angeles City Hall

Orlov, who covered City Hall for the Daily News for nearly 30 years, died Feb. 2 at age 66 from complications of diabetes. (Thinkstock)
Orlov, who covered City Hall for the Daily News for nearly 30 years, died Feb. 2 at age 66 from complications of diabetes. (Thinkstock)

Friends, fellow reporters and politicians gathered at Los Angeles City Hall today to honor longtime Daily News reporter Rick Orlov in the council chamber where he spent countless hours documenting the business of the city.

Orlov, who covered City Hall for the Daily News for nearly 30 years, died Feb. 2 at age 66 from complications of diabetes.

“I knew he was going to pack this joint,” his former Daily News colleague Dennis McCarthy said, after surveying the standing room-only audience inside the council chamber, where a public memorial in his honor was held.

McCarthy and many others noted the importance of City Hall and the council chamber to Orlov, whose final byline — written while he was in a hospital room — was published on the day he died.

“This was his home away from home,” McCarthy said, “but more importantly, what Rick would want us all to know is that this is the people’s home.”

Daily News Executive Editor Michael Anastasi said he encouraged Orlov to slow down and “smell the roses” after learning that he was continuing to file stories from his hospital room.

But “covering City Hall, talking to the leaders of our city, talking to their staff members, filing four stories, for Rick, that was smelling the roses,” Anastasi said.

While reporters noted their late colleague’s kindness — with Daily News Managing Editor Carolina Garcia saying he was “humble, sweet, honest, a mentor” and a “reporter to his core” — some city leaders said they got a tougher version of Orlov.

Former City Controller Wendy Greuel noted that Orlov would sometimes roll his eyes and mutter under his breath, “What an idiot,” whenever he felt a public official said something “stupid.”

“That happened more times than we’d liked to admit,” Greuel said.

Many noted that Orlov’s Monday morning Tipoff column was a must-read for both City Hall observers and insiders.

Mayor Eric Garcetti, who called Orlov a “mensch,” said his “columns were as important as the columns that hold up this room, or at City Hall.”

The mayor noted that Orlov was the “quickest interview in the world” and rarely suffered long-windedness from city officials. Orlov taught him to never “try to soften things around the edges and to always be concise,” Garcetti said.

Before settling into his City Hall beat, Orlov distinguished himself by covering major crime stories about the “Night Stalker” and “Hillside Strangler” serial murder cases, Garcia said.

On one occasion, Orlov negotiated the surrender of a murder suspect, but not before he netted a 20-minute interview with the man, Garcia said.

Orlov worked at a prodigious pace, filing multiple stories a day that turned out to always be “spot-on,” and he was considered to have the “best rolodex in the business,” Garcia said.

“On a personal note I will miss my friend,” Garcia said. “The city of Los Angeles will miss the dean of City Hall.”

Born in Chicago, Orlov spent his early years in Indianapolis before moving to Encino with his family when he was 12 years old.

He attended Birmingham High School and earned a journalism degree from what is now called Cal State Northridge.

He started working for the Daily News in 1978 and did a stint as an assistant city editor, but returned — at his request — to reporting on local politics in 1988.

 

Related Posts

Suspect Arrested and Charged in March 27 Hit-and-Run Death

April 4, 2025

April 4, 2025

The Victim Was on the Way to His Job at the Beverly Hills Hotel  A 20-year-old man has been arrested...

LAPD to Conduct DUI Checkpoints and Saturation Patrols Across L.A. This Weekend

April 4, 2025

April 4, 2025

Checkpoints and Saturation Patrols Target High-Risk Areas, Come With High Penalties The Los Angeles Police Department will conduct a series...

Man Arrested After Violent Robbery During Camera Equipment Meetup

April 4, 2025

April 4, 2025

One Suspect Caught, Two Still Sought in Culver City Armed Robbery A suspect connected to a recent armed robbery involving...

(Video) Adorn Your Home With Plants and Pottery from Urban Jungle

April 4, 2025

April 4, 2025

Go To Urbanjungleplantsandpottery.com For More Info Go To https://t.co/WwF5r95s90 For More Info⁠ pic.twitter.com/Ejled24yhJ — Westside Today (@WestsideLAToday) April 4, 2025

Join UCLA’s Innovative Memory Research Study!

April 3, 2025

April 3, 2025

Are you ready to contribute to groundbreaking research and help shape the future of memory treatments? Do you sometimes find...

Coming Soon: Easter Extravaganza at Regent Santa Monica Beach

April 3, 2025

April 3, 2025

Book your Delectable Brunch, Easter Festivities This Easter, step into a world of celebration and refined delight at Regent Santa Monica Beach....

Scoop Dreams Come True: Van Leeuwen Launches New Beverly Hills Shop

April 3, 2025

April 3, 2025

Van Leeuwen’s Beverly Hills Opening Comes With Sweet Perks Van Leeuwen Ice Cream, a New York City-born brand celebrated for...

WeHo’s WeHappy Wednesdays Serve Up Big Discounts In Addition to Zero Parking Fees

April 3, 2025

April 3, 2025

Free Parking and $5 Cocktails? WeHo Makes Wednesdays Worth It The City of West Hollywood and the West Hollywood Chamber...

Saijo Hand Roll Rolls into Culver City with Premium Japanese Ingredients

April 2, 2025

April 2, 2025

Binchotan-Fired Perfection: Saijo Rolls Out Premium Sushi in West LA A new destination for hand rolls and Japanese culinary craftsmanship...

(Video) Check Out Bernie’s, a New Pop Up at Citizen Public Market in Culver City

April 2, 2025

April 2, 2025

Made with fresh frozen fruit and a toasted merengue topping these flavors are irresistible. The pop up will be at...

From Cocktails to Coffee: U.S. Tariffs Threaten Imports, Jobs, and Your Grocery Bill

April 2, 2025

April 2, 2025

Major Price Hikes Expected for Coffee, Wine, Chocolate, and Butter  A sweeping new set of tariffs announced by former President...

Levain Bakery to Open Venice Location with Special Guests and Charitable Twist

April 2, 2025

April 2, 2025

Bigger Than a Cookie: Levain’s Venice Opening Is a Flavorful Fundraiser Levain Bakery, the cult-favorite cookie destination founded in New...

LAX Airport Server Finds Hate-Filled Message From Unidentified Diners

April 2, 2025

April 2, 2025

Waiter Says He Was Stunned by the Message Left by Customers Guillermo Ortiz, who works at Planet Hollywood inside the...

Sunset Strip Staple Le Petit Four Shuts Down After Landlord Pulls the Plug

April 2, 2025

April 2, 2025

End of an Era: Le Petit Four Forced to Close in West Hollywood In a stunning reversal to the upbeat...

Metro LA Pushes Back Sepulveda Transit Community Meetings

April 2, 2025

April 2, 2025

Environmental Review Delay Prompts Metro to Reschedule  Metro announced that community meetings scheduled for early April to discuss the Sepulveda...