Faces of the SCV: Valencia woman eager to give
July 19, 2024 5:19 pm
She was in her Jeep Cherokee parked at the Valencia mall, on a phone call with her cousin, when she’d learned she was previously mistaken. She rushed the conversation to
Author: Michael Picarella
This author has written 515 articles
Michael Picarella
Michael Picarella is a features writer and general assignment reporter for The Signal. He joined the staff in Feb. 2022 and previously worked as a columnist, features writer and beat reporter for The Acorn newspaper group in northern Los Angeles and Ventura counties. He’s a graduate of the Academy of Art in San Francisco with a degree in screenwriting. Additionally, Picarella has written and directed two feature films, and he’s the author of two books, one being a collection of stories from his award-winning family humor column, “Family Men Don’t Wear Name Brands.” Email him at [email protected].
Canyon Country native to premiere first film in Beverly Hills
July 19, 2024 9:32 am
Upon finishing college in May 2020, Steven Nassif entered the job market just as the world was shutting down due to the COVID-19 outbreak. And so, with the goal of
Valencia 97-year-old has 70-plus years of movie-business memories
July 12, 2024 3:00 pm
He said his father named him Rudolpho Valentino Freeman after the 1920s Hollywood sex symbol and popular Italian actor Rudolph Valentino. Little did his dad know his boy would grow
Once an asthma victim, now a marathon runner
July 2, 2024 5:04 pm
When Jessper Maquindang was in the second grade, he was diagnosed with asthma. His parents kept him away from any and all physical activities, they shielded him from pets for
Philly woman’s water breaks in Vasquez Rocks, premature baby Rocky shows resilience
June 28, 2024 4:19 pm
Back in early November, Claire Lutz was out among Vasquez Rocks with her husband and some friends, 24 weeks pregnant, when her water broke. She was 2,500-plus miles from home.
Newly restored 1943 sheriff’s Jeep to debut in Fourth of July parade
June 14, 2024 10:59 am
This particular 1943 Jeep was a former World War II logistics vehicle. It even worked during the land war in Japan. It returned to America after the war, and in
Master woodworker shows resilience as strong as oak
July 21, 2023 8:23 pm
It was a Friday. The insurance company told the wood master that they’d meet him on the upcoming Monday to take pictures of his newly acquired Santa Clarita shop and
From tragedy to unity: Saugus seniors open up about their journey
May 30, 2023 8:40 pm
By Michael Picarella For The Signal High school is tough enough. It’s a time when kids become young adults, face the highest forms of peer pressure, and wrestle with who and
St. Francis Dam Memorial design winners announced
April 3, 2023 11:39 am
A St. Francis Dam Memorial and National Monument is one step closer to becoming a reality. The Angeles National Forest, in cooperation with the St. Francis Dam National Memorial Foundation,
Henry Mayo CEO retires Friday after 22 years
March 30, 2023 3:44 pm
He said he never intended to work in hospitals again, but in 2001, a friend from Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital in Valencia called him and asked for help. The hospital
Deputies: Help needed to catch two suspects in Agua Dulce credit card theft
March 30, 2023 3:29 pm
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department is on the lookout for two men suspected of stealing credit cards in Agua Dulce and attempting to make charges in Palmdale, according to
Parents speak out: Kindergarten bullying not being addressed
March 29, 2023 10:08 pm
Bullying and aggressive behavior in the classroom is not being addressed, said two parents of Saugus Union School District kindergartners during the public comment section of Tuesday evening’s regular meeting
No one trapped, 1 transported after 2-car collision
March 29, 2023 1:10 pm
Two vehicles collided with each other on Wednesday afternoon on Alta Vista Avenue and West Copper Hill Drive in Santa Clarita, causing the Los Angeles County Fire Department to rush
Dump truck slows traffic on I-5 offramp in Valencia
March 28, 2023 11:28 am
A dump truck stopped on the northbound Interstate 5 offramp to Magic Mountain Parkway in Valencia Tuesday morning and caused a slowdown in the area, California Highway Patrol officials said.
Local brewers collaborate with the competition on new beer
March 23, 2023 12:50 pm
As a way to welcome Lucky Luke Brewing to the Santa Clarita Valley, Jaime Hernandez, co-owner of Telco Brewery in Santa Clarita, had the idea of collaborating with the competition
They got a lemon, and they’re anxious to race it
March 23, 2023 10:05 am
Despite the hot, humid Italian July afternoon that it was, with the kind of drizzle in the air that glues your clothes to your body and is, to say the
West Ranch audience ‘in the mood’ for Glenn Miller
March 16, 2023 12:09 pm
Hearing the music is one thing, but seeing the band perform live is something totally different, said Brian Leff, the director of jazz studies at West Ranch High School in
SCV comedy scene standing up to be counted
March 16, 2023 10:42 am
Four comedy shows walked into four bars in the Santa Clarita Valley… And the stand-up comedy scene hasn’t been the same since, according to Sean McBride, who co-produces the Cosmic
Vehicle turns on its side on I-5, no injuries reported
March 15, 2023 10:50 am
A pickup truck turned onto its side Wednesday morning on northbound Interstate 5 just south of Calgrove Boulevard in Santa Clarita, first responders said. According to Giovanni Sanchez, a spokesman
Dish Network’s ‘cybersecurity incident’ highlights challenges of rural living
March 1, 2023 12:47 pm
“Thank you for your patience,” said the Dish Network in a statement on its website that then goes on to say that “a cybersecurity incident” has “affected some of our