A samurai-sword wielding assailant was shot dead in front of the Hollywood Scientology center. The guard who shot him said he was close enough to hurt them when he fired. Word is, he used to be a member, but not many details have been released, yet. The controversial, star-magnet church hit the media limelight again when anti-Scientology protesters demonstrated outside the preview of Arthur Miller’s “All My Sons” because Katie Holmes, wife of the religion’s most famous celebrity, Tom Cruise, has a starring role.

Kanye West gave his award to a fellow artist after he won at the American Music Awards Sunday night—among other interesting moments. Here’s the scorecard.

The first black presidency already may have sparked a rash of violence coming from white extremists. The Ku Klux Klan is making a comeback, and violent hate crimes have been on the rise in the three weeks following the election of Democrat Barack Obama, according to an L.A. Times article. Looks like to become post-racial we may yet need to iron out a few wrinkles.

Obama supporters are beginning to worry he’s not as far to the left as they hoped. Much of his future administration is shaping up to be Clinton and Bush holdovers, calling his campaign for change into question. Of course, he has chosen several close friends and associates to serve in his Cabinet or as senior advisers. And Wall Street, at least, seems to appreciate his pick for Treasury Secretary, though many of his views remain a mystery.

The Pope apparently doesn’t have much faith in interfaith conversations. In a letter to a scholar-politician, portions of which were published in an Italian newspaper, Pope Benedict XVI said “interreligious dialogue in the strict sense of the word is not possible,” though that hasn’t prevented the Vatican from meeting with Muslim leaders to find common positions on issues such as terrorism and religious freedom. Meanwhile, in Southern California, Jewish college students visited mosques as part of a national “twinning campaign” in which Jews and Muslims team up to fight Islamophobia and anti-Semitism.

Citigroup: add one more bailout to the pile. The government has approved a deal to secure about $306 billion in loans and securities and to directly invest $20 billion in the company. It was the third time in three months the government has tried to contain the unraveling financial crisis.

Hollywood’s chewing its cheeks over the same-sex marriage ban. It’s a place that has celebrated free speech and weathered the McCarthyist witch hunts. Now Hollywood insiders who supported Prop 8 are being “outed.” Film Independent has gotten flak for defending Richard Raddon, the director of the L.A. Film Festival, who donated $1,500 to the Yes on 8 campaign. And the director of a nonprofit theater organization in Sacramento resigned after complaints of his donations to the campaign.