Skip to main content

'Lost LA' Season 5 Episode Guide

Nathan Masters sits at a lab table amongst small prehistoric skeleton models and scientific tools. He's wearing a white lab gown and blue rubber gloves. Behind him are three other people, two of whom are wearing white lab gowns as well.
Nathan Masters inside the La Brea Tar Pits lab in "Lost LA" episode "Prehistoric Landscapes." | Still from "Lost LA"
Mark your calendars for an all new season of "Lost LA," premiering Sat, March 19 at 9 p.m. on KCET.
Support Provided By

In its fifth season, "Lost LA" explores the dismantling of one of the nation's greatest transit systems: the Red Car, the Japanese American community living in Crenshaw and how Jewish German exiles influenced Hollywood. Mark your calendars for these episode premieres. Season five starts Sat, March 19 at 9 p.m. on KCET.

Ep. 1: Who Killed the Red Car?

Sat, March 19 at 9 p.m. on KCET
Los Angeles dismantled one of the greatest rail transit systems in the nation. In this episode, search for a sunken Red Car off the coast of Redondo Beach, explore remnants of the Pacific Electric and ride a restored streetcar at the Southern California Railway Museum with co-founder Harvey Laner.

A man beside a train car that says "Los Angeles."

Ep. 2: Winemaking

Sat, March 26 at 9 p.m. on KCET
Before the movies, before aerospace and oranges and oil, there was wine. This episode explores a largely forgotten age when winemaking was Southern California's principal industry. Pick grapes from the oldest vines in Los Angeles, learn about the Indigenous laborers who built the industry and meet enterprising winemakers who are resurrecting a long-lost Southern California tradition.

 Grapes on a vine.

Ep. 3: Prehistoric Landscapes

Sat, April 2 at 9 p.m. on KCET
Southern California's climate has changed over the millennia. In this episode, sift through a natural archive of climate change at the La Brea Tar Pits, explore the remnants of a sunken super-island off the coast of Ventura and visit a natural tar pit in Ojai that might serve scientists in the distant future.

Scuba diver off the coast of the Channel Islands

Ep. 4: German Exiles

Sat, April 9 at 9 p.m. on KCET
Long: During World War II, Los Angeles served as a sunny sanctuary for European artists and intellectuals fleeing Nazi persecution. In this episode, explore the archive of a German Jewish author at USC's Doheny Memorial Library, tour a Pacific Palisades house famous for its literary salons and visit the Paramount Pictures studio lot, where exiles set the stage creatively for the filmmaking industry.

Ep. 5: From Little Tokyo to Crenshaw

Sat, April 16 at 9 p.m. on KCET
Japanese Americans returning from World War II incarceration camps rebuilt their community in L.A.'s Crenshaw area. In this episode, walk through Little Tokyo, explore the archives at the Japanese-American National Museum, share a meal at historic Tak's Cafe, shoot hoops at Dorsey High and consider how the neighborhood's diverse history intersects with community-building efforts today.

Crenshaw aerial with the words "Crenshaw Square" on one of the plazas.

Support Provided By
Read More
A sepia-tone historic photo of a man holding a cane standing in front of a food stand, surrounded by various crates, boxes, and advertising signs promoting cigarettes, candies, barbeque and more.

Pasadena Claims To Be The Home Of The Cheeseburger — But There's Beef

The cheeseburger was supposedly invented by Lionel Sternberger at The Rite Spot in Pasadena, when he added a slice of cheese to a regular beef burger and called it the "Aristocratic Hamburger." But the real history behind this fast food staple is a bit more complicated.
A hand-colored postcard of a large, white, colonial-style building with a green tiled roof stands behind a lush landscape of flower beds, a green lawn and many varieties of trees, with mountains looming just behind. An American flag waves at the top of a flagpole above the roof.

From Hiking to Hospitals: L.A. at the Center of the Pursuit of Health

The opportunity to get and stay healthy was a major draw for people to both visit and move to Los Angeles — whether it was during the tuberculosis epidemic (a.k.a. the "forgotten plague") during the 19th century or the health and wellness boom of the early 20th century. Both of these topics are explored in Season 6 of the PBS SoCal Original Series Lost LA.
A black and white photo of an adult dressed as the easter bunny with a giant costumed head, holding a little girl on their left who gives it a kiss on the cheek and, with his right arm, holding a little boy who brings his hands to his eyes as though wiping away tears.

Behold the Bunnies and Bonnets of L.A.'s Past Easter Celebrations

The onset of the spring season heralds the arrival of fragrant flowers in bloom — and all the critters that enjoy them, including the Easter bunny and families who anticipate his arrival with egg hunts, parades and questionable fashion choices.