A Christmas tree light show at LA Live, the Grammy museum opening, and the return of Cole’s highlight the busy commencement of the holiday season in Los Angeles. And guess what? It’s all happening Downtown. Just in time to abuse Metro’s late night Red Line and DASH hours ^[1]. Fill your Calendar app accordingly.

Ongoing

• Ice Skating in Pershing Square ^[2] with daily concerts. What, no outdoor movies this year? At least you have an excuse to wear that Old Navy scarf of yours in 80-degree weather without looking like a total Hollywood jackass.

Today

• ESPN Zone ^[3] opens at LA Live. There is no local NFL team to cheer on to the playoffs, and the BCS Champion, the Super Bowl Champion, and the Gold Medal Curling Team of the 2010 Winter Olympics have already been decided by HAL 9000. But you can still watch the events as they happen on a bunch of big TV screens.

Dec. 3

• Grammy Nominations concert at Nokia Theatre ^[4], LA Live, featuring performances by Mariah Carey, Celine Dion, Foo Fighters, B.B. King, John Mayer, and Taylor Swift. It’s the first time Grammy nominations will be announced live on primetime television, coinciding with the Dec. 6 grand opening of the Grammy Museum. More Kanye.

Dec. 4

• Light of the Angels ^[5] begins in Nokia Plaza at LA Live. It’s a free, 7-minute holiday multi-media show running nightly on the hour, December 4th – 31st, featuring a 52 foot “tree.”
• The Los Angeles Conservancy celebrates the grand re-opening of Cole’s with a 1920’s-themed fundraiser ^[6] to commemorate its 100th anniversary. One of the oldest watering holes in the city, and the inventors of the French Dip sandwich, Cole’s has gone under a $1.6 million restoration.
• Downtown blog Angelenic hosts a walking tour ^[7] of Downtown’s holiday light displays, from historic Union Station to LA Live.

Dec. 5

• Celebrate the ratification of the Twenty-first Amendment at Broadway Bar, Casey’s, Cole’s and Golden Gopher. It’s the 75th Anniversary of Repeal Day ^[8], and all four bars have Dewar’s drink specials for 75 cents. Happy Great Depression!

Dec. 6

• It’s the official opening of Cole’s for the rest of us ^[9], with au jus sandwiches, sides and slices of fresh housemade pies for just 100 cents a piece. I’m counting my Lincolns with fingerless gloves as I write this.
• Holiday Wonders Christmas Around the World ^[10] at Disney Hall. Ring in the season with an all-ages show of carols from across the globe and a festive sing-along with the chorus.

Dec. 7

• Holiday Matinee of Irving Berlin’s White Christmas at the Los Angeles Theatre ^[11] on Broadway. See an American Classic in a 1931 Los Angeles landmark. If you’ve never seen the inside of this movie palace, you’re missing one of the city’s architectural gems.

Related posts:

1. Archiving Angeles (AA): Christmas in Pershing Square ^[12]
2. Archiving Angeles (AA): Holiday on Broadway ^[13]
3. A Christmas Poem for the ages ^[14]
4. Lighting of the Angels Sucked And You Know It ^[15]
5. Recycle your Christmas trees! ^[16]