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Mazi is one of about 135 animals living at the nonprofit Keepers of the Wild in Valentine, Ariz., which is open to visitors year-round.  

(Lara Kraft)

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In a former life, Ruckus was primarily used for photo opportunities. The Bengal tiger now lives at Keepers of the Wild in Valentine, Ariz. 

(Lara Kraft)

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Bucky was one of five bears that performed tricks and posed for photos before being rescued from a roadside show. The black bears now live at the 175-acre Keepers of the Wild in Valentine, Ariz.  

(Lara Kraft)

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Buy feed for the deer in the gift shop at Grand Canyon Deer Farm in Williams, Ariz.  

(Jan Molen / Los Angeles Times)

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The deer will walk right up to you at Grand Canyon Deer Farm in Williams, Ariz.  

(Jan Molen / Los Angeles Times)

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The deer at Grand Canyon Deer Farm in Williams, Ariz.,, know that they can nab a few kernels of corn without a quarter.  

(Jan Molen / Los Angeles Times)

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Snow blankets the habitat of Geronimo, one of three tundra wolves in Bearizona’s three-mile drive-through. The 160-acre wildlife park is in Williams, Ariz.  

(Erica Parlaman / Bearizona Wildlife Park)

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For the best photos of the wildlife, including the black bear Kona, take the open-air bus tour offered four times a day at Bearizona in Williams, Ariz. 

(Erica Parlaman / Bearizona Wildlife Park)

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Sully, a brown bison, roams through a field of tickseed flower in the Bearizona wildlife park in Williams, Ariz. 

(Lisa Cruz / Bearizona Wildlife Park)

Maybe my daughter, Mika, chose Flagstaff, Ariz., as a college destination because she thought it would be a chance to get away. Wrong. But as much as we enjoy spending time in the woodsy town with its amazing restaurants and nearby natural attractions, we always brake for wildlife.

Three stops along Interstate 40 nurture our love of animals by offering close encounters with wolves, bison, tigers and other gentler creatures. Two are ideal for an hour or two visit. The third is large enough to explore for three hours or more. And all three offer plenty for your Instagram feed.

Keepers of the Wild

Last year Keepers of the Wild, aided by PETA and Lions, Tigers & Bears in Alpine, Calif., rescued five black bears from a Texas traveling show, where they sat in chairs for photos with visitors and performed tricks, said Lara Kraft, the sanctuary’s vice president.

Today, they lounge in hammocks, swim in a natural pool and forage for hidden treats at this nonprofit 29 miles east of Kingman, Ariz.

Keepers of the Wild cares for about 135 rescued animals, including lions, Bengal tigers, leopards, wolves and even a blind great-horned owl on 175 acres in the desert. About 70 acres are accessible to visitors on a nearly two-mile path you can stroll in less than an hour, with shaded areas throughout.

My family spent a long time observing the animals, but the desert heat eventually wore us out. On our next visit we’ll take the guided safari tour ($10) before revisiting our favorites. Take the 3:30 p.m. tour to watch the animals being fed.

If you’re pressed for time, head for the popular big cats, wolves and bears. They’re most active in the afternoon, said Kraft, because they know the feeding schedule too.

The gift shop sells animal-centric items (check out the giant puzzles) as well as prepared food, snacks and drinks.

Info: Keepers of the Wild, 13441 E. Highway 66, Valentine, Ariz.; (928) 769-1800, keepersofthewild.org. Open 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Wednesdays-Mondays, weather permitting; closed on Thanksgiving and Christmas. Admission is $20; $15 for seniors 65 and older, military and veterans; $12 for children 3-12. Tours depart at 10 a.m., 1 p.m. and 3:30 p.m.

Grand Canyon Deer Farm

Count on getting amazing closeups at the 10-acre Grand Canyon Deer Farm nestled among ponderosa pines 8 miles east of Williams, Ariz. The privately owned attraction houses animals that were born there, brought in as babies or rescued.

A paved path winds past enclosures of mini horses, llamas, alpacas and a kissing camel, Gracie. Signs offer details about animals such as Zoolander, a zonkey whose dad was a zebra and mom was a donkey.

Bold fallow and sika deer will approach you; buy a cup of feed ($4 and $6), and you’ll get rock-star attention. Hold on tight to that cup — the deer aren’t afraid to help themselves. They even know to nudge the coin-operated feed dispensers for a few stray kernels of corn.

Two marmosets, Pharaoh and Cleopatra, are rescues. I couldn’t stop staring at Cleopatra’s sweet face, but as the sign warned, she started screaming — in my face. She was being protective of her guy, explained Patricia George, who, with her husband, Randy, have owned the park in 1987. People buy them as cute babies, she added, but as marmosets mature sexually, they become aggressive and can bite.

The mule deer, coues deer and Stormy the elk also are rescues. One mule deer fawn was found in the jaws of a large dog, George said. She’s fine now.

Mozart the cockatoo is quite the talker, making him a favorite with visitors. Also popular are reindeer Dasher, Blitzen, Holly, Mistletoe and Rudolph, George added. Some visitors are surprised to find reindeer aren’t mythical creatures.

The park offers a hands-on experience with coatimundi, wallabies and porcupines, and a zookeeper program that will take you behind the scenes to learn about animal husbandry. Both require reservations and additional fees.

Info: Grand Canyon Deer Farm, 6769 E. Deer Farm Road, Williams, Ariz.; (928) 635-4073, deerfarm.com. Winter hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. (2 p.m. on Christmas Eve), weather permitting; closed on Thanksgiving and Christmas. Admission is $14; $12.50 for seniors 62 and older; and $8 for children 3-13; free for kids 2 and younger. Gift shop with snacks and souvenirs. Picnic table out front.

Bearizona

For a longer outing, head to Bearizona for a three-mile drive through the habitats of bears, wolves, mountain goats, bighorn sheep, bison and more. The 160-acre wildlife park is set in the Kaibab National Forest and is a regular stop for my family.

Winter is a good time to see the animals sporting their thick full coats. Wolves and bison love the cooler weather and are active all day, said Erica Parlaman, Bearizona’s drive-through supervisor. Bears usually don’t start stirring until the afternoon. In the summer, early mornings and late afternoons are the best times to catch the animals in action.

You can also leave the driving to someone else. A free bus tour travels the loop four times a day, weather permitting. The open-air vehicles have no window glass to obstruct your photography, and guides feed the animals to lure them near the road, making close-up photos possible.

After completing the loop — you can drive it as many times as you want — head to walkable Fort Bearizona, 20 acres of animal exhibits, shows and a petting zoo.

Fort Bearizona is home to bobcats, javelinas, red foxes and more. For a closer look, take advantage of the animal talks and shows throughout the day. We loved the birds of prey show featuring owls, hawks and falcons.

Info: Bearizona, 1500 E. Route 66, Williams, Ariz.; (928) 635-2289, bearizona.com. Open 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. (last car admitted to drive-through) daily; walk-through area until 6 p.m. Admission is $25; $23 for 62 and older; $15 for children 4-12; free for children 3 and younger; a maximum of $120 per private car. $2 off for military/veterans and Arizona college students with ID. Food stands, picnic area and the Canyonlands restaurant with hickory-smoked barbecue and a full bar. Huge gift shop.

Stocks on Wall Street closed out a listless day Friday with tiny gains that were enough to propel the Standard & Poor’s 500 index and the Nasdaq to new record highs.

The United States and China revealed they have reached an initial deal in their long-running trade war. The Phase 1 agreement means the U.S. won’t impose new tariffs on Chinese goods that had been set to kick in this weekend. Investors’ anxiety over the prospect of such an escalation in the trade war contributed to a sluggish start for the market this month.

On Thursday, media reports signaling that a deal was close spurred a rally that sent the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq to record highs. That likely led Friday’s muted reaction to official announcements of the deal.

“People obviously were excited about what they heard yesterday, and now what you’re seeing is a consolidation now that it’s actually been confirmed,” said Lisa Erickson, head of the traditional investment group at U.S. Bank Wealth Management.

Technology companies, which rely heavily on China for sales and parts, led the gainers Friday, outweighing losses in banks, energy firms and other stocks. Bond prices rose, pulling yields down.

The S&P 500 edged up just 0.23 of a point, or less than 0.1%, to close at an all-time high of 3,168.80.

The Dow Jones industrial average inched up 3.33 points, or less than 0.1%, to 28,135.38.

The Nasdaq, which is heavily weighted with technology stocks, rose 17.56 points, or 0.2%, to 8,734.88.

The Russell 2000 index of smaller-company stocks fell 6.84 points, or 0.4%, to 1,637.98.

The S&P 500 ended the week with its third straight weekly gain. With less than three weeks left in 2019, the benchmark index is up 26.4% for the year.

The stock indexes were little changed most of Friday as investors weighed the implications of the trade deal.

The costly trade conflict and the threat it could escalate at any moment has been the biggest source of uncertainty for Wall Street this year. The dispute has also hurt manufacturing around the world and caused U.S. businesses to hold back on making investments. The saving grace for the economy has been a strong job market and consumer spending.

It’s unclear how much uncertainty the partial trade deal removes. The trade war has had more than a few swings since it started 17 months ago.

“We got something, but until we have a full-fledged deal, it may be tough to get excited,” said JJ Kinahan, chief market strategist for TD Ameritrade.

The next phase of the trade agreement will have to tackle some of the larger issues to provide relief from existing tariffs.

“It’s going to be a bigger lift, in large part because the president doesn’t really want to take the tariffs off,” said Jamie Cox, managing partner for Harris Financial Group. “That’s going to require much more give on the Chinese part than what is currently in the offer.”

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Technology stocks were the biggest winners Friday. Adobe climbed 3.9% after issuing quarterly results that beat Wall Street’s estimates.

Facebook fell 1.3% amid reports that the Federal Trade Commission could block the company from integrating its messaging apps, including Messenger and WhatsApp. Facebook has been planning to integrate those apps since early this year. Federal regulators are concerned that integration could make it hard to break up the company if the Federal Trade Commission finds a breakup necessary.

Utilities, household goods makers and real estate firms notched gains.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury dropped to 1.83% from 1.90%.

Bank stocks posted the biggest decline Friday, pushed down by that decline in bond yields, which are used to set the interest rates that lenders charge on mortgages and other consumer loans. Wells Fargo shares slid 1.1%.

The government said U.S. retail sales rose at a seasonally adjusted 0.2% rate in November. The modest pace fell short of analysts’ forecasts for a pickup of 0.5% and suggests the holiday shopping season got off to a slow start.

Several department store stocks fell. Macy’s dropped 3.4%. Nordstrom lost 3.3%. L Brands, the parent of Victoria’s Secret and Bath & Body Works, slid 4.2%.

British stocks and the British pound moved sharply higher, the day after a resounding victory for the Conservative Party eased uncertainty over the nation’s upcoming exit from the European Union.

Benchmark crude oil rose 89 cents to settle at $60.07 a barrel. Brent crude oil, the international standard, climbed $1.02 to close at $65.22 a barrel. Wholesale gasoline rose 3 cents to $1.66 a gallon. Heating oil climbed 4 cents to $1.99 a gallon. Natural gas fell 3 cents to $2.30 per 1,000 cubic feet.

Gold rose $8.90 to $1,475.60 an ounce. Silver rose 6 cents to $16.91 an ounce. Copper fell 1 cent to $2.78 a pound.

Film producer Karina Miller finds respite and creative autonomy in her cozy Studio City kitchen, where she’ll happily cook for you — just don’t try to help.

“The short answer is control. I like to cook by myself, because as soon as somebody else is in the kitchen I have to manage them, and I manage people all day long,” said Miller, 43, founder of Sparkhouse Media, under which she’s produced “The Big Ask,” “To the Bone” and “Semper Fi,” which was just released on Blu-ray and DVD.

The kitchen of her 1,396-square-foot home is not only equipped with her dream cookware and appliances — her stove has eight burners in three different sizes and a dual-fuel oven — it’s also one place where she can oversee an entire creative process from start to finish, by herself.

“My job is wrangling like 200 people in months to make something creative in support of their vision, whereas when I’m cooking, it’s just me and I have more freedom. And I just love feeding people; it de-stresses me,” said Miller, who solo-cooked all the main meals for “The Big Ask,” mindful of its mere $150,000 budget.

“Three courses plus dessert,” she said. “I couldn’t just make one thing.”

Miller, who calls herself “a big bargain hunter,” snagged her fridge, the double dishwasher, the stove, hood and steam oven — all by Viking — at Appliance Outlet in Northridge for less than the retail price of just the stove.

Full sets of dark blue and light blue Le Creuset cast iron cookware were gifts from her mom, Patricia Taylor, and are nestled atop the stove.

Her brother, Keanu Reeves, got her three psychedelic pink-and-black shadow portraits of strippers, which boldly complement the royal blue walls and backsplash of sea foam green arabesque tiles.

Miller opted for white and light gray quartz countertops, which are less porous than marble and good for baking the most scrumptious pumpkin pies (which I might have obligingly tried).

“It’s about the spice,” she said.

Why is this your favorite room?

Our real estate agent asked what things I had to have in a house, and I said a kitchen that opens out into a space where people can sit and keep me company while I’m cooking. I really like to cook for people. Cooking, and baking specifically, really keeps me calm.

What do you like to cook?

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I’m a big cupcake person. This is my favorite season, so I do a pumpkin spice cupcake with an orange spice cream cheese frosting. I like making meats, like steaks and roasted tenderloins, things like that. Lately, I’ve been really into my Lebanese cookbook, because my husband’s mother was Lebanese and my brother [Keanu] was actually born there, so I’ve been trying to get to know food from other cultures.

This is such a cozy, colorful kitchen nook.

This is basically where we live. It’s really comfortable to sit here, read scripts and drink coffee with a view knowing everything is so organized around me. This nook fabric was from the industrial section — we have three dogs and we knew we were going to be spending a lot of time on it so we wanted it to be durable. We liked the tweed style because it picked up a lot of the different colors in the room and it’s really soft. The fixture above is from deKor in Atwater Village. The style is called Sputnik pendant light; I guess it’s kind of Russian constructivism.

Favorite memory in here?

This Thanksgiving was the first time we had eight people over. My husband and my brother were watching football, my friend was helping mix drinks and I was cooking. We got to really test our theory that a lot of people could be in here enjoying the space and still be really comfortable, and I could be cooking but still interacting. I had a whole chart of my oven schedule — my friends brought stuff that I could heat up in the steam oven. All the stuff got to be tested and it went really well and wasn’t stressful.

Start-ups want men to track, improve or freeze their sperm, hoping declining male fertility will become just as big a business opportunity as women struggling to conceive.

Legacy and Dadi provide kits for men to send their sperm to labs for testing and freezing. YoSperm and ExSeed use devices attached to smartphones to analyze sperm dripped onto slides at home. Sandstone Diagnostics is encouraging men to improve their swimmers by eating better, drinking less and staying out of the sauna.

Venture capital firms, including Bain Capital Ventures, TCG Capital Management and Section32, are betting that men will want to measure and protect their fertility from the comfort of their own home.

Khaled Kteily, Legacy’s chief executive, said men were “ignorant” of potential problems. “Mick Jagger is probably our biggest enemy,” he said. “He had so many kids when he was older.”

About a third of all infertility suffered by couples is attributed to male problems, a third to women, and a third is unexplained. Compared with women’s fertility, male fertility does not have the same age cliff, but studies show that it does slowly decline and that older men are slightly more likely to have babies born with disabilities. Overall, male fertility has dropped by more than half in 40 years, according to a large study of studies in 2017.

The start-ups are inspired by female-focused fertility companies, including Progeny, which went public in October and now has a market value of $2.2 billion, and direct-to-consumer healthcare companies such as Hims and Roman, which provide online access to doctors that enables men to avoid face-to-face visits for conditions such as erectile dysfunction.

Legacy sends customers a gold-embossed navy box, which looks like it contains a luxury shirt rather than a bottle for sperm collection. A delivery service later whisks the sample to a lab to be tested for semen volume and sperm count, shape and motility. Men receive a personalized report on how they could improve their sperm, which includes, for example, eating more tomatoes and nuts.

The sample is frozen until a man decides he wants a child. Sperm has been frozen for as long as 25 years and still used to create healthy babies — and some scientists believe it could last up to 200 years.

Kiyan Rajabi, a 28-year-old health tech entrepreneur in New York, said he began to think about his fertility when he saw so many of his female peers getting their eggs frozen.

“You hear hundreds of stories of families having difficulty conceiving. I don’t know if I will ever use the sample I provided. But I have peace of mind knowing I at least have a backup,” he said.

Dadi launched its service at the start of 2019 and has had thousands of men sign up. The start-up based in Brooklyn, N.Y., raised money in two funding rounds this year — $2 million in January and $5 million in August — and is starting to sign partnerships with employers, including McDonald’s, that want to offer its sperm testing and freezing service as an employee benefit.

Tom Smith, Dadi’s chief executive, who co-founded the company after working at Giphy, the gif provider, said the product resonated with investors. “Every single room we walked into, there was someone who had an infertility story,” he said.

Smith decided to start the company when he saw a friend struggle to freeze his sperm after a cancer diagnosis. “He was ushered into this little room and handed a cup. Three or four hours later, he was able to collect,” he said. “It’s not very conducive to trying to masturbate.”

The start-ups’ founders believe allowing men to produce a sperm sample at home will make them more likely to do it. Greg Sommer, founder of Sandstone Diagnostics, said that men on average have their first test after about 18 months of having difficulty conceiving, even though fertility testing for women is often far more intrusive.

“By then, women are already doing a lot on their reproductive health, with doctors’ visits and tracking,” he said.

Dr. Stanton Honig, a male fertility expert at the Yale School of Medicine, said he believes the at-home tests are valuable because they can be done at home and said papers have shown they are accurate. But he is less convinced that men who are not ill need to be freezing their sperm.

“I’m a little bit taken aback by companies saying, ‘Freeze your sperm because you are going to have a problem later,’” Honig said. “If a 50-year-old came to me and said he froze his sperm at 40, I’m not sure I’d recommend using the frozen sperm. I would tell him to try to get his wife pregnant the old-fashioned way.”

© The Financial Times Ltd. 2019. All rights reserved. FT and Financial Times are trademarks of the Financial Times Ltd. Not to be redistributed, copied or modified in any way.

Christmas came early for a few Westside real estate agents this week when the legendary estate known as Chartwell sold for about $150 million, a new California price record. The agents — all eight of them — will split a sizable commission for their efforts. Just how sizable? A 2.5% commission would mean a $3.75 million take for the listing agents involved (or $468,750 per person before taxes).

Our Home of the Week is a dreamy aerie in the foothills of Montecito. Built in 2001, the contemporary-style home makes the most of its natural surroundings with walls of windows and a second-story deck. Stained-glass clerestories filter natural light within.

Once you’re done reading about these deals, visit and like our Facebook page, where you can find Hot Property stories and updates throughout the week.

– Neal Leitereg, Jack Flemming and Lauren Beale

Nailing down a deal

“Claws” star Niecy Nash has wrapped up some business in Bell Canyon, selling her home of about six years for $1.265 million.

Set among mature trees on three-quarters of an acre, the scenic estate packs in the outdoor amenities. Within the landscaped grounds are a gazebo, a terrace, a swimming pool and a three-car garage. A detached studio adds even more living space.

The main house has four bedrooms, a beamed-ceiling living room and a lofted lounge area with a kitchenette. One of the guest bedrooms had been used by Nash as a custom dressing room.

The sale is Nash’s second of the year. In the spring, she sold another place in Northridge for just under $1 million.

Buyer dishes out big bucks for Giada’s place

Celebrity chef Giada De Laurentiis is off to cook in a new kitchen after selling her home in Pacific Palisades. The Food Network star got the full $7-million asking price for the contemporary home, which features — you guessed it — a drool-worthy kitchen.

Other perks of the 6,500-square-foot residence include a vast open floor plan, a dual-sided fireplace and bi-folding doors that blend indoor-outdoor spaces. A lower-level lounge with a game room, media room and wet bar has windows that look into the depths of an infinity-edge swimming pool.

He was no city slicker

The former home of Oscar-winning actor Jack Palance is back on the market in the Beverly Hills Post office area for $3.895 million, a $900,000 discount from when it first listed for sale earlier this year.

A work of architect Paul R. Williams, the Georgian Colonial Revival-style house has been extensively updated and modernized. Among the features are a snazzy kitchen, marble-clad bathrooms and pocketing doors. Guest and staff suites are among the five bedrooms.

In addition to Palance, the 1940s house counts director Stuart Rosenberg among its former owners.

That’s one way to pump up a listing

Rockstar energy drink creator Russell Weiner may be hoping a price-chop will create some buzz around his Hermosa Beach home. The beverage peddler recently cut the price of the Strand-adjacent pad to $18.95 million, down from the original $21-million asking price.

The contemporary-style home has three levels of patio and decking including a rooftop deck with a fireplace and spa. Inside, more than 5,600 square feet of living space holds a home theater, four fireplaces, an elevator and a gym.

From the archives

Thirty years ago, game show host and longtime Johnny Carson sidekick Ed McMahon listed his home in Beverly Hills for sale at $7.9 million. The 10,000-square-foot mansion — with six bedrooms, staff quarters and a projection room — was put up for sale as part of his divorce from his second wife, Victoria McMahon.

Twenty years ago, fresh off his performance in “The Hurricane,” Denzel Washington and wife Pauletta Pearson listed their Toluca Lake home for sale at just under $2 million. The Paul R. Williams-designed house, built in 1940, has been home to numerous stars through the years including comic and actor Leon Errol and actors William and Ardis Holden. The property is also where Ronald and Nancy Reagan held their wedding reception in 1952.

Ten years ago, television and radio host Larry King became the latest celebrity buyer at the ritzy Carlyle Residences when he forked over a few million for a three-bedroom unit in the high-rise. Other Hollywood names swayed by the 24-story, crescent-shaped tower were actor Bruce Willis and former William Morris chief Irv Weintraub.

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What we’re reading

Prepare for more big things near the L.A. Live campus in downtown Los Angeles. Los Angeles Times business reporter Roger Vincent reports that Chinese developer City Century intends to build a $1-billion housing and retail complex after purchasing a development site across the street from the sports and entertainment hub for $121 million. Called Olypmia, the project could include more than 1,300 new apartments or condominiums.

Former President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama appear destined to spend more time on the eastern seaboard after buying a vacation home on Martha’s Vineyard. The Chicago Tribune reports the Obamas paid $11.75 million for the 29.3-acre estate of Boston Celtics owner Wyc Grousbeck.

This week’s culture consumption can be laden with seasonal offerings including American Ballet Theatre’s “The Nutcracker,” Pasadena Symphony’s “Holiday Candlelight” and the panto-style show “A Snow White Christmas.” The musical duo She & Him and Patton Oswalt bring good cheer to DTLA, “A Charlie Brown Christmas” returns to the Chance Theatre in Anaheim, and the Musco Center for the Arts celebrates “A Southern California Christmas.” If holiday shows just aren’t your thing, there’s a literary-charged work from Heidi Duckler Dance.

Of snowflakes and sugar plums

American Ballet Theatre returns with its spectacular staging of that holiday favorite “The Nutcracker,” with Pacific Symphony performing Tchaikovsky’s score and a cast of dancers that includes homegrown star Misty Copeland. ABT artist in residence Alexei Ratmansky supplies the choreography. Segerstrom Center for the Arts, Segerstrom Hall, 600 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa. 7 p.m. Friday, 2 and 7 p.m. Saturday, 12:30 and 5:30 p.m. Sunday; other dates through Dec. 22. $29 and up. (714) 556-2787. scfta.org

Feel the warmth

For this year’s edition of “Holiday Candlelight,” music director David Lockington and the Pasadena Symphony offer a program of seasonal favorites — with a little help from singer Sarah Uriarte Berry, the Los Angeles Children’s Chorus, the Donald Brinegar Singers and L.A. Bronze Handbell Ensemble. All Saints Church, 132 N. Euclid Ave., Pasadena. 4 and 7 p.m. Saturday. $20 and up. (626) 793-7172. pasadenasymphony-pops.org

Who’s the fairest of them all?

A classic fairy tale gets a silly, song- and dance-filled makeover in “A Snow White Christmas.” Michelle Williams of Destiny’s Child plays the evil witch in this family-friendly show presented in the style of a raucous British panto. Neil Patrick Harris provides an onscreen performance as the magic mirror. Pasadena Civic Auditorium, 300 E. Green St. 7 p.m. Friday, 1 and 5 p.m. Saturday-Sunday; other dates through Dec. 22. $28 and up. (626) 449-7360. thepasadenacivic.com

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What’s past is prologue

Heidi Duckler Dance unveils its latest work, “What Remains.” The myth of Orpheus and Eurydice, the writings of poet Rainer Maria Rilke and a short story by Christa Wolf inspire this site-specific mix of dance and opera. The Wende Museum, 10808 Culver Blvd., Culver City. 7 p.m. Thursday-Friday. $35, $50. heididuckler.org

Three for the show

She & Him, the whimsical duo consisting of “New Girl” actress-singer Zooey Deschanel and alt-folk singer-songwriter M. Ward, will sing seasonal favorites and more in a two-night stand as part of their “She & Him Christmas Tour.” Special guest: comedian Patton Oswald. The Theatre at Ace Hotel, 929 S. Broadway, downtown L.A. 8 p.m. Friday-Saturday. $40.50-$100.50. axs.com

Things to do

Working for Peanuts

“A Charlie Brown Christmas,” the stage adaptation of the beloved animated TV special featuring the characters created by Charles M. Schulz, is back for another year. Chance Theater, 5522 E. La Palma Ave., Anaheim. 7:30 p.m. Thursday-Friday; 1, 2:30, 6 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday-Sunday; other dates through Dec. 29. $21-$35; discounts available. (888) 455-4212. ChanceTheater.com

Troll the ancient yuletide carol

The Orange Community Master Chorale and dozens of other local singers, dancers and musicians share the stage as part of the third-annual holiday celebration “A Southern California Christmas.” Musco Center for the Arts, Chapman University, 415 N. Glassell St., Orange. 7:30 p.m. Saturday, 4 p.m. Sunday. $25-$58. (844) 626-8726. muscocenter.org

Where else but in Los Angeles does holiday cheer come with statues of bizarre winged bulls topped with bearded human heads — and what’s purported to be the world’s tallest cut Christmas tree? The 115-foot tree, more than twice as high as the letters in the Hollywood sign, currently lights up a spot at the Citadel Outlets shopping center in Commerce.

Why such a super-size tree? “The scale of the building is quite large and tall,” says Steven Craig, whose company owns and operates the modern-day retail fortress whose historic design copies elements of a king’s palace from ancient Assyria. “The things we’ve done fit in quite nicely. Proportionally, it looks fantastic.”

Indeed, the stately white fir covered in lights, bows and jeweled ornaments the size of bocce balls fits right in. Whether it’s the tallest hardly matters. It’s less than 10 miles southeast of downtown L.A. and free to visit, for those who resist the urge to spend money shopping.

Here’s everything you need to know before you go.

1. From top to bottom, the tree is as tall as six giraffes standing on each other’s backs or three telephone poles stacked on top of each other. Also, it’s 20 feet longer than a regulation basketball court. “It’s the largest live-cut tree in the world, and we track these things closely,” Craig says. “To the best of our knowledge, none is any taller.” (It doesn’t appear anyone keeps records on the size of live Christmas trees.)

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2. This is the sixth year in a row the Citadel has hoisted a record tree. By the way, Guinness World Records says the tallest cut Christmas tree ever was a 221-foot Douglas fir displayed in 1950 at a shopping center in Seattle.

3. Here’s how the Citadel’s tree stacks up with others: It would tower over the more famous 77-foot Rockefeller Center Christmas tree, a Norway spruce, and the planted 30-foot Colorado blue spruce that’s the National Christmas Tree in Washington, D.C.

4. It’s real fir. The white fir (Abies concolor) comes from private timber companies that have holdings in the Shasta-Trinity National Forest , a 2.2-million-acre swath of land north of Redding, Calif. White firs, which are evergreens, grow at higher elevations primarily in the West.

5. The tree, weighing 18,000 pounds, was going to be cut down anyway, likely to be sold as lumber. Victor Saucedo of Victor’s Custom Christmas Trees in Laguna Niguel selected the Citadel’s tree long before December. Months earlier he hiked into the forest to find and identify trees that would make for the best holiday displays for now and future years. “We cut off only private land owned by timber companies which raise and harvest trees for lumber or fuels,” or from private landowners who do the same, Saucedo writes in an email.

6. Saucedo brings in a large crane to cut the tree. The crane then raises it horizontally in midair and places it on a flatbed truck; the tree never touches the ground. He prunes lower branches of nearby tall trees to add to the fullness of the tree when it’s installed.

7. Where the big tree once was, a dozen new saplings are planted to keep the forest going.

8. The flatbed truck then prepares for the 600-plus-mile drive to L.A. Per California road rules, the driver can travel with such an oversize load only between 2 and 5 a.m.

9. It takes about three days for the journey to the Citadel. After the tree arrives, it takes about a week to drill holes and add branches.

10. The tree is put up before Halloween during a lull in the center’s foot traffic; it’s unsafe for visitors to be around the site. Workers clear out an 8,000-square-foot area to work their magic on the tree and swing it into place. It was illuminated Nov. 11.

11. The tree is sprayed with green flame repellent to give it color and keep visitors safe in case of a fire.

12. It glows every night with more than 18,000 LED lights and 10,000 ornaments and bows.

13. It costs $150,000 for the tree, the transport, the whole shebang. It’s a project close to Craig’s heart. “We’re a traditional company based on traditional values,” he says, adding that families from the L.A. area come year after year to take photos in front of the tree.

14. The tree stands about midway from either end of the shopping center, which started life as the Samson Tire & Rubber Co. in 1929. The front pillars and statues take their design from the ornate palace of King Sargon II, who in the 8th century BC ruled over Assyria (modern-day Iraq and Turkey).

15. What are those creatures? The funny stone statues are called lamassu; they have animal legs, bird wings and human heads with long beards and hats. In ancient times, they were believed to be guardians who protected the kingdom. The Citadel adopted the lamassu as its quirky logo. You can find originals from Sargon’s palace at the Louvre in Paris and other museums.

16. The front of the building is wrapped with a giant, lighted red bow. It’s 36 feet wide and 21 feet tall. The bow is made of 18 loops 10 to 12 feet tall and finished off with 75-foot tails that drape down the front. It took 4,000 cans of paint and primer and 1.5 tons of glitter to make it.

17. Below the bow, the Assyrian wall, as the building’s facade is called, is decorated with shimmering gold pillars topped with parapets outlined in white lights. The scene is an Instagram fever dream.

18. The huge lamassu statues that crouch at the front of the building wear lighted red bows around their necks. Below them you’ll find a concrete bas-relief of the king himself, Sargon II, with a staff in hand.

19. Drivers heading north and south on the 5 Freeway through Commerce have excellent drive-by views of the decorated facade. Enjoy the view but don’t slow down or attempt to take a picture if you’re driving.

20. You can get a great photo of the bow and the decorated front of the building on foot. Walk through the shopping center’s food court and then cross Telegraph Road in the crosswalk to a concrete island (the 5 Freeway will be to your back). You’ll be able to capture all the decorations on the front of the building in one shot.

21. Distances are far at this 700,000-square-foot shopping center with more than 130 stores, so wear comfy shoes. I racked up more than 1,000 steps from the Disney Outlet on the western edge to the Starbucks on the other end near Telegraph Road. (Your steps may vary, depending on how many stores you wander into.)

22. Santa Claus will be in the house for anyone what wants a photo with their pet 6 to 8 p.m. Sunday. Santa is on deck 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. until Dec. 23, except Sunday, when he’ll greet humans only until 6 p.m.

23. The tree will stand until a few days after New Year’s Day. After that, the Citadel will get ready for Lunar New Year, which falls on Jan. 25.

24. After the holiday, the tree’s ornaments will be removed and the tree will be recycled. Saucedo describes the process this way: “When the trees come down they are cut up and taken to the local green-waste facility, where they are chipped up for mulch. About three-quarters of the trunk of the tree is split and given away as firewood, cut for stepping stones, used in gardens or as landscape accents.”

25. The Citadel tree isn’t alone in its stature. L.A. has at least two other super-tall Christmas trees to marvel at and photograph. The white fir at the Americana at Brand in Glendale is 102 feet tall; the one at the Grove in Los Angeles is 101 feet tall.

SoCal’s tallest of Christmas trees

The Citadel Outlets

Where: 100 Citadel Drive, Commerce

Hours: 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. through Dec. 23, and until 8 p.m. Dec. 24. Closed Christmas Day. Free parking.

The Grove

Where: 189 The Grove Drive, Los Angeles

Hours: 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. through Dec. 23, and until 6 p.m. Dec. 24. Some shops are open Dec. 25. First hour of parking free; $24 daily maximum.

Americana at Brand

Where: 889 Americana Way, Glendale

Hours: 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays and 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. Sundays and Dec. 23; 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Dec. 24. First hour of parking free; $18 daily maximum

The ongoing quest for health and fitness produces a constant stream of innovative new workout products, from new takes on old favorites to far-out new creations. Here are a few highlights from the Idea show held in Anaheim this summer, which means you’ll soon be seeing these at gyms, store shelves and smart screens.

Cutting-edge core

The EdgeCross-X. Invented by Agoura Hills teacher Steve Berman, this push-up bar with handles and a metal ball on each end blasts every muscle in your body with a new training modality he invented: “off-balance leverage training.”

Why we like it: This is a fitness revelation. EdgeCross-X, as promised, stresses numerous muscle groups by putting you off-balance with a pivot point far from the center of your body — on the ball at the far ends of the bar. From the first second you start off with a simple push-up, your core gets blasted.

Cost: $399.99, edgecrossx.com

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Double the fun

Ski-Row Air. A two-in-one workout machine from EnergyFit: a rowing machine that, repositioned vertically, converts into a lat-pull cable machine or cross-country skiing trainer.

Why we like it: Space-saving variety. You can row, work the arms in a cross-country ski motion or do lat pulls and other strength exercises. Includes wheels and a gas-assist cylinder to help lift the machine and lower it to the ground.

Cost: Starting at $1,899, energy.fit

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Beast mode

Gorilla Bow: Portable home gym that combines stretch cords with a pseudo-bow-hunting frame, claiming to produce between 5 and 300 pounds of resistance and allowing for a variety of strength exercises.

Why we like it: It’s a nice new take on old stretch-band devices, providing a convenient do-anywhere workout that can target back, chest, arms, shoulders and legs with presses, pulls and squats.

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Cost: $179.75, gorillafitnessequipment.com

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Smart foam roller

IntelliRoll. An intricately sculpted foam roller that specializes in massaging and lengthening the back. A middle channel is designed to stop the vertebrae compression of a normal flat roller, while pronounced ridges work the spinal erectors.

Why we like it: It feels natural because the curved sections match the body’s own curves and distribute pressure more evenly over more muscle area. The chiropractor who invented it says the anatomical design can cut effective massage time in half while allowing a deeper release of the muscle fascia.

Cost: Starting at $29.95, intelliroll.com

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Shake it, baby

The Power Plate Move. Home version of the company’s health-club vibration plate, which has a cult following among those who like to put butter in their morning coffee.

Why we like it: Some research backs up benefits of vibration: increased range of motion, strength and muscle tone, balance, stability and circulation. The Move is easy to use, adjusts intensities smoothly and has an app offering guidance and classes.

Cost: $2,995, powerplate.com

As we head into the final stretch of the holiday season, the pressure to overindulge ramps up along with the seemingly nonstop parade of cookies, candy and comfort food. While a little indulgence is fine, experts say, it’s important to proceed mindfully, tweaking your diet to account for those chocolate tarts or extra cocktails at holiday parties.

“It’s just a matter of knowing how to make certain things fit,” said Alix Turoff, a registered dietitian based in New York. “Where do you have to pull back, so you are still on track with your goals?”

It’s not, they say, that the average American gains so much — a 2016 calculation published in the New England Journal of Medicine puts the average holiday weight gain through New Year’s at 0.7%. However, most Americans don’t lose all of that extra pound or two, so it accumulates each year.

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We asked three registered dietitians for their top tips and tricks for navigating the gingerbread minefield of seasonal splurges. Here’s what they tell their clients:

1. Splurge only on what you love the most: “My No. 1 philosophy is to pay attention to what you can’t live without,” said Cynthia Sass, a Los Angeles-based registered dietitian. Sass has her clients rank their splurges from zero to five, with five being one of their favorite things, such as their aunt’s pecan pie. “If it doesn’t rank at least a four, you won’t regret forgoing it.”

2. “Water first, veggies most”: These four words are the slogan of Los Angeles-based registered dietitian Ilana Muhlstein, creator of Beachbody’s 2B Mindset nutrition program. As simple as it sounds, when you’re out at a party, drink a glass of water before you start on the caloric drinks and serve yourself a plate of veggies, to fill up a bit before you go after the cheese or tarts.

3. Eat something before you hit those parties: Likewise, because a lot of the hors d’oeuvres passed at parties aren’t exactly healthy, have a small salad, preferably with protein, or a small bowl of vegetable soup, or even some Greek yogurt topped with berries and high-fiber cereal to fill you up before you go, Turoff said. If you’re on the run, nibble some protein-rich roasted chickpeas or edamame. And once you’re there, keep your back to the buffet and your hands full, so you can’t easily grab nibbles off those trays.

4. Choose lower-calorie drinks: If you’re not having alcohol, sparkling water with a splash of juice is a good low-calorie sip. If you’re having cocktails, ask the waiter or bartender to cut the simple sugar. Or just water down your drinks: “Order one drink with alcohol and another glass of club soda and water it down as you drink it,” Turoff said.

5. Find healthier substitutes for family dishes and holiday baking: Replace that green bean casserole with sautéed green beans with slivered almonds, Muhlstein said, or make caramelized carrots rather than sweet potatoes. Nix the mashed potatoes for mashed cauliflower. And if you’re headed to a relative’s house, tell them you’re bringing roasted vegetables or a kale salad topped with shaved Brussels sprouts, butternut squash and pomegranate seeds.

If you are craving a home-baked treat, Sass said, drizzle pears or apples with maple syrup and spices and pop them in the oven. Or make a mock crumble, cooking whatever fruit you have in a saucepan and topping it with a crumble mixture of rolled oats, almond butter and cinnamon. In a pinch, our dietitians say, a little cocoa with almond milk also helps to satisfy a sweet craving without a lot of calories.

6. Treat yourself away from home: If you really want that cinnamon doughnut or piece of yule log, do it out at a restaurant or bakery, or at a friend or family member’s house. “You’re much less likely to overeat and binge when not in your own home,” Muhlstein said. And as you’re savoring it, the only thing you should be saying in your head is, “I am fully enjoying this,” she adds. Otherwise, drop the fork.

7. Exercise to set the tone: Squeezing in a couple of workouts, even when time gets tight, said Turoff, who also is a certified personal trainer, helps keep you in the right frame of mind to stay on track with your other healthy habits, including your diet.

8. Check in with the scale and yourself regularly: Just as exercise keeps you from throwing all eating caution to the wind, hitting the scale once or twice a week, Muhlstein said, provides some indication of how you’re doing with your eating habits. Often, she said, her clients are surprised and encouraged that they can indulge a little and not gain weight. The trick is finding the right balance.

Pay attention to how you’re feeling as you’re eating, and stop when you feel satisfied but not stuffed, a point that’s good for your digestion, energy and mood.

“You want to enjoy spending that time with family and friends,” not sleepy and in a food coma, Sass said.

KAPURTHALA, India — 

Reports rolled in with escalating urgency — pills seized by the truckload, pills swallowed by schoolchildren, pills in the pockets of dead terrorists.

These pills, the world has been told, are safer than the OxyContins, the Vicodins, the fentanyls that have wreaked so much devastation. But now they are the root of what the United Nations named “the other opioid crisis” — an epidemic featured in fewer headlines than the American one, as it rages through the planet’s most vulnerable countries.

Mass abuse of the opioid tramadol spans continents, from India to Africa to the Middle East, creating international havoc some experts blame on a loophole in narcotics regulation and a miscalculation of the drug’s danger. The man-made opioid was touted as a way to relieve pain with little risk of abuse. Unlike other opioids, tramadol flowed freely around the world, unburdened by international controls that track most dangerous drugs.

But abuse is now so rampant that some countries are asking international authorities to intervene.

Grunenthal, the German company that originally made the drug, is campaigning for the status quo, arguing that it’s largely illicit counterfeit pills causing problems. International regulations make narcotics difficult to get in countries with disorganized health systems, the company says, and adding tramadol to the list would deprive suffering patients access to any opioid at all.

“This is a huge public health dilemma,” said Dr. Gilles Forte, the secretary of the World Health Organization’s committee that recommends how drugs should be regulated. Tramadol is available in war zones and impoverished nations because it is unregulated. But it is widely abused for the same exact reason. “It’s a really very complicated balance to strike.”

Tramadol has not been as deadly as other opioids, and the crisis isn’t killing with the ferocity of America’s struggle with the drugs. Still, individual governments from the U.S. to Egypt to Ukraine have realized the drug’s dangers are greater than was believed and have worked to rein in the tramadol trade. The north Indian state of Punjab, the center of India’s opioid epidemic, was the latest to crack down. The pills were everywhere, as legitimate medication sold in pharmacies, but also illicit counterfeits hawked by street vendors.

This year, authorities seized hundreds of thousands of tablets, banned most pharmacy sales and shut down pill factories, pushing the price from 35 cents for a 10-pack to $14. The government opened a network of treatment centers, fearing that those who had become opioid-addicted would resort to heroin out of desperation. Hordes of people rushed in, seeking help in managing excruciating withdrawal.

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For some, tramadol had become as essential as food.

“Like if you don’t eat, you start to feel hungry. Similar is the case with not taking it,” said auto shop welder Deepak Arora, a gaunt 30-year-old who took 15 tablets day, so much he had to steal from his family to pay for pills. “You are like a dead person.”

Jeffery Bawa, an officer with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, realized what was happening in 2016, when he traveled to Mali in western Africa, one of the world’s poorest countries, gripped by civil war and terrorism. They asked people for their most pressing concerns. Most did not say hunger or violence. They said tramadol.

One woman said children stumble down the streets, high on the opioid; parents add it to tea to dull the ache of hunger. Nigerian officials said at a United Nations meeting on tramadol trafficking that the number of people there living with addiction is now far higher than the number with AIDS or HIV.

Tramadol is so pervasive in Cameroon that scientists a few years ago believed they’d discovered a natural version in tree roots. But it was not natural at all: Farmers bought pills and fed them to their cattle to ward off the effects of debilitating heat. Their waste contaminated the soil, and the chemical seeped into the trees.

Police began finding pills on terrorists, who traffic it to fund their networks and take it to bolster their capacity for violence, Bawa said.

Most of it was coming from India. The country’s sprawling pharmaceutical industry is fueled by cheap generics. Pill factories produce knock-offs and ship them in bulk around the world, in doses far exceeding medical limits.

In 2017, law enforcement reported that $75 million worth of tramadol from India was confiscated en route to the Islamic State militant group. Authorities intercepted 600,000 tablets headed for Boko Haram. An additional 3 million were found in a pickup truck in Niger, in boxes disguised with U.N. logos. The agency warned that tramadol was playing “a direct role in the destabilization of the region.”

“We cannot let the situation get any further out of control,” that alert read.

Grunenthal maintains that tramadol has a low risk of abuse; most of the pills causing trouble are knock-offs, not legitimate pharmaceuticals, and American surveys have shown lower levels of abuse than other prescription painkillers. The company submitted a report to the WHO in 2014, saying that the abuse evident in “a limited number of countries” should be viewed “in the context of the political and social instabilities in the region.”

But some wealthy countries worried about increasing abuse also have acted to contain the drug.

The United Kingdom and United States both regulated it in 2014. Tramadol was uncontrolled in Denmark until 2017, when journalists asked doctors to review studies submitted to regulators to support the claim that it has a low risk for addiction, said Dr. Karsten Juhl Jorgensen, acting director of the Nordic Cochrane Center and one of the physicians who analyzed the materials. They all agreed that the documents did not prove it’s safer.

“We know that opioids are some of the most addictive drugs on the face of the planet, so the claim that you’ve developed one that’s not addictive, that’s an extraordinary claim, and extraordinary claims require evidence. And it just wasn’t there,” said Jorgensen. “We’ve all been cheated, and people are angry about that.”

Jorgensen compares claims that tramadol is low risk to those made by American companies now facing thousands of lawsuits alleging that misleading campaigns touting the safety of opioids unleashed the U.S. addiction epidemic.

Stefano Berterame, a chief at the International Narcotics Control Board, said there is a critical difference: The crisis is not as deadly as the American one, which began with prescription opioids and transitioned to heroin and fentanyl. Tramadol does not as routinely cause the respiratory depression that leads to overdose death.

But it is mostly afflicting poor nations, where overdose statistics are erratic, he said, so the true toll of tramadol is unknown.

The United Nations established the International Narcotics Control Board in 1961 to spare the world the “serious evil” of addiction. It has since tracked most opioids.

Tramadol’s exemption means authorization isn’t required as the drug moves across borders. Its easy availability also leads to confusion about what tramadol even is, experts say. In many countries, it is thought to be a mood enhancer or treatment for depression and post-traumatic stress. Some take it to improve sexual stamina or endure grueling labor.

Grunenthal synthesized tramadol in the 1960s, as the company was embroiled in scandal over its marketing of the sedative thalidomide, which caused extreme birth defects in thousands of babies whose mothers took it. Tramadol was initially believed to have a low risk of abuse because initial trials studied injected tramadol, the most potent route for most opioids. But researchers later found that tramadol releases a far more powerful dose taken orally because of how it is metabolized by the liver.

Tramadol’s worldwide market quickly expanded in the 1990s. In 2000, the WHO, which assesses medications and recommends scheduling, noted reports of dependence. A committee has reviewed the drug numerous times since, recommended it remain under surveillance but declined to add international regulation.

There is no alternative to tramadol, said Forte, the committee’s secretary. It is the only opioid available in some of the world’s most desperate places; relief organizations rely on it in war zones and natural disasters. It is used extensively not because it is a particularly good medication, he said. The most effective opioid is morphine, but morphine is strictly controlled and countries in crisis fear abuse. Tramadol became the default precisely because it’s uncontrolled.

The WHO is analyzing whether any other drug could take its place but have so far found none. Meanwhile, Forte said, the agency is working with battered nations to ferret out counterfeits.

Legitimate tramadol remains a lucrative business: Market research estimates the global market amounts to around $1.4 billion, according to Grunenthal. The medication long ago lost its patent protection. It is now manufactured by many companies and sold under some 500 brand names. Grunenthal markets it as Tramal as well as Zaldiar, tramadol combined with paracetamol. In 2018, those products brought in $190 million, according to the company’s annual report.

“Our purpose at Grunenthal is to develop and deliver medicines and solutions which address the unmet needs of patients with the goal of improving their quality of life,” the company wrote in a statement that said it acknowledges opioids pose a risk of abuse and addiction. “We do so with the highest ethical standards.”

Grunenthal also sells other opioids and is expanding around the world. The Associated Press this year revealed executives were swept up in an Italian corruption case alleging they illegally paid a doctor to promote the use of opioids.

The company has campaigned to keep tramadol unregulated. It funded surveys that found regulation would impede pain treatment and paid consultants to travel to the WHO to make their case that it’s safer that other opioids.

Spokesman Stepan Kracala said regulation would not necessarily curtail illicit trade and could backfire: Some desperate pain patients turn to the black market if no legal options exist. Egypt’s long struggle with tramadol abuse is an example, he said. The country enacted strict regulation in 2012 and a later survey found some suffering from cancer using counterfeit tramadol for relief.

Schmall and Galofaro write for the Associated Press.