The action in a 1972 episode of “The Night Gallery” took place near Hesperia. (Or perhaps Hisperia. The production team used both spellings.) Also: La Verne gives me a warm welcome, more about Don Quixote and a long-stalled Rancho Cucamonga project appears to be underway. Those are all covered in my Wednesday column.

Half your responses to my request that you name something you’re looking forward to made it into Sunday’s column. The other — but not lesser! — half fill out my Wednesday column. This was a pleasantly optimistic, albeit sometimes poignant, way to start the new year off right. (And, pragmatically, a couple of relatively easy ones helped me keep the columns flowing during the holidays.)

For the third straight year, I asked you to name one thing you’re looking forward to this coming year, and you answered. (Maybe not you personally. But you collectively.) A batch of responses are in my column for Sunday, which is New Year’s Day. More coming Wednesday!

Presenting: My 25th annual (!) weird news roundup, a Top 10 countdown of the past year’s silliest or most ironic local news stories. You’ll find it in my Friday column.

For the day after Thanksgiving, I present a bunch of items from around the Inland Empire, including a “Peanuts” excursion to the desert, local reaction to my San Francisco column and more. It’s all in my Friday column (should you be in the mood for a column).

As per tradition, with Election Day past, I take a look at the results (somewhat preliminary though they are) of local elections for city council and such, and note the ones that seem significant or amusing. These are mostly in the Inland Valley, where I have more knowledge, but with some eastern contests thrown in as well. I offer my observations in Friday’s column, which I hope will get your vote of approval.

I dig a bit more into Measure EE, the fair share/secession measure on the Nov. 8 ballot in San Bernardino County, and crack a few jokes along the way, in my Wednesday column.

In Wednesday’s column, the Fabulous Mrs. Unruh again takes the spotlight as readers share stories about the late entertainer. Also, readers kibitz about Jewish delis, and my fingers are crossed that this will tie a bow on that topic for a while. Oh, and there’s a brIEfly item too.

How’s the heat wave been treating you? Probably terribly. I’m surviving, but my house and two portable a/c units are no match for 100-degree temps. I write about that, as well as present more reader stories about where they were when they heard Elvis died and bid farewell to the queen, in Friday’s column.

Elvis died 45 years ago Tuesday: Aug. 16, 1977. (Like 2022’s Aug. 16, it was a Tuesday.) I asked at the end of Sunday’s column where you were when you heard. People emailed with their stories. Not just IE people either; because that column ran in our sister paper in LA, the Daily News, people from LA got in touch as well. I share some of the response in my Wednesday column.