William and Kate at end of California tour

LOS ANGELES — Prince William and Kate wrapped up their trip to Southern California on Sunday by visiting an inner-city school in downtown Los Angeles's notorious Skid Row area and attending a job fair for military veterans.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge were greeted at the Inner City Arts academy by six elementary school-aged children holding a welcome banner while a crowd of about 150 people cheered and looked on, some waving British and American flags.

The former Kate Middleton wore a navy-and-white crochet top and a white pleated skirt, both by U.K. fashion company Whistles.

Cynthia Harnisch, the academy's president and chief executive officer, spoke to the couple about Skid Row and the challenges of poverty and homelessness faced by many students at the school.

The duke and duchess were then escorted to a visual arts studio where they donned art smocks and sat at easels to paint.

Pictures: William & Kate wrap up California tour

A group of teenage dancers then performed for the couple, who appeared to enjoy the show.

Fifteen-year-old Iliana Samaniego, who was in the troupe, said she was thrilled when William gave a double thumbs up and told them "brilliant" at the end of the performance.

"Just seeing the smile on Catherine, it was great," said Samaniego, one of the 16 dancers.

Skid Row, with its intractable poverty and large homeless population, could hardly stand in starker contrast to the more glitzy parts of Southern California that the couple has seen on their whirlwind visit.

On Saturday, William wowed the crowd with four goals at his charity polo match then he and his bride headed by helicopter to downtown Los Angeles for a black-tie film industry event that drew Nicole Kidman, Tom Hanks, Barbra Streisand, Jack Black and Jennifer Lopez, among others.

Saturday night's soiree at the restored 1920s-era Belasco Theatre in downtown Los Angeles was organized by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts, of which William is president, to promote up-and-coming British talent in the industry.

Fans cheered as they strode a red carpet and the couple responded by walking over and shaking a few hands.

"Before I start, I'd just like to thank Colin Firth for my opening line: I have a voice," William quipped in brief remarks to the star-studded audience, referring to Firth's role as William's great-grandfather, King George VI, in the acclaimed film "The King's Speech."

The guests included executives of major studios and entertainment companies along with such luminaries as James Gandolfini, Don Cheadle, Blake Lively and Kristin Chenoweth.

They began Sunday by attending a swanky reception to raise money for Tusk Trust, an African wildlife conservation group.

Their final stop before departing for the U.K. was with the group ServiceNation: Mission Serve, which helps veterans find jobs.

Inside the event's venue, Studio 15 on the Sony Pictures Studio lot in Culver City, giant U.S. and British flags hung behind a stage where the smiling duke addressed a cheering crowd.

"All the companies and employers taking part today are providing opportunities which mean something very immediate and personal to us," said William, a Royal Air Force helicopter search-and-rescue helicopter pilot. "Catherine and I both have friends back in Britain who could benefit from a brilliant initiative like this."

The soundstage hosted a job fair for military veterans, with employers such as Mattel, Walmart and entertainment industry companies such as Warner Bros. and CBS manning booths. The companies must have jobs in order to participate in the fair, said Ross Cohen, Mission Serve's director.

Cohen, who served in Afghanistan and was an army paratrooper, said events such as the job fair were crucial for returning veterans. Unemployment rates for young vets and their spouses are as high as 25 percent, Cohen said.

Kelly York, a 23-year Air Force veteran, came to the fair hoping to find a job that will allow her to remain in the Los Angeles area when she retires early next year.

"I'm sure that they had 50 million places they could go and see," York said. "The fact that they even take five minutes to stop here and say something to the veterans, that's huge."

After arriving at the event and speaking with some veterans, the duke and duchess planned to help prepare care packages for children of deployed service members and then depart Los Angeles.

[agnesdeo]

I hope they have many fond and happy memories of this North America tour and both citizens of both Canada and USA.

[gruven13777]

With all the global media outlets trying to keep everyone in the world completely transfixed on the royal couple, there must be some serious crap coming down the pipe that is going to hit the fan.

[diddlefiddle]

Viewers go up when ever they do a story on the Royal couple so media outlets will always do stories on subjects that get them more viewers. If the majority of folk were not interested they would cover the story. It's as simple as that.

[MrKing.net]

How many times did Obama bow to them?

[formrusmcsgt]

Tomorrow:

William gets an ingrown toenail...

[s57sunny]

I really admire Prince William. He has, by all appearances, grown into a fine young man. His mother would be proud of him and his brother!

[smith_winston]

lol@vittoria


the only difference between the "bums" on skid-row and the bums from england is that the bums on skid row don't have such a grandiose sense of entitlement.

as for "problematic" minds - i would say that any royal "idolatry" on the part of a citizen of a republic that sacrificed its blood precisely because it refused any longer to bow and scrape before so called "royals", is just as much (if not much more so!) "problematic"

monarchs weren't so entertaining when the US was deposing the king of cambodia and extending diplomatic recognition to the bloody khmer rouge

lol - but i guess some monarchs are "more equal than" other monarchs down on the old animal farm

at any rate, it's good to see them leave - they're finally showing us their best side.

[diddlefiddle]

lol how pathetic are you! The world is full of ignorant, nasty, spiteful, scum-bags and your comment has just shown us that you are one of them. Try educating yourself on subjects before you make a fool of yourself and you wont look stupid. What a fool you are.

[longtree-2009]

u.s. citizens kissing british so called royal behinds. perhaps those u.s. citizens should renounce the USA and become british subjects. disgusting display of adoration for these two individuals.

[smith_winston]

how "charming" that the so called 'royals' can take time from their busy schedule to condescend to tour an american slum. no doubt they actually imagine that the "little people" are happy to see them and bask (however momentarily) in the aura of their "divine right" to live large off the public dole.

is this supposed to be some sort of demonstration of the democratic principles of the rebranded royals? - little harry made his family's stance quite clear when he dressed up as a nazi for a "lark" - the best i can say for willie is that he keeps his brown shirt under wraps.

the American people fought one revolution against this lot and yet that didn't stop them from burning down our Capitol city in another 30 years. as far as i'm concerned these parasites need to hop on a plane and get out of a free country and consider themselves lucky they're not thrown out.

as for the People of Great Britain - i've nothing but the highest regard for them - the best thing they could do is send these parasites packing.

[vittoria1]

I hate to tell you this, but those people in the "slum," as you so charmingly call it, WERE glad to see them. It matters that what they are doing is getting attention from the famous. As for the Revolution, 235 years later, we ought to be able to relax, sit back, and not make constant references to how we threw out the bastards back there in the late 18th century. So we did, but dwelling on it at this late date bespeaks a problematic mind. We don't want a monarchy; why the hell can't we be merely and temporarily entertained by someone else's, when that entertainment doesn't say a thing about the respective merits of different governmental systems?

[diddlefiddle]

You obviously know nothing about the subject and have obviously grown up hearing lots of ignorant comments (probably Irish). I know, let us send every German packing. Lets send every one we have ever been at war with packing. Lets not let descendents of the South up North and lets send the ones already up north back down south. You are another ignorant American who makes me so ashamed of our education system. Parasites? They raise more money for charity than you could raise in a lifetime.