People and Events

When his specially ordered hamburger came without a bun, American Airlines stewardess Sue Roen said, passenger Matthew Wallis cursed her, then hurled his plate and utensils at her, almost hitting another passenger across the aisle.

Wallis, 45, of New York was arrested on suspicion of battery when Flight 209 from Newark landed at Los Angeles International Airport late Thursday night.

“We tried to get him a roll from first class, but that didn’t please him either,” said American Airlines spokesman Steve McGregor. “This may sound like a humorous event, but interfering with a flight crew is something we take very seriously.”

Although four other passengers and three other flight attendants signed statements supporting Roen’s version, airport Police Sgt. Robert Tenderella said Wallis claimed it was all a big lie.

He said that Wallis is an American Airlines Advantage Gold Member, among the most frequent of frequent fliers.

At least he has been.

Polo Lounge pianist Antonio Castillo sat at a baby grand on the sidewalk in front of an office building at 10960 Wilshire Boulevard late Friday morning--complete with balloons, champagne and candelabra. What in the world was this all about?

It was only Marie Borofsky and Doreen Waxman staging their annual surprise Valentine salute to their husbands, Gary and Larry, respectively. Gary is a tax attorney whose office is in that building. Larry is a Santa Monica real estate broker.

Larry almost missed it. Doreen had arranged to meet him on a Brentwood corner, from which she was going to lead him to the surprise serenade. But there was a mix-up and she arrived alone and tearful. Larry, however, called home on his car phone and was directed to the outdoor piano player by the Waxman maid.

Both husbands, said Marie, “know we’re going to do something crazy every year and that they have to block out a couple of hours.”

Carol Stein was supposed to trick her husband, Jay, into being there, too. But he is an urologist at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and had to do a kidney stone operation Friday morning. “We were hoping the patient would pass it Thursday night,” said Marie, “but he didn’t.

Los Angeles police motorcycle Sgt. Ron Newton turned out to be a fair man at jigsaw puzzles. After one pedestrian was killed and another was injured when they were struck by two cars in an El Sereno crosswalk Thursday night, Newton went looking.

A mile and a half away, in the parking lot of a market, he found a cream-colored Mercury that matched the description of the car that had injured Crispin Garcia, 21. Missing from the parked car was a fiberglass piece--just like the one that was found at the scene, say detectives.

Newton waited until Angel Chaure, 29, came out of the store with his groceries and arrested him as a felony hit-and-run suspect.

Police were still looking for the second car, a 1976-79 Oldsmobile Omega, which struck and killed the other pedestrian, Armando Avilez, 40.

The dean of local Latino officials, Rep. Edward Roybal, picked an odd time to announce that he might consider running for mayor of Los Angeles next year.

Roybal (D-Los Angeles), 72, had just been honored by Mayor Tom Bradley and the City Council Friday for his 38 years as an elected official, including 13 years on the council before moving to Congress. After the ceremonies, Roybal dropped his news on City Hall reporters.

A group of citizens has asked him to consider running, Roybal said, and he will give it some thought after running for reelection this year to a 14th term in the House. The congressman and his aides declined to identify those who want Roybal to run, except to say that they are from the Latino community.

Bradley, who has said he plans to seek reelection, has been a longtime ally of Roybal. But a top aide to the congressman, Henry Lozano, said Roybal might decide to run even if Bradley is in the race.