People and Events

Seeing a photograph in Wednesday’s Times of a Coldwater Canyon Park polling place did not particularly please Robyn Turner of Rolling Hills. The American flag, she noticed instantly, was incorrectly displayed. The blue field should have been in the upper left corner.

“For 25 years,” says Turner, “whenever I see one hanging incorrectly, I go in and correct them. I stopped at a gas station one day and told them they were flying the flag incorrectly. The boy there said he had not been taught about it in school.”

That appalls her. In her day, it was something you learned.

She says that over the years she has sent telegrams and letters to offenders. “I think it’s important,” she contends. “My husband was in the service in World War II. My two sons were in Vietnam.

Do people resent her instruction?

“No. They’re grateful. They’re very receptive. I’ve never had one person not appreciate it.”

It was simply, perhaps, that violence and danger are so much a part of everyday life in South-Central Los Angeles. None of the customers panicked when somebody threw a Molotov cocktail onto the roof of a fast-food restaurant in the 1200 block of East Imperial Highway Wednesday at 3:30 a.m.

Police say cooks continued to grill hamburgers and half a dozen patrons remained in their seats eating as the roof of the Stop Drive-In caught fire and smoke filled the place.

Security guard James McFadden said other employees had the flames pretty well in hand by the time firefighters arrived. He said it was the second time a Molotov cocktail had been thrown in a couple of days. He didn’t know why.

It’s going to be a few months before the $25-million Gene Autry Western Heritage Museum is open for business in Griffith Park, but 36,000 pamphlets went out two weeks ago, inviting the old cowboy’s die-hard fans and others to be members. As of Thursday, said Joanne D. Hale, the museum’s executive director, there had already been a 1% response.

The museum will feature exhibits depicting the history of the West from the 16th Century to the present, including memorabilia of Hollywood’s great cowboys, including Autry. Charter memberships range from $25 to $250, depending on whether you are an individual, a corporation or whatever.