Joanne Davis of Santa Monica had been...

Joanne Davis of Santa Monica had been complaining to her neighbor that his cat was continually jumping into her apartment and attacking her two felines. “Things would be strewn all about,” she said. “It got so I was actually yelling at the guy.”

The other night, Davis saw the film “Godfather III.” And who should be playing the role of a hit man in the movie? Her neighbor.

“I’d have never pressed the issue if I’d known,” said Davis, laughing. “I’d have probably told him, ‘No problem. I can always get new cats.’ ”

The mail hasn’t stopped since we mentioned that cowboy star Tom Mix’s horse, Old Blue, may be buried near downtown off Glendale Boulevard. Several readers protested that Mix’s horse was named Tony. In fact, Old Blue preceded Tony. But another question kicks up its hoofs regarding Tony: How did he acquire such an un-horsey moniker?

Lee Bellah of Sherman Oaks writes that “family legend” holds that Mix named the animal after the Arizona breeder who sold it to the actor--”our great-aunt’s son, Tony Seeley.”

Author Ken Schessler (“This is Hollywood”), however, says that Mix bought the creature in 1918 “for $20 when he saw him pulling a fruit-and-vegetable wagon on Vine Street. . . . He named him after the Italian peddler.”

We prefer Schessler’s radishes-to-riches story about Tony, even if it doesn’t quite rank with Lana Turner being discovered at Schwab’s.

The Westside offered venues Tuesday for just about anyone wishing to sound off about the war in the Persian Gulf. One anti-war contingent demonstrated at the office of Rep. Mel Levine (D-Santa Monica) while a pro-war group demonstrated at the office of Assemblyman Tom Hayden (D-Santa Monica).

The venerable weightlifting area along the Venice boardwalk was once known by the prosaic--and pungent--title of The Pit. Some of the regulars called themselves “hogs.” Since renamed Muscle Beach Venice, the arena is being enlarged and upgraded. After all, this is West L.A., for heaven’s sake. One addition is a set of barbells that would be a formidable challenge even for Arnold what’s-his-name.

A man seen strolling down Hollywood Boulevard may set off a fashion craze for folks tired of being besieged by panhandlers.

His T-shirt bore the message, in large letters:

NO SPARE CHANGE.

miscelLAny:

“That which we call a rose / By any other name”: The Shakespeare Garden at the Huntington Art Gallery, Library and Gardens in San Marino consists of dozens of plants that are mentioned in the Bard’s works.