It could be another world first for...

It could be another world first for Southern California: A no-smoking construction site.

The location is the planned Pasadena headquarters of Shinji Shumeikai, a spiritual organization that has about 400,000 members in Japan and is attempting to establish itself in the U.S. The group, which will hold purification rites at its ground-breaking ceremony next week, wants to keep the area pure.

“There’ll be no smoking allowed during construction,” said spokeswoman Stella Bustos, “and no beer-drinking.”

Remember the story that came out last week about the Ft. Lauderdale mall that forbade customers to wear Raiders clothing because a local gang uses the team name?

“It’s ludicrous,” a Florida sheriff’s detective said--after he was ordered to take off his Raiders hat while shopping there.

Well, the owner of the mall now says the ban was a mistake and that customers can wear all the Silver and Black paraphernalia they want.

The owner is Edward J. DeBartolo, the father of the San Francisco 49ers owner.

The real reason the Soviet coup failed:

When the removal of President Mikhail Gorbachev was announced, the Smoke House restaurant in Burbank posted this threat on its marquee:

“No More Stolichnaya.”

Speaking of turn-arounds, we’re happy to announce that Australia is now right-side-up on the Pac Bell map sculpture on Bunker Hill. We had mentioned the oversight involving the Land Down Under in a previous dispatch.

Now, if someone could just get South America into line . . .

South El Monte: Hotbed of spies?

The Central Intelligence Agency, notes Ron Rieder of L.A., is running newspaper ads that invite aspiring sneaks under the age of 36 to apply for its Career Training Program (“please include your college GPA”). The mailing address is South El Monte, which has never been mentioned in a LeCarre thriller. We hate to see the town’s cover blown.

From our Bare-Help-Is-Hard-to-Find File:

An ad in the L.A. Reader, titled “Nude Handyman Service,” says: “Painting, repairs, cleaning, furniture moving . . . nonsexual service.”

Furniture-moving? A brave , nude handyman.

miscelLAny:

Eight of the 10 busiest highway interchanges in the nation are in Southern California, led by the junction of the Santa Monica and San Diego freeways, which is trampled by more than 500,000 vehicles a day.