Macho Miniskirts

Heavy metal musicians, long famous for stripping off their shirts on stage, have taken to showing off their legs. Head bangers, as they are affectionately known, have discovered that most macho of miniskirts, the Scottish kilt. Ruben Flores, manager of Aaardvark’s Odd Ark on Melrose, says demand from men for kilts is so great he “can’t get enough of them. When we run out, sometimes they’ll settle for a woman’s plaid skirt.” Kilts were on display at the recent MTV Video Music Awards on both Christopher Guest, of the heavy metal parody band Spinal Tap, and on Axl Rose, who performed via satellite from England with Guns ‘n’ Roses. Guest’s fashion statement was obviously comedic, while Rose’s was less clear. “Axl wears one because he wants to be Madonna,” suggested one 18-year-old musician.

Eyes and Eats

Watching people shop while you eat may not sound that entertaining. But it is catching on in New York and is poised to do the same in L.A.

South Coast Plaza shoppers will be able to graze and gaze at a couple of new in-store eateries: Emporio Armani Express, inside the Emporio boutique, is set to open in October, and Barney’s New York is also readying their eat-in entry for February, 1992. L.A. will soon have its own version of New York’s Boogie’s Diner, where lookey-loos eat French fries while scoping out upscale, cutting-edge fashions from the Merry-Go-Round people. That’s set to debut in October at the Westside Pavilion’s new addition.

And you thought voguing was the most banal social pastime.

Essentials

WHAT YOU NEED TO MANEUVER THE L.A. SCENE: The script as prop. Whether you’re an actor, an entertainment industry exec or a professional screenplay reader, the one prop you must never be without is a script. It’s not enough to have them cluttering up your car or littering your coffee table; they must be conspicuous to everyone around you no matter where you are. Some places you want to be seen reading a script are in the gym while riding the bicycle (stair machines produce too much sweat), in the car while driving, at a coffeehouse, at the dog park, at the doctor’s office, in the hair salon and in the check-out line at the supermarket.