USC and UCLA students have been playing...

USC and UCLA students have been playing pranks on each other for more than half a century. The stunts range from USC’s publication of a fake Daily Bruin decrying state-supported education to UCLA’s dog-naping of the 1950s Trojan mascot George

Tirebiter, whose coat was shaved to read “UCLA.”

But this is the first time, to our knowledge, that one side has infiltrated Pacific Bell. No doubt it was a USC spy who touched up the ZIP Code map in the new Airport Area directory. Westchester resident Laura Stegman sent us her copy (see photo), which indicates that Westwood has been captured by the forces of Tommy Trojan.

Will Cal State Northridge be next?

Speaking of shocks, we’ve found still another San Andreas-theme license plate on the roadways of the Valley, this the W8N4BG1 exhibited by West Hills physician Ron Baum.

“It’s just a joke, but it shocks some of our friends from out of state,” Baum said. “They say earthquakes aren’t something to mess with, sort of like it’s bad luck even to mention them.”

Oddly enough, many local drivers give W8N4BG1 the thumbs-up sign.

“They seem to think we’re referring to the lottery,” Baum explained.

List of the Day:

A selection of marquees that have appeared outside Arthur’s, a small coffee shop in Downey:

1--”Banquet Facilities for Six or Less”

2--”Thank You for Not Dieting”

3--”Gringo Spoken Here”

4--”Thank you, Gourmet Magazine”

Yuppies who went bust, Sharon Lindsey and Timothy Martin of L.A. have formed their own group.

They’re looking for other ex-entrepreneurs who are “in debt to their credit cards, friends, family, (and) have refinanced their homes, all in attempts to finance that ‘great

idea.’ ”

The members hold monthly parties, at which there is a drawing for a $5 gift certificate to a local grocery store.

In the meantime, the two are writing a book whose title refers to the term that they’ve coined for their group: “A Handbook for the Entre-Manure.”

“Being with others who are also in deep manure,” Lindsey said philosophically, “makes these difficult times much better.”

miscelLAny:

KCET’s complex on Sunset Boulevard, a historic cultural monument, is the oldest continually used studio in the country. It’s also been the headquarters of Monogram Pictures, Allied Artists and several other companies dating back to 1912.