Quake hound: “He finds earthquakes in the...

Quake hound: “He finds earthquakes in the classifieds,” says a headline in True News magazine, which relates the theory of San Jose geologist Jim Berkland that pets tend to run away from home when they sense a shaker coming.

“Animals . . . somehow sense changes in our magnetic field that precede these kinds of disasters,” theorized Berkland.

We bring this story up because Berkland claims there was “an all-time record of 83 missing dog ads in the Los Angeles Times classifieds at the time” of the “big earthquake that struck the L.A. area last summer.”

Well, looking back at the June 28, 1992, Times--the day of the Twin Temblors--we counted 58 lost-and-found pet items. And that included two AWOL parrots (who we hope had the courtesy to tell their masters why they were leaving).

By contrast, we counted 50 such ads in Thursday’s Times. Berkland hasn’t persuaded us, but why take chances? Help prevent a possible earthquake--don’t let your pet run (or fly) away.

Who’ll be the local Larry King?The hiring of Clinton strategist James Carville by Assemblyman Richard Katz indicates that the presidential campaign may serve as a model for the mayoral sweepstakes.

There are other reminders, including the interest expressed in the mayor’s job by former Gov. Jerry Brown, the Energizer bunny of politics.

In fact, many of the mayoral wanna-bes seem familiar, now that we think about it:

* Wealthy businessman, or Ross Perot, candidate: Richard Riordan.

* Front-runner, or Mario Cuomo, drop-out: Gloria Molina.

* Centrist liberal, or Clinton, candidate: Katz.

* 1-800, or Jerry Brown, candidate: Jerry Brown.

* Ethnic, or Paul Tsongas, candidate: Nick Patsaouras.

* Fiery conservative, or Pat Buchanan, candidate: We’re waiting for Daryl Gates’ announcement.

* Weakened incumbent, or George Bush, candidate: No one, since Tom Bradley was smart enough not to seek reelection.

No question about the spelling, though: Speaking of Bradley, we wish to join in the sentiments of city employees (see photo). We presume that they deducted the two years or so for the time that he spent junketeering.

Malcolm, everywhere: That Spike Lee is quite an entrepreneur. Leslie Siegel of Beverly Hills found a Westwood street sign trumpeting his next movie, juxtaposed against a billboard ad (see photo).

Correction: We should have said the other day that President Ford, not President Carter, pardoned L.A. native Iva Toguri D’Aquino, better known as Tokyo Rose.

It didn’t live up to its name: Anyone can make a mistake, especially during this hectic holiday season. Subscribers to the L.A. Times Syndicate were notified Thursday that “the pumpkin cheesecake recipe from the Two’s Company column for release this week omitted the pumpkin entirely. 1 cup pumpkin should be added. “

miscelLAny:

If Yvonne Brathwaite Burke, the successor to Kenneth Hahn, intends to break Hahn’s record for continuous service on the Board of Supervisors, she’ll have to hold on to the seat until she’s 101. Hahn joined the supes in 1952.