A burger telethon could be next: Crusading...

A burger telethon could be next: Crusading to save the world’s oldest operating McDonald’s, the Downey Herald-American wants residents to take a hamburger pledge. And a soft drink pledge. With a fries pledge on the side.

The newspaper published a form asking readers to promise that they’ll dine more often at the city’s 40-year-old stand, which McDonald’s says it will close in the next several months.

Referring to the corporation’s explanation that it loses $50,000 a year on that eatery, the newspaper said: “Look at it this way--$50,000 a year is only $136.99 per day. How many hamburgers, drinks, friends, etc., would it take to make that?”

City Councilwoman Joyce Lawrence, who is campaigning to save the landmark, has been collecting the forms. So far, some 175 people have promised to consume about 20,000 items. That figures out to more than $20,000.

Lawrence is doing her part to save the home of Speedee (the chain’s original mascot). “I just ate lunch there Thursday,” she said. “I’m keeping an eye on the place.”

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There’s still no beachfront property in Arizona: Well, in case you’ve been out of town for a few days, we’ll end the suspense and tell you that no killer quakes struck Southern California on Saturday. Several psychics, who had consulted the writings of a medieval astrologer named Nostradamus, had predicted that the Southland would fall into the Pacific at 7:05 p.m. (Pacific Daylight Time). UFO Excursions, a local tour group, even ceased operations for the weekend. Wouldn’t you know that was the weekend we had planned to visit the Lost Continent of Atlantis?

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Shut up, Nostradamus: It’s been a rough year for the late French fortune-teller. Chris Greene of Tarzana reported that, on a visit to a Price Club last December, she noticed a book of Nostradamus’ writings that listed several of his predictions on the cover, including:

“George Bush reelected in 1992.”

She saw the same book on sale the other day. The cover had been changed.

“By the way,” Greene added, “I predicted that.”

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Hasn’t L.A.’s image suffered enough?Attempting to escape all the doom and gloom stories about L.A., we thought we’d relax by reading David McCullough’s “Truman.” So what do we find on Page 243 of this Pulitzer Prize winner?

During a trip to the West Coast, Truman compared San Francisco and L.A. in a rambling letter to his wife, Bess: “This, you know, is one of the world’s great cities and it is San Francisco--not (a collection of) Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska and Oklahoma retired farmers as the city in southern California is.”

McCullough explained that Truman was referring to Los Angeles, “a city he disliked.”

Oh yeah? Well, Richard Nixon has always liked it.

miscelLAny:

The toll-free number for Greener Pastures Institute, a group that consults with Southern Californians who want to leave the state, is: 1-800-OUT-OF-LA.