MUSIC OF THE NIGHT: Next Sunday’s closing...

MUSIC OF THE NIGHT: Next Sunday’s closing of “Phantom of the Opera” in Los Angeles after four years is sad for devoted followers like Peter Parker of Cypress. The real estate appraiser’s family and friends love it so much they put on their own Halloween production of “Phantom” scenes--in the Parkers’ garage--that draws thousands annually. . . . Why does Parker love the musical so? “It’s a very romantic story, a lot of pathos,” he says. “When she comes back to kiss the phantom, there’s not a dry eye in the house. It just reaches up and grabs you.”

TROJAN HOUSE: If you’re a USC alumnus in Orange County--at last count, there were 21,000 here--and you just have to have a doorbell that chimes the university’s fight song, you’re in luck. USC next Saturday will hold a grand opening for its first off-campus gift shop, at South Coast Plaza’s Crystal Court. . . . The store will sell a wide range of USC gear, including the usual run of sweat shirts and caps. And doorbells. Later on, it expects to host book-signing events by authors with ties to the university.

RINGSIDE: Despite the size of his pecs, Lex Luger may be more brain than brawn. If you follow the World Wrestling Federation, you know he’s one of its main attractions. He’s already a champ to a lot of young people. . . . Luger is on a 45-day tour of the country promoting himself and his own war against drugs. Today, he’s at Santa Ana’s Planet Hollywood, where 40 local young contest winners get a chance to lunch with him. Their contest theme was anti-drugs and anti-gangs.

PRISON ART? In the early 1980s, city officials in Costa Mesa worked painstakingly with developers to iron out the tiniest details of what they hoped would be known as the most beautiful shopping center in Southern California, Triangle Square. . . . So how do others see it? Comic/actress Sandra Bernhard says in an ad on KROQ-FM radio that it reminds her of “a stylish penitentiary.” And she’s on their side: The ad is for Niketown, Triangle Square’s newest major tenant.