Everyone seems to be on edge in...

Everyone seems to be on edge in L.A.: A contingent of theatergoers, which included a seeing-eye dog, arrived late for a performance of “Conversations With My Father” in Hollywood. As coincidence would have it, they were making their way to their seats at the very moment in the play when a bar owner played by Judd Hirsch brandishes a baseball bat to fight off two gangsters. Seeing the weapon, the dog began to bark. The actors pretended not to notice. And the animal quieted down after being assured that no one was really in danger.

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List of the Day: The December issue of California Lawyer magazine lists its “What-a-Year!” awards, including these local curiosities:

* An L.A. homeless man served 10 days of a friend’s sentence “because he had nothing better to do.” The substitute inmate reportedly fooled court officials by showing up and announcing: “I’m here to start my sentence.”

* Cynthia Albritton, “once better known as Cynthia Plaster Caster for her anatomically accurate plaster molds of rockers’ private parts,” won $10,000 from a music publisher. The latter had lost her treasures after Albritton left them with him for safekeeping.

* Five people taking the state Bar exam in Pasadena rushed to the aid of a fellow test-taker who was suffering an epileptic seizure--then were denied extra time to complete the exam. Later, after receiving negative media coverage, the state Bar gave all five certificates of appreciation and “adjusted” their marks “for lost time.” Only two of the five passed.

* Superior Court Judge Edward Kakita “fined Spray Gould & Bowers of L.A. $2,500 because the typewritten lines in one of the law firm’s filings were one-and-a-half-spaced and not double-spaced.”

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We always associate the Nativity scene with Redondo Beach: In the spirit of the season, Cameron Kent sent along a photo of a sign that seems to refer to the place where the baby Jesus rested with Mary and Joseph. Would they have to sign a lease now?

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Vanity error (cont.): As we already mentioned, the January issue of Vanity Fair places Pasadena in the San Fernando Valley (no wonder we can never find the Rose Bowl!). But what bothered Marielle Smith was that the New York publication also has the Dresden (Vermont Avenue) and Katsu (Hillhurst Avenue) restaurants in its list of Westside attractions.

“Both are located in the glamorous Tri-Cities area--Los Feliz/SilverLake/Echo Park,” she wrote. “All these years, I’ve participated in a sort of reverse snobbery (east of La Brea versus west)--only to find we’re sprawled into one giant Westside. Ah, well, we’ve still got East L.A.!”

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Who says bankers don’t have a sense of humor?The checks of an L.A. lawyer list him as:

Julian Nguyen

Attorney at Law

So, naturally, First Interstate recently sent him two ATM cards: One made out to “Julian Nguyen,” the other to “Attorney at Law.”

miscelLAny:

By the way, an appeals court overturned the $2,500 fine against Spray Gould & Bowers for the bad spacing of its court briefs. We don’t know whether the firm was awarded legal fees.