SIG ALERT: Caltrans has installed Ventura County’s...

SIG ALERT: Caltrans has installed Ventura County’s first electronic message board on the Ventura Freeway in Thousand Oaks to advise southbound motorists of traffic congestion, especially on earthquake-broken freeways. . . . Two more flashing signs were planted nearby, advising motorists of radio broadcasts on major tie-ups. Thousand Oaks leaders see the signs as another hurdle to scenic highway status for the stretch of the freeway through the Conejo Valley. “Given the city’s history regarding unnecessary signs,” said Councilwoman Judy Lazar, “I’d rather not have them.”

MONSTER PITCH: The giant Godzilla-like creature perched over the Ventura Auto Center along the Ventura Freeway is part of a Korean auto maker’s plan to crack the low-priced car market (D1). . . . Kia Motors Corp. bought the rights to use the star of the old Godzilla movies as part of its advertising blitz. Weber Motor Co. is one of the 50 dealerships in the West to sell Kia cars and has lashed the green inflated monster to the roof of its Mazda dealership. . . . “It’s a Kiasauris,” said Jeff Weber, the dealership’s co-owner. “We call him Gorgo.”

12 O’CLOCK HIGH: Two vintage World War II bombers landed at Camarillo Airport on Tuesday (B1), bringing out WWII veterans and a few memories. . . . A B-17 Flying Fortress and a B-24J Liberator, restored by a nonprofit foundation, have been barnstorming the county in search of airplane aficionados and WWII buffs. . . . “Each one of us with wartime experience has a special airplane,” said Orville W. (Bill) Main of Camarillo, who flew a B-17 in dozens of missions over Germany. “The B-17 is the special one for me.”