More bad news out of Chavez Ravine:...

More bad news out of Chavez Ravine: Not only is the World Series threatened by a players’ strike, but another autumn classic has been officially canceled.

Dodger Stadium told us that it won’t be hosting the usual post-season recreational vehicle show this year. What’s the problem--a labor dispute with Winnebago dealers? The Dodgers won’t say. Whatever, we’ll miss the thrill of a close-up look at these stars, whom you can always count on for long drives, unlike the Dodgers’ hitters.

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Not to be a nattering nabob of negativism, but. . . . “Watergate,” the documentary miniseries showing on the cable channel Discovery this week, recounted the small role that the L.A. Convention Center played in the drama.

It was there that Vice President Spiro Agnew, under investigation by federal prosecutors for allegedly taking illegal cash payoffs, made a rousing speech in September, 1973. He vowed to a cheering Republican women’s group:

“I will not resign. . . . I will not resign. . . .”

Less than two weeks later, he did.

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Beauty is in the eye of etc., etc.: It’s reassuring to see that Southern California’s landscape can still inspire artists.

The titles of some paintings and photographs appearing in the book, “California Cityscapes in Contemporary Art”:

* “First Stage Smog Alert, Griffith Park,” by Victor Landweber.

* “Drive-Thru,” by F. Scott Hess.

* “The Los Angeles River,” by Stephen Hopkins.

* “Worst Air of 7 Reporting Districts, Riverside & the Inland Empire from San Jacinto,” Landweber.

Landweber obviously doesn’t believe in flowery titles.

Something for everyone: Joe Sombrotto sent us a photo illustrating that the Palladium in Hollywood offers a variety of shows.

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Crimes most fowl: The city of Paramount in Southeast L.A. County has hung notices on the doorknobs of residents warning that because of a “large number of complaints . . . the city will begin confiscating any chickens or roosters that are wandering loose in the streets or other public places.”

No use putting them on a leash, either.

The notice adds that it’s against the law to be in possession of live poultry anywhere in the city.

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Flushing away a myth: The latest issue of Garbage--one of our favorite magazines--hails an L.A. Department of Water and Power survey. The DWP found that 75% of those who had switched to an ultra-low-flush (ULF) toilet would “very likely” buy another.

But that’s not really why we bring up the article. Author Robert Kourik also reveals that the first patent for the modern flush toilet was obtained in 1778 by an English cabinet-maker named Joseph Bramah--not Thomas Crapper, as toilet folklore holds.

But Crapper did, in fact, come along later and make some improvements on Bramah’s gizmo, Kourik says. And, he notes, Crapper’s name is, of course, associated with the device.

Wish Kourik had related the origin of “john,” too.

miscelLAny:

One sure outcome of the O.J. Simpson case will be the rewriting of some local guidebooks. The L.A. edition of “Zagat,” for instance, praises Mezzaluna as “a best-kept secret.”