DAKOTA RUNNER: Former USC running backs often...

DAKOTA RUNNER: Former USC running backs often move on to fame or financial glory-- people like O.J. Simpson, Frank Gifford and Jon Arnett. Arnett might not be a household name, but he’s been active locally since his days with USC and the Los Angeles Rams. . . . He’s now a vice president with CNA Sales Group in Irvine, which is making a major marketing move locally with pasta made from North Dakota wheat (D1). Says Arnett: “The environment is the best in the nation for growing wheat, with clean air and pure water.”

CITY SERVANTS: You think city officials are here to serve the public? That’s what they’ll do at Thee White House in Anaheim tonight. The chief of police, the fire chief and half the City Council will wait tables and serve a five-course meal to 200 guests. . . . It’s all for Paint Your Heart Out Anaheim, a city program to repair and paint homes for the elderly and disabled. Getting the police chief to chill your wine isn’t cheap--it’s $95 a person.

LONDON’S BRIDGE: Who ranks second in prestige to the Queen in the city of London? Wrong if you said Princess Di or David Frost. It’s Sir Paul Newall, the Lord Mayor. . . . He’s titular head of the financial district, which he’s promoting on a U.S. tour. His trip includes a dinner Thursday night for the World Affairs Council of Orange County, at the Westin South Coast Plaza Hotel in Costa Mesa. More than 600 people have already RSVP’d to hear the Lord Mayor talk about the U.S. dollar.

FAIRING WELL: The tons of debris left in downtown Orange Sunday night after the annual Labor Day weekend fair told the story: For three days, the place was humming with hungry people. Fair officials estimate the crowd at a record 450,000--at least 100,000 more than last year. Yet it resulted in just three minor arrests. Says fair spokesman Marshall Feduk: “If anything stood out, it was the sheer pleasure of being safe.” The fair already has 80 organizations on a waiting list for booths next year.