Two stories of redemption: Father Maurice Chase...

Two stories of redemption: Father Maurice Chase is known as Father Dollar Bill on Skid Row because he passes out $1,500 to the inhabitants on the street each Sunday.

“The money comes from friends I’ve made over the years--people like Frank Sinatra, Gregory Peck, Bob Newhart and Loretta Young,” he says.

Chase realizes a gift of a dollar can only help so much. “People ask me if anyone gets out of Skid Row,” he acknowledges. “And the answer is, not very many.”

But the other day, Chase walked into his bank and a man said to him, “I recognize you, Father. You used to give me dollar bills.” The man went on to say that he had cleaned up his act, gotten a job and was engaged to be married.

Chase didn’t have to ask him what his job was. The man was in the uniform he wears as the bank’s security guard.

That’s one story of redemption. The other?

As a young man, Father Chase admits he studied briefly to become a lawyer.

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Refuse offer: Roger Beck photographed a notice for a yard sale that seems likely to showcase more junk than the usual variety.

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Latest returns: More notable entries in our readers contest to determine who would make the best (or worst) neighbor and best (or worst) house guest among the Simpson trial cast.

Best house guest: Criminalist Dennis Fung “because he’s good at cleaning up someone else’s mess” (Dawna Kaufmann).

Best neighbor: Anyone connected with the defense “because you know they’d have a ‘dream’ house” (Paul Ecker).

Best neighbor: Mother Teresa (Al Gherini). (Mother Teresa? Is the Dream Team bringing her in as a character witness for the defendant?)

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Last call: Chasen’s, which closes today after 59 years, becomes the latest pioneer eatery to turn out the lights in L.A. Let the dinner bell toll for some other vanished, long-time favorites:

* Vickman’s (1919-1993)

* Nickodell’s (1936-1993)

* Scandia (1946-1989)

* Perino’s (1934-1988)

* Tick Tock (1930-1988)

* Cock ‘n’ Bull (1937-1987)

* Schwab’s (1932-1983)

* Columbia Cafe (1933-1983)

* Dolores’ Drive-In (1938-1981)

* Original Brown Derby (1926-1980)

It just goes to prove the adage that in L.A., nostalgia isn’t what it used to be.

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But why is the basketball program so toothless?: Otto Plum of Torrance saw a car with a license plate frame that said, “USC School of Dentistry.” And the plate itself? “FLOSS ON.”

miscelLAny It will be interesting to see if there are any future printings of the books, “Get Motivated!” and “The Best of Success,” which contain inspirational quotes from O.J. Simpson. Or future printings of “Chicken Soup for the Soul: 101 Stories to Open the Heart & Rekindle the Spirit,” which contains a short bio of the world’s most famous murder defendant.