TOILET RING: The $350 ring his wife,...

TOILET RING: The $350 ring his wife, Regina, gave him for his recent Cal State Fullerton graduation was especially precious to Carl Blankenhorn--she had designed it herself. So when he accidentally dropped it down the toilet at his mother’s Huntington Beach home, “we were devastated,” Regina says. . . . Until city workers five days later managed to fetch it from deep in the bowels of the sewer line beneath the street. “It’s one of our services they haven’t eliminated,” said city worker Leslie Moore. “If you lose something, don’t give up hope. We luck out six times out of eight.”

TWICE FREED: The Orange County Marine Institute in Dana Point decided on a movie preview to raise money, something to also help promote marine environmental concerns. What more perfect a choice: “Free Willy II.” It not only reunites boy hero and whale, but throws in a nasty offshore oil spill to heighten drama. . . . The institute’s preview--$20 at the door--at the Ocean Ranch Edwards Theatres in Laguna Niguel, starts after a 6 p.m. reception.

GOOD SPORT: Swimmer Jenny Skinner of Huntington Beach, just back with a load of medals from the international Special Olympics (E1), is a winner with more than her backstroke. . . . A longtime participant, Skinner was one of the first to receive the organization’s Spirit of Friendship Award for sportsmanship, presented during a black-tie affair in Beverly Hills in 1989, above. . . . “She’s an enthusiastic player and fun to be around,” says one coach. “Her attitude infects all the athletes around her.”

DOUBLE CELEBRATION: Roy Disney--Walt’s nephew and a major stockholder--will be on hand for Monday’s 40th anniversary festivities at Disneyland. Disney says each of the park’s anniversaries is special to him: It was just before the park opened in 1955 that he proposed to his wife, Patti. “At the time, I was pretty concerned with getting married,” Disney says. “Opening day is kind of like an anniversary for my wife and me.”