OUTSIDE LOOK: Former County Administrative Officer Ernie...

OUTSIDE LOOK: Former County Administrative Officer Ernie Schneider, now a private planner, is still resentful that--despite no accusations of wrongdoing--he was fired at the height of the bankruptcy debacle. . . . But Schneider had nothing but praise for the supervisors’ appointment Monday of Jan Mittermeier as the county’s permanent chief executive officer: “Jan is a great lady who will do a terrific job. She would have been my choice for No. 2 working alongside me if I were still there.”

HIS BEST SCHOTT: It may be hard to find two baseball owners more opposite than feisty Marge Schott of the Cincinnati Reds and the Angels’ beloved Gene Autry. Yet when each team was asked to nominate a candidate for the 1995 Branch Rickey Award--for a strong role model for today’s youth--the Reds nominated Autry. A spokesman for the annual award said it was a personal request from Schott because she admired Autry. . . . The Angels candidate: shortstop Gary DiSarcina.

HAIL HOPPY: South Coast Medical Center’s Winners Circle Charity Ball and Auction on Saturday will feature a “Hoppy 100th Birthday Celebration” and a tribute to Grace Boyd, actor William (Hopalong Cassidy) Boyd’s widow. . . . “I think it’s wonderful,” says Boyd. “I’m trying not to get emotional about it.” A Monarch Beach resident, Boyd is no stranger to the Laguna Beach hospital where her husband died in 1972: She’s been a volunteer there for 23 years.

PUFFER’S DELIGHT: To the dismay of health officials, there are still enclaves around where tobacco lovers can etch smoke rings in the air and share their innermost secrets (E1). Some places even advertise for them. . . . The sign outside Godfather’s Sports Bar on 1st Street in Tustin says: “Smokers: Come Have Lunch With Us. We love you!” . . . Says Godfather bartender Tracy Nudelman: “About 95% of our customers smoke. They smoke, party and have a great time. What’s wrong with that?”