Underground humor:It would seem an obvious joke...

Underground humor:

It would seem an obvious joke for a character in an L.A. disaster movie to mention the Metropolitan Transportation Authority--The Agency That Sank Hollywood Boulevard. But here’s the shocker: In “Independence Day,” the MTA gets a warm compliment.

One of the survivors of the space-alien attack on the City of Angels says, “Today is the first time I used the subway. Thank God for the Metro Rail.”

Gary Bolen of Valencia says that when he and his wife broke into laughter over that line, they drew some stares from fellow theatergoers because they were in Santa Barbara. The Bolens were immediately “labeled as out-of-towners,” he says, “though not quite as out-of-town as the ones in the flying saucers.”

LIST OF THE DAY: Some other gems from “Independence Day” that may wind up in L.A. quote books:

* “Once again the LAPD is asking Los Angelenos not to fire their guns at the spacecraft,” says a TV reporter played by Channel 9 sportscaster Gary Cruz.

* “Remember me?” says a placard held by a woman who wants the space aliens to pluck her off the roof of the 73-story First Interstate World Tower (apparently not for the first time).

* And, finally, there is this quote from the president of the United States, which no doubt will be taken out of context by some Eastern writer. With the attacks imminent, the president phones his wife, who is on a business trip, and says: “I really want you out of Los Angeles.”

THE PREVIOUS OWNER KEPT IT PARKED MOST OF THE TIME: How fitting that Glendale’s row of auto dealers--the “Brand Boulevard of Cars”--would have a billboard advertising the Edward Kienholz exhibition at the Museum of Contemporary Art. After all, one of Kienholz’s most famous sculptures is “Back Seat Dodge ‘38,” starring a used car that had a lot of leg space (see photo).

HOLDUP NOTES 101: We knew that L.A. was a popular target for bank robbers but we didn’t know how organized they were until we saw an educational item in a local weekly (see accompanying). Probably another one of those correspondence schools.

WE TRIED TO FIND OUT, BUT THE LINE WAS BUSY: With new area codes popping up all the time in Southern California--and the 213 area code running out of combinations--Tom Bratter of West L.A. says: “I wonder if it’s only a matter of time before Thomas Guides come out with an atlas with overlapping area codes, in addition to ZIP Codes?”

BEYOND POODLES: We mentioned the pooch parade that will wend its way through Oak Park during the Santa Barbara French Festival this weekend.

There’ll also be a Napoleon Look-Alike Contest with prizes for “Best All-Around Napeolon,” “Best Josephine,” “Best Little Kid Napoleon” and “Best Reason for Hand-in-Shirt.”

One of the entrants, according to parade captain Steve Hoegerman, “is an L.A. actor who’s a professional Napoleon look-alike. Right now he’s working in a Schwarzenegger movie.”

Not as a stand-in for Arnold, we assume.

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A colleague saw a handwritten sign on a street pole in Long Beach for a yard sale offering such treasures as crystals, candles, incense and gargoyles. Not just any yard sale--it was labeled a “Metaphysical Yard Sale.” Forget about outer space. Southern California’s inner space is strange enough.