Strange Species Creeps Into Area

Once-liberal Santa Monica may be taking a more law-and-order approach, but Toni Sparano never figured that her book group would be raided.

During a picnic in a park.

At noontime.

“This police officer told us that he had gotten a report from a neighbor that a bunch of people were drinking and creating a nuisance in the park,” Sparano said. “Here we were, six well-dressed professional women. Then his partner comes over to see if he needs any help. We laughed so hard.”

I wondered if maybe the book-club members had been in a heated debate--perhaps over the Modern Library’s recent ranking of the alleged top 100 English-language novels of this century. But Sparano said the gathering was very low-key.

The officers didn’t issue any citations. Still, Sparano is left wondering whether someone fears an infestation of bookworms in the neighborhood.

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LIFE IMITATING RERUNS: Testimony during a trial in Santa Monica halted suddenly when a man entered the courtroom and dropped off an envelope with one of the lawyers. Sure enough, says juror Hank Rosenfeld, the opposing lawyer cracked, “Perry Mason!” The first attorney, playing along with the joke, told the messenger, “Thank you, Mr. Drake”--a reference to the private eye of that TV show.

OK, it wasn’t side-splitting humor. But as the appreciative Rosenfeld observed, “We jurors needed some lighter moments--the case was about genital warts.”

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DRAMATIC REVELATION! Yes, it was like something out of a “Perry Mason” episode. L.A. Deputy Dist. Atty. Bill Woods came across a transcript from a Torrance trial “in which the defendant’s attorney, in his closing argument, finally revealed the truth about lawyers” (see accompanying).

I always knew they were a bunch of roguish wordsmiths.

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GHOST SHIP? Lisa Hart of West Hills spotted an announcement from a cruise ship whose departure schedule indicates that there’ll be plenty of vacancies at the captain’s table during the voyage (see accompanying).

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HE’S BACK: Well, I’ve returned from my two-week vacation. One of the frustrations of leaving the area is the knowledge that I’ll miss several strange and wonderful events here. And, sure enough, I was absent for:

* A traffic stoppage on the Long Beach Freeway that was caused by a crew making a movie version of the TV show “CHiPs.”

* A fascinating Caltrans news conference that included a demonstration of “a new fast-setting concrete (hydraulic cement concrete) on a segment of the new Route 60/71 interchange project in Pomona.”

* And finally, as a promo for a sportsy comedy movie, the announcement that actor Robert Vaughn would “unveil a new ‘BASEketball’ exhibit for the Celebrity Lingerie Museum” at Frederick’s of Hollywood.

And you ask why I find it so difficult to stay away from L.A.?

miscelLAny:

Needing some information from the L.A. City Planning Department, Alexander Berkov of Encino included a stamped, self-addressed envelope, as requested. “I did receive the requested information,” he said. “However, some bureaucrat crossed out my 32-cent stamp and metered the envelope for 23 cents.” Your tax dollars at work. . . .

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Steve Harvey can be reached by phone at (213) 237-7083, by fax at (213) 237-4712, by e-mail at steve.harvey@latimes.com and by mail at Metro, L.A. Times, Times Mirror Square, L.A. 90053.