Time to Redevelop His Civic Approach

An unruly spectator was ejected from a meeting of the Community Redevelopment Agency’s Board of Directors when he repeatedly insisted on debating the first item on the agenda.

What was so odd about his demand? Well, reports the L.A. Downtown News, the first item was the roll call of the board members.

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BABY STROLLER OUTLAWS: I guess we’re just so pinched for space in the Southland that more and more strange prohibitions are showing up on signs (see photos). Laurie Tukey of Santa Monica found a “No Stroller Parking” notice at Disneyland that had turned several moms into violators. And it was adjacent to the “It’s a Small World” attraction, sadly enough.

Benjamin Saldua, meanwhile, came across a lot in Upland where you can’t even stow your tennis shoes.

In contrast, consider the easy-going sign that Glenn Gruber snapped on a visit to Nashville, Tenn., where the city’s printed warnings contain a charming drawl.

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DIAL L.A. FOR LAUGHS: In case you didn’t know it, Los Angeles has always been sort of kooky. In his 1944 book, “Lost in the Horse Latitudes,” humorist H. Allen Smith declared that despite what Eastern snobs might think, “Southern California’s regional literature is fascinating, and near the top of the required reading list is the L.A. Telephone Directory.”

Some of the entries that impressed Smith:

* AAAAAAAAAAAA Alteration and Repair Co. (You’d never guess this company was determined to be listed first in the directory.)

* B-Glad Manor (an apartment house)

* Bakery Without a Name

* The Hangover (a nightclub)

* Mission Village Motel (whose ad said it was the spot “where you can meet movie stars”)

* Paramount Pest Control Service (“Call Dr. Kilzum--His Patients All Die”)

* J.J. Roberts Jr. Dude Ranch for Dogs

Smith concluded that the L.A. directory “is one of those books you can’t put down, although at times there is a strong temptation to put it down with force on the head of some Chamber of Commerce executive.”

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WAIT ‘TIL KFWB FINDS OUT: All-news radio station KNX-AM (1070) sent out a news release about a gubernatorial forum in which it managed to misspell the names of all four candidates, identifying them as Grey Davis, Jane Harmon, Al Checci and Dan Lundgren.

KNX was, however, spelled correctly.

Of course, no one’s perfect. Patricia Schoneman of La Quinta points out that The Times referred to Democratic strategist James Carville recently as James Cargo.

Checchi.

I mean, check.

miscelLAny:

In my continuing perusal of Hollywood-themed vanity plates in the DMV’s database, I came across 2ACTORS. I haven’t been able to determine if it’s owned by Demi and Bruce, Barbra and Jim, or Kim and Alec.

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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.