Dow Milestone a Better Bet Than the Clippers

Dow’s milestone came too late for me. You see, I had already lost a bet over what would occur first in 1999: the Dow reaching the 10,000 point mark or the Clippers reaching the one-victory mark.

*

ONLY IN MALIBU DEPT.: Malibu Times editor Pam Linn found a “No Outlet” sign that was truer than ever after a landslide. The Times’ own Ken Hively, meanwhile, took a snapshot on Pacific Coast Highway that illustrated real estate is still at a premium in the area (see photos).

*

HOLLYWOOD’S ANNUAL SNUB: My favorite motion picture awards show never fails to send me tickets. I’m referring to the Razzies, which dishonor the worst cinematic achievements of the year (worst actor, worst actress, etc.).

Thus I’m able to deal with the pain of being snubbed by the other show, the Academy Awards ceremonies. For a moment I thought my luck had changed this year when I saw Liz Taylor’s two Oscar tickets for sale by Leland’s auction house. Then I looked closer and saw that the tickets were to the 1974 Oscars.

The catalog says the ducats ($100 minimum bid) “were apparently never picked up by Ms. Taylor.” Guess she didn’t like her seats.

*

K-TRAFFIC STOP: So there I was the other night, listening to KKTR-AM (1650), the all-traffic station, which reported the possible spill of “a carcass of a cow” on the Pomona Freeway. Or could it have been a Roswell, N.M.-type landing of an alien? More details were promised. But after a couple of commercials, Nat King Cole broke into “Unforgettable.”

Suddenly, at 7 p.m., the all-traffic format was history. It was reborn as all-Nat-King-Cole (KNKC?) until March 29, when the station will adopt an adult standards format. The closest Nat ever came to a traffic-themed song was his version of “Get Me to the Church on Time.” And now we’ll never know for sure about that mysterious sighting on the Pomona Freeway.

*

TALK ABOUT BEING IN A HURRY! I mentioned how KCBS (Channel 2) gave the score of a USC basketball game five seconds after it had begun (the score was 0-0, believe it or not). Well, the other night, KCAL (Channel 9) signed off one sports segment by reporting that the Clippers were trailing their opponent with one second left to play. (The Clippers actually made two free throws in the last second to send the game into overtime before losing.)

miscelLAny:

No need to worry about that lawsuit against you. Yes, you. Oh, you hadn’t heard about it? USA Today reports that one Donald Drusky, 63, of East McKeesport, Pa., was angry at his former employer as well as at God, who had not granted him guitar-playing skills or resurrected his pet pigeon. So, Drusky sued, among others, God, two presidents, all federal judges, six Congresses and--here’s where you come in--every American. A judge found the suit frivolous. Of course, the judge is part of the plot too.

*

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 L.A. Times, Times Mirror Square, L.A. 90053.