Short on Glitz and Glamour, This Police Stop Is Voted Nation’s Top Hot Bar

Undercover bar: In its “Hot List” issue, Rolling Stone magazine confers the title of the nation’s No. 1 “Hot Bar” on a Southern California night spot. But it’s one somewhat lacking in glitz and glamour: the Short Stop on Sunset Boulevard.

Yup, the joint that was in the news as a hangout for cops involved in the Rampart scandal.

These days, it’s nearly in the equivalent of a witness protection program for bars. Since its sale several months ago, the building has not been graced with the old name. A lone “Cocktails” sign is the only clue to the type of business inside (see photo).

“The old owner took the [Short Stop] sign with him,” explained Tam Ui, one of the bar’s managers. “He thought we’d change the name.”

Although the new owners haven’t decided whether to put up a new sign, they are keeping the old name.

“It has so much history,” Ui said.

Short Stop (the early years): Before it became linked with Rampart, the Short Stop was a centerpiece of Joseph Wambaugh’s cop novel “Delta Star,” where it was lovingly referred to as “The House of Misery.”

“Fugitive Nights,” another Wambaugh novel, relates a piece of Short Stop lore, about a robber who held up the bar and was shot to death by an off-duty cop who was having a drink. The robber, it turned out, had pretended to have a gun by holding a comb under his jacket.

A bumper sticker that said, “Use a Comb, Go to Heaven,” was posted above the bar.

That bumper sticker, by the way, is no longer there.

A pigeon that’s no pigeon: Lou Mack of North Hollywood snapped a shot of a Van Nuys residence where a shrewd feathery creature was taking advantage of the admitted lack of security (see photo).

Here’s the buzz: It can’t hurt to post a sign, but Ed Stalcup of Malibu wonders if the bees will pay any attention to a warning directed toward them (see photo).

That’s entertainment: You suspect you lack that magical, indefinable quality needed to succeed as an actor? The publication Back Stage West lists this cast opening for “Virtual Prey,” a 35-millimeter trailer:

“Male actor: With large hands.”

miscelLAny:

I’ve heard surfers speak of their sport as though it were a religion, so I wasn’t surprised to find this police log item in the Huntington Beach Independent:

“A male wearing a wet suit, claiming to be Jesus Christ, and cutting a flowered garment he was wearing, was reported at 3:03 Friday.”

He didn’t have a board. But I guess he wouldn’t need one to walk on water.

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Steve Harvey can be reached at (800) LA-TIMES, Ext. 77083 and by mail at Metro, L.A. Times, 202 W. 1st St., L.A., 90012.