L.A. Police Academy Applicants: They Ask the Darnedest Questions

The LAPD’s Thin Blue Line newspaper offered up some of the “interesting questions” posed by applicants to the Police Academy, including:

* Is there an LAPD Academy in Riverside?

* Hey, I really liked the movie “SWAT” -- how do I join?

* How many felonies are you allowed to have?

* Do you have a police job where you don’t have to work in the sun?

Not sure if the last one refers to a doughnut shop.

Proof that ancient astronauts visited Earth? I think Michael Gersch of Whittier may have found it on Maui (see photo).

Now for a medieval mystery: Lo and behold, Mike Jelf of Lomita noticed in a reproduction of a 16th century painting in The Times that the “structure of DNA was known to Tudor-era Englishmen four centuries before Watson, Crick and Wilkins bagged their Nobel in 1962. This is pointed out by the angel in the art” (see accompanying).

The Nobel Prize folks obviously have quite a problem on their hands.

How to be a firm host: Stan Reshes of Whittier spotted a home with the perfect feature for “those looking to get rid of unwelcome guests” (see accompanying).

Navigating the Valley: After I discussed the order of the streets in downtown L.A., Nancy Hubbell offered a tip for learning the order of major east-west streets in the San Fernando Valley.

As you head south, the streets are in alphabetical order: Chatsworth, Devonshire, Lassen, Nordhoff, Parthenia, Roscoe, Saticoy, Sherman Way, Vanowen, Victory and Vuntura (that was a joke).

But Kymberleigh Richards of the MTA’s sector governance council in the Valley responded:

“I define major arterial as one on which we run bus service. On that basis, Rinaldi, Plummer, Oxnard, Burbank, Magnolia and Riverside belong in the list (and Parthenia does not).”

The result is “significantly less than alphabetical: R-C-D-L-P-N-R-S-S-V-V-O-B-M-R-V.”

Now I’m really in the alphabet soup.

Wait a minute! All that needs to be done is to rename Rinaldi, Plummer, Oxnard, Burbank, Magnolia and Riverside so they fit in with the others in alphabetical order.

See how easy it is to fix problems? I think I would have made a great Valley mayor.

miscelLAny: The re-emergence of Playboy founder Hugh Hefner in TV commercials is no source of joy to the Bunny Museum in Pasadena. Owner Candace Frazee wrote in her newsletter that confused parents sometimes ask her if it’s OK to bring children to her museum. Frazee responds that of course it is -- she has more than 8,000 collectibles relating to rabbits, none to Playboy bunnies. I wonder how many of those inquiring parents changed their minds about visiting when told there is no Hef connection.

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Steve Harvey can be reached at (800) LATimes, Ext. 77083, by mail at Metro, L.A. Times, 202 W. 1st St., L.A. 90012, and by e-mail at steve.harvey@latimes.com.