A Would-Be Hotel Guest Is Taken In After Winging It in Lobby

The crime log of the Laguna News-Post said that police were notified that “a small parrot was flying in the lobby of the Inn at Laguna.

“Animal Services responded and took the bird into custody.”

The big question is: Were the cops able to make the suspect talk?

Guide to Adventurous Dining: For today’s specials du column, may we suggest:

* a winged wonton delicacy, good for you or your pet frog (Neil Dixon of Venice);

* a sauteed dish that could also be used to wrap boxes (Jane Benz of Tarzana);

* and, finally, a label for the type of candy toppings that you put on pastries. Eric Morgan’s daughters, Josie and Veronica, couldn’t help but notice, to their horror, that the label mistakenly showed a photo spread of peppers, onions and other vegetables.

As for seafood: The L.A. River, with its concrete rump, has never gotten much respect. Some cities have waterways on which boats make scenic trips. L.A.’s river, on the other hand, has been used as a training ground for bus drivers.

The river’s latest indignity is recounted in the L.A. County Natural History Museum’s magazine, the Naturalist, which discloses that the Los Angeles River shrimp is extinct.

“The entire world knowledge of the species consists of six or seven small glass jars of tiny shrimp (average length: 1 1/2 inches) gathered some 80 years ago,” the magazine said (see photo). It added that scientists “have absolutely no knowledge” of what the creature ate, “what color it was, how it behaved....”

In case you’re wondering, the L.A. River shrimp wasn’t stamped out by the buses, which arrived later in the last century.

Farewell, my lovely: When the movie “Titanic” became a hit, the Queen Mary was inundated with couples who wanted to reenact the scene where the lovers stand on the bow of the doomed ship, points out Felix Sanchez of the Long Beach Press Telegram.

Now a special screening of “The Poseidon Adventure” will be shown March 19 on the Queen Mary, which was used for exterior shots in the disaster film.

And Sanchez says he would like to see whether middle-aged men will want to reenact scenes such as the one where Ernest Borgnine sees wife Stella Stevens disappear into the drink.

miscelLAny: “Be Cool,” the new John Travolta film about the L.A. music scene, is supposed to be a comedy, but it may bring a tear to the eye of some Lakers fans.

One sequence was shot in Staples Center during an actual game, one that obviously took place before this season. You can catch a glimpse of both Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal in Lakers uniforms.

Now, post-Shaq, it appears the days of championship L.A. Laker teams have gone the way of the L.A. River shrimp.

Steve Harvey can be reached at (800)LATimes, Ext. 77083, by fax at (213)237-4712 or by e-mail at steve.harvey@latimes.com.