Intimidation Reigns in Doo Dah Queen Selection

The recent rain was something of a royal pain for Doo Dah Parade organizers, who had to postpone auditions for the prestigious post of Doo Dah queen until today, while the nation waited impatiently.

Some 36 applicants and 30 judges are expected. “We have so many judges for protection,” explained Tom Coston, the event producer. “Some of the people are a little scary.”

Doo Dah (cont.): Candidates for queen of the Nov. 20 extravaganza in Pasadena include:

* Naughty Mickey, a sword-swinging dominatrix

* Officer Kelly, a cross-dressing nurse/policeman

* A blow-up doll brought by someone who calls himself Hollywood and Divine

* Princess Mia, who dresses like a bee and buzzes around the stage

* Sheila, Queen of the Jungle, who does bird sounds

* The Swami from El Monte, who works with snakes but does not make snake sounds

“We usually get a declined Rose Parade hopeful too,” Coston said. “We make her a princess automatically. We appreciate it when someone defects from the other parade.”

Don’t know much about geography: Angelenos Bill Givens, Robin Price and David Boone all contacted me about a postcard they received from a candy company telling about the opening of a not-so-close shop (see accompanying). Salt Lake City? L.A.’s urban sprawl isn’t that bad.

Transit loca: While in downtown L.A., Cliff Hutson of Pomona saw a bus that’s apparently trying to attract young riders with a promise of a crazy ride (see photo).

Odd Crimes Department: Mention here of an aggressive street musician who was arrested in the Santa Barbara area for “annoying a police horse” brought this note from Vicki Bicket of Barstow:

“My (now deceased) husband Jim Bicket was a wildlife biologist for the federal Bureau of Land Management and studied herpetology. He took really good pictures of rattlesnakes but had to catch them with pinchers at night and keep them in a pillowcase until morning to get a good shot when it was light.

“Once, he was waiting at the side of the road in Organ Pipe National Monument in Arizona for cars to pass before driving out to look for more snakes when a ranger investigated and found his snakes.

“He accepted Jim’s explanation that he wasn’t poaching and intended to set the snakes free in the morning, but still cited him. The charge was ‘Molesting a snake in a National Monument.’ ”

miscelLAny: Today’s “Duh!” award-winner, spotted by Sue Casillas of L.A., is the shocking warning on cooking instructions for a beef-and-bean burrito (see accompanying).

Steve Harvey can be reached at (800) LATIMES, Ext. 77083; by fax at (213) 237-4712; by mail at Metro, L.A. Times, 202 W. 1st St., L.A. 90012; and by e-mail at steve.harvey@latimes.com.