‘Leftover’ had been forgotten, but at least he wasn’t late

My musings about vanished downtown bars in L.A. reminded ex-Timesman Jerry Clark of a character who hung out in Anthony’s, across the street from City Hall (and this newspaper).

“His name was Danny but he was more commonly referred to as ‘Leftover,’ ” Clark said. “An upbeat, likable man in his early 30s, Leftover worked in a state office building and would spend his evening hours at Anthony’s, almost always staying to closing time at 2 a.m.

“He got his nickname when Tony, the day bartender, opened the place at 6 a.m. one morning and found him sitting on a barstool, waiting for ‘first call.’ He had fallen asleep in a booth the night before and went unnoticed when the night bartender closed up.

“That was the day he got stuck with the ‘Leftover’ sobriquet.”

Harvey’s Hall of Wonders: Jochen Ihle has contributed two entries (see accompanying):

* An Infiniti with a special control for the driver who, as Ihle put it, “is too quick with his finger.”

* And, in the unclear-on-the-concept category, some shrimp that are “farm raised” and “previously frozen” but are “ocean fresh.”

How’s that again? In an LAX elevator, Bill Westby of Los Alamitos noticed that, in the event of an emergency, riders were instructed to press what I guess should really be called an “I’m not alarmed” button (see photo).

A necessary precaution: In Glendale, Crissy Ong chanced upon a gas station that understandably requires drug-addled customers to pay before filling up (see photo).

Suggestions that may or may not grow on you: The idea of a 700-mile-long fence along the U.S.-Mexico border is a prickly issue for one Long Beach resident but not for the usual reasons.

This reader believes the barrier should be made of cactus.

“A cactus fence is environmentally friendly and is easily maintained,” said a letter to The Times that was signed E.B.S.A.

“You cannot climb over it or through it. In addition, cutting through it would not be a realistic option as the animals that will make the cactus fence their home would repel anyone ... rattlesnakes, scorpions, etc.”

E.B.S.A. also favors a barrier along the U.S.-Canada border but advises that, instead of cactus, thorn bushes be used “as they can withstand the weather.”

miscelLAny: Those snooty Eastern newspapers are at it again. In a review of the movie “Inland Empire,” a New York Times writer mentions “a suburban backyard that looks like what you would expect to find in the bleak Southern California region [of the] film’s title.”