This panhandler may have priced himself out of the market

Alan Smullin, highest of the high-end panhandlers, isn’t discouraged by the reception he received on a Sunset Boulevard corner the other day.

No passerby took up the offer on Smullin’s sign: “I Will Do Anything Legal for $1 Million.”

Could it be because he wasn’t holding out a cup?

Whatever, the sign also included his phone number, which prompted calls from people cursing him, telling him to get a job, giving him encouragement (but no money) and making mock offers (i.e., walk from California to Hawaii for the money).

But Smullin says he did get a nibble from one “corporate entity” that talked of having him advertise its product name and phone number on his sign. “When sales reached a certain point, I would get the $1 million,” he said.

Smullin, 57, a professional promoter (he rents out the sign-twirlers you see near car dealerships), is adamant about his purpose. He wants the money only as security for his disabled wife and two children after he dies.

“I’m not thinking of taking vacations on yachts in Europe,” he said.

“I live in a rented house.”

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Million-dollar panhandler (cont.): Just in case his one nibble doesn’t work out, Smullin will take his sidewalk crusade to Newport Beach on Tuesday, displaying his sign at the corner of Jamboree Road and Pacific Coast Highway from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

C’mon, Newport Beach. Dig deep.

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Where love has gone: With Valentine’s Day fast approaching -- it’s Wednesday, men -- I’ve included some readers’ tips on where to find romance (see accompanying).

The tender sites include a housewares store (from Ellen O’Donnell), a house for sale (from John Schulte), a recycling station (photo by Eve Williams) and a street corner (photo by Heikki Ketola).

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Rock out! In honor of tonight’s Grammy Awards, let’s pay tribute to some of the past winners: Orson Welles, George Burns, Bill Clinton, Charles Kuralt, Hillary Clinton and John Gielgud.

They all won in the spoken-word album category.

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Civic insults dept.: The discussion here the other day of cities whose names have been mangled in print -- i.e., West “Ills,” Manhattan “Ditch,” “Flakewood” -- reminded Jean Barney of a letter she received years ago in La Crescenta. “It was addressed to me in ‘Locker Center,’ ” she said.

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miscelLAny: A report that women are attracted to the odor of male sweat prompted NBC’s Jay Leno to observe that now we know why so many men throw their dirty clothes on the floor instead of in a laundry hamper.

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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.