Stifling the Sarcasm at Disneyland

Cal State Fullerton’s magazine Titan carries some reminiscences of alumni who called their school Cal State Disneyland because so many had part-time jobs at the nearby Magic Kingdom.

One “cast member” (the term used for all employees at Disneyland) was Nicole Thome, who wrote, “The best stories I have are of the numbing questions that guests ask, such as ‘What time are the 9:30 p.m. fireworks?’ or ‘Can you make it stop raining?’ as if it’s not allowed to rain at Disneyland.”

Thome said she and other workers, excuse me, cast members, would always smile and politely answer such questions. But she admitted that when she was asked, “Where are the fireworks?” the sarcastic answer “you’d want to give would be, ‘In the sky!’ ”

Unclear on the concept: Whether the property that Richard George of Pomona spotted sells for $349,900 or $1,349,900, he thought it strange that a six-bedroom, five-bathroom, 4,400-square-foot estate would be labeled a “starter home” (see accompanying).

Unclear on the Concept, II: Sissy and Dennis Gibbs of Playa del Rey noticed a sign on the northbound San Diego Freeway that has only one defect: no lights to flash (see photo).

Don’t forget to turn left at the ocean: OK, time to sing along with Bobby Troup’s “Route 66” -- “You see Amarillo/ Gallup, New Mexico/ Flagstaff, Arizona/ Don’t forget Winona/ Kingman, Barstow, San Bernardino ... “ And Mina Clavero, Argentina?

Yup, Ray Mireles wrote: “I would like to correct the record re: ‘Route 66.’ It never ended in Santa Monica; it wended its way south and over the Andes ... “ (see photo).

Nineteenth century SigAlert: Author Kevin Roderick’s laobserved.com website of Nov. 28 has a link to a 28-second clip of traffic on L.A.’s Spring Street, shot in 1897 by a photographer for motion picture pioneer Thomas Edison.

It shows that downtown was no easy place to navigate even before the advent of the automobile.

On the clip, you see carriages led by teams of horses, a streetcar coming down the center of the thoroughfare, a bicyclist weaving in and out of traffic and several jaywalkers bolting across the street.

At least none of the drivers had cellphones.

miscelLAny: Can a songwriter issue a correction?

Mark Willis points out that Tom Petty’s lyric in “Free Fallin’ ” -- “It’s a long day living in Reseda/There’s a freeway runnin’ through the yard” -- presents “a nice thought picture” but “there actually is no freeway in Reseda.”

No wonder I’ve never been there.

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 [email protected].