By Erskine Johnson

Cafe with a heart: Abbott’s Backstage is the only restaurant in America where the owner gets clipped every day. The owner is comic Bud Abbott, who has been losing money on it ever since it opened.

Reason he’s lost money is that any old-time friend who comes into town needing a job is put on the payroll as assistant manager.

“At times I’ve had more assistant managers working in the place than we’ve had customers.” hay says.

He’s had several chances to sell out at a profit. “I’ll never sell it,” he said “I want the place so I can walk in any time I feel like it and get a free meal. I want a place I can give a man a job any time I feel like it. I want to remember the guys who gave me a meal when I couldn’t buy one of my own.”

Aside to pedestrains: Pioneertown, the new Hollywood for western films near Palm Springs, has a law set down by movie star president Russel Hayden. You can’t drive your car on the main street. It’s unpaved, will remain to way, and is only for horses and people.