BOY, MOM WAS RIGHT: A GOOD MAN IS HARD TO FIND.

Byline: Dana Bartholomew Staff Writer

They cruise the dance spots, mingle at sports bars or hope for a chance encounter with Mr. Right. So where are all the decent, good-looking guys?

There simply aren't enough bachelors to go around, according to a U.S. Census report released Monday.

The report, ``Marital Status 2000,'' found there were roughly 10 single women to nine available bachelors in Los Angeles and across the nation.

In the Los Angeles metropolitan region, that means 91 bachelors for every 100 single women. Put another way, there are roughly 250,000 more single women around Los Angeles than men.

``I have a thousand beautiful women,'' declared Dianne Bennett of Beautiful Women-Successful Men, Dianne Bennett Matchmaker, in Los Angeles. ``I do not have anywhere near one man for every woman - it's so disproportionate, it's ugly.

``These women are not finding their dream man so they come to me hoping to perform a miracle - that I can do what their mother, friends, luck, jobs, karma, have not delivered.''

The census breakdown reported a preponderance of bachelorettes to bachelors among regions nationwide with more than 100,000 residents in 2000.

Of the more than 221 million people age 15 and over, there were 86 unmarried men for every 100 unmarried women nationwide.

And that, for many women watching Monday Night Football - and maybe a guy or two at Yankee Doodles in Woodland Hills - means fewer chances for love.

``There are definitely not a lot of single men around - a lot of boys, but not a lot of men,'' said Denise DuChene, 38, a middle-school teacher from Simi Valley.

Added Melanie Taylor, 31, a high school counselor from Van Nuys, ``I'm overeducated, a little on the aggressive side and I'm too tall - I can't find any good guys.''

Among the census report's findings:

--The Los Angeles region had 91 bachelors for every 100 bachelorettes, or 2,700,515 unmarried men per 2,956,199 unmarried women.

--The ratio of unmarried women was higher in the West than in other parts of the country.

--Exceptions to this mismatch include Paradise, Nev., where there were 118 unmarried men per 100 unmarried women, and Alaska, home to workers in the hunting, fishing and forestry industries, which had 114 to 100.

Nationwide, half of those of marrying age were married, with Asians having the lowest rate of couples separated or divorced.

Suburbs had the highest percentage of married couples.

The percentage of eligible singles rose 11 percent for men and 25 percent for women since 1950, according to the U.S. Census.

While women seemed resigned to the short list, men valued the wide-open field.

``I do OK,'' said Ely Jaramillo, 22, of Lancaster, gazing at the gridiron play between Oakland and Kansas City. ``I'm definitely not hurting.''

Despite the imbalance, some relationship counselors insist it's the women who connect better than the men. Women, with more friends and outside contacts, are much more independent. Men are needy.

``I think the men are more affected by not being in a relationship than women,'' said Sally Olshan, a marriage and family psychologist in Agoura Hills who specializes in counseling singles.

``Men, they need a woman in their lives. The women are now more independent and like that independence: They saw their mothers not be independent, and it wasn't so great.''

Regina Reynante, a matchmaker with Marriage Minded Introductions in Van Nuys and among five generations of matchmakers dating from 19th-century Russia, agreed.

It all depends on the age of the prospect, said Reynante, whose office contains three generations of matchmakers with three decades of experience in hooking up San Fernando Valley clients.

``Men, when their mommies kick them out, they want new mommies to take care of them,'' she said.

``The young ladies do much better than the young men, because there are less young ladies using matchmaking services because they're trying their own hand at it,'' she said. ``After 50, the men have it made.''

Shane Sanders, nightclub manager at Yankee Doodles, said that in the 13 years in the bar biz, he's noticed far more girls playing the field.

``They'd rather be single than mess with the bureaucracy of the relationship,'' he said. ``Women of today are more independent. 'What do I need a man for?' they say. 'I'd rather be a lesbian than date a guy.'''

Carolynn Pal, 21, of Canoga Park said she likes being single and prefers a ``good boy with a bad streak.'' Dianna Hooker, 24, of Van Nuys said she wants Mr. Nice Guy.

``It's hard to find quality men,'' said Pal. ``I like the strong, controlling type, that's one who can set me in my place - I'm very rambunctious.''

``I'm definitely ready to tie down, to be serious,'' countered Hooker, amid the din of football fever. ``You can't find a quality guy in a bar or club.

``I'll leave it up to luck.''

Dana Bartholomew, [phone]

dana.bartholomew(at)dailynews.com

CAPTION(S):

2 photos

Photo:

(1) Singles Dianna Hooker, 24, of Van Nuys and Carolynn Pal, 21, of Canoga Park check out the scene at Yankee Doodles in Warner Center on Monday evening.

(2) ``There are definitely not a lot of single men around - a lot of boys, but not a lot of men,'' said Denise DuChene, 38.

Hans Gutknecht/Staff Photographer