CULTURE SHOCK : CAREFUL HOW YOU STEP ...

Here are some short observations from our staff on what's happening on the cultural scene.

Movies are going to the dogs. No fewer than four major summer features - ``Independence Day,'' ``Twister,'' ``A Time to Kill'' and ``The Fan'' - have key scenes in which canines survive certain doom. Yes, it's the cinematic equivalent of stupid pet tricks: Get people all choked up about the fate of an animal, then release the tension with a happy woof.

But it seems to be effective. ``Twister,'' ``ID4'' and ``Kill'' are major hits (even a kennel's worth of St. Bernards could not conceivably have saved ``The Fan''). In fact, the pup pix are doing considerably better than Hollywood's other man's best-friend concept, spunky strippers, fared this summer. ``Striptease'' and ``Fled'' tanked, and the jury's still out on whether ``Tin Cup'' will win the box-office purse.

But ``Independence Day,'' which also boasts a spunky stripper, is the biggest hit of the year. Her secret? She's the one who saves the dog.

SOURCE: - Bob Strauss

Never trust free philosophy: It all started with a postcard. A snazzy, smiley face-yellow rectangle. The message seemed innocent enough, too, the red letters reading, ``Smile.'' It came into the office with no return address, no clue as to who offered this simple, poignant bit of advice.

And then came a card reading, ``Drive happy.'' And soon a series of surreal fortune cookies filled the mail pile: ``The journey of a thousand miles begins with a full tank of gas'' and ``When life gives you lemonade, use the drink holder'' and ``Maybe traffic jams happen because cars like to be with other cars.''

They started to show up on billboards around town, too, again with no logo or identifying feature.

This was getting scary. Propaganda from above. A calm, faceless voice emerging from the chaos of mail and traffic. Wisdom without a source.

A few of us swapped origin theories: Maybe it was a disgruntled poet with no other outlet. Or a traffic safety group pushing take-it-easy driving. Or a religious cult spreading the Word in the tradition of Big Brother. Their next billboard could read, ``War is peace.''

And then I saw a guy in the mall wearing a ``Drive happy'' T-shirt. Same Prozac yellow. Same red type. I almost didn't ask him about it.

``My wife works for Nissan,'' he explained. ``This is a new ad campaign.''

All mystery and danger vanished as the invisible Buddha emerged. Nissan. The car company. Television spots soon flushed out the theme with an old Japanese man (he supposedly sold the first Datsuns, Nissan's predecessor, in the United States) flashing ``Drive happy'' signs and telling young boys with baseball mitts, ``Life is a journey. Enjoy the ride.''

But the philosophy seemed to mean a lot more before we knew who was talking.

SOURCE: - Glenn Gaslin

The slow death of a dance craze: Hasn't that saucy little line dance, that Macarena thing, gone away yet? It's reached such a deep level of cultural saturation that even the least hip media consumer knows all about it. Shirtless fat guys at baseball games are doing it. The Olympic gymnasts did it. Regis and Kathie Lee do it ... constantly. So, in the public interest, we'll track the spread of this dance craze and let you know when it's finally dead.

Recent Macarena sightings:

An upcoming episode of ``Ellen'' features the protagonist messing up the dance and singing ``He-e-y, Macaroni ...''

A San Francisco radio station is playing a parody called ``Macaroni,'' with an old Italian woman on vocals.

In a ``Late Show With David Letterman'' skit about what Dave would do if elected president, he summoned a bunch of Secret Service agents and forced them to do the Macarena.

Members of a recent singles-group trip from Los Angeles to Israel reported that discos in Tel Aviv played the song incessantly, and that women visiting from Texas, of all places, performed the dance as if they were stiff-jointed robots.

SOURCE: - Glenn Gaslin

up & coming

The SAGE Society, a learning-in-retirement organization associated with the College of Extended Learning, California State University, Northridge, will hold an open house geared to those who want to grow culturally and intellectually, 10 a.m. Friday at First Presbyterian Church of Granada Hills, 10400 Zelzah Ave., Northridge. For more information, call [phone].

``KidsWorld '96,'' a summer season of theater and crafts presented by the Los Angeles Children's Museum at Santa Monica Place, is holding its final workshop, ``Transform Yourself!'' where kids will create new faces and masks of mimes, monsters and other types of novelties using washable paints and recycled materials, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Friday at Santa Monica Place Center Court, adjacent to the Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica. The Center Court has access for the disabled. For more information, call [phone].

``A Journey Into ... or a Journey in Two,'' an environmental satire about two performers, will be presented in a series of sketches, monologues and music at 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays through Aug. 31 at the Whole Theatre Company, 5920 Van Nuys Blvd., Van Nuys. Tickets: $5. Call [phone].

``Julius Caesar,'' Shakespeare's version of Roman history, is playing at 7 p.m. Fridays and 2 p.m. Sundays through Oct. 6 at the Knightsbridge Theatre, Braley Building, 35 S. Raymond Ave., Pasadena. Tickets: $15 general, $10 seniors over 65 and students under 25. Call [phone].

``S'mores and More'' offers families with children an easy-paced one-mile hike exploring Temescal Canyon in the Santa Monica Mountains by twilight. The evening includes searching for edible and useful plants and nocturnal animals; a gathering around the campfire for s'mores; and a 1-1/2-hour campfire consisting of a star program, American Indian story telling or a special ``glow show,'' 7:30 to 10 p.m. Saturday. Fee: $5 children, $10 adults. Children must have adult supervision to attend. For reservations and directions to Temescal Canyon, call [phone].

``The Sweet & Hot Music Festival'' invites young and old to celebrate a century of American jazz. The event consists of a series of concerts featuring classic and contemporary jazz and swing performances and vendors with bargains in records, books and memorabilia. Performers will include the Mardi Gras Jazz Band, the Monarchs, Barbara McNail, the Karen Hernandez Trio, Hot Frogs Jazz Band, Brad Kay's Curmudgeons of Swing and many more, Friday through Monday at the Los Angeles Airport Marriott Hotel, 5855 W. Century Blvd., Los Angeles. Call [phone] or [phone].

SOURCE: - Ana Young

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Photo

Photo: Movies may be going to the dogs, but lots of folks a re going to the box office to see it happen.