Apple was an apple on a pedestal, two rows of flowerless flowerpots were titled Imagine the Flowers, and Iced Tea was a sizable T made of ice and melting fast. These and about 80 other treasures, executed or inspired by Yoko Ono, made up the show that opened at the Everson Museum of Art in Syracuse, N.Y. The works were officially called "Concept Art," but proud Husband John Lennon, who celebrated his 31st birthday with the show's opening, noted--perhaps revealingly--that "Yoko likes to call her work con art." Over-30 Syracusans mostly refused to be conned, but the young turned out 6,000 strong on opening day to view Painting to Let the Evening Light Go Through (a sheet of Plexiglas) and Cloud Piece (a water bed with the invitation to "lie down and watch until a cloud passes from right to left").

A new column has made its appearance in ten California student newspapers. The heavyweight byline: Ronald Reagan. But the column may not be there long--however much the Governor needs to mend his fences with young voters. The byline was by far the most interesting part of the first column of answers to student questions. One reason, perhaps, was that Reagan had not bothered to look at the questions or even his replies. "We draw his answers from past speeches and statements," acknowledged a state information officer. "But if the students came up with a real doozy of a question, we would run it past the Governor."

The new waiter at Rome's suburban restaurant I Fontanone says that he hopes he will not become a tourist attraction. But Raffaele Minichiello, the U.S. Marine who skyjacked a TWA jet 6,900 miles from California to Italy two years ago, has been getting something of a play in the Italian press with his first job since his release from jail in April. The great thing about the job is being always with people, says Mini, as the papers call him. "I'm very shy, and this is good for me."

Its next president, the Australian Conservation Foundation proudly announced, would be none other than Britain's Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. Labor Party Senator James Keeffe promptly resigned his membership with a blast: "The finances of the organization cannot be stretched to cover traveling expenses for a national president who has his headquarters 10,000 miles away." Right on, editorialized The Australian, citing the appointment as a step "back into the mould of the great Australian cultural fringe. Is it still necessary that, for a venture to be respectable, it must have an outsider at the head of it?" Prince Philip nonetheless let it be known that he was delighted, would keep in touch and visit Australia regularly. No mention of who picks up the round-trip fare.

Who's afraid of Ronald E. Galella? John F. Kennedy Jr. is, and so is his sister Caroline. Photographer Galella "has dashed at me, jumped in my path, discharged flashbulbs in my face. I feel threatened when he is present," said eleven-year-old John in a legal deposition. "I do not feel safe when he is near," echoed 14-year-old Caroline. The children also cited unnerving incidents in the Mediterranean and at a New Jersey horse show as part of their application for a restraining order to stop Galella from "harassing" them. For his part, Photographer Galella was suing Jacqueline Onassis and three Secret Service bodyguards for $1,300,000 for interfering with his livelihood. "I don't want to bother them," he said. "I'm after a spontaneous, unrehearsed mood --people as themselves. This is what I call my paparazzi approach."

It seemed to be music-criticism time in Russia--with special emphasis on the backhanded compliment. U.S. Violinist Yehudi Menuhin, in Moscow for a congress of the International Music Council, said that he thought Soviet music was moving toward a "certain measure of sophistication." It used to be that "only one approach was tolerated," explained Menuhin. "But now they are beginning to see that there may be two or more approaches to anything. That is what I mean by sophistication." Also in Moscow, Russian Poet Yevgeny Yevtushenko commented on the sound of the great Duke Ellington, whose band has been packing in the Red cats for a series of 22 concerts. "A bit old-fashioned," said the poet, "but perfectly executed."

Sam Letrone, proprietor of Chez Sam in Paris, went to Peking to see one of his oldtime customers--Cambodia's exiled ruler, Prince Norodom Sihanouk. The prince, Sam wrote to France-Soir Columnist Carmen Tessier, "has a solid appetite. His aunt, a princess, simmers up little dishes. To keep in shape, he plays badminton with Princess Monique and his staff. He still composes songs, and during the Oct. 1 celebrations one could hear his latest work: Nostalgia for China, Which Everyone Knows."

This file is automatically generated by a robot program, so reader's discretion is required.