Friday morning headlines

Mattel apologizes: So much for assuming that the toymaker's recalls this summer were the result of shoddy Chinese manufacturing. In a surprise move, Mattel said design flaws were more to blame, and a company executive issued a carefully worded apology. The executive acknowledged that a “vast majority of those products that were recalled were the result of a design flaw in Mattel's design, not through a manufacturing flaw in China's manufacturers." Wow. These guys obviously know where their bread is buttered. (AP)

Drake "bungled" hire: The embattled chancellor of UC Irvine still won't talk about why he rescinded his job offer to Erwin Chemerinsky as dean of the new law school, but insisted that outside influences were not at play. "I regret it completely and totally," he told the LAT. "The why of it is straightforward, but I think it's going to be unsatisfactory." Drake met Thursday before an emergency meeting of the UCI Academic Senate. From the Times:

At that meeting, Drake apologized for not "consulting senior faculty early enough or often enough" in the Chemerinsky matter and for the subsequent fallout. He vowed to establish "a small group of faculty" to advise him on major decisions. "I have learned a painful lesson. . . . I have to mend bridges damaged by my actions and work to build bridges to the future," Drake told several hundred faculty members who packed a lecture hall. "I am eager to begin, to put this all behind us, and with your help, get back on the road to the brilliant future that awaits us." Drake then left the meeting to vigorous applause.

Mozilo is called on pay: Well, come on - the Countrywide CEO made $43 million in 2006 and this year he's exercising millions of bucks worth of stock options. The Corporate Library, a corporate governance group, says in a report that the company has a "poorly designed" executive compensation policy. At a time when as many as 12,000 employees are about to be fired, that’s not great. "Any board which can make such poor decisions about a CEO's compensation package is almost certain to be making poor decisions elsewhere," wrote Corporate Library analysts Ric Marshall and Paul Hodgson. Amen, brothers. Countrywide says it's all good. (Reuters)

Billionaires club: It's pretty much all the familiar L.A. names on the new Forbes 400 list (34 by my count). Kirk Kerkorian tops the local names, (#7 at $18 billion), followed quite a ways down by Sumner Redstone (#41, $7.6 billion) and Eli Broad (#46, at $7 billion). For the first time, it takes more than $1 billion to earn a spot on the magazine's list (actually $1.3 billion). That means 82 billionaires didn't make the cut. At the top of the list: Microsoft Corp. founder Bill Gates (for the 14th straight year), with a net worth of $59 billion.

What's with the dollar?: You know things are rough when the Canadian dollar reaches parity with the U.S. dollar (first time that's happened in 30 years). The basic explanation is that traders see the American economy slowing down and the Asian and European economies going great guns. The Fed’s decision to cut interest rates only adds to the dollar flight. From the NYT:

The impact of the falling dollar is rippling through the world and American economies in numerous ways. It will give an edge to American manufacturers and has already helped lift exports by more than 11 percent in the first eight months of the year. Businesses with large foreign operations can expect a lift in profits when they convert their overseas earnings into dollars. On the other side of the equation, the decline in the American currency is helping push up commodity prices, most of which are denominated in dollars, and kindling fears that inflation could rise. Crude oil futures surged to $83.32 a barrel yesterday, up 2 percent from the day before and up 37 percent for the year.

SAG elections Alan Rosenberg was reelected president in a narrow victory over Seymour Cassel (47%-44%). That would signal continued aggressiveness by the guild in getting a better contract - specifically with gains in jurisdiction and new-media platforms. But Cassel said Rosenberg hadn't been tough enough in cable or animation negotiations. Rosenberg is not pushing for a strike when the SAG contract runs out next June, though he’s keeping his options open. (Variety)

Waste and misconduct inquiry: State investigators following up on hotline tips have turned up all kinds of nasty stuff, including an employee at the Employment Development Department who used state time and resources to conduct a private catering business. These and other examples show up in a report by state auditor Elaine M. Howle. (LAT)