Comes now that hiatus between cries, when the feverish race begins to clear away Christmas bets in time to pay for auto license renewals by Feb. 4 and then face up to income taxes in April.

“Any changes in the rules?” I asked a tax consultant.

“No important ones,” he said, “but you might remind people that they may not claim deductions for dog licenses, traffic fines, baby-sitters, campaign contributions, diaper service, dues for social clubs or life insurance.”

He went on, “Best rule of thumb to follow is that almost anything has to do with creating income is a legitimate business expense. If you go to San Francisco on business it’s deductible, but if you go there to see the bridges it isn’t. Not even Alcatraz.”

Weinstock also checks in with Bob Crane, then at KNX-AM.

Note: This column originally appeared in the L.A. Mirror in 1959 and was republished on latimes.com in 2009..