Breakfast With Bill: Patagonia had the ear...

Breakfast With Bill: Patagonia had the ear of the First Outdoorsman on Thursday as the Ventura sport clothier’s owner sat on a national panel with President Clinton (A20). . . . Hosting 100 innovative business people, Clinton wanted to hear Yvon Chouinard speak about creating a family-friendly workplace. Chouinard’s message, according to a spokeswoman: “It’s actually possible to be successful in business and be true to these goals.”

Atlas, at Last: He was the Nolan Ryan of police dogs, competing beyond retirement age. . . . When he was with the Simi Valley force, Atlas became the only dog ever to repeat as champion of the International Police and Fire Games. And he did it at the advanced age of 9. . . . Most police dogs retire by then, department spokesman Sgt. Bob Gardener said. Atlas retired at 11 . . . and died this week at 15.

Up and Down: The yo-yo craze that hit schools and toy shops earlier this spring is apparently doing the sleeper. . . . Ventura’s Junipero Serra School has forbidden the hypnotic pests--they go down, they come back up; they go down, they come back up--on campus. “It was a distraction for some of the kids,” Principal Tom Carmody said. Anyway, “interest in yo-yos has been tapering off.” He said the kids haven’t complained.

Maestro: Eighteen-time Grammy-winner Pierre Boulez helped put the Ojai Festival on the map, and he’s back for a sixth stint as music director. . . . The three-day festival, which starts its 50th run May 31, caps a busy period for Boulez (F1). It also may be his last California appearance until 1999. He’s taking time off to compose. . . . The festival’s Joan Kemper is not discouraged: “We’ll just have to get busy to book him again for the 55th or 60th.”