Bernie Sanders Takes Los Angeles: 12 Hours in the Maelstrom

[Purveyor]

Topless women! Giant puppets! Fainting spells! The Vermont senator and presidential hopeful's surprise stop in Koreatown was a political circus-cum-rock concert that drew thousands to his messages of inclusion and Wall Street reform.

Heartburn, sunburns, razor burns — I’ve experienced them all in my 15-odd years living in Southern California. But on March 23, I was determined to feel the Bern: those hot flashes purportedly induced by a certain avuncular socialist currently running for president. Yes, Bernie Sanders was scheduled to make a pit-stop in Los Angeles well ahead of the June 7 California primary, where 475 delegates hang in the balance.

The night prior, as polls closed in Idaho, Utah and Arizona, Sanders addressed a capacity crowd of 9,000 at the San Diego Convention Center. His visit to L.A. would be significantly cozier, however, as it was scheduled to be held at the Wiltern Theatre, an Art Deco landmark in Koreatown that holds no more than 2,300. By comparison, he drew a crowd of 27,500 the last time he was here, speaking at the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena in August. It was therefore bound to get a little crazy.

10:00 a.m.

Things did not get off to a promising start when Sanders’ digital director, Kenneth Pennington, sent out a mass email informing supporters that their tickets were worthless. “I regret to inform you that your tickets for this evening’s Bernie Sanders rally in Los Angeles must be canceled,” it read. “Due to an unfortunate error on our website, RSVPs for this evening’s rally in Los Angeles were distributed far beyond the venue’s maximum capacity.”



12:00 p.m.

Pretty soon word spread that the event was dispensing with tickets altogether: It was to be a first-come, first-serve affair. The lines began to form at around noon. First to arrive was Steven Treminio, 23, who wore a Bernie T-shirt that riffed on the self-portrait cover to John Lennon’s "Imagine." A few yards down, a rowdy group of Nurses For Bernie handed out Bernie temporary tattoos, his bald pate covered in a Robin Hood cap.

Holding a "Bernie for President" sign aloft and encouraging honks from passing cars was Jerry Garcia, 43. (“No, my parents weren’t Grateful Dead fans,” the Long Beach dockworker said. “It’s just a coincidence.”) What did he love about Bernie? “I love him like a family member. He reminds me of my father.”

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http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/bernie-sanders-takes-los-angeles-878289

[longship]

1. Wow! Good report!

Recommended click through.

[dchill]

2. Fun read!