Drag

Still getting over the summer, we took my son to Hollywood for a movie the other day. It was curiously seedy there; everything seemed bleached by a supernaturally bright sun. But what was most striking was the flagrant open-air theft going on in front of some exceedingly posh mall. We first noticed it while looking for parking when Gabriel began chanting “Spiderman! Spiderman!” from his car seat. And, indeed, across the street was a not especially athletic man in red and blue tights with red Converse sneakers mugging for pictures with tourists. After we found place to leave the car, we ran into a Jedi Mickey Mouse, several characters from Shrek 2, Marilyn Monroe, Charlie Chaplin, and handful of others. Gabriel really wanted to see Batman, but a musketeer cat with a thick Spanish accent told us that it was too hot for him that day (rubber hood and all that, you know).

On the way out of town after the movie, we saw a couple of Johnny Depps (one from Pirates of the Caribbean and another from Willy Wonka). When I remarked on this, my wife casually reminded me that we frequently saw two different Ben Franklins on any given day strolling through Old City. And she’s right. I imagine nearly everyone walking those streets recognized nearly everyone in movie drag that afternoon, but I wonder how many people recognize the guy who thinks he’s Thomas Jefferson in the courtyard of Ben Franklin’s house?

Gee, it’s great to back in L.A.