A Hollywood Christmas story

Larry Elder About | Email | Archive   

 

The following story is true. The names have been changed to protect the innocent. 

I drove past the outdoor parking-lot-turned-Christmas-tree-store several times before I decided to buy my Christmas tree there. It was fairly close to my home in the Westside of Los Angeles, and business seemed brisk. Must be a nice place.   Soon I found a nice, fluffy, well-shaped tree. “How much?” I asked a smiling salesman. “$60,” he said, showing me the price tag I had overlooked, “Good deal.” Then he said, “Are you Larry Elder? Big fan.” “Guilty,” I said. “Is this your place?” “No,” he said, “I’m an actor, just doing this part-time to make a few bucks for the holidays.”

I’m always surprised when I meet non-left-wing actors, a rare breed in this town – especially those out of the closet. I asked how his career was going. “Mark” told me the names of a few TV shows and movies in which he’d appeared.  But lowering his voice, he said, “When you’re a Republican in this place, it gets tough.” He told me about jobs he felt he’d lost because someone told someone that he was “a Republican.” “I’m not even sure I am,” he said, lowering his voice still more. “But I know we can’t handle four years of Hillary.".......Read more at......