Rodman’s rules

Deepa Bharath

Dennis Rodman, the Bad Boy of basketball turned West Newport party

host, sipped on a drink Friday afternoon and said that while the weather

is what originally drew him to town, he stays here for many more reasons.

“The people are cool,” he said relaxing at the bar at Josh Slocum’s

restaurant. “People are laid back, and I like that. People move here so

they can have a good time.”

It’s not the dudes at the beach who he has the problem with -- it’s

the city and its politics that frustrates him, says the former NBA

superstar who granted an interview to the Daily Pilot, the first since he

arrived here in 1996.

And he says he is going to make a difference -- by running for City

Council himself.

What changes would he bring about?

“Nothing,” he said. “I won’t change it at all. I’d leave it alone. I’d

just give people a little more freedom to live their lives as they want

to.”

Rodman says he cannot comprehend the ways of city or law enforcement

officials.

“I don’t understand,” he said. “I’m not hurting anybody, I’m not

jeopardizing anybody. They’re just giving me grief for no reason.”

But police say his defiance of the law frustrates and agonizes them.

Officers have been to his house more than 80 times responding to noise

complaints. The local celebrity who’s as well-known for his wild parties

as he is for his penchant for grabbing rebounds, has paid about $8,500 in

fines over a year for noise code violations.

The Orange County district attorney has filed misdemeanor charges

against him for using sound amplifiers on the beach during his May 12

birthday bash without a city permit.

Prompted by that raucous beach party that brought several officers in

riot gear to Rodman’s beachfront Seashore Drive home, the City Council

ventured to amend the noise ordinance to make it easier to prosecute

violators.

The city has also named him in a lawsuit against Josh Slocum’s seeking

to ban live music, dancing and overcrowding in the restaurant that Rodman

has helped redecorate. And to top it all, an Irvine resident sued him

Wednesday for injuries he suffered when punched by a bouncer at the

restaurant in a St. Patrick’s Day brawl.

Why the sudden upheaval against him?

“I really don’t know,” Rodman said Friday, dressed casually in shorts

and a white T-shirt that read “Let Dennis Have Fun!!!” across the front.

The shirt also had a sketch of Rodman’s face portrayed as the devil with

horns, his tongue sticking out. His hair was its original brown color.

He was supervising work at the restaurant, getting ready for a busy

Friday night. Workers vacuumed the carpets and polished glittering disco

balls. Leopard-print couches adorned the interior of the Victorian-style

building. Thick, red velvet curtains hung in the background.

Rodman said the restaurant’s decor is a reflection of himself.

“It’s the kind of person I am,” he said. “When I’m here, it feels like

being at home. Kinda let it all hang out.”

Employees say the restaurant has gone from no business to all business

since Rodman took over early this year.

Devon Wolf, who takes care of VIPs at the restaurant, says to forget

getting in on a Friday night if you’re not Jaime Foxx, LL Cool J, a

member of LIVE or Reggie Jackson.

Rodman, however, clarified that he does not own any part of the

restaurant.

“I just help them out and give them money,” he said. “So you can tell

the guy who has sued me that I’m not involved and the restaurant’s got no

money.”

But he has no kind words for those who call the police about noise.

“People that complain about noise are just jealous and miserable,” he

said. “Come on, this is the beach. People go to the beach to have fun.”

Rodman pointed out that Newport Beach has not had too many celebrities

and that is probably why the city has trouble accepting his wild ways.

“It’s my nature that I move in here and I just light up the city,” he

said. “Yeah, John Wayne lived here too. But he didn’t do anything. He

didn’t move a bone.”

As someone who has been to John Wayne’s parties, Judge Robert Gardner

says he couldn’t agree more with Rodman.

“He was a completely different kind of celebrity,” Gardner said. “His

parties were quiet. We’d talk, have a few drinks. John Wayne was very,

very restrained.”

In its early days, Newport Beach was a “wide open town,” Gardner

recalled.

“We had gambling and bootleggers during Prohibition,” he said. “And at

Easter time, we had the college kids who would get drunk and jam the

streets. But all that was tame compared to Rodman.

“This town wouldn’t have tolerated Rodman even then.”

But Rodman has his supporters in town. Some neighbors complain but

there are also those who say he is a good person and that they have no

problem with him or his parties.

The beach is meant for partying, said Aaron Mason, a resident who

works at The Frog House board shop, just down the road from Rodman’s West

Newport home.

“He lives in Newport and, like anybody else, he should be allowed to

have fun,” he said. “You live on the beach, it’s party town. If you don’t

like it, you should move.”

People close to Rodman believe he is “the most generous and

kindhearted person.”

“He’s the nicest guy I’ve ever met,” Devon Wolf said. “The thing about

him is he never changes, ever.”

That is exactly the problem the city has with Rodman. He never gives

in. Police have asked him to comply with the law time and again, and he

has consistently refused to do so, said Lt. Doug Fletcher of the Newport

Beach Police Department.

“Yes, other people have parties in that area,” Fletcher said of the

West Newport neighborhood. “But once we tell them what the law is, they

listen. Mr. Rodman doesn’t.”

Not that the police have not busted other parties, said Jim Trenton,

the former KROQ disc jockey also known as the Poor Man.

“If you live in Newport, you’ve got to expect the police at your door

when you have a party like that,” Trenton said. “Dennis needs to be smart

about it. He should get his 200 people inside his house and then rage.”

But Trenton added celebrities such as Rodman add color to Newport

Beach.

“I think it’s great he lives here,” he said. “I think more celebs

should leave Malibu for Newport. There are no floods, fires or

landslides, and it’s a better beach.”

But the point is, even in a star-studded world, Rodman shines alone.

The man says he recognizes himself as a “free spirit and a ‘60s kind of

guy.”

He’s happy with who he is.

“I think I’m a cool m***f***,” he said with a laugh. “People would

give anything to be who I am. I’ve done everything I’ve wanted to do.”

And he continues to do so, much to the dismay of city officials, who

Rodman says are “anal” and “picky.”

“These people forget they were young,” he said. “Whoever heard of

someone going to jail because of music? I’ve never heard of anything like

that.

“I think [officials] must reevaluate the situation instead of judging

people and being conservative about these issues.”

Councilman Gary Proctor says he has no problems with parties -- quiet

or loud.

“I understand we’re different from a city like Villa Park,” he said.

“I know we have more parties than traditional communities.”

But an individual’s rights stop where his neighbors’ rights begin,

Proctor said.

“When someone crosses the line and disturbs the peace and quiet of the

community, we have a problem.” he said. “We’re trying to achieve a

reasonable balance between people’s right to have a good time and others’

rights to enjoy their property.”

Rodman, however, says he has no intention of changing his lifestyle.

“I’m not fighting the city here,” he said. “I’m just saying, ‘Give

people a little more freedom.”’