Shared Darkness

So a man, Frederick Evan Young, dressed as Chewbacca from the Star Wars movies was arrested this past week for allegedly head-butting a tour guide operator in front of Grauman’s Chinese Theater, it’s being reported by Showbuzz/CBS. Even better? When initially asked to stop harassing two young Japanese tourists for money, he supposedly exploded and said, “Nobody tells this wookie what to do,” which I guess is the catch-all, let’s-throw-down loser phrase for Star Wars fans clad as Chewbacca, much like “Do you know who I am?” for celebrities, and “You think you’re better than me?” for drunks and/or rednecks.

I’ve lived in Los Angeles a decade now, and some of these characters — performers is too generous a designation, actually — are the saddest thing around. There are a few skilled mimics or upbeat folks, shaking hands and bringing awe to little kids. But mostly it’s a bitter bunch, these people who stand around in frequently natty costumes, shilling for money. And I have seen some of them react angrily when not compensated for a picture (the origin of this incident), even of the hasty, non-posed variety. It can be aggro panhandling, with capes, boots and the like.

So nice going Frederick. Like hardcore Star Wars devotees didn’t have to catch enough crap without you giving people grade-A bulletin board material like this.