Those of us who follow politics will certainly recall the two great political careers that were forged in the hot jungles of Peru during the 1987 filming of the 20th Century Fox blockbuster Predator. Jesse Ventura went on to claim governor duties in Minnesota in 1998, while Arnold Schwarzenegger made his way to the same title in California in 2003. However, the spirit of political leadership touched the entire cast that magical summer, and each man left his mark on America's rich political tapestry in his own, special way.
Does being a perennially scary looking black dude make you qualified to preside as mayor over an urban California city? Hell yes it does. Duke built a reputation as a mayor who is tough on crime in Inglewood and beyond.
He spent much of his term in office preparing defense strategies for a hypothetical Predator attack in Inglewood, loosely based on Predator II. He even drew scrutiny by publicly claiming then-governor-elect Jesse Ventura was "soft on predators" for failing to implement a predator contingency plan in Minnesota. Duke's micro-management was chastized in 1998; when a drought hit the city, he immediately issued 250,000 combat knives for water-free shaving purposes.
Nobody could have predicted this would lead to widespread violence in the streets. Sadly and ironically, Duke was killed when his head exploded while inside a hollowed-out sequoia during an Earth Day celebration in 1999. After a lucrative career during the crappy action-movie factory known as the "1980s," Sonny Landham returned to his home state of Nevada intent on bringing his ass-kicking mentality to state government.
Always a man of few words, his entire ad campaign consisted of a five second clip from the 1988 film "Action Jackson" in which he was thrown through a window by Predator co-star Carl Weathers. Nevada voters responded in record numbers. Rarely seen without his signature camouflage vest and headband, Sonny has championed countless causes ranging from camouflage vest tariffs to headband recycling.
Oddly, senator Landham is widely known for being either unwilling or unable to verbally communicate with any of his colleagues in the legislature. Even more amazing is how this fact did nothing to keep him from being elected Senate Majority Leader in 2004. Although Landham is wanted for questioning on several unsolved prostitute homicides in the Carson City area, it's doubtful that this will slow his meteoric rise to power in Nevada state government.
Those of us who follow politics will certainly recall the two great political careers that were forged in the hot jungles of Peru during the 1987 filming of the 20th Century Fox blockbuster Predator.
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