Actor shoots for town mayor

Press, 24 February 1986, Page 6

Actor shoots for town mayor

NZPA-AP Carmel, California

Clint Eastwood may be more at ease shooting it out in front of movie cameras than duelling with words, but in his real-life role as candidate for Mayor he squared off against his opponents in their first electoral debate. The cast for the debate before members of the Carmel Republican Women’s Club Included Eastwood, hero of “spaghetti westerns’* and “Dirty Harry” movies, the mayor of Carmel, Mrs Khjurlotte Townsend,

and a businessman, Paul Laub, all registered Republicans. Eastwood, aged 54, went to Carmel 25 years ago. He runs a popular restaurant called The Hog’s Breath Inn. Carmel is a resort town on the Monterey Peninsula, 190 km south of San Francisco.

Eastwood, who said before the debate he bad never made a campaign speech, admitted that he was a political novice and said* he had taken a year off from acting to immerse himself in community affairs, studying

politics rather than scripts. He said he would cut down on his acting if elected on May 8 to govern the 5000-resident city and head the fourmember council. There is no pay. The debate drew an audience of about 200. Much of it focused on problems posed by the hordes of tourists who descend on the scenic seaside community, many of them drawn by the presence of such stars as Eastwood.

Mrs Townsend, aged 61, Mayor for 2 terms,

said 79 per cent of residents who answered a city survey said they were concerned about increases in tourist traffic. “If you want more tourism ... more intrusion of the business community ... more traffic and erosion of community character, you should vote for any of my opponents here,” she said. ;; . ’ Mr Laub, aged 41, said the city’s business was tourism. “Tourists are a God-given bounty. We make them happy and: we 10 them make us

happy,” he added. Eastwood said he would like to see council members “become personally involved with individuals in town to resolve development problems rather than remaining on a pedestal ... dictating to somebody.” Last year, he sued the city after the council rejected his development plans for a commercial building next to his restaurant The suit was settled out of court when the city accepted a compromise plan for a smaller building.