CALIFORNIA ELECTIONS CONGRESS : Fame Can Open a Few Doors for Waite

Hilda Newman was about to bite into her cabbage roll when a murmur rose from the rear of the Senior Center lunchroom. “Look,” whispered one voice, “it’s that fellow from ‘The Waltons.’ ”

Newman, 77, glanced up, and there stood actor Ralph Waite--better known as Papa John Walton on the long-running 1970s television series.

The farm boots and dusty overalls were gone, replaced by a snazzy gray suit and matching loafers, but there was no mistaking that creased face, those bushy eyebrows.

“He was a hero of mine,” Newman gushed as she gazed toward Waite, her fork frozen in midair. “He was such a good father, such a caring man.”

Ralph Waite is used to such adulation, though in the past it was mostly a nuisance. But now, as a Democratic candidate for Congress in Riverside County’s 37th District, the actor’s Hollywood history is the most potent weapon in his campaign arsenal.

“Everywhere I go, people tell me they grew up with me as their father image,” said Waite, 61, who lives in Rancho Mirage. “They tend to want to trust me and listen to me . . . and that’s a real plus.”

Indeed. Though he wants to be viewed as a serious contender and not some celebrity lightweight, Waite realizes that his TV past is vital in his bid to win the Democratic nomination for the congressional seat in June and go on to unseat Rep. Al McCandless, a La Quinta Republican, in November.

The first step--bagging the nomination--does not seem a big worry within the Waite campaign. He easily won the Democratic Party’s official endorsement. And even his opponent in the June 5 primary, paper salesman Jeffrey Jacobs of Moreno Valley, admits that he faces “a monumental struggle” in running against “not just an actor, but an actor who also happened to be a nice guy on TV.”

Toppling McCandless this fall, however, is a very different matter. Is star status enough to enable a Democrat to defeat a four-term incumbent in a district dominated by Republicans? Can Papa Walton win in a region populated by GOP stalwarts like Walter Annenberg?

McCandless, who defeated his last two Democratic opponents by 2-1 margins, does not sound like a man gripped by panic. Still, the congressman concedes that a race against Waite would probably be his toughest since he first won his office in 1982.

“Of all the nominees the Democrats have put forward, I would say he’d probably be the strongest,” said McCandless, 62.

Democratic strategists say that at the least, Waite should bring excitement to the normally sleepy campaign to represent the 37th District, a diverse, fast-growing area that covers nearly all of Riverside County.

Over the past decade, Democrats have mounted little more than token opposition to McCandless, whose name recognition--he is a former Riverside County supervisor--and conservative voting record made him seemingly invulnerable.

But Waite, Democratic leaders say, presents a new opportunity, largely because he starts his bid for office with two assets most rookie candidates lack--a favorable public image and a familiar name.

“Being an actor . . . attracts attention and gets the doors open,” said Tom Jameson, chairman of Riverside County’s Democratic Central Committee. “With Ralph’s name recognition, people are willing to listen to what he has to say.”

They certainly are. Everywhere the actor went one recent campaign day, people seemed happy to see him and eager to hear his spiel.

Still, the question remains whether that will translate into votes. Were those he encountered simply thrilled to have Papa Walton--that kind, sincere, salt-of-the-earth Virginia farmer--in their midst? Or were they truly interested in Ralph Waite’s thoughts on the issues of the day?

For Angie Lopez, an Indio teacher whose Head Start preschool program received a visit from the candidate earlier this month, it was a little of both.

“My face lit up when he walked in, because of what I remember from television,” Lopez said, watching Waite as he practiced the Mexican hat dance with a dozen giggling 4-year-olds. But the candidate’s visit, she added, “tells me something else. He’s concerned about child care, and we need more people like that in Congress.”

“I’m sold,” said Joe Barham after Waite visited the water reclamation plant where he works in Desert Hot Springs. “He’s like his image--a good ol’ country boy.”

Waite himself views his fame “as a beginning,” a foundation for the relationship he hopes to build with the district’s voters.

“Some people tend to vote for a candidate because of his nice smile, or because he sends out good vibes, and I’m sure some people will vote for me because I’m Papa Walton,” Waite said, puffing reflectively on a cigarette between campaign stops. “But I’ve got more to offer.”

A lanky man with an energetic campaign style, Waite was a social worker and Presbyterian minister before launching an acting career. After moving to the desert with his wife, Linda, eight years ago, he helped establish an Indio home for recovering alcoholics and drug addicts and joined the board of a low-income housing coalition. He also volunteers for local environmental causes and has appeared at benefits for AIDS victims.

“I hope the concerned citizen will be aware of all that . . . and will vote for me because of those things as well as for what I’ve accomplished as an actor,” Waite said.

In Washington, some Democratic Party officials are betting the voters will. Staffers with the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee are watching the 37th District race closely and say they will step in later with financial help if Waite’s chances look promising.

“It’s not going to be a cakewalk for him. This is a district where (President) Bush won 60% of the vote in 1988,” said Howard Schloss, a campaign committee spokesman. “But Ralph Waite is a very strong candidate. He’s not some dilettante who walked in at the last minute and decided to run for Congress. He has all the right elements in place.”

Waite’s immediate obstacle remains Jacobs, his Democratic foe.

Although 1990 marks his first run for office, Jacobs, 43, is no starry-eyed novice. He realizes that his tight budget--he plans to spend at most $5,000 on his primary campaign--and lack of name recognition make him a very dark horse.

But he seems to be keeping a sense of humor about the tough odds, and he has by no means given up. In fact, he recently won some free television exposure by demanding equal time from two television stations that aired programs featuring Waite.

“The only good thing about running against somebody famous, if there is anything good, is you can sort of ride their coattails and get attention you wouldn’t get otherwise,” Jacobs said. “The TV thing is one example. Also, People magazine called me the other day. Their story is on Mr. Waite, but if they mention my name, well, a few more people hear about me.”

Jacobs also believes “the jury is still out” on whether Waite’s actor past will help or hurt.

“I’ve talked to a lot of people who wouldn’t vote for him for anything, simply because he’s an actor. Remember,” he added, referring to former President Ronald Reagan, “a lot of Democrats have a bad taste in their mouths when it comes to actors.”

But in one area in particular--fund raising--celebrity status will be a definite plus.

Waite, who estimates he needs 15% to 20% of the Republican vote to become the district’s next congressman, realizes it will take money to reach and win over those folks. His campaign has set a preliminary goal of spending $580,000, and many predict that figure could almost double by November. For Democrats--whose 1988 nominee in the district, Johnny Pearson, spent just $13,500--that is big bucks.

Much of the money will come from the wealthy desert resort area where Waite lives. Campaign manager John Whitehurst plans to tap Waite’s entertainment connections as well. There will be celebrity fund-raisers in Los Angeles and New York, and John-Boy Walton (actor Richard Thomas), as well as every other member of the Walton clan “who’s still alive” will be enlisted for campaign appearances, Whitehurst said.

McCandless declined to reveal what he plans to spend on his campaign. But he did acknowledge it will top the roughly $123,000 spent in 1988.

“I don’t want to give a figure, because that deals with strategy,” McCandless said. “But whatever amount he raises from his Hollywood friends . . . money cannot buy the loyalty, and as an incumbent who has served his constituents, that’s something I have.”