Brown Presses His ‘Guerrilla’ Approach : Candidate: His underfinanced campaign has acquired a certain polish as it struggles through its highs and lows.

Was that really former California Gov. Edmund G. (Jerry) Brown Jr. at the helm of a slick gala in Los Angeles Thursday night for his presidential campaign?

The last time Brown attempted anything so extravagant was during his ill-fated 1980 presidential race, when he collaborated with director Francis Ford Coppola on a loopy high-tech rally in Madison, Wis., so disastrous that wags still recall it as “Apocalypse Wisconsin.”

But Thursday night’s fund-raiser for 1,500 enthusiastic supporters at the Scottish Rite Auditorium on Wilshire Boulevard went off almost without a hitch--from the visually spectacular multiracial church choir that opened the proceedings to the testimonials from such celebrities as actresses Talia Shire and Bonnie Bedelia. Only once--when actor Martin Sheen introduced Brown by asking the audience to hold hands so he could lead them in prayer--did the evening threaten to become the inspiration for a “Doonesbury” cartoon.

Brown was at the top of his form, impassioned but eloquent, angry but controlled--more laser beam than moonbeam--as he fired off denunciations of the political Establishment, quoted John Adams and George Washington, and recounted the stories of New Hampshire voters rolled over by the recession.

“That’s not the America I was born to believe in,” he declared after telling the audience about a New Hampshire family facing the loss of its home. “That’s what we’re here to change.” It was a high moment for a campaign that has also seen its share of low points. Like last Monday, for example.

Seeking volunteers to gather the signatures required for a spot on the New York primary ballot, Brown agreed to an interview with New York-based shock-radio disc jockey Howard Stern, whose nationally syndicated FM morning show commands large audiences in several markets.

While Brown tried to deliver his political pitch, Stern buzzed around him with irreverent one-liners. At one point, he asked Brown if he expected to date “a whole different caliber of woman” as President.

Brown resisted taking the bait--”You can’t treat women like they’re some kind of object” he interjected at one point--before finally giving up. But he went back on the show two days later, only to hear Stern ask him if any of the “girls” answering his campaign’s 800 number “talk to you about your fantasies.”

Such improbable encounters may be the price Brown pays for trying to define new ways of reaching voters. “It is very hard to get attention from the media, so we are creating our own media,” says campaign manager Jodie Evans.

Polls in New Hampshire--site of the nation’s first primary Feb. 18--show him near the bottom of the pack and pundits have refused to take his White House bid seriously. But Brown can point to signs of success for his “guerrilla” approach to presidential campaigning--which emphasizes appearances on talk radio and cable interview programs usually ignored by national candidates and relentless promotion of the 800 number through which supporters can contact his campaign.

Through the end of 1991, Brown raised $519,207, less than his competitors but a considerable sum for a campaign accepting contributions only of $100 or less. Each of the other four major Democratic candidates are accepting contributions up to the legal maximum of $1,000. Brown recently filed for another $159,713 in matching funds based on money he raised in January; Thursday night’s rally raised another $40,000.

Through this week, Brown had attracted donations from 22,339 individual contributors--a figure that compares favorably with his rivals. Overall, Evans says, the campaign has received over 103,000 calls on its 800 number; the lines lit up, aides say, after Brown’s appearances on the Stern show.

What’s not yet apparent, critics say, is whether Brown can build a political organization capable of transforming that interest into votes--or significantly expand his appeal beyond those in his audiences disaffected by politics-as-usual.

Though details are often still sketchy, Brown has begun to fill in the gaps in his agenda, aggressively promoting a new 13% flat tax that would replace the current federal system (leaving exemptions only for charitable contributions, rent and home mortgage payments). He also urges massive efforts to retrofit the nation for greater energy conservation and to develop new fuel-efficient automobiles. To underline his commitment to conservation, Brown was driven to the Thursday night rally in an electric-powered car.

At a press briefing before the rally, Brown insisted he would “do much better in New Hampshire” than expected; a USA Today/CNN/Gallup survey released Friday showed him at 8%, tied for fourth in the five-man field with Iowa Sen. Tom Harkin.

Brown also has made clear that regardless of where he finishes in New Hampshire, he plans to remain in the race for the long haul. He can afford to. Though his fund raising is modest, so are his expenses: He has only seven paid staffers, and keeps down his bills by bunking on the road at the homes of supporters.

“As you can see,” says Evans, “that means you can go on forever.”