CHANGING TIMES: “Orange County to me is...

CHANGING TIMES: “Orange County to me is mainstream now,” says Mark Russell, humorist and longtime observer of the political scene, who performs at UC Irvine Tuesday (OC Live!). “I don’t know what happened to the John Birch Society, or those billboards that said ‘Impeach Earl Warren.’ That was always the stereotype,” Russell says. “The only vestige of that is Congressman Bob Dornan--’B1 Bob.’ He keeps the spirit alive.”

BEATING ON BOB: Dornan, a conservative Republican from Garden Grove, is used to being targeted by the opposition. A local Democratic group called BeatBob has put out a set of eight trading cards with Dornan’s picture, complete with colorful Dornan quotes and his record. . . . Dornan’s response: “The BeatBob people have everything but a candidate. Really, they aren’t serious about beating me. They’re using my national image to keep their party from bankruptcy.”

REACHING OUT: Since almost the turn of the century, the local Japan America Society has worked to improve relations between the United States and Japan. What better way, its officials decided, than to throw a lavish dinner party for Japan’s new consul general here, Seiichiro Noboru. . . . He’ll also speak at the event--co-hosted by several groups--tonight at the Four Seasons Hotel in Newport Beach. Says a spokesman: “With the political changes in Japan, he’ll have a lot to talk about.”

RIM RAT: Costa Mesa’s Maris Valainis portrayed star basketball player Jimmy Chitwood in the 1986 movie “Hoosiers,” and is still recognized eight years later playing in a Santa Ana recreational league (C1). . . . He’s often asked how he made 12 consecutive jump shots without missing during a scene with his coach (played by Gene Hackman). Valainis said it wasn’t planned, but a production assistant lent a hand by letting the air out of the ball so it wouldn’t rattle around the rim and bounce out.