Fierce moves
By NORA SORENA CASEY Special to the Daily Press
WILSHIRE BLVD. — On a daily basis, thousands of motorists drive on 11th and Wilshire and stare at the man on the corner, holding a sign and dancing like a madman.
His name is Philip Parks, someone who enjoys making policemen smile and has a strong tendency to speak in rhyme. When Parks puts on his costume and heads out to the street corner he becomes “Rental Man.”
Parks wears a red cape, the standard Westside Rentals “Rent Me” shirt, black and red striped shorts, boots and a huge grin. Behind him is his stereo, blasting his favorite tunes. He holds a Westside Rentals Parks dances between six and eight hours a day to advertise for Westside Rentals. On Sundays he heads to Costa Mesa to keep grooving. His enthusiasm seems unlimited. He dances rain or shine, and regardless of the hour he never seems to let up or slow down. Some cars cheer him on, some jeer and a few don’t even notice him but Parks never lets them get in the way of his rhythm. But beneath the dancing machine exterior is a man who has finally landed the perfect job.
Although Parks has only been employed by Westside Rentals for the past two months, his passion for dancing stems from his childhood. Growing up in Seal Beach, Parks danced frequently — at any venue he could find. He danced so much that his parents finally sent him to military school to get some discipline. They were concerned because he spent so much time dancing on street corners trying to get attention.
After military school, Parks went to Pasadena City College and Glendale College, where he continued with his passion by taking jazz, ballet and modern dance classes.
However, during his year at the Army Navy Academy, Parks was forbidden to dance. He said he feels that the excess discipline just pent up his energy and perhaps that’s why at 33-years-old, Parks is still dancing on street corners, now trying to get the attention of prospective apartment rental customers.
Parks stopped dancing for a few minutes to sit down with the Daily Press to discuss a life of dancing.
When did you begin dancing? “I started dancing in the Boy Scouts when I was 9. I did like a 10-minute rap, freestyle rap, and I started dancing for all the dudes and they all loved me out there. Then I did a one-minute rap and dance for a drama class. They liked it so much they wanted me to do it for every class. I was the only in one class but they all wanted to check out the action. I used to dance a lot at Los Alamitos basketball games, football games and Laker games at the forum. My goal — and I finally got it — was I got on the big tron, the big tron,‘cause I had it going on, the big tron where everyone saw me and was checking out my moves.”
How did you get this job? “I was discovered (dancing) at a basketball game. I’ve been noticed at basketball games, not really discovered, and I’ve been on TV a few times but I’ve never been offered a job like this. I didn’t expect anything, that’s probably why I hadn’t. I didn’t have a big tip jar outside the basketball games trying to get money. I was just doing it for fun.”
What was your former profession? “I was in the military in the early ‘90s. I’m glad I’m not in it now ‘cause there’s a war going on. It’s not worth it.”
What did you think of the military? “Good for discipline, bad for killing and taking people’s lives in the war. The war is the worst thing about the military, the best thing is discipline and teamwork. But I’m not in the military now, so I don’t have to worry about the war, there’s enough of a war outside. A war of words.”
What is your attitude towards your job? “It’s good exercise. I get kind of tired of the treadmill at the gym so it’s a good cardio workout. It’s a good way to get advertising. It’s hard to get everyone’s attention, but if you can get smiles on people’s faces and get a few people to come in here and there you’re doing pretty good. Every job you do at the very beginning is going to be hard, or it’s not worth it. So the road is a long and winding road, and the road can be tough at times but if you persevere and you keep working hard you will win it. Like a basketball game in the fourth quarter, you will come back and win it.”
Do you exercise off the job? “I do a lot of abs, because I want people to take me seriously like catching cabs, you know. I work on my boulder shoulders, treasure chest, work on my wings so maybe I can get a lady to take me to an Angles game someday for free. I work my guns, (he flexes his biceps) registered guns, so then I can show a lot of people out there that I’m a lot of fun and strong. I work on my arms so I can bring a lot of people more excitement than lucky charms. That’s why I have a look that’s fresh off the farm.”
What do you eat to keep you going? “Organic, I mostly eat organic. And California Chicken Cafe, it’s the No. 1 food in LA, all the way. Um, and I like Whole Foods, it puts me in a good mood, and it makes me one major healthy dude, prevents me from being rude. I’m eating organic because I want to make it big like the movie ‘Titanic.’ And if I want to get discovered and become gigantic in a famous way I think it’s good to go healthy. It gonna make you feel real wealthy. It makes me dance better. It makes my moves better, ‘cause this one time I ate salad for breakfast and I was dancing all day on this one salad alone... I don’t overeat, you know, like the song from Dave Matthews band, I don’t eat too much and I don’t drink too much. He might, but he has the right. I’m just trying to keep everything in moderation because I haven’t made it real famous yet, but I’m working my way up the ladder.”
What is the public’s attitude towards you? “Some people are making fun of me out there, some people are having fun with me. It’s a mixture, like a cocktail. It’s a mixture. I try not to listen to people who are just negative, who are haters — ‘cause that’s just going to hurt my moves, my dance moves. So I try to keep positive music out there you know, create positive vibes. You know, Chicago, Michael Franks, Al Jarreau, keeping that glow, create that good glow.”
What role does the outfit play in Rental Man?
“Superhero. To get an identity going as Rental Man, because if you say you’re Rental Man but you don’t have any costume you’re kind of lying to the public in a way because they’re not going to believe you. You have to have some symbol to symbolize the outfit. When I first started I was just dancing with the sign but people are going to get bored after a while if you do something repetitively. That’s why you always have to switch things up to keep people interested. Because it’s the same people going down the street everyday, you gotta get ‘em, you gotta do some shock value. It’s not an easy thing to do.
“You gotta keep a balance there. You want shock value but you want to be professional. You want to do it at the same time. You want to be effective to bring in the business and you want to have fun at the same time. It’s just a balance and I’m still trying to perfect that balance. It’s an ongoing process but the more I do it, the better I’ll get at it. It’s like a basketball game, if you don’t shoot the ball you won’t score. If you want the ball enough you got to rebound, you got to make war inside the paint, and you gotta take the punishment out there. You gotta take the good with the bad. But I take everything with a grain of salt because I know there’s always gonna be a few negative things. But as long as most of it’s positive I can’t complain about it. I don’t want to complain at all.
“I’m trying to have a complaint-free job, which is difficult to do in LA but the less I complain the more it’s gonna be pleasurable pain. People may think I’m acting insane but it’s good on the job as long as you’re on and if you’re not on the job you’re sane so you balance it all out. You’ll be a complete normal human being that has a fun lifestyle.”
Have you had any unusual incidents occur at work?
“I had some guy spit boba at me through a straw. He’d been working as a construction worker. He didn’t have a license plate number so I couldn’t get him but I was pissed. I was kinda mad — I was mad for a minute but then I just forgot it and moved on. Always there are people who are gonna throw things at you. I’ve had some people try to throw water bottles at me but nothing serious yet, hopefully it’ll stay that way. I always wonder ‘I hope nothing happens’ in the back of my mind because it can be dangerous. There are some wackos out there that will do things to try to ruin a person’s day.”
What are your likes and dislikes about Santa Monica?
“There are some snooty people here I have to admit. They’re pretty snooty, they need more personality. They’re driving around like zombies, like every day and night is Halloween... That’s what I’m trying to do — I go out there and twist and shout trying to wake them up, let them loose, you know, try to put a little light into their spirit. Even if it’s just a shred of light maybe it’ll expand, like a disease but in a good way, maybe it’ll multiply. It’ll multiply into something that’ll put them at ease.
“I’m trying to make it easier for people, I’m trying to connect people, to get people connected. You know, if they’re looking for an apartment they’re looking to feel motivated to really try to get there and get an apartment ‘cause it takes work, it takes hard work to find a good place... So my goal is to be funny but still be serious, you know, kinda mix it together so people will know that I’m still professional but that I have a personality as well. The best of both worlds. It can happen in business, and if every business had that they would be much more successful.
“Balance you know, fun and business. Some people are too much business and some people are too much fun and they never find a common ground. The right communication. I mean, the job does get tough at times, but it’s the time of the year, summer, and it should get easier. I told myself that if I can start this job in the summer and stick with it then things should only get better. It’s like the song from Howard Jones, things can only get better.
“I wanna make it happen, I want to put my dreams into action and this is a good way of starting it... I’m on a mission, I’m trying to build the perfect beast, to bring nothing but peace through music, peace through a business that’s in motion. I don’t want fame for my selfish reasons, I want fame to help inspire people to be better. But I don’t want to do it for just my selfish desires because that’s not a true soul on fire. That’s just like being a liar, it’s all about the truth and I don’t want anything to be uncouth.”
What is your dream for your job and your dancing?
“Just to go from zero to superhero. Because before I felt like a zero, nobody wise but finance wise, and not really having a direction or going anywhere. I’ve lost a lot of friends and relationships because I didn’t have a job. But this job I want people to know that I have a job that’s not trivial. A lot of men and women here — I’m not a sexist — I believe in general, men and women believe my job is trivial. They think I’m a joke. I don’t mind people thinking I’m a joke on the job, but I just don’t want people thinking I’m a joke in my life. I want to have fun on the job, and I think people take their lives so seriously that their whole life is almost a joke because they don’t know how to let loose, and I’m letting loose everyday on the job. I don’t know hardly any jobs where you can pick your own music and have fun. And not worry and be happy. Especially starting out like that. I don’t feel like I’m a robot out there I feel like I’m my own human, my own person.”
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on September 4, 2006. Read the original PDF.