Travel Journal

I was at Hot Topic, and was ambushed by a reporter. This is the article that came of it. No mention of me though.

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June 9, 2005, 9:04AM

Napoleon Dynamite star puts Pedro in DJ seat
By LANA BERKOWITZ
Houston Chronicle

Singer Joe Nichols showed off his “Vote for Pedro” T-shirt at the Country Music Awards last month. In Deer Park for a recent concert appearance, Ryan Cabrera said his favorite animal was a liger, and he would choose “Pedro” if he decided to change his name. Dennis Quaid sported a “Vote for Pedro” T-shirt earlier this year when he visited the The Daily Show to promote In Good Company.

Loyal, quiet Pedro Sanchez is the perfect best friend especially for Napoleon Dynamite. And, who wouldn’t want the unassuming underdog to defeat the most popular girl in high school in the election for class president?

[More:]

After Jared Hess’s film premiered a year ago, Napoleon, Kip, Deb, Uncle Rico and Pedro became cult cinematic icons like Donnie Darko and The Big Lebowski’s Dude, and the film’s dialog began to be quoted ad nauseam. A modest six-figure production earned almost $50 million at the box office, and the film has been a popular DVD.

Efren Ramirez, who plays Pedro, usually got stereotypical homeboy roles until the independent film turned around his life. He says fans related to Napoleon Dynamite’s quirky characters, who are all social misfits.

“Somewhere in your lifetime you were once that person,” Ramirez said.

Among the outcasts:

Napoleon is the ultimate high-school geek. He lives with his grandmother, who owns a llama, and 31-year-old brother. Napoleon stores tater tots in his pockets, plays tetherball usually alone and draws ligers, a mix of lions and tigers,

Unemployed brother Kip chats online all day with babes.

Shy Deb, with her side ponytails and puffy sleeves, provides the romantic interest.

Uncle Rico, a door-to-door salesman, dreams of reliving his high school football days.

And there’s Pedro, the new kid in school who quickly becomes Napoleon’s sidekick.

Napoleon is pretty far out there, but Pedro is more like us. Napoleon moonwalks through life unconcerned about others’ opinions, but Pedro has second thoughts after he shaves his head. He was the quiet, watchful kid who wanted a date and to be class president, and had the guts to pursue his dreams. His mustache, Western shirts and awesome bicycle didn’t get him points with the cool kids, but his unwavering friendship won over audiences.

“I like him the best,” Denise Seury, 24, of Angleton said of Pedro. “He was cool and collected and offers his protection.”

A lot of people admire Pedro’s stand-up attitude, said Mary Hessong, store manager at Hot Topic. The Baybrook Mall store still has trouble keeping “Vote for Pedro” T-shirts in stock.

“Pedro was really cool. He would stand up for the protection of other nerds, and he had facial hair,” said assistant manager Melissa Cain.

Friends Macee Christensen, 13, of Webster, and Chelsea Leal, 17, of Santa Fe, own copies of the film and claim to have watched it 12 times.

“I liked Pedro’s expression,” Christensen said, “because he didn’t have any.”