THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, October 29, 1994 TAG: 9410290224
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A11 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Notebook
SOURCE: BY DAVID M. POOLE, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Short : 50 lines
The polarizing presence of Republican Senate nominee Oliver L. North was on full display Wednesday night at the Vienna Halloween parade.
The former Iran-Contra figure was greeted by a chorus of cheers and jeers as he strolled down Maple Avenue.
``All right Ollie!''
``Lock up all felons!''
``Go Ollie!''
``You disgraced the uniform!''
``Ollie!''
``Raise your right hand.''
``Good luck, Ollie!''
``North, Never.''
The familiar gap-toothed grin never left North's face, but he appeared more tentative than in similar appearances in downstate communities where his defiance of Congress has made him a genuine folk hero.
North made a few brief forays into the crowd, but most of the time he kept to the middle of the street.
The Northern Virginia crowd that gave North such a mixed reception seemed to energize Democratic incumbent Charles S. Robb.
Robb, who in most parades waves from an open convertible like a visiting potentate, plunged into the crowd like a whirling dervish.
The crowd received him warmly. There were no taunts in the three blocks that a reporter followed him.
The reception did nothing to dampen Robb's hopes for a large margin in the voter-rich Washington suburbs to offset North's downstate support.
The two candidates never encountered each other at the parade, though before it started they traded barbs.
When asked if he had a costume in mind for Halloween, Robb said, ``If I wanted to scare the daylights out of everyone I would dress as my opponent and give the voters two unpalatable choices.''
North passed on the costume question, but motioned to a nearby float that contained a smashed BMW that conveyed a high school group's warning about drinking and driving.
``A car wreck - that's Chuck Robb,'' North said.
KEYWORDS: U.S. SENATE RACE VIRGINIA CANDIDATE by CNB