The third-party hopefuls: Who knew!

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 4, 2012

Baltimore’s Vermin Supreme: Who knew that Vermin Supreme had those Baltimore roots?

We certainly didn’t. We first encountered Vermin during the 2000 New Hampshire primary. We were there on the Hotline’s dime—although, in a brush with greatness, we also spoke to that Concord High School class which was fighting back, all by itself, against the Love Canal swindle.

The AP mocked them for their efforts. For details, just read Chapter 6.

Vermin was on the ballot, of course, running on a memorable platform: It’s too hot in the summer and too cold in the winter.

So said Vermin Supreme. He was our pal Tim Howe’s favorite.

As the City Paper has now revealed in this cover-story profile, Vermin’s roots are right here in Baltimore. Indeed, Vermin was booking shows in this city at the same time we were! In our own sphere, we booked Roseanne Barr in 1986—and we passed on Dana Carvey over a difference of $250. (In fairness to ourselves, we were offering more than we usually paid because he was such a fabulous act. He wasn’t well-known at the time.)

Vermin was booking a different species of act, as the profile explains.

We saw Vermin on C-Span a few weeks ago in a New Hampshire candidates’ forum. Vermin spotted the dumbness a long time ago.

Most of us are still out there buying.