Bust Shows Seamy Side of Street

For years, Hollywood residents have complained about a gritty swath of Santa Monica Boulevard that is a late-night magnet for transgender and male prostitution.

But it wasn't until last month, when a prominent Hollywood director dressed in drag was arrested on suspicion of soliciting a prostitute on the boulevard, that the area's problems received a wider airing.

According to the LAPD, Lee Tamahori -- the New Zealand-born director of "Mulholland Falls," "Once Were Warriors" and the James Bond movie "Die Another Day" -- was wearing an off-the-shoulder dress, a long black wig and full makeup when he propositioned an undercover vice officer for oral sex near Santa Monica Boulevard and Lodi Place.

The city attorney's office agreed Thursday to dismiss solicitation and loitering charges against the director as part of a plea deal. Tamahori agreed to serve three years' probation and perform community service after pleading no contest to trespassing.

Tamahori's attorney, Mark Geragos, said his client was "pleased with the disposition, and he's back at work." (Variety reported Wednesday that Tamahori will direct Julianne Moore and Nicolas Cage in the science fiction thriller "Next.")

But as Tamahori gets on with his life, residents say their lives continue against the backdrop of blatant open-air solicitations.

"Traditionally, it's been the biggest problem in the La Brea-Highland area," said veteran Hollywood activist Ferris Wehbe.

Longtime residents said there was a time, years ago, when LAPD officers pushed the prostitution problem west into the city of West Hollywood, only to have L.A. County sheriff's deputies push it back east into Hollywood.

Although turf battles among law enforcement agencies are a thing of the past, prostitution has continued to flourish along this several-mile-long strip, where the regulars who ply their trade are recognized by face -- if not name -- in some neighborhoods.

Hollywood vice squad officers say they know most of the regulars along this stretch of Santa Monica Boulevard. Numbers vary, depending on circumstances. On some occasions police have seen as many as 18 prostitutes on one corner; other nights the streets seem empty, LAPD Sgt. Mark Garza said.

Garza said prostitutes in the area include cross-dressing men as well as transsexuals undergoing hormonal or surgical procedures.