I spent election night editing articles from the field and posting them on Pavement Pieces and headed home around 3 am. I was half way homA raucous going on in front of Walgreens on 14th street and 4th Ave. lured me over. About 50 people were gathered around newspaper holders that were being used as drums. Girls were dancing on top of phone booths, trucks were honking their horns, and a petit Asian woman appeared out of no where with an impromptu violin solo. New York had exploded over the excitement of Barack Obama's win.
A few hundred yards away in the heart of Union Square a similar scene was taking place when I heard the crowd begin to chant, "speech, speech, speech." Louis Ortiz had arrived. He was dressed in a suit with a flag pin on his lapel. He looked strikingly like Obama and the crowd went crazy for him. Within five minutes the dozens of police lining the square dispersed the crowd, obviously concerned over the excitement Ortiz's presence might have lead to.
Luckily, I caught up with and interviewed him before he headed home to the Bronx. He is a 37-year-old Verizon employee who is looking forward to launching an acting career and has already signed with the talent agency, Ugly New York. Last week, Ortiz auditioned for a guest spot on HBO's Flight of the Conchords. Listen to his interview here.
Below is a picture of Ortiz and Matt Lauer.
