19 Facts About Bill Paparian

Bill Paparian was a member of the Pasadena City Council from 1987 to 1999, and a Green Party candidate for Congress in 2006.

Bill Paparian has been known throughout his political career as an outspoken advocate of controversial causes, including ending the trade embargo against Cuba.

Bill Paparian was raised in the Sherman Oaks section of the San Fernando Valley in the 1960s.

Bill Paparian is the son of an Armenian immigrant mother and second generation Armenian-Irish-American father from Rhode Island.

Bill Paparian first achieved notoriety in 1987, when he unexpectedly unseated former Mayor Jo Heckman for her seat on the Board of City Directors, when her reelection was considered to be a safe bet.

Bill Paparian has been known throughout his political career for a "go-it-alone" streak.

In 1997, the Los Angeles Times published a profile of Bill Paparian, focusing on his independence and penchant for attracting controversy.

Bill Paparian suggested that his advocacy for unpopular causes was the product of "an intolerance for intolerance" and his upbringing in a family of Armenian immigrants.

Bill Paparian known for his efforts to normalize relations between the United States and Cuba.

Bill Paparian has traveled frequently to Cuba to coordinate the delivery of medical supplies and equipment and has worked with the Cuban Council of Churches and Havana's pediatric hospitals.

In July 1996, Bill Paparian visited Cuba with his family in a trip paid for by the Cuban government.

Bill Paparian "received accolades and applause" in Cuba for his urging the US government to end the trade embargo against Cuba.

Bill Paparian has been an outspoken critic of the People's Republic of China.

In July 1996, Mayor Bill Paparian welcomed the Dalai Lama to City Hall and presented him with a key to the city, ignoring concerns expressed by the State Department and the government of the People's Republic of China, that there could be dire consequences for the relationship between the United States and China.

In what the Los Angeles Times called "one of his best-known moments," Bill Paparian led Pasadena's opposition to the state's use of helicopters to spray pesticides to eradicate the Mediterranean fruit fly.

Bill Paparian received national media attention when he passed an ordiance outlawing formation-flying at low altitudes, and dispatched a Pasadena police helicopter to issue a citation to the state's pesticide-spraying aircraft.

In 1996, Bill Paparian, then serving as Pasadena's Mayor, drew fire over a fund-raising "smoker" he hosted on the Rose Bowl's turf.

In 1997, Bill Paparian became engaged in a legal battle with the Pasadena Star News.

Bill Paparian sued the paper, charging that the reporter had used confidential credit records in an effort to embarrass him.