59th District California State Assembly member from 1963 to 1967. California senator from 1967 to 1976. Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1977 to 1997.
Member of the Socialist Party and active in the Populist movement. Reporter for the Los Angeles Record, editor of EPIC News, and a commissioner on the Los Angeles Board of Public Works.
Trade union leader and international representative for the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE). President of the Motion Picture Alliance for the Preservation of American Ideals and vice-chairman of the Council Against Communist Aggression.
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1973 to 1979. Member of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors from 1979 to 1980 and 1992 to 2008.