Elder Rodman Rides Son’s Coattails To Bank Father Of ‘The Worm’ Charges $10,000 For Interviews

Philander Rodman Jr. has not seen his son Dennis for 26 years. That’s not stopping the former U.S. Air Force serviceman from cashing in on his son’s fame.

Philander is asking $10,000 for interviews - and getting it from at least one network.

“Don’t talk to me. Talk to my manager,” he says with a firm handshake.

The fast-talking 56-year-old owns the run-down “Full House” bar on a street corner outside the gate of the giant former Clark Air Base.

Since the base closed in 1991, Angeles’ once-bustling hotels and bars have faded, but remain the home of former American servicemen - many with few other options - who opted to stay on after their discharges.

His business manager is his friend, Bruce McTavish, a New Zealander who owns the Four Seasons steak house inside the Clark Special Economic Zone, the industrial center being built on the former air base.

“He noticed that his time is being consumed giving all these interviews and then getting nothing out of it,” says McTavish, who has been handling the new celebrity’s public appearances for about a month.

Philander’s first “managed” appearance was as guest at a street basketball exhibition game sponsored by Nike, for which he received gift vouchers and sneakers. Then came offers from a group in Chicago for exclusive book rights and a proposal to endorse a local cellular telephone operator, McTavish says.

On Wednesday, he signed a $10,000, one-month exclusive “consultancy” for Extra, an American television show that has featured his son several times.

Not bad for a man who abandoned his first wife and son more than 2-1/2 decades ago.

In an interview in June, Philander expressed his pride and support for the “The Worm,” his cross-dressing son.

“To me, he is not a bad boy,” he said. “He is like me, the things he do … if he wants to color his hair green, purple or whatever, I mean, I can’t see anything wrong with it. He wants to have a tattoo, that’s his own.”

Reports say Philander lives by his name, with 27 children so far from two former marriages, including Dennis’ mother, two current Filipino wives, and other “extra-curricular activities.”

One child from his second marriage, Phil Rodman, plays basketball for the University of Idaho.

Philander’s bar has on display a well-worn copy of his son’s best-selling book, “Bad as I Wanna Be,” smudged around the edges of the pages from the countless times he has shown it to friends and customers.

A page that is one of his favorites shows a picture of Dennis and his former girlfriend, Madonna.

“Hooo! Dennis is a lucky boy,” he was once heard saying.