The highlight, if you could call it that, of last night's L.A. Political Roast came when Councilman Paul Koretz appeared on stage in a lion outfit. The suit was on backwards, with the tail facing front, in order to make it appear that he had a giant penis.

If that doesn't strike you as funny, then chances are you are not a City Hall lobbyist. In front of an audience of 800 lobbyists and other political insiders at the Beverly Hilton, it absolutely killed.

The roast, now in its 17th year, revels in its impropriety. The organizers are Arnie Berghoff and Harvey Englander, two self-styled "fat cat" lobbyists, and Englander's nephew, Councilman Mitch Englander. The donors are dubbed "power brokers" and include a who's-who of corporate interests with business before the council. And then, of course, there are the dick jokes.