FATHER KNOWS BEST SONS, DAUGHTERS REMEMBER ADVICE FROM DEAR OLD DAD.

Byline: DANA BARTHOLOMEW Staff Writer

Dads.

Their words of wisdom can last a lifetime. Their advice can also lead to some odd, if not comic, mistakes.

Father's Day pays tribute to dear old Dad, the progenitor and patriarch. The right man. The wrong man. The man who, in the best of families, always wanted the very best for his sons and daughters.

Today, we pay tribute to that rich legacy of fatherhood, with some of the best advice from Dad:

Ubaldo Ordaz Jr., 29, North Hills, aspiring Los Angeles Police Department officer.

His father, Ubaldo Ordaz, is a 51-year-old carpenter in Lancaster.

Advice from Dad: ``Don't take your father for granted.''

``I want to do things with my son, so he remembers me,'' said Ordaz, clutching the hand of his 14-month-old son, Justin, at a neighborhood park. ``It doesn't have to be big -- Disneyland. It's the little things, the silly things, that count. That's what you remember your father for.''

Zee Hamith, 24, of Canoga Park.

Father Hamith Cham is a retired business owner from Cambodia.

Advice from Dad: ``To always have your family in mind -- they're No. 1. To never forget about your family.''

Hamith said his stern but loving father explained the importance of family since he was 3.

``With the Asian culture, it's all about discipline.''

Lina Berghoudian, 19, Encino, physical education teacher.

Her father, 54-year-old Zaven Berghoudian, is a jeweler.

Advice from Dad: ``Stay away from pigs -- all men are pigs.''

``The advice has sheltered me; I don't know if it's helped me,'' said Berghoudian, who lives with her parents. ``I have stayed away from pigs. I have never dated, actually.''

Ted Midstokke, 51, Newbury Park, business consultant.

His dad, 76-year-old Merlyn Midstokke, is a retired plumber in Westchester.

Advice from Dad: ``Respect your peers.''

``What was important to him is to make sure you treat people properly,'' Midstokke said. ``It is what I live by -- and what I try to instill in my kids. It's the most important thing. My belief is that it drives many of our basic values in life.''

Steve Whitmore, 55, of Simi Valley, spokesman for Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca.

His father, 84-year-old director and actor James Whitmore of Malibu, stars in ``Tuesdays with Morrie,'' at the Peterborough (N.H.) Players Professional Theatre.

Advice from Dad: ``It is not important what others think of you. It is important what you think of you.''

``In my darkest days, in 1977,'' Whitmore said, ``I decided to quit drinking, to seek a different way of life because (my father) instilled in me a belief that I was worth the effort required to live.''

Linda Adams, 50, of Oak Park, sales director for Mary Kay cosmetics.

Her late father, Alan Best, was a Los Angeles businessman.

Advice from Dad: ``My dad was very generous. He said, `Never arrive anywhere empty-handed.'''

As a result of her dad's counsel, Adams always arrives at friends' with a bouquet or bottle of wine.

``When you are able to receive someone's hospitality, you feel like you are participating,'' Adams said, ``being thankful and being a gracious recipient of their hospitality.''

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Paul Petersen, 60, of Gardena, child actor and former Mouseketeer who recorded the song ``My Dad.''

His late father, ``Doc'' Quimby, worked as a hydraulic engineer at the Lockheed ``Skunk Works'' in Burbank.

Advice from Dad: ``Paul, you were born with two ears and one tongue, so you ought to listen twice as much as you talk.''

``In my mid-40s, when I finally came to my long-term sobriety, I learned to not think that my opinions of things were always right,'' said Petersen, raised in Burbank.

Petersen, best known as Jeff Stone on ``The Donna Reed Show'' (1958-66), founded A Minor Consideration, an advocacy group for child actors. He has also authored 16 books and hosts ``Aging in Los Angeles,'' a cable TV talk show.

< The Rev. Zedar E. Broadous, 58, Pacoima, pastor of social concerns at the Calvary Baptist Church of Pacoima.

His father, the late Rev. Dr. Hillery T. Broadous, founded Calvary Baptist Church of Pacoima and was the father of 10 children.

Advice from Dad: ``One of the things he said, out of the blue while we were driving down the street, `You have to support your brother.'''

``Over the years,'' said the younger Broadous, ``I've taken it to mean `Support those people around me' -- my brothers and sisters who are trying to do the right thing.''

Broadous is past president of the San Fernando Valley Chapter of the NAACP and serves on the Los Angeles County Commission on Human Relationships.

Army Cpl. Wes Pennington, 28, Van Nuys.

Father Jerry Pennington, 60, of Van Nuys, is a retired high school athletic coach.

Advice from Dad: ``Keep your head down, keep your powder dry and keep smiling, because it's always going to get worse.''

Pennington said his father has repeated the advice since he enlisted three years ago in the 4th Infantry Division. On Friday, he embarked on a third overseas tour with the 101st Airborne Division in Afghanistan.

Vahe Berberian, 50, Sherman Oaks, writer, actor, comedian.

Berberian's father, 93-year-old Raffi Berberian, is a retired draftsman, book editor and bibliophile in Sherman Oaks.

Advice from Dad: ``Always mix the beneficial -- what's good for you -- and the pleasurable.''

The advice, given to him since he was a boy, was resented at first, then became accepted wisdom.

``If you're doing something just for pleasure, think of what you're going to gain from it,'' Berberian said. ``And if you're doing something for pleasure -- reading a book, traveling, painting, writing -- think of what you can learn from it.''

Maribel De La Torre, 35, San Fernando, City Council member.

Father Manuel Montanez, 59, is an electrical contractor in San Fernando.

Advice from Dad: ``To always be responsible in what we do -- to know right from wrong -- because the decisions we make don't just impact us, but those around us.''

``So we always looked (to buy) the worst house in San Fernando,'' De La Torre said, ``so that we could fix it up and create a better community.''

De La Torre, whose sister is state Assemblywoman Cindy Montanez, said her father also counseled his six children that before you can learn to love anybody, you must learn to love yourself.

Hendy Dody, 25, Canoga Park, father.

Father Yahya Dody, 46, is a nurse in Indonesia.

Advice from Dad: ``Respect others, especially your elders.''

``I always say, `Mister,' or `Missus,' or `Sir' or `Ma'am, excuse me,' a lot, and `Thank you,''' Dody said. ``You know what? It's all about respect -- you gotta give it. My dad gave me that.''

Aram Mardikian, 43, Valencia, software consultant.

His father, 73-year-old Mardoun Mardikian, is a retired auto mechanic in Glendale.

Advice from Dad: ``Stay in school.''

Mardikian was a freshman at California State University, Northridge, when his father told him not to drop out.

``He always wanted us to get an education,'' Mardikian said, ``Without education, you can't do anything. I'm very grateful to my dad.

``My kids are going to get the same advice.''

Roy Romer, 77, Los Angeles, superintendent of the Los Angeles Unified School District and former three-term governor of Colorado.

His father, the late Irvin Romer, was a rancher and elevator operator in Holly, Colo.

Advice from Dad: ``That was good, but you can do better. Try again.''

Although his father's advice has served him well, he said he prefers to advise his children and grandchildren not with words, but by example.

``It held me to a higher standard of performance with every act that I did,'' said Romer, the father of seven children and 18 grandchildren. ``It wasn't harsh. It was, `You don't know what you can do yet; keep trying.'''

Annie G. Reed, Glendale, associate dean of extension and outreach for Valley College.

Her late father, Jack Goldman of Atlantic City, N.J., was a Pearl Harbor veteran and piano teacher famous for his ``Bumble Boogie.''

Advice from Dad: ``Always have an alibi.''

``I'm like, `Why, Daddy?' He said, `Because you never know when the police may call you and you need a witness,''' Reed said. ``He never did anything wrong in his life -- I think he watched too much (Alfred) Hitchcock.''

Reed said she still makes sure someone knows where she is at all times.

And ``I'm always looking at the ground for money, because he taught me that, too.''

Rabbi Steven Jacobs, 67, Woodland Hills, retiring this month from Kol Tikva in Woodland Hills.

His late father, Israel ``I.J.'' Jacobs, was an insurance salesman in Boston.

Advice from Dad: ``Find a woman to share your life. Become a father, and become a grandfather. It's the ultimate.''

Jacobs grew up in Boston, where he mostly saw his Orthodox Jewish father in temple on the Sabbath and at baseball games at Fenway Park. He now takes his own grandchildren to services and baseball games.

``Every day should be a Father's Day; this should not be an exclusive holiday,'' said Jacobs, mindful of those with bad or abusive fathers as well as the fathers of 2,500 servicemen and women killed in Iraq. ``This should not be an exclusive holiday. There are people on this Father's Day who are suffering beyond belief.''

Alan Rivas, 35, Woodland Hills, clerk at Circle K.

Father Douglas Rivas, 58, lives in Costa Rica.

Advice from Dad: ``He said to laugh. I laugh at myself, and that's the best.''

``It's easy,'' Rivas said. ``I always see the positive. Even if I see something wrong, I laugh. It makes life lighter, and easier. When you laugh, you break the ice.''

Hamad Naghshbandi, 18, Northridge, Pierce College student.

His father, 56-year-old Ali Naghshbandi, is a businessman and accountant in Valencia.

Advice from Dad: ``Follow your heart; don't let other people influence you. Don't let people bring down your hopes and dreams.''

``My dad has probably been my worst critic,'' Naghshbandi said. ``But I've the fire of his advice to make me succeed. I've always strived to be better than my father. My father is a great man. I want to be better than that.''

Zima Pakzad, 26, Henderson, Nev., studying for her medical boards in Woodland Hills.

Her father, 55-year-old Ali Pakzad, owns a business in Henderson.

Advice from Dad: ``Never give up, because life is always a challenge.''

``I think it guides you in the right direction,'' Pakzad said over a medical textbook. ``Always think positive, shoot for the moon, so you'll end up amongst the stars.''

A good person, he told her, is someone who has two P's and two R's -- politeness, punctuality, respect and responsibility.

dana.bartholomew(at)dailynews.com

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CAPTION(S):

7 photos

Photo:

(1 -- color) Ubaldo Ordaz Jr. has taken his father's words of wisdom -- ``Don't take your father for granted'' -- to heart, making sure he spends time with his own son, 14-month-old Justin.

Tina Burch/Staff Photographer

(2 -- color) HAMITH

(3 -- color) BERGHOUDIAN

(4 -- color) MIDSTOKKE

(5 -- color) ADAMS

(6 -- color) MARDIKIAN

(7 -- color) MARDIKIAN