IT'S ANOTHER TALE of the high and mighty brought low; another rise and fall, another city politician up from the neighborhood to statewide power cut down by complex charges of abuse.

We've seen it before, most recently with the now-imprisoned Vincent Fumo.

This time it's John Perzel, long ago dubbed "Billy's Boy" after city Republican boss Billy Meehan snagged him from the now-gone Pavio's Restaurant up in the Great Northeast where Perzel worked as a waiter, then maitre d'.

The late Meehan put Perzel on a path that carried him all the way to Speaker of the House, a post once held by Benjamin Franklin, and positioned him, however briefly, to consider a run for governor.

Today, Perzel faces a different path and the possibility of serving time instead of serving meals.

He's caught in round two of a broad, ongoing probe of legislative corruption, one of 10 Republicans charged yesterday by state Attorney General (and GOP candidate for governor) Tom Corbett.

He faces 82 criminal counts as alleged "architect" of a scheme that spent more than $10 million of taxpayers' money on campaigns. Among the details: that Perzel called constituents "the little people" and used tax dollars to pay for untraceable "dirty trick" phone calls against members of his own party whom he believed crossed him.

He proclaims innocence and labels Corbett's charges political opportunism.

Perzel's never been subtle.

He's known for iron-fisted partisanship, grabbing for power (as in the Parking Authority) and for actions and statements viciously blunt. He's been called "the Darth Vader of the Republican Caucus," a pit bull, a barracuda and, by some, mean as a snake.

First elected in 1978, he became Majority Leader in '95 after Republican Tom Ridge won the governorship and Democrats lost House control. He immediately made news. He angered Latinos by saying in a radio interview that it was "a badge of honor" for young Hispanics to get their girlfriends pregnant. Then he angered African-Americans by sponsoring an amendment to shut down a Frankford Avenue storefront that cashed welfare checks and passed out food stamps.

After narrowly winning reelection in 2000 (by 92 votes out of 25,000 cast) against a strong campaign by Democrat Mark Chilutti, Perzel used his leadership power to cut the city's 62nd Ward, which supported Chilutti, out of his district.

He became Speaker in '03 following the death of long-time Delaware County representative and Speaker Matt Ryan; he lost the post in '07 after Democrats narrowly retook the House.

As Speaker, Perzel angered African-Americans again by answering a Philadelphia Tribune question about blacks employed by the GOP: "Do you want me to hire 50 African-Americans and make them pages like the Democrats do? . . . I want to attract people who can move up to the top, not somebody to go get my soda or my sandwich."

He underscored such anger by opposing the teaching of African-American history in Philadelphia schools, saying, "Most of these kids will never go to Africa."

He helped engineer the shameful '05 legislative pay grab and famously claimed that lawmakers deserved more money because migrant cow milkers in Lancaster County earned $55,000 a-year. (The state Department of Labor and Industry said migrant workers that year topped out at $25,875.)

And while visiting an elementary school in Pittsburgh he was asked by a fourth-grade girl if he came in a limo. He said that he came in a car. A TV reporter - who was covering the event and saw him headed toward a black Lincoln Towne Car with limo plates and a driver - asked, "Why did you lie to that little girl?"

Perzel is known for not answering questions from the press. He now has tougher questions to answer, and how he does determines whether he avoids a fall after his rise.

Send e-mail to baerj@phillynews.com.

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