From Marcelo PEPPO Melison...
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"About "Rumpy"... The correct spelling of his name is PRYSTANSKI. There is a nice article about him in the first issue of the Canadian magazine "The Funny Paper", page 20, Summer edition, July 2000... Wait a minute: according to the article, tomorrow, June 5, it would be his sixtieth birthday !!!. Is that a coincidence or what?. (The article says that he passed away in November 1993, and that he was born in what is now Thunder Bay, northwestern Ontario)."
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Thank you very much for the info! What a strange coincidence. He must be looking down and reading the blog ; )
It gives me great pleasure to wish Mr. Roger "Rumpy" Prystanski a very, very Happy 60th Birthday by posting this Bill Ballantine pen & ink of him (cropped from a drawing of the entire Clown College class of 1969) from Bill's book CLOWN ALLEY.
Happy Birthday Rumpy! The Garden show just hasn't been the same without you.
If you get the chance, please say hello to the rest of the Alley up there for us and tell them to stop by too!
Several years ago I was announcing on Garden Brothers summer season because Ian was having mysterious vocal problems. It was for a few months and my family also came along as did our 8 ponies.
ReplyDeleteWe arrive at the building in Thunder Bay and Ian tells me that this was Rumpy's hometown. It turns out that Rumpy and Paul Shaffer, the musical director of the LATE SHOW WITH DAVID LETTERMAN were in the same graduating class of the Thunder Bay high school.
After several months and a multitude of doctor visits it was revealed that Ian's vocal problems were caused by mold in the back of his elegantly appointed coach.
There was a small leak and water got into the inner panelling which resulted in the airborn particles that were inhaled into his lungs.