full circles
When I was a student down at SLU I heard stories about a strange street performer based down in the Central West End. This performer was a black man who would twirl a baton in time to music only he could hear - he always had on headphones - and marched through the streets of the Central West End in costume or cross-dressing. When I hear about this I thought it seemed too odd for someone to have made up whole cloth. Eventually I saw him for myself and everything they said was true! Even by my liberal standards of strange it was out of the ordinary. The man was focused, though, and he was good. According to a card he had handed out to people that I got to see, he was "Bob Jamerson, Ambassador of Mirth." I appreciate someone shaking things up a little bit, bringing a surreal moment to the otherwise mundane activity of the day.
Other people in St. Louis didn't appreciate it so much. Some people reacted with inflamed homophobia, and some felt that he was just too strange. These people considered him a freak, a nuisance and an eyesore. Someone mooned him, Bob took offense and eventually the man hit him in the cheek and Bob needed stitches. Later he was manhandled by police in a suburban parade as he marched along with NARAL - a pro-choice organization - leading to Bob getting a chip on his shoulder regarding suburbanites in the St. Louis area. Another incident with the police lead Bob to relocate. I wasn't sure where he had gone but I wondered if he would still be doing his twirling routine.
The answer? A resounding "yes". I was on cnn.com the other day and I saw a link about a certain "Baton Bob", a baton twirler in Atlanta (location of CNN HQ) who had become a quirky local celebrity. Immediately I thought of the departed Ambassador of Mirth. There can't be TWO of them, can there? I asked myself. For a moment I wondered if maybe he had franchised the concept out. Then I clicked on the video link. Now there was no doubt. From St. Louis exile to CNN celebrity, it was Baton Bob from the West End. He was interviewed by a TBS television reporter about who he was and what he did and why he did it. Tellingly, not once was St. Louis, where he originated his character, ever mentioned.
The link for the video can be found on the main page of CNN.com. Even if it gets off the main page you should be able to find it through a site search. Also check out Baton Bob's Wiki article - apparently, he was part of the Georgia Shakespeare Festival this year!
I'm glad that Baton Bob Jamerson has found a more accepting community in Atlanta. It saddens me that he didn't feel comfortable in St. Louis and I'm ashamed people harassed him while he was here. I know he made me feel happy when I saw him marching around to the beat of a drum only he could hear.
Other people in St. Louis didn't appreciate it so much. Some people reacted with inflamed homophobia, and some felt that he was just too strange. These people considered him a freak, a nuisance and an eyesore. Someone mooned him, Bob took offense and eventually the man hit him in the cheek and Bob needed stitches. Later he was manhandled by police in a suburban parade as he marched along with NARAL - a pro-choice organization - leading to Bob getting a chip on his shoulder regarding suburbanites in the St. Louis area. Another incident with the police lead Bob to relocate. I wasn't sure where he had gone but I wondered if he would still be doing his twirling routine.
The answer? A resounding "yes". I was on cnn.com the other day and I saw a link about a certain "Baton Bob", a baton twirler in Atlanta (location of CNN HQ) who had become a quirky local celebrity. Immediately I thought of the departed Ambassador of Mirth. There can't be TWO of them, can there? I asked myself. For a moment I wondered if maybe he had franchised the concept out. Then I clicked on the video link. Now there was no doubt. From St. Louis exile to CNN celebrity, it was Baton Bob from the West End. He was interviewed by a TBS television reporter about who he was and what he did and why he did it. Tellingly, not once was St. Louis, where he originated his character, ever mentioned.
The link for the video can be found on the main page of CNN.com. Even if it gets off the main page you should be able to find it through a site search. Also check out Baton Bob's Wiki article - apparently, he was part of the Georgia Shakespeare Festival this year!
I'm glad that Baton Bob Jamerson has found a more accepting community in Atlanta. It saddens me that he didn't feel comfortable in St. Louis and I'm ashamed people harassed him while he was here. I know he made me feel happy when I saw him marching around to the beat of a drum only he could hear.