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Page 10 December 1982
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The Butterfly Man Meets Bob Nelson by Susan Block - Los Angeles, CA
"OKAY,
HURRY UP AND GET HERE, MAN! I'M SICK AND TIRED OF WAITING FOR YOU!"
whines the angular jester in red and black, his arms waving like the
wings of some elegant, oversized insect.
Hordes
of tourists answer his call. They come from all comers of the world and
crowd around the little wooden stage on Pier 39 in San Francisco,
bellies full of Fisherman's Wharf food and drink, eyes fixed upon the
figure in red and black.
"OKAY,
NO MORE MR. NICE GUY," he warns, removing his fedora to reveal a
shining shaved head upon which are tatooed not one, but two larre
butterflies, trademark of The Butterfly Man.
It's
Friday night. The moon is full. And the Butterfly Man, the Don Rickles
of balls and clubs, the Jiminy Cricket of street comedy and the most
successful pass-the-hat juggler in San Francisco, is getting on with his
9:30 show. "How
hot is it?" yells an audience member as
The Butterfly Man juggles fire clubs.
"ABOUT
AS HOT AS YOUR WIFE, MAN!" the jester replies without missing a
beat. The crowd roars with guffaws.
He
bounces a fire club along through the air. "RICHARD PRYOR
JOGGING," he explains. The roar amplifies. "Eat it!!"
they cry. And he does.
He
juggles five balls, cigar boxes, clubs, axes, keeping the quips and
cutting remarks coming so fast the audience can't stop laughing long
enough to hear half of them. His timing is flawless, his persona
unquestionable, his abuse without particular prejudice; that is, he
insults every ethnic group - tonight it's Blacks, Japs, Jews, Texans and
Honkies - equally. He conjures the ultimate audience participation show
every time. Because he doesn't ask his audience to participate. He
challenges them. When
the Butterfly Man wants a volunteer, he doesn't request one. No, he
yanks his astonished victim out of the crowd, proclaiming, "'OH
GOOD! A VOLUNTEER!" The Butterfly Man gets total cooperation. Maybe
he psychically communicates his true gentle sensitivity reassuring the
"volunteer" that he will be treated with care. Either that, or
the poor "volunteer" is so petrified that he can't do anything
but go along with the show.
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