Big Death of the Tiny Doctor

This week was the end of the life of the guy I knew only through his hobbies. It turned out I was one of them, or maybe a quarter of them or more probably much less. He had a lot of interests and a lot of brain. His name was Lew and he was a sweet and wonderful person who got us all through some troubles and who meant more to The Firesign Theatre than I think he suspected. This is a good trait in a hobbyist, not to let the hobby get more important than it should. He was tiny doctor tim to all of us, although his real name was Lew. He leaves behind Peggy Blisswhips, whose real name is Connie and who herself has been through some health hell lately.

The sweetness of the tiny doctor, his courtesy and unfailing cheerfulness were his legacy to those of us left in firesigntheatreworld, such as it is without him. Here's to us all, in a way, left bereft by the sudden exit of the guy who made us into the little community that we are, a place where, finally, we're not our nicknames but guys named Lew and girls named Connie. Here's to the two of them, from me and the blonde bombshell, and thanks to all of you out there who keep us going, astride the paisley horsie.

- Phil Austin