Crazy people.
Crazies were a staple of life in the JC, whether you were getting flashed on the way home from the Goodwill or in the grocery store with a man whose inner voice ordered him to do a full week's shopping by purchasing one item at a time. They were just part of the tapestry, all those colorful characters seeming to exist for the sole purpose of reminding you that despite living in Jersey City, your life could in fact be MORE fucked up than it already is. And in this way, we took solace in the crazies.
Here the crazies have a slightly different effect on me, partly because I'm not clawing at the walls trying to get out of this place and looking for examples of people whose lives are significantly worse than my own, but also partly because some of the crazies are SO crazy that they've become local celebrities. And instead of being gawked at and ostracized -- well, okay, ALONG WITH being gawked at and ostracized -- they are fawned over and idolized like famous people.
Case in point? One Robert Hodges, better known to Memphians as Prince Mongo of the planet Zambodia.
Ahem.
Yeah, that's him to the left. Now, you might be wondering to yourself, "Is that the surprisingly clean-cut professional wrestler and commentator Jerry 'The King' Lawler seated next to him?" And if you are, you should know that this photo was taken during a candidates' debate for the upcoming mayoral election. For mayor. Of the city. Of Memphis. The 18th largest city in the United States. And in those 17 bigger cities, it might be news that a person who believes he's from another planet and a man who's been known on MANY ocassions to run around a ring in a unitard and body slam people are both running for the office of mayor. But in Memphis, it's just Tuesday.Today I spotted Prince Mongo at the Memphis Rotary Club's mayoral forum, which compounded his general ridiculousness by juxtaposing his bare feet and reflective silver goggles with about 125 really well-dressed, stately, conservative people over the age of 55 in skirts and suits and comfort shoes and neatly printed name tags. The man's very existence is a sore thumb.
Sometimes I can't decide with Mongo whether he really is CRAZY crazy or if he's just a little bit crazy and smart enough to know how to milk it for all it's worth. He's run in every mayoral election I can remember for as long as I can remember, and I'd be floored to meet someone in Memphis who didn't know who he was. So he's got persistance and name recognition on his side, and even I have to admit that his ideas and opinions aren't all bad. Example? During the televised debate in the picture above, he talked about making personnel changes in city government by referring to "political turds that need to be FLUSHED."
Damn straight, Mongo. FLUSH 'EM.
cheers,
elizabeth
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