If My Nick Name Was Mule, Could You Ride Me?

a few famous nick-names that you might know: Skip; Snake; Chum and Tip. If you think really hard, you might score on winning all four of these famous monikers. But in case that you don’t, have you hear of Skip Bayless; Snake Stabler; Robin (of Batman) Chum and Tip O’Neill? Okay. Let’s travel downward and find out what each name (could mean) if left to my imagination.

The first one, Skip Bayless. He is prolific sports commentator who used to work on ESPN and he also used to love to argue with his co-host, Stephen A. Smith, but years ago, if I had heard the name, Skip Bayless, what would pop into my mind would be the terms: skip rope, a simple-but-athletic children’s name when two or more kids jump a rope when one more more other kids toss the rope to count how many jumps they make. Snake Stabler, he was the controversial quarterback on the Oakland Raiders and was coached by John Madden. Snake played his college ball for the Alabama Crimson Tide and when the Tide beat cross-state rival, Auburn, in Legion Field on a muddy field thanks to heavy rains, Stabler scored the only touchdown by running in a snake-like style. His legendary coach, Paul “Bear” Bryant then referred to him as Snake.

Then there is Robin of TV’s Batman where he played the role Robin who was really Burt Ward and of course, Adam West was Batman. On several occasions, I watched Batman enter the Bat Cave and he would see Robin hard at work on the Bat Computer and Batman would say, “Let’s go, Chum! Penguin’s at it again!” So that Chum-thing stuck on many Batman shows. But did you know what chum means? Chum is smelly bait consisting of fish parts, bone and blood, which attract fish, particularly sharks. So how would you like for your closest co-worker to call you Chum? You think about this the next time some yokel calls you Chum.

Of course, there was legendary Speaker of The House, Tip O’Neill who ran the Federal House and Senate with a strong disciplined presence, but when I hear the word, Tip, I am automatically-thinking about how much extra money should I give after I pay my restaurant bill. Or another thing that rolls into my mind is if I should know a certain amount of wisdom that by sharing with a friend, would help them, then I am giving them a Tip. See what a nick-name can do for a person?

here is a near-complete list of Famous Folks who go by their nick-names. You might know them or have heard of them:

Daryle Lamoica – was once the talented quarterback on the Oakland Raiders in the late 60’s. The Raiders went to Super Bowl II against the Green Bay Packers. Lamonica was saddled by the nick-name, “The Mad Bomber,” because he loved to throw the bomb to his talented receivers.

Richard Petty – who wears the nick-name, “The King,” because he has won so many NASCAR Championships. His nick-name is fitting, but if on the other hand, Dale Earnhardt, Jr.,’s nick-name would have ended-up with Dale “Goody” Earnhardt, Jr., for being the spokesman for Goody’s Headache Powders? What red-blooded guy wants to be heard of as “Goody?” Someone would ultimately add, “Two Shoes,” then Dale’s nick-name would be: Dale “Goody Two Shoes” Earnhardt Jr. And get into many brawls.

Alan Alda – wore the nick-name, “Hawkeye,” on CBS’ hit series, M*A*S*H, but to me, he looked nothing like a hawk. Neither did Wayne Rogers, his best friend who played “Trapper” John McIntyre. He looked normal like every other guy just like Alda. So where are their nick’s coming from?

Ken Curtis – played on another CBS hit, Gunsmoke, with James Arness as “Matt Dillon,” and Curtis’ sidekick was “Festus Hagin,” a wooly, hard-fisted, sharp-thinking guy who helped “Dillon” save many innocent people on almost every show, but I did not understand why the writers gave “Festus” as his nick-name. Festus is seen in the New Testament. His full-name was: Porcius Festus and was procurator of Judea from about AD 59 to 62, succeeding Antonius Felix. In my opinion, Curtis had the BEST nick-name of all-time.

Okay. Out of pure respect, I held off from publishing the late George Lindsey’s nick-name, “Goober,” who starred on the mega-famous “Andy Griffith Show.” Of course, “Goober,” stood for peanut. But in the south, most fun-loving, good natured males would have said to him, “Hey, look! It’s famous ‘Goober’ Lindsey! Got any fresh peanuts?” Should I say more?

As I finish, my nick-name was “Kingfish,” when I worked for this textile company (Toll-Gate Garment) in my hometown, Hamilton, Ala., why? I do not know. I blame one of the veteran workers, the late Bankston Hughes, a good man with a sharp sense of humor, walked by and said, “Well hello, ‘Kingfish,’ and walked away.”

Should I say it? The rest is history.

July 29, 2019___________________________________________________________