Buddy Rubbish Leaves a Legacy and a Laugh
Dave Lenson came into the cafe on Monday afternoon with sad news. He said that Buddy Rubbish was near death, having been rushed to the hospital on Friday night with severe chest pains. Yesterday’s Gazette had the story of the death of one of the funniest guys in the Valley. He had passed away at age 56.
“He used to have these business cards, ” said Dave, a local sax man and old friend. “They said “No Job Too Easy!” That sort of humor reminded me of Rubbish, who I knew only as an old acquaintance. We’d run into each other at parties or clubs, or when he was behind the bar, and he’d remember me from the 80s and early 90s when he used to DJ on Friday nights at WRSI.
Bill Hewitt and I used to take our daughters Kate and Leela through the drive through request alley called Memory Lane. Then Rubbish would lower a mike and they’d make requests…it would always be ‘Rockin’ Robin’ or some other chestnut. What a fun time that used to be, everyone would listen to the show, Friday nights on WRSI. We lived in Greenfield back then, and it was the thing everybody did. Buddy wasn’t very reliable, but he was always a lot of fun, say some of the people I know in radio who worked with him.
In the newspaper article by Bob Flaherty, Joe Leda talked about how they used to write for hours coming up with gags for the oldies show. You could tell, too, it wasn’t just Buddy’s quick wit, it was written and the two of them had a blast doing it. “It was the most fun and creative time of my life,” Leda said.
The last time I saw Buddy Rubbish was on a Saturday night a few years ago at Restaurant DePaulo in Turners Falls, where he was bartending. I came in with my dad, and since there were no open tables we ate at the bar. It made for a wonderful evening as he regaled us with tales from the old days and kept us laughing.
It was fine memory to have of this wonderfully funny guy, who sadly, will no longer be pouring beers for anyone on this green earth.
READ LEO T BALDWIN’S WONDERFUL OBIT
FROM THE GAZETTE