Oh wow, Barrington. There was the Brit guy who hung out at Barrington and on Northside hoops court (but never played). I think his name was Jonathan. Naming any other weirdos would be naming names of students.

I graduated in '65, and there were the Hari Krishnas begging, and there was the religious guy with the pith helmet handing out religious literature. But to me, the craziest at the time was Ludwig, especially when insanely barking at a tennis ball in the fountain of his name. Yeah, Mario was there my last year, although you had to push through the crowd consisting mainly of media types. I guess its a personal preference, but I never liked all the obscenities of the FSM bunch - I worked highway construction during the summers and got my fill of obscenities there.

tenplay;842497651 said:

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He was not a street crazie but still memorable after all the years. When I was a kid, my parents took me to the dining commons for dinner. Someone sat down across from me after I had started eating. When I looked up, I was totally shocked to see that the man had no face to speak of. I heard later that he had suffered horrific burns in a chemistry lab explosion and was employed by the university but don't know for sure. I was too young to react other than with fear. Does anyone know whom I am referring to? I wish now that I could have reacted with more sensitivity and kindness.

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That guy was around when I was at Cal (early '80s).

Bubble Lady, Hate Man, Rawr, Moon Man. Stoney, and Orange Man were around during my era. Weren't William and the Polka Dot guy the same person? Whenever this subject comes up, I'm always confused by Holy Hubert (earlier era?) and Rick Starr (later era?).

RioGrrandeFan;842497673 said:

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Yes, and I feel similarly.

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Are you meaning that you know whom I am referring to? Or that you wish I had acted more kindly rather than fearfully as a kid? Or both?

MSaviolives;842497558 said:

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When I went to Boalt in the early 80s we had polka dot dude, the hate man, the bubble lady etc. I recall when I was a kid growing up in Berkeley in the 60s there was the Crunchy Munchy Man--name was something like Alfred Gatner or Datner or something... any of you remember him?

Edited to add that I found the name: Alfred Dattner http://kn-cal.com/news/trivia-quiz/

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Yeah, I worked at the Mayfair Market on Telegraph, now an MRI clinic. He sometimes came through my checkstand and talked about his daughter in Sunnywale (not a typo). He was voted winner of the Ugly Man contest a couple times, but told me he wasn't doing that any more because he had a weak heart and being around all those coeds didn't help.

Does no one remember Rare? I was there in the late 80s. Crazy skinny muscular dude -

tydog;842497681 said:

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Anyone remember Stoney? That guy was a totally ass.

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Stoney was the only guy I remember in the early '80s. The reason is he had enough coherence to merit listening to a few sentences.

According to Wikipedia he actually has a degree from San Francisco State, and he's still alive and active. Amazing.

Let's see, I remember Stoney Burke, Rick Starr (I used to sit nearby and enjoy his off-key crooning. We'd chat occasionally between sets.), Hate Man, Naked Guy (I had a class with him. He'd show up late to every class in full glory until Cal booted him. It was so sad that his life ended so...), and Wavy Gravy.

Rare is who they are referring to as Rawr. Actually, Rare is correct. As in "How do you like it?" "RARE!!!!"

He was former Minnesota Twins infielder Robin Yount's brother, Larry Yount, according to himself.

WhipItOutJoe;842497759 said:

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Does no one remember Rare? I was there in the late 80s. Crazy skinny muscular dude -

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tenplay;842497651 said:

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He was not a street crazie but still memorable after all the years. When I was a kid, my parents took me to the dining commons for dinner. Someone sat down across from me after I had started eating. When I looked up, I was totally shocked to see that the man had no face to speak of. I heard later that he had suffered horrific burns in a chemistry lab explosion and was employed by the university but don't know for sure. I was too young to react other than with fear. Does anyone know whom I am referring to? I wish now that I could have reacted with more sensitivity and kindness.

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Yes, he was around campus my entire stint and I heard the same story about him. Speaking of insensitivity, one of my history TA's said he was known as the Dwinelle Hall Monster. It was very sad indeed and a haunting memory.

I remember those ones plus who was the Hate person who would call on the pay phone? Basically any pay phone you saw ringing you could answer and get a diatribe of hate. Also I recall one student(?) who I would see at EVERY party...named Dot or something. Not quite a Sproul Plaza character but certainly a part of the Berkeley experience.

Robin Yount played for the Brewers, not Twins.

Cal Junkie;842497792 said:

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Rare is who they are referring to as Rawr. Actually, Rare is correct. As in "How do you like it?" "RARE!!!!"

He was former Minnesota Twins infielder Robin Yount's brother, Larry Yount, according to himself.

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Cal Junkie;842497792 said:

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Rare is who they are referring to as Rawr. Actually, Rare is correct. As in "How do you like it?" "RARE!!!!"

He was former Minnesota Twins infielder Robin Yount's brother, Larry Yount, according to himself.

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I remember that dude, Robin Yount's brother. He was a real screamer (likely schizophrenic) and remember he hung on Telegraph.

MilleniaBear;842497802 said:

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I remember those ones plus who was the Hate person who would call on the pay phone? Basically any pay phone you saw ringing you could answer and get a diatribe of hate. Also I recall one student(?) who I would see at EVERY party...named Dot or something. Not quite a Sproul Plaza character but certainly a part of the Berkeley experience.

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I still run into Dat occasionally. Talked to him before the Syracuse tournament game in San Jose and before the Rodgers' 23 straight completition game vs 'SC in LA.

whipitoutjoe;842497759 said:

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does no one remember rare? I was there in the late 80s. Crazy skinny muscular dude -

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raaaaarrrre!!!

SadbutTrue999;842497670 said:

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I swear he'd just walk in, do one set of one armed butterfly (one arm only) and then walk out, like an asian weightlifting tornado

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and then walk slowly over to the mirror and flex.

Calypso Joe, aka General Hersey Bar and Tom Dunphy, aka General Waste More Land. During the late sixties they were constantly on campus in their dress uniforms with plastic missiles and planes. They may not count because they really weren't crazy, just looked it.
Dunphy in particular was a very witty satirist who was extremely knowledgeable about the Vietnam War. As a student facing the draft I loved to listen to that guy. In retrospect they were some of the most sane people around in respect to that war. Here is a link to an article about them both in later years. http://www.berkeleycitizen.org/Dunphy/wastemoreland4.htm

RioGrrandeFan;842497680 said:

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Pink Cloud??? Anybody? He hung out at Barrington. Not sure he's the same as the "Pink Man". I seem to remember a unicycle, however.

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I came here to mention Pink Cloud; since I lived at Barrington for 2 years, I saw him a lot.

And The Moonies. Stay away from anybody who invites you to spend a weekend in Boonville.

Rare! Frequently seen bare chested late at night out in front of Top Dog yelling "Rare!"

Late 80s/early 90s, the cast included Rare, Bubble Lady, Stoney, Rick Starr, Polka Dot, crazy brimstone spewing guy...one person I haven't seen mentioned is the Steven Lightfoot/"Stephen King Murdered John Lennon" conspiracy guy. He had incredibly well-footnoted, but completely bonkers theories, and apparently is still pushing the story http://lennonmurdertruth.com/

Next thread should be "famous musicians you saw walking around Berkeley." Between Too Short cruising his convertible and Bob Dylan and Jerry Garcia walking down the street, and Sheila E at Yogurt Park, had a few awesome sightings during my era.

NWBear90;842498189 said:

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Late 80s/early 90s, the cast included Rare, Bubble Lady, Stoney, Rick Starr, Polka Dot, crazy brimstone spewing guy...one person I haven't seen mentioned is the Steven Lightfoot/"Stephen King Murdered John Lennon" conspiracy guy. He had incredibly well-footnoted, but completely bonkers theories, and apparently is still pushing the story http://lennonmurdertruth.com/

Next thread should be "famous musicians you saw walking around Berkeley." Between Too Short cruising his convertible and Bob Dylan and Jerry Garcia walking down the street, and Sheila E at Yogurt Park, had a few awesome sightings during my era.

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My time as well. How about that Gary Whatshisname? Homeless MIT grad with all the conspiracy theories that the Jews were behind everything.

That was RAWR aka Rare aka the really yoked guy. And yes, I confused the teams, Robin Yount was with the Brewers. I now coach the Strawberry Canyon TC and we meet at Cal's track for workouts. There is a new nutter named "Flash" who will do some weird drills and try to chat people up. Apparently went off on a Cal coach a year ago. He is jacked, kind of an ethnic mutt, sort of weird, mohawk-ish hair, often has shirt off doing plyos and stuff. Generally annoying and definitely working his way up the roster of Berkeley's crazies.

I hear that Tony Franklin dude is one weird sumbeotch.

Usually in this thread (crops up every 2-3 years), somebody links an article about the Hate Man: He was/is a former NY Times reporter. It's an incredible story.

MSaviolives;842497558 said:

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When I went to Boalt in the early 80s we had polka dot dude, the hate man, the bubble lady etc. I recall when I was a kid growing up in Berkeley in the 60s there was the Crunchy Munchy Man--name was something like Alfred Gatner or Datner or something... any of you remember him?

Edited to add that I found the name: Alfred Dattner http://kn-cal.com/news/trivia-quiz/

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Great find! That was a fun quiz, not that I could answer any of the KN questions. Crunchy Munchy man wasn't a crazy! He sold ice cream at games and he'd say, "Hey Clyde, get your girlfriend a Crunchy Munch"...something like that.

Those are my three most memorable ones. In fact, I lived in the same rooming house as the Orange Man for a quarter.

I knew Rare when I was at Cal in the mid '80s and used to speak with him occasionally after he responded to our inquiry how he liked his meat ("Rare," of course). I ran into him on Telegraph after a Cal basketball game last season and he is probably 60 pounds heavier and much grayer. Was a bit surprised that a guy living on the streets would gain that much weight but it was 30 years ago and he must be finding himself plenty of food. Still speaking in a loud voice to anyone that will listen, and also those that don't. He actually makes some sense at times but that usually devolves quickly into inane banter of dubious veracity.

BTW, Robin Yount went to my high school and I knew his brother, Larry, and Larry's family, for many years. Rare was, not surprisingly, wrong about his own identity, at least in this respect.

You would be surprised how many Berkeley street people are on SSD, live at home with a relative or in a group home and venture out for pure entertainment.

In the mid sixties most memorable were Hare Krishna chanters and a bible waving Elmer Gantry style preacher. Of course, Ludwig's fountain had water and the actual dog bathing there regularly.

Beardog26;842498656 said:

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I knew Rare when I was at Cal in the mid '80s and used to speak with him occasionally after he responded to our inquiry how he liked his meat ("Rare," of course). I ran into him on Telegraph after a Cal basketball game last season and he is probably 60 pounds heavier and much grayer. Was a bit surprised that a guy living on the streets would gain that much weight but it was 30 years ago and he must be finding himself plenty of food. Still speaking in a loud voice to anyone that will listen, and also those that don't. He actually makes some sense at times but that usually devolves quickly into inane banter of dubious veracity.

BTW, Robin Yount went to my high school and I knew his brother, Larry, and Larry's family, for many years. Rare was, not surprisingly, wrong about his own identity, at least in this respect.

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Never knew he was referred to as Rare. I referred to him as Robin Yount's brother.

I never heard him called Rare before CB/BI. My friends always called him Cat Man.

MSaviolives;842497558 said:

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When I went to Boalt in the early 80s we had polka dot dude, the hate man, the bubble lady etc. I recall when I was a kid growing up in Berkeley in the 60s there was the Crunchy Munchy Man--name was something like Alfred Gatner or Datner or something... any of you remember him?

Edited to add that I found the name: Alfred Dattner http://kn-cal.com/news/trivia-quiz/

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His name was Alfred Dattner. Crunchy Munchy Man was my great-grandfather. Here's an article about him that I found online: https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/d...9640106_03.pdf. I have a bunch of pictures and Berkeley magazine articles on him that I need to scan.

It would be great to hear your memories of him. What else do you remember about him?

Thanks for your help!

Pink Cloud who lived at Barrington Hall and sold acid to half of the city in the mid to late 70's and Edward Lawson aka The Walkman who took the California vagrancy law all the way to the SCOTUS and won. I remember the Hate Man who stood in Ludwig's Fountain and The Dot Man who started with one dot and ended up with dots all over who's spot was under Sather Gate. Then there was the naked lady who would dance in Upper Sproul to any music and of course the drum circle that wouldn play non-stop all Saturday in Lower Sproul. My first two years saw The Talking Heads, B-52's, The Knack, and Dead Kennedys play free concerts in Lower Sproul.

juarezbear;842785861 said:

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Pink Cloud who lived at Barrington Hall and sold acid to half of the city in the mid to late 70's and Edward Lawson aka The Walkman who took the California vagrancy law all the way to the SCOTUS and won. I remember the Hate Man who stood in Ludwig's Fountain and The Dot Man who started with one dot and ended up with dots all over who's spot was under Sather Gate. Then there was the naked lady who would dance in Upper Sproul to any music and of course the drum circle that wouldn play non-stop all Saturday in Lower Sproul. My first two years saw The Talking Heads, B-52's, The Knack, and Dead Kennedys play free concerts in Lower Sproul.

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Eddie Money was playing frat rush parties my first year. After he signed his first record deal I used to see him in McNally's
Saw Patty Smith at the Longbranch