There's been a lot of characters in my life but the one that stands out the most is locally well-known and, if the story is true and I have no reason to doubt it, especially considering all facts, this guy affected music history.

Jimmy Hutmaker (pronounced as spelled hut maker) was a local character in a little town called Excelsior, MN. I knew him for a couple years before I actually heard the story of Jimmy and Mick Jagger. That story is told in the link but more on the character I knew.

Jimmy, as I'm told, was quite young and there was a fire in their house. He saw a family member die in the fire. It affected his mind for the rest of his life. As far as I know he never really had a job, but I don't know that for sure. I do know that when I met him he was not working at a normal job. He lived with his brother and his brother's family. However he would be up at 4am - 5am and it didn't matter what the weather was, with rare exception. Rain, snow, intense heat or whatever, Jimmy walked the sidewalks of Excelsior. He'd make stops in many businesses, including mine. He'd usually stop at my place for a book of matches and use the restroom but would occasionally buy something to eat. He was a very intelligent man, well-educated, but he had a way of scaring some people and making some people nervous. He talked to himself. Out loud, and a lot. He'd carry on a conversation with himself. And at times, he'd get into an argument with himself! Yes, there was a time or two I joked that I nearly expected him to punch himself! He would talk about a variety of topics with himself and as he passed anyone would always flash a smile and say "Hi! How'r you?" and give another big grin and carry on with his conversation. Often when it was temperature extremes, he'd stop in to cool off or warm up a bit and move on. It took a while to get used to him but he really was a nice enough guy and when you understood his situation you'd start by feeling sorry for him but soon you'd learn that he was a happy man. He was well cared for by his family but still he would be out and about.

He was a man who cared about his community too. He'd pick up garbage and misc. things he'd find as he walked. Some things he'd take with him. He'd carry a few prized possessions with him too. Well, prized to him. Later he had found or been given a briefcase that he carried for years after I left there. Always had a cigar in his mouth but usually was very courteous in the stores. Most of the time he'd leave his cigar outside if it was lit. All part of the makeup of the character "Jimmy".

But Excelsior, though a suburb of Minnesota's largest city, and a city who by itself had a lot of traffic in the summertime due to tourism, still would watch out for their own. If Jimmy wasn't in regularly, people would wonder and his family would be asked when they came to the businesses. Many feared him and some said someday he might snap completely but the locals poo-pooed the idea. And you know what? He never did.

The story in brief: According to the story, Jagger arrived at the drugstore to get a prescription filled on the morning after playing at Danceland and met Jimmy Hutmaker, a longtime resident.

Hutmaker, who said he had met Jagger at the concert, said he complained to Jagger that he had just ordered a cherry coke at the drugstore but instead got a regular coke. "I told Mick, 'You can't always get what you want,' " Hutmaker said.

Though the story has never been verified, references to a drugstore, a cherry soda, a prescription and "Mr. Jimmy" -- Hutmaker's nickname -- all appear in the song.

So when I hear the Stones and especially that song, I feel like I had my brush with fame, all through a guy who really was QUITE a character!

So maybe you believe the story like I do or maybe you don't. But he's still an interesting character and one who probably truly WILL be remembered forever. A link to a local news story is below, curiously they mispronounce his name! They actually had done stories on him before. I haven't found the older ones yet. But if you want to read more about Jimmy, check your favorite search engine, he's got pages!

Here is a link that might be useful: Local news story and on the right is a link to the video report

A character I remember was a fellow who would come courting my Mother. She & my dad had divorces years before, and this was a few years after the Depression. We called him Ob, guess i never knew his real name, but when he would call on Mom he never brought flowers or candy. He would bring a big package of meat. A roast or some pork chops or a ham. Dottie

My father in law.. Too long of a story. I posted about him once, didn't have many responses and I figure now I will keep his life story in my heart. All I have to say He Loved the Lord and I know I will see him one day.

The character that I always want to remember was named Judy. She was funny and smart and I never heard her have an unhappy thought or word. She had done so many things -- worked as a San Francisco cop, a social worker and she loved kids and animals.

She was gay. She was only gay person that her partner's parents could accept and love. When she passed away, her life partner, my niece, grieved for this person who had saved her life. But, the life Judy saved was so much better for having known her. We all miss her very much.

Mr. Drury ___ lives here in town and is probably 70 years old. I've been told that he had a high fever as a child and developed problems that have plagued him all his life as a result of it.

He's pretty much a "Rainman" type - an idiot savant, if you will. He walks the streets and used to stop and talk with everybody. He doesn't so much anymore and I don't know why. He stopped me one day several years ago and said, "Am I bothering you!?" When I assured him that no, he surely wasn't, he went ahead and asked me several questions.

He knows my DH, his DS and his DB's birthdates, their parents' names and he can also tell you the shift that my DH worked as a dispatcher at the police department back in the late 60's, early 70's!

I came in home one day and told Twinkie and my DSD that I had seen Drury uptown and he had asked my name. When I told him, he said, "Oh! Are you ____'s EX wife!?" ROFLMBO
I told Twinkie that apparently Drury knew a LOT about him. My DSD laughed and said, "Oh, that's nothing. He asked my name a few years ago and when I told him - he asked ME if I was _______'s ex wife!" LOL

Great Stories Ladies. There are always people around that get our attention ...not because they are rich or famous or brilliant ..just because they are memorable.

My Granny. Related by choice, not blood. :)

A tiny flamboyant woman that loved big bold colors and always wore turbans. I can just imagine she was probably snickered at many times. In later years in life we lived on opposite coasts.

During the Cuban missile crisis, when all civilians were ordered out of the country she put up quite a fuss at the airport, wanting to stay behind and tend the wounded. They "manhandled" her to get her on the plane. She had no nursing experience. LOL

She had jars of money stashed in the floorboards of her house. No matter where you were and music was playing, she'd start dancing. So many times I couldn't decide whether I was embarrassed by her, or tickled by her.

When she got into her 80's, DMV took her drivers license until she got glasses. Her neighbor/friend drove her around since she refused to wear glasses. One day they were supposed to go out to eat but she got mad at him so he left. On the freeway, a few minutes later, she passed him by, waving. Another time he was suppose to be taking her someplace and just as he walked up towards her house, she pulled off in her car leaving him behind. He finally had to take her keys from her. He and his family were great friends to her!

Quite a character!

I suppose that I have had my share of characters in my life, but there is one that sticks in my memory. He was my instructor in a thermodynamics class that I had been having trouble with. He was wheelchair bound with MS. Some days, we could see him winch with pain, but he never let on and forged ahead. He was an excellent teacher and drove himself; He was in a hurry to transfer knowledge into our craniums. It was through his efforts that I made a passable grade in that subject.

This man, no matter the weather or his personal pain, maintained a cheerful attitude, and it rubbed off on others around him. (He was teaching more than the technical course at hand.)

He wasted no time to begin class. Many of you may not know, but teaching thermodynamics requires a lot of charts and graphs drawn on a blackboard during the instruction. So how did this man handicapped in a wheelchair fare? Other able bodied professors would have scrawled all over the board from top to bottom; This guy could only reach about half way up the board.

He waited outside the door for students to seat themselves and settle down and then he'd bust though the door with a piece of chalk in his hand. He'd wheel up to the front of the room and without stopping stick the chalk out and draw a line across three boards! At the last board, he'd suddently brake the chair plunge the chalk upward. In 3 seconds, he had drawn the axes of three graphs upon which he would lecture for the next 50 minutes. (The cracks between the boards became the vetical axes for other two graphs.)

This man was an inspiration.

Sadly, about 3 years after I graduated, I learned that he had died from complications of MS. He was a young man possibly in his 30s. That was 50 years ago and I still recall his dedication and concern for the students. He had been in a hurry to impart knowledge. He drove himself like there was no time left, and for him there wasn't.

Mine is a good character. Phyllis worked at a doctor's office that I started working in part-time in Philly when I went to college. She had a voice like Minnie Mouse, 7 children (not a clunker in the bunch) and a poltergeist named Walter. She was a very attractive women in her 60s.

When we walked from the cafeteria back to our office with our trays, I would have to run ahead of her and open all the doors that she was about to walk into. She would show up with two different shoes on. She once put the deposits in the mailbox. She came out of the bathroom with the front of her dress wet because she washed her hands with her dress in the sink.

But she was smart as a whip - class valedictorian, could add a column of figures in her head. She was a great cook - I still have several of her handwritten recipes in my file.

She was a positive person. She was compassionate but she didn't let bad things bring her down.

I took over for her when she retired and she would come in one day a week to help me and we basically just gabbed all day. She would tell me all about her family and their escapades but she was never judgmental in a mean way about anybody.

She just didn't wake up one day - brain aneurysm.

I think of her often and try to be more like her. I met a lot of special people during that time of my life but she stands out the most - out of anyone that I've ever met.

I shall always remember my Jr High school English teacher..Miss Campbell. She was been teaching for many years prior-like 29 yrs before I had her. In fact my older brother who is 8 yrs older than I, had her for English, as did my 3 younger siblings! A little mite of a woman..red sandy hair, 5' tall & used a cane most of her adult life, enduring much pain-daily, as the result of childhood polio. She dressed impeccably..usually a skirt & frilly blouse & always had a handkerchief tucked in her watchband.
Of course-the bullys in the class taunted her-ruining diagrams on the chalkboard w/water guns, shooting paper wads towards her desk, etc, etc.
Somehow, all of those years-she endured, for the love of teaching. I learned so much from her & was an A student.
About 8 years after I got out of school-she was in a terrible accident & was in a hospital 60 miles from my home. I went up to see her-not sure she'd even remember me. I took her my rice pudding & a bouquet of spring flowers. I was shocked to see this wisp of a woman-so tiny in that big bed.
As I approached her bedside, I said "Miss Campbell? Hello, how are you?"-she turned her head towards me, the look of surprise came over her face, followed by a big smile then uncontrollable tears. Before I could even ask her if she remembered me, she sobbed "Oh Sharon, I am so touched that you came here to see me. I have been here for 6 weeks and the only person to visit has been my neighbor." It was as if I had only seen her recently..she never forgot me!
I spent 3hours with her..combing her hair, taking her outside in a wheelchair for some fresh air, played scrabble with her, etc.
It was one of the most rewarding times in my life. We chatted about the 'old days' at school
and when I left-she hugged and kissed me and said:"You know, I never was able to show favorites & how much I prized you as my student, but you were and are all that I would have wanted in a daughter, if I had had the opportunity to do so." She made me cry. I held her tenderly, told her I loved her and left.
This sweet lady passed away 2 months later.

rthummer, I'd love to read about your FIL.

My father used to play Cribbage with a sweet man that I remember often. When I would come home from school he would always have stories to tell, usually with a joke at the end. I remember him fondly and always think of him whenever someone is complaining about their teeth-- he used to always say "Be true to your teeth or they will be false to you"

My maternal Grandpa was a charcter.
He use to brag that when he was in school he'd get a lickin' every day! School for him was a rural one room school house with a pot-bellied stove. He would purposely make a mistake so he could throw his paper away in the stove. But, before he threw it in he'd stick in a .22 cartridge. Soon after returning to his seat the shell would explode. No harm was done except for the loud noise and the sound of the casing rolling around inside the stove.
Once we were in the woods cutting up a brush pile for firewood. all at once a skunk came out of the pile right by Grandpas feet. Quick as could be he snatched it up by its tail. If a skunk can't plant its feet firmly it can't spray. He stood there for a second holding the skunk, looked around, winked at me, and tossed it over towards the next brush pile where his cousin and my uncle where working!
On days when he would get home later than expected and he thought Grandma might be mad at him he'd go to the back door and throw his cap into the house. If his cap stayed in he'd go in. If the cap came sailing back out he'd lay low for a while.
For the first 25 years of my life I was able to live within a half a mile of my Grandparents and would see them almost everyday. They both lived into their 90's and Grandpa died 5 months short of their 70th wedding anniversary. I think I got my sense of humor from Grandpa and learned to enjoy life.

Ron

My dad. He was a real character and an inspiration.

After his passing in 2002 I created a web page to honor him and tell his story. Since then I've received several emails from people who have Googled his name and found the site. They all tell me incredible stories of his character and kindness. The most recent email came just last week.

You can read about him yourself. Someday I plan to post some of the stories the the site (with the writer's permission of course).

Jodi-

Here is a link that might be useful: Joey Velez

Suzieque,

O.K. (;-) My FIL was my bestest friend. He was like a father to me, as I never had a father that I was close to. I went to live with my grandmother when I was young and my father remarried after my mother died and he had a complete other family. I got married young, and my FIL was like a father to me. He even finance my way through school, encouraged me in every way. He was an Appalachian mountain man from the hills of Tennesse. He had a fierce Love of Jesus, and a love for all peoples. He would give you the shirt off his back and loved nature, fishing, wildlife, gardening, anything to do with Gods' green earth. He was so smart...He was a radio man in the War. He did the Morris code back then. He had a television and radio store and sold them plus worked on people's t.v.s and radios. He was so trusting of people. I had helped him with his books before dh and I were married. I went to him and ask him why there were so many outstanding accounts that had not been paid. Some were over 6 years old. He replied that the good Lord would take care of it and for me not to worry. God would provide, and Mr. or Mrs. So and So would pay when they could.. He ended up being right. You know God did take care of him, as he never went without, and he built up for himself a nice estate off that little store. He taught me MANY good lessons and life skills. I liked him so much I married his mirror image...His son. LOL.

Here is a link that might be useful: My FIL, my friend....

Pet, was the only name I knew.
She tended to my sister and me.
I remember her showing me how to eat a baked sweet potato.
Cut an end off, shove butter in, then scoop out with a spoon.

Remember her showing us how to polish our white shoes for Sunday church.

Mother would take her our wash and she would iron them at her place.

When I got married she attended the wedding, and sat in the balcony.

Remember my grandmother going to a funeral for a loved one that Pet lost and grandmother sat in the balcony.

She went to visit her sister in Chicago, and never came back.

Will always remember Pet. I loved her so.

Thanks everyone for posting your messages. I have sincerely enjoyed each and every one. Some made me laugh and some made me tear up -- what more can you ask of a day?

This truly has been a wonderful thread...so enjoyable.

The most fascinating character I've ever meet was a rehabilitated Convict. He has cheek implants and had his fingerprints removed.

His stories about being out "on the limb" in South America are pretty hair raising. He was always having to look over his shoulder.

It is amazing that he lived through some of the things he experienced.

Now lives a "normal" life on his Ranch.

rthummer - thank you for taking the time to post again about your FIL, and for attaching the previous thread; I had missed it. What a wonderful man your FIL was, and how fortunate for you both to have each other in your lives. I suspect that you were as much a blessing to him as he was to you. I'm glad you have Nikko and babies, and a special husband.

Suzieque

I thank you to rthummer..I enjoyed it so much.

Ruthieg, you live in TX... Did you ever see "The Twirler"? He hitchhiked all over the country and once even did a European "tour", leading parades and twirling a baton. He was from a very rich family, raised by two spinster aunts, graduated valedictorian of his high school class, and later went to UT in Austin. People say he was a genius, but turned his back on a traditional lifestyle. He died a few years ago.

Thanks Ruthie for the great thread.
Think mine did not fit with the others great posts, but I did contribute. :o)