May 1, 2007
People I'd Like to Meet: Ron Goldspink
In the first of a series of People I'd Like to Meet is Ron Goldspink.
Ron has my type of sense of humor. He's made a hobby out of sending random invitations to high-profile politicians, world leaders, and celebrities. Ron was recently profiled by the St. Petersburg Times in Florida. An excerpt is below:
For 15 years, he has mailed tongue-in-cheek party invitations and job applications to monarchs, politicians, religious leaders and clueless corporations. Just for laughs. Just to see if they'd write back. Almost all of them did.
A former petrol truck driver and deep sea fisherman who spent time in the Merchant Navy, Goldspink is a self-professed prankster with a bone-dry wit. When a Scottish buddy gave him the nickname "MacRonald," he ran with it and decided to open a greasy spoon diner by that name.
Guess which multinational fast food corporation failed to see the humor in that.
McDonald's served MacRonald's with a string of complaints insisting he had no right to sell hamburgers, fish fillets and other foods that might confuse customers. Goldspink responded by hiring a promotional clown named Donald MacRonald and hanging posters around town that read: "This is the real MacRonald's - not to be confused with anybody trading under a similar name."
Each year, Goldspink invites notables like George Bush, Tony Blair and the queen to his birthday party. He has applied to coach teams like Manchester United and Liverpool FC. He invited Tom Jones and Shirley Bassey to perform at his Legion club. He asked the London Palladium to book a concert by his musically disinclined brother-in-law, who knew the words to but one tune, On Mother Kelly's Doorstep Down Paradise Row.
Oh, Goldspink can tell you the rest. Frankly, he'd love nothing more. He'll be at Cody's (2890 W Bay Drive, Belleair Bluffs) most evenings after 5 p.m. through May, if you want to come say hi.
Guess I'll have to stop in and say hi if I'm ever in Belleair Bluffs
Posted on May 1, 2007