Neighbour of Note: Jason Rip by J. Bruce Parker
Old South playwright Jason Rip is very much aware that his name will also be his epitaph. Mention this to him and his eyes narrow slightly, accompanied by a nefarious smile. This is understandable, as the poet, author, actor, director, comedian, and cartoonist has incorporated a sense of the macabre into much of his work. With all these titles before his name, I ask, “Who is Jason Rip”? He diffuses it down to “I’m a storyteller”. I recently met up with him at one of his favourite haunts, the Landon Library. He was deep into Charles Dicken’s heavy- handed tome Bleak House . Jason’s ‘stories’, many evolving into plays, exactly 100 of them with 74 being produced, also tell the story of Jason Rip in some way or another. With the finality of his theatrical work ending at 100, he adds, “I stopped writing plays after my 100th as I felt no one needs to write more than 100 plays”. His notion of practicality certainly hasn’t diminished his restless creative spirit. Jason Rip was born in Guelph, migrated to Indiana by way of his father’s work as a biochemist, and ended up in London when he was six. He was formally educated at the University of Western Ontario and as a teacher, taught in Tillsonburg as well as at South Secondary School. At six foot six, Jason Rip is an imposing figure. His love of theatre inspired him to seek out roles but in his own words, “If you are the dimensions that I am, there are limits on roles that you will get”. In a 2019 documentary appropriately entitled A Tombstone Epitaph, Jason Rip is defined as a “big man with strong opinions”. As an aspiring actor, Jason began writing plays to create parts for himself. “The playwriting came as I wasn’t satisfied with the parts I was getting.” Reflecting on his own life, he took to writing plays on the downcast, the vulnerable, the destitute and marginalized; those who are swept aside or misunderstood by society. This is best defined in his most recently performed work entitled, Man Up, a definitive and somewhat uncomfortable look at male suicide. All five shows were sold out at Manor Park Memorial Hall. Previous theatrical works explored the lives of artist Andy Warhol, poets Arthur Rimbaud and Edgar Allen Poe, jazz musician Chet Baker and London poet and philosopher, Roy MacDonald; all highly creative but troubled souls. Jason tells me, “I started out my life feeling like an outcast, and in some ways, I still feel like one, with what separates me from others quite extreme, but it is also a source of strength. I write about the poor and destitute because I can’t stand the problems of the rich. I work with people who don’t have anything and that is where my sympathy lies”. And Jason would know. For the last nine years he has worked the night shift at Unity, a homeless shelter which Jason proudly states, “has no religious affiliation”. He defines himself as ‘nocturnal’ and in spite of working the night shift, which he admits “makes me a little crazy”, he continues to write. “I can knock off a short story in one fevered session or a page in a day”, he says, adding, “I write obliquely about every day stuff, always turning a bit of a twist to the story. I like my little niche”.
Thirty years of writing have evolved into Jason’s most recent work, a volume of unsettling and scary stories. My Gehenna will be formally released at Landon Library on January 9th. Eight theatrical friends will be reading eight of the stories. This is what Jason Rip does best; dipping his written work into theatre. The stuff of Jason Rip comes from both the likes of Edgar Allen Poe and William Shakespeare, whose entire theatrical work, Jason has read. And there is American author Norman Mailer, who Jason decrees is, ‘America’s Tolstoy’. Musical in his writing, there is an inspiration from both the likes of musicians Tom Waits and Warren Zevon, who documented his terminal diagnosis of cancer over three albums. It is this dark and unexploited channel of human life which seems to propel his desire to continue writing. His life’s work, which he decrees, “One of the happiest things of my life is that I feel that I have written everything that I need to write” has been also recognized by our community. Jason was awarded the 2018 Chris Doty Lifetime Achievement award as well as being recognized as a ‘Distinguished Londoner’. He is grateful for both accolades. But there is more to come, as Jason Rip is now delving into the history of the Boer War, a major conflict of Britain and South Africa which has been eclipsed by both the First and Second World Wars. Most likely, something dark, sinister, but highly-compelling will come out of his research, and you may still find him seeking solitude at Landon Library, but I suggest you approach with caution.
My Gehenna may be purchased through Amazon.
Page 10 Wortley Villager • Jan-Feb 2025
To advertise here, please contact Cathy@villagerpublications.com
Made with FlippingBook - Online catalogs