Last night’s memorial to Bob Pinney at the Dusty Loo Bon Vivant Theatre was a huge success. Kudos to Murray Ross and his team for putting together a memorial which was truly worthy of the man.

The evening began with a hilarious mockumentary by Rick Zarhadnik describing Bob’s alleged rise to the top of the entertainment world (did you know Bob was the original Dracula AND Superman AND Batman AND the Blob?). Originally produced as a roast for Bob after the 2005 TheatreWorks production of “King Lear”, the film also featured interviews with the other actors from that show in which they dished the inside dirt on Bob, all of it with tongues planted firmly in cheeks.

Next, Murray gave a funny, heartfelt talk about the trials, tribulations–and yes, treasures–of working with Bob.

After that, the podium was opened up to anyone who wanted to speak. Of the roughly 120 people who were there, about 20 took up the offer. Most of them were fellow thespians who told story after wonderful story of what it was like to share the stage with such a great man.  But there were also quite a few from outside the theatre community and they all attested to the fact that Bob was just as great a man off the stage.

The program ended with a filmed excerpt from one of Bob’s most moving performances, as Krapp in the 1995 TheatreWorks production of Samuel Beckett’s Krapp’s Last Tape.

Finally, everyone swarmed into the lobby for food and drinks. The program starting at 6PM, and it was 9PM before everyone could tear themselves away from the feeling of warmth and conviviality that permeated the evening.

All in all, it was a touching tribute with quite a few tears but even more laughs. I never got to meet Bob myself, but something tells me that’s exactly how he would have wanted it.