Charlie was a character, all right. A terrible Councilman, but then most of them are. I still remember the snowplow debacle (the Times isn't reporting that the "bureaucrats" were right, the plows were not suitable for Seattle's trucks and would have rusted away in a lot somewhere).
I also remember the "Ask Charlie Chong" feature in the Stranger mocking his rambling thought processes, which helped kill his reelection bid and brought us the genius of Heidi Wills.
I wasn't a fan, but it's always good to have a Charlie Chong around to keep things interesting.
This saddens me greatly. I haven't seen Charlie in about five years, but when he was on the politcal scene he supported me and was a friend. He was subtle and complex, human and humane, a gentle man and a gentleman. And he was honest. These qualities don't play well in political media - in fact, they sometimes make you look crazy. That his political career was so short speaks to his integrity and the breadth of his life and character. Rest in peace.
Posted by
Grant Cogswell |
April 27, 2007 12:03 PM
i used to see charlie around our neighborhood all the time. he was a kook, for sure, but a loveable character.
steinbacher will back me on this: charlie's that's what i was trying to show you about is one of my all-time favorite stranger items. beware the shambling mummy!
RIP charlie chong. i already miss seeing you at the west seattle 7-11. you sure liked slurpees.
Charlie was elected to the Council at a time when we had nine think-alike yuppies in those jobs and every vote was 9-0 in favor of the Chamber of Commerce position. His was the hardest job on Council: functioning as Court of Last Resort for people who couldn't get anyone else to listen (more or less the position Nick Licata holds now). He was one of the hardest-working Council members around, even when it worked to his detriment. Charlie refused to cancel meetings or completely rearrange his schedule to properly accommodate his run for mayor AND he was the only one of the three Councilmembers who ran for mayor and lost in 1997 (the other two being Jane Noland and Cheryl Chow) who worked hard every day to the end of his elected term. Charlie Chong was a man of character and he will be missed.
Charlie,
I'm going to miss you. "The big Mo" momentum is what yo mean Charlie. I think you are one of the few people in the world that really laughed with me, and not at me. I'm gonna miss you a lot Charlie.
I always thought he was a bit of a lunatic, in an endearing sort of way. I think he would have been disastrous as a mayor, but I think we need someone like him on the city council at all times. Helps shame the rest of them from being total corporate whores. He seemed more honest than the rest of them combined.
Comments (24)
Where did my comment go?
Posted by Jason | April 27, 2007 10:14 AMMstislav Rostropovich and Jack Valenti also died.
Who will be next?
Posted by elswinger | April 27, 2007 10:18 AMComment trolls ate it.
Posted by Fnarf | April 27, 2007 10:22 AMCharlie was a character, all right. A terrible Councilman, but then most of them are. I still remember the snowplow debacle (the Times isn't reporting that the "bureaucrats" were right, the plows were not suitable for Seattle's trucks and would have rusted away in a lot somewhere).
I also remember the "Ask Charlie Chong" feature in the Stranger mocking his rambling thought processes, which helped kill his reelection bid and brought us the genius of Heidi Wills.
I wasn't a fan, but it's always good to have a Charlie Chong around to keep things interesting.
That's what I was trying to show you about.
Posted by Jason | April 27, 2007 10:25 AMThe Madman Who Would Be Mayor...
Posted by Mark Mitchell | April 27, 2007 10:29 AMJason, yes! That's what it was called.
Posted by Fnarf | April 27, 2007 10:30 AMAw, man.... I thought he was a frakkin' nutjob, but I did *like* Charlie. Seattle will be diminished without him. Rest in peace, Charlie....
Posted by el ganador | April 27, 2007 10:31 AMWhat comment, Jason? Dan was the first to note that Chong died.
Posted by Ministry of Truth | April 27, 2007 10:31 AM@8:
Posted by Sean | April 27, 2007 10:41 AMSomeone would go to Fnarf, but he never tells me.
Sorry Jason.. We had a comment spam flood this morning and your comment must have been caught up in the mass deletion. Repost at will.
Posted by Anthony Hecht | April 27, 2007 11:03 AMAny relation to Tommy?
Posted by Mike in MO | April 27, 2007 11:24 AMBring back "Ask Charlie Chong", or at least re-run the old ones. They were hilarious.
Posted by Will of Horses Ass | April 27, 2007 11:42 AMThese things happen.
Posted by Mr. Poe | April 27, 2007 11:50 AMHe was a character.
Please don't repost at me, repost at the other Will.
Posted by Will in Seattle | April 27, 2007 11:59 AMThis saddens me greatly. I haven't seen Charlie in about five years, but when he was on the politcal scene he supported me and was a friend. He was subtle and complex, human and humane, a gentle man and a gentleman. And he was honest. These qualities don't play well in political media - in fact, they sometimes make you look crazy. That his political career was so short speaks to his integrity and the breadth of his life and character. Rest in peace.
Posted by Grant Cogswell | April 27, 2007 12:03 PMActually, I think it's being crazy that makes you look crazy, but never mind.
Posted by Fnarf | April 27, 2007 12:33 PMSean, what does @9 mean?
i used to see charlie around our neighborhood all the time. he was a kook, for sure, but a loveable character.
Posted by kerri harrop | April 27, 2007 1:48 PMsteinbacher will back me on this: charlie's that's what i was trying to show you about is one of my all-time favorite stranger items. beware the shambling mummy!
RIP charlie chong. i already miss seeing you at the west seattle 7-11. you sure liked slurpees.
Charlie was elected to the Council at a time when we had nine think-alike yuppies in those jobs and every vote was 9-0 in favor of the Chamber of Commerce position. His was the hardest job on Council: functioning as Court of Last Resort for people who couldn't get anyone else to listen (more or less the position Nick Licata holds now). He was one of the hardest-working Council members around, even when it worked to his detriment. Charlie refused to cancel meetings or completely rearrange his schedule to properly accommodate his run for mayor AND he was the only one of the three Councilmembers who ran for mayor and lost in 1997 (the other two being Jane Noland and Cheryl Chow) who worked hard every day to the end of his elected term. Charlie Chong was a man of character and he will be missed.
Posted by J.R. | April 27, 2007 1:58 PMFnarf @16:
Posted by Sean | April 27, 2007 2:10 PMThe words speak at themselves, but as the old saying goes, they can't hurt me.
Charlie,
Posted by Maria | April 27, 2007 4:58 PMI'm going to miss you. "The big Mo" momentum is what yo mean Charlie. I think you are one of the few people in the world that really laughed with me, and not at me. I'm gonna miss you a lot Charlie.
I always thought he was a bit of a lunatic, in an endearing sort of way. I think he would have been disastrous as a mayor, but I think we need someone like him on the city council at all times. Helps shame the rest of them from being total corporate whores. He seemed more honest than the rest of them combined.
Posted by SDA in SEA | April 28, 2007 12:30 AMHe was awesome, and he was my great-uncle.
Posted by Shan | May 2, 2007 2:00 AMDan,
When you croak, your obit will read "DICK"
Posted by Andrea | May 2, 2007 10:38 PMhttp://it.orge.pl/zenzero-zucca.html zenzero zucca
Posted by Aloys | May 7, 2007 6:10 PMComments Closed
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