Jingles lived in a magical home that he created out past the 10 mile mark in De Luz. He lived life by his own terms. Leslie and I went to his memorial celebration at Live Oak Park and saw a lot of people that loved and admired him come out of the woodwork. They put his ashes in his bandana that rested in his hat up on the dais. Jingles was a man who lived through the heyday of the Sunset Strip. He was a handsome fella in his day as the pictures at the memorial plainly showed. He had a hard headed streak but I never saw him get mad, just a wonderful guy. I will miss his tobacco stained mustache and impish grin. A true free spirit.
Here is the obit published in the local newspaper, the Village News:
Riccardo Lyle Januari-Quirk, (better known in Fallbrook as Rick or Jingles), passed away of natural causes in his home on April 12, 2011 at the age of 71.
Riccardo Lyle Januari-Quirk, (better known in Fallbrook as Rick or Jingles), passed away of natural causes in his home on April 12, 2011 at the age of 71.
He was born in San Francisco, raised in a Catholic orphanage in Chicago and graduated from the Maryville Academy in 1958. He found his way back to California in the early 60’s where he first worked as a host dancer at Whiskey A-Go-Go.
In Studio City, he sought out a life that was uniquely "Jingles" through acting, hiking, studying yoga, and honing his woodworking skills. He moved to Fallbrook in 1973 and opened the R & R Wood Specialty Shop. Rick was a skilled artist and wood was his medium. You could trust your precious family heirloom or antique pieces of furniture would be in good hands when he took them into his shop.
His love for music was evident when he played his 12-string guitar and harmonica, or sometimes just the congas to keep rhythm at the Packing House on open-mic nights. In 1993 he produced a self-titled album, "Jingles, the Man."
Acting had always been a passion for Jingles, and his Wild West attitude fit perfectly with the gun-fighting stunt group, the Fallbrook Outlaws. Not only for entertainment, the volunteer- based group raised money for schools, local fundraisers, and historical events by reenacting life in the 1890’s "Wild West." He earned many awards with the Outlaws and was a part of their induction into the Calico Ghost Town Hall of Fame.
Jingles was an honest, lively, one-of-a-kind man who will be greatly missed by those who knew him. He is survived by his daughters, Jazzietoo Januari, and Jasmine Bryant; uncle, Frank Sispusic; and cousin, Tom Sispusic.
A memorial for this unique life will be held at Live Oak Park in Fallbrook, Section E, at 2 p.m. on Saturday, April 30. All are welcome to come celebrate and share stories of his life.
2 comments:
i wish i had known about the memorial ahead of time, i surely would have gone; when i moved back to Fallbrook several years ago, Jingles re-caned and refinished a rocking chair for me, a family heirloom, and did just an incredible job... RIP, my brother...
I first met Jingles in 1977 at the Fallbrook Pizza Company. We discovered that we had friends in common - an L.A. couple named Donna and Eddie. Jingles and Donna had both been dancers at the Hullabaloo in Chicago. I was such good friends of Donna's that Jingles and I were always amazed that we had never crossed paths in L.A. Then we both end up in Fallbrook!! Every time I saw Jingles we reminisced about Donna and Eddie and both were going to try to find them since we had lost track of them years ago. I'll miss Jingles - he was one of a kind.
Nancy
Post a Comment