Jim Bibby, Who Pitched for Pirates in World Series, Dies at 65

- New York Times item

I’ve come across some strange characters at work, and some strange names, too.  Most of the strange names aren’t the fault of the owners; their parents are to blame for their birth names.  Some handles get hung on people based on their physical features (”Red” comes to mind).  But some of the strangest are the ones that people place on themselves.

My first job had a PA (public address) system that allowed you to page people.  The receptionist, a large woman with a pleasant voice, would announce whatever name you requested.  On many Fridays after a liquid lunch, we would have fun asking her to page Ben Dover, Mike Hunt, and the other usual suspects.  But the funniest were the names of real people, like Al Eid (allied), and Dick Kurtz (pronounced like dick hurts).  He must have taken a lot of crap for that name.  Why he went by Dick instead of Richard, Rick, or Ricky is beyond me.

Some guys went by their nicknames, however unflattering they sounded.  We had Shrimpy, Red, Gabby, Chubbs, and Custer, to name a few.  But the best were the guys who made up their own first and last names.  Take the case of Jim Bibby, the subject of that obituary. Bibby called himself Fontay O’Rooney.  No one knew why he chose this stage name.  I guess he needed an alias.

I came across another guy who used an alias early in my career.  Ziggy Strombowski was a real character.  He was in his late 50’s, and he would offer unwanted investment advice.  This could range from who looked good in the third race at Aqueduct, to shorting stocks.  He tried to recruit investors for a hog farm scheme, but I had to pass.  Back then, in the mid-80’s, he played the float on checks, and had to go to several banks each day during lunch hour to “keep all of the balls in the air”, as he put it.

I didn’t know that Ziggy Strombowski was his alias, though.  This went over real big when a woman called asking to speak to Steve.  Steve Jurgen.  Nope, sorry, nobody by that name works here.  When Ziggy got back from keeping his financial empire afloat for another day, I casually mentioned the call.  He turned a pale shade of white.

“Look at my badge, you jackass!”, he bellowed at me.

His ID badge said “Steven Jurgen”, not Ziggy Strombowski.  “The why the hell do you call yourself Ziggy Strombowski?”, I asked.

I never did get a straight answer, but it must be related to one of his many get-rich-quick schemes.  By the process of elimination, Ziggy eventually figured out which one of his women called, and assured them that he was still gainfully employed.  Or maybe it was his AA sponsor, or probation officer.

I heard anecdotal evidence of some guy who actually had his alias put on his ID badge.  His pseudonym was eventually discovered when they ran his background for a security clearance, and it was found that F. Wellington Jade was not an actual person.

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