[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 19 (Wednesday, February 4, 2015)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E163]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                RECOGNIZING THE LEGACY OF RICHARD NAMEY

                                  _____
                                 

                           HON. ALAN GRAYSON

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, February 4, 2015

  Mr. GRAYSON. Mr. Speaker, I rise to recognize the life and legacy of 
Richard ``Rick'' Ellis Namey, who died of a heart attack on February 26 
at the age of 66. Rick wasn't a man defined by one title, one line of 
work, or one talent. He was many things: successful concert promoter, 
advertising genius, pitchman, standup comic, author, screenwriter, and 
political activist. Friends and family say one thing is certain; he 
didn't do anything halfway. With every endeavor, he went all out.
  Rick was born in Baltimore on February 12, 1949. The oldest son of 
Albert and Salam Namey, his father met his mother while traveling 
abroad in Beirut, Lebanon. An aerospace engineer, Albert took a job 
with Martin Marietta and the family moved to Orlando when Rick was 10.
  Rick began pursuing his ambitions while attending Winter Park High 
School and Sanford Naval Academy. At age 16, he won a teen disc jockey 
competition on WLOF-AM and began managing local bands like Mr. Banana 
and the Bunch and Marshmallow Steamshovel. He was also a performer.
  Rick's first business venture was a coffee shop called The Hobbit in 
Daytona Beach, which catered to the hippie crowd, followed by The 
Purple Door in Bithlo. His success booking national acts like Bob Seger 
and the Silver Bullet Band for events at the Tangerine Bowl and the 
Daytona International Speedway led him to start Cosmic Productions. 
Rick was part of the promotional team for Woodstock and appears in a 
documentary about the 1969 music festival.
  Rick took ideas and turned them into reality, even if they failed. 
During the Summer of Love, he started a business selling love beads. He 
had an importer, stringer, and packager and he was going to make 
thousands--until it was revealed the ink on his product was poisonous. 
Despite some setbacks, Rick's many successes were featured in an 
Orlando Sentinel article when he was just 23.
  An active participant in the civil rights movement, Rick attended 
rallies and worked on presidential campaigns including McGovern/
Eagleton and Carter/Mondale. Though Central Florida was always his home 
and he worked hard to promote it, he often rubbed elbows with the rich 
and famous. Old photos show Rick and the Carter family at home watching 
the Kentucky Derby in the 1970s.
  The list of Rick's accomplishments is long. Rick and his brother, 
Charles, started two of Orlando's first black pop radio stations--WORJ 
and WORL--and Kissimmee's first tourist channel. Rick had a nationally 
syndicated radio show with Hugh Rodham, former Secretary of State 
Hillary Clinton's brother. He also served as interim manager for the 
Backstreet Boys and cut an album of Vietnam War protest songs.
  Through his company, Stuyvesant Corporation, Rick wrote hundreds of 
TV and radio ads including ``Mr. Stereo and Video,'' ``Mad Max,'' 
``Cheese Wars'' and ``Sounds Unlimited.'' Many of his ads garnered him 
national Addy Awards for creative excellence.
  Rick was most proud of his screenwriting, which included Lake 
Woebegone Boys with Garrison Keiler, and Matt Merlin, a story about a 
kid wizard. Universal Studios optioned Matt Merlin well before Harry 
Potter took the world by storm.
  He was also the author of several published non-fiction books 
including Fodor's Disney Like A Pro, Orlando Like A Pro, and Buy This 
Book and Make Me Rich, a political satire. His most recent book, 
Casey's Ghost, chronicled his brief stint as the ghost writer for Casey 
Anthony, who was acquitted of the 2008 murder of her daughter Caylee in 
a trial televised worldwide.
  Mr. Namey was a longtime member of Mensa. In recent years, he spent 
his time volunteering for local Democratic candidates and rallying for 
liberal causes. His ideas never stopped, his opinions grew stronger 
with age, and his love for his family was unparalleled.
  I am humbled to honor the memory, life, and outstanding achievements 
of Richard Namey.

                          ____________________