Gravy (entertainer)

Last updated

Gravy (born Labon Kenneth Blackburn Leeweltine Buckonon Benjamin; in 1955) [1] , is a former entertainer, famous throughout the cricket world, for 12 years of voluntary entertaining of the crowd through a variety of antics at the Antigua Recreation Ground in St John's, Antigua. [1]

Contents

Performances

For 12 years from 1988, Gravy entertained the crowd with a variety of costumes and performances in (and sometimes above) the crowd at the stadium: "Gravy is a performer. He cross-dresses and dances and writhes and swings from the rafters and puts on a show that you will not ever forget." [2]

His act began by chance: "It started to rain during the presentation ceremony, and the podium was left open. "Something told me, Gravy, this is your time. I went down on the podium, in the rain, and started dancing. Everybody was excited about it. They loved it."" [2] He was unpaid for his activities. When he retired in 2000, he did so while wearing a white wedding dress. [2] Since retirement, he runs a hardware stall in St John's. [3]

Shooting incident

In February 2004, Gravy was shot in the arm. He was driving home at 2am when, in his own words "a car overtook me and rang out four shots at me, and then I felt a burning on my arm". Gravy believes it was a case of mistaken identity, and has stated "I thought they took me for the wrong person. I don't know anybody who could point a finger at me". [4]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Donald O'Connor</span> American film actor (1925–2003)

Donald David Dixon Ronald O'Connor was an American dancer, singer and actor. He came to fame in a series of films in which he co-starred with Gloria Jean, Peggy Ryan, and Francis the Talking Mule.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Viv Richards</span> West Indian cricketer (born 1952)

Sir Isaac Vivian Alexander Richards is an Antiguan retired cricketer who represented the West Indies cricket team between 1974 and 1991. Batting generally at number three in a dominant West Indies side, Richards is widely regarded as one of the greatest batsmen of all time. Richards helped win his team both the 1975 Cricket World Cup and the 1979 Cricket World Cup.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wavy Gravy</span> American entertainer and peace activist

Hugh Nanton Romney Jr., known as Wavy Gravy, is an American entertainer and peace activist best known for his role at Woodstock, as well as for his hippie persona and countercultural beliefs.

Ramnaresh Ronnie Sarwan is a former Guyanese cricketer who played as a batsman. He is a former member and former captain of the West Indies cricket team, in all formats. Sarwan went on to average over 40 in both the test and one day international forms of cricket. He is considered to be one of the best batter of his generation. Sarwan was a member of the West Indies team that won the 2004 ICC Champions Trophy, and was subsequently the player of the tournament.

Sir Cuthbert Gordon Greenidge is a retired Barbadian cricketer, who represented the West Indies in Test and One-day Cricket for 17 years, as well as Barbados and Hampshire in first-class cricket. Greenidge is regarded worldwide as one of the greatest and most destructive opening batsmen in cricket history. In 2009, Greenidge was inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame.

James Clive Adams OD is a former Jamaican cricketer, who represented the West Indies as player and captain during his career. He was a left-handed batsman, left-arm orthodox spin bowler and fielder, especially in the gully position. He was also an occasional wicketkeeper when required. He was the head coach of Kent County Cricket Club for five seasons between 2012 and October 2016.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Visit of George IV to Scotland</span> 19th-century monarchical tour of Scotland

George IV's visit to Scotland in 1822 was the first visit of a reigning monarch to Scotland in nearly two centuries, the last being by Charles II for his Scottish coronation in 1651. Government ministers had pressed the King to bring forward a proposed visit to Scotland, to divert him from diplomatic intrigue at the Congress of Verona.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kevin Pietersen</span> English cricketer

Kevin Peter Pietersen is an English cricket commentator, conservationist, and former England international captain. He is a right-handed batsman and occasional off spin bowler who played in all three formats for England between 2005 and 2014, which included a brief tenure as captain. He won the Player of the Series award for his heroics in 2010 ICC World Twenty20 and for helping the England Cricket Team win their maiden ICC trophy.

<i>Over the Top</i> (1987 film) 1987 American sports drama film by Menahem Golan

Over the Top is a 1987 American sports drama film starring Sylvester Stallone. It was produced and directed by Menahem Golan, and its screenplay was written by Stirling Silliphant and Stallone. The original music score was composed by Giorgio Moroder. The main character, Lincoln Hawk/Hawks, played by Stallone, is a long-haul truck driver who tries to win back his estranged son, Michael, while becoming a champion arm wrestler.

Sir Anderson Montgomery Everton Roberts, KCN is a former Antiguan first-class cricketer who is considered the father of modern West Indian fast bowling. Roberts played Test cricket for the West Indies, twice taking seven wickets in a Test innings, and was a member of the team that won both the 1975 Cricket World Cup and the 1979 Cricket World Cup respectively. Arriving in England in 1972, he played first-class cricket for Hampshire County Cricket Club and then later for Leicestershire County Cricket Club.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Antigua Recreation Ground</span>

Antigua Recreation Ground is the national stadium of Antigua and Barbuda. It is located in St. John's, on the island of Antigua. The ground has been used by the West Indies cricket team and Antigua and Barbuda national football team. It had Test cricket status. It was also known as the Old Recreation Ground, or the Old Rec. against England in the "Blackwash" series of 1986 at the Recreation Ground. It was also where Brian Lara twice set the record for highest individual Test innings, scoring 375 in 1994 and the current record of 400 not out in 2004, both times against England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brad Hodge</span> Australian cricketer

Bradley John Hodge is an Australian cricket coach and former cricketer. He was a right-handed batsman who batted in the middle order, as well as a part-time right-arm off-spin bowler. Hodge was a member of the Australian team that won the 2007 Cricket World Cup.

Frederick John Negro is an Australian satirist, musician, songwriter, and cartoonist. He has fronted numerous rock, punk and country bands.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rio (song)</span> 1982 song by Duran Duran

"Rio" is the seventh single by English new wave band Duran Duran. It was first released as a single in Australia, in August 1982, followed by a UK release on 1 November 1982.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sir Vivian Richards Stadium</span> Cricket ground

Sir Vivian Richards Stadium is a stadium in North Sound, Antigua, Antigua and Barbuda. It was built for use in the 2007 Cricket World Cup where it hosted Super 8 matches. The stadium usually caters for 10,000 people, but temporary seating doubled its capacity for the 2007 World Cup. The stadium is named after former West Indies cricket captain Viv Richards.

The England cricket team toured West Indies from 1 March to 5 May 2004 as part of the 2003–04 West Indian cricket season. The tour included four Tests and seven One Day Internationals.

The 15th Annual Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards were held on 30 October 2001 at the Capitol Theatre. Rock band Powderfinger won the most awards with six from eight nominations. Leading the nominations were dance, electronic group, The Avalanches, with nine nominations: they won four.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shane Harper</span> American actor and singer-songwriter

Shane Steven Harper is an American actor and singer. He is known for playing Spencer on Good Luck Charlie and Victor Flynn on Power Book IV: Force.

John Carl Maynard is a former West Indian cricketer. In a first-class career of 33 matches, he took 75 wickets. Maynard was selected in the West Indies A squad in 1996 for a home series against Pakistan A however, due to injury he was forced to miss the series.

Javier Liburd, is a West Indian cricketer who plays cricket for the Leeward Islands. He is a right-handed batsman and a right-arm off break spin bowler.

References

  1. 1 2 "Gravy profile and biography, stats, records, averages, photos and videos".
  2. 1 2 3 "The other side of Gravy".
  3. ↑ "The unmistakable Gravy".
  4. ↑ Wisden Cricinfo staff (22 February 2004), 'Gravy' recovers after shooting in Antigua, Cricinfo.com, retrieved 12 February 2009
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.