Tuesday, October 02, 2007

For those who have not read Greg Long's Book


by John Green
Used with Permission
For those who have not read Greg Long’s book, and those like me who failed to appreciate what they were reading, there is on pages 47 and 48 a very clear outline of the actual role played by Bob Heironimus. In recounting an interview with Les Johnson, an Ahtanum Valley rancher, Long writes:
“There was an ape suit. Bob Heironimus wore it.”
I couldn’t speak. Had I found the man who played Bigfoot in Patterson’s film? Was the mystery over?
“Bob Heironimus,” I finally managed to let out.”
“Yep, Bob Heironimus,” he repeated with a big grin. “I was in the Idle Hour Tavern in Wiley City. There were fifteen or twenty guys, some of the guys that hung around with Roger. The guys were drinkin’ and talkin’ about things they had been doin’. Bob Heironimus said that in the back of his Buick—he had a blue Buick—was an ape suit, or a suit. They were talkin’ about this suit. Someone said, ‘What are you talkin’ about?’ And someone said, ‘Go and look in the back of Bob’s Buick.’ The guys were teasing each other about it. Everybody in town talked about it. There were lots of guys who sat around and talked about it.”
I probed deeper into his memories of this event. He recalled that among the onlookers grouped around Heironimus’s car were the Ridge Runners, members of a jeep club. Johnson was either walking toward to (sic) the tavern or leaving it. “I heard them talkin’ when I went by. They were laughin’ and gigglin’. They were makin’ fun about this suit, like ‘We’re going to fool everybody.’ I mean, I got that opinion. But you couldn’t fool us. We all lived here.” He chuckled and then added: “The ‘monkey suit’ is what they called it. There’s four Heironimus boys, Bob, and Bill. Bill worked for me for a while. Then there’s Howard and Mike. The Idle Hour Tavern’s where we’d go to congregatge, lie to each other, ad tell these big stories and try to make out like we was somethin’.’
I asked, “Do you remember any discussion about Bigfoot, or Bigfoot pranks?”
“All the time.”
“Inside the tavern?”
Everywhere. It was just a hoax to me. And the group that we run with were all cowboys. We were up there in the hills runnin’ cows,, and you never seen any of those guys up there. It all took place down at the gab station [the Idle Hour Tavern].”

Farther down the page, Long asks:
“Who is this Bob Heironimus?”
“Well, I think he works for Pepsi-Cola. He must be getting’ old enough to retire. He apparently carried this thing around in his car for a long time.”

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