Poppa Neutrino | |
---|---|
Born | William David Pearlman October 15, 1933
Fresno, California, United States |
Died | January 23, 2011
New Orleans, Louisiana, United States | (aged 77)
Nationality | American |
Other names | David Pearlman, William Maloney |
Occupation(s) | raftbuilder musician, and founder of the oWL PaRTY |
Spouse | Betsy Terrell |
Website | [1], [2] |
Poppa Neutrino, born William David Pearlman, (October 15, 1933 [1] in Fresno, California [2] – January 23, 2011 [3] in New Orleans, Louisiana) was a musician, raft builder and "free spirit" who lived his life outside expected norms. [4] He has been called a modern primitive, a nomad, a permanent dropout, raftbuilder and musician. [4]
Inspired by a documentary he saw when he was twelve years old, in which Australian aborigines periodically burnt their homes and walked away naked, free to start a new life, he taught "triadic thinking" and empowerment to people trapped by the concept of job and rent. [5] Thus Poppa Neutrino built his own homes out of discarded materials on free space (public waterways) and supported himself as a street musician. [6] He changed his name at the age of 52 after surviving a severe illness. [4]
Neutrino built several rafts out of donated and recycled materials on which he lived and sailed. In 1997-98 Poppa Neutrino sailed one of his homemade junk rafts, Son of Town Hall, from North America to Europe, becoming the second person to sail a raft across the Atlantic and the first to do so on a raft made from trash. [7] Betsy Terrell, his wife, was the captain and navigator on the crossing.
In 2008 Poppa Neutrino moved to Burlington, Vermont to build another raft, this time on Lake Champlain. [8] In 2010, he planned a circumnavigation of the globe, leaving Burlington, Vermont to head first south to Florida with three sailors and their three dogs aboard a new craft, a 37-foot trimaran complete with two outboards, a heated pilot house and four cabins. However, on November 9 their raft was driven onto rocks on Thompson's Point, Charlotte, Vermont. Poppa Neutrino and his fellow rafters were rescued from Lake Champlain. [9]
Neutrino died on January 23, 2011, in a hospital in New Orleans, Louisiana, of heart failure. [10] Neutrino's jazz funeral was attended by dozens wearing bright costumes. [11]
Married "several times," he had four children, as well as step- and adopted children. [4]
Poppa Neutrino's life and travels have been the subject of articles and books, including two by Alec Wilkinson [12] [13] and a documentary film. [14]
Poppa Neutrino | |
---|---|
Born | William David Pearlman October 15, 1933
Fresno, California, United States |
Died | January 23, 2011
New Orleans, Louisiana, United States | (aged 77)
Nationality | American |
Other names | David Pearlman, William Maloney |
Occupation(s) | raftbuilder musician, and founder of the oWL PaRTY |
Spouse | Betsy Terrell |
Website | [1], [2] |
Poppa Neutrino, born William David Pearlman, (October 15, 1933 [1] in Fresno, California [2] – January 23, 2011 [3] in New Orleans, Louisiana) was a musician, raft builder and "free spirit" who lived his life outside expected norms. [4] He has been called a modern primitive, a nomad, a permanent dropout, raftbuilder and musician. [4]
Inspired by a documentary he saw when he was twelve years old, in which Australian aborigines periodically burnt their homes and walked away naked, free to start a new life, he taught "triadic thinking" and empowerment to people trapped by the concept of job and rent. [5] Thus Poppa Neutrino built his own homes out of discarded materials on free space (public waterways) and supported himself as a street musician. [6] He changed his name at the age of 52 after surviving a severe illness. [4]
Neutrino built several rafts out of donated and recycled materials on which he lived and sailed. In 1997-98 Poppa Neutrino sailed one of his homemade junk rafts, Son of Town Hall, from North America to Europe, becoming the second person to sail a raft across the Atlantic and the first to do so on a raft made from trash. [7] Betsy Terrell, his wife, was the captain and navigator on the crossing.
In 2008 Poppa Neutrino moved to Burlington, Vermont to build another raft, this time on Lake Champlain. [8] In 2010, he planned a circumnavigation of the globe, leaving Burlington, Vermont to head first south to Florida with three sailors and their three dogs aboard a new craft, a 37-foot trimaran complete with two outboards, a heated pilot house and four cabins. However, on November 9 their raft was driven onto rocks on Thompson's Point, Charlotte, Vermont. Poppa Neutrino and his fellow rafters were rescued from Lake Champlain. [9]
Neutrino died on January 23, 2011, in a hospital in New Orleans, Louisiana, of heart failure. [10] Neutrino's jazz funeral was attended by dozens wearing bright costumes. [11]
Married "several times," he had four children, as well as step- and adopted children. [4]
Poppa Neutrino's life and travels have been the subject of articles and books, including two by Alec Wilkinson [12] [13] and a documentary film. [14]