Standing at a mighty 4-foot-3 inches, Lil’ John Rinaldi commanded the attention of visitors for the first day of the two-day The BIG Adios Muchachos Show — a farewell to fans — just as he did on “The Big Chuck and Lil’ John Show” for all those years.
By 11:45 a.m. on Sept. 13, hundreds of fans of comedy, horror, all things Cleveland and a simple good time had poured into Emidio & Sons Banquet Center in Cuyahoga Falls to see Lil’ John, Bob “Hoolihan” Wells and a host of entertainers and artists who have been in the orbit of WJW’s (Channel 8) titans of comedy.
Front and center, of course, was Lil’ John himself, who greeted and took photos with fans and signed autographs.
“You’re never going to see a collection of these people in one room like you’re going to see today,” Rinaldi told the audience. “You’re going to see Tim Taylor. You’re going to see Hoolihan. You’ve got Bill Ward here. You’ve got Big Stash. Jan Jones is coming out tomorrow. So, it’s a great time for Cleveland television and radio. Ed ‘Flash’ Ferenc from ‘Jeff & Flash’ is going to be here. They’re all going to be here.”
The event will pay tribute to “Big Chuck” Schodowski, Rinaldi’s close friend and collaborator, who died in January.
Before “The Hoolihan and Big Chuck Show,” Wells and Schodowski supported Ernie “Ghoulardi” Anderson on “Shock Theater” on WJW.
Wells hosted “The Hoolihan and Big Chuck Show” before he moved to The Sunshine State and Big Chuck took dancer, funnyman — and jeweler — Lil’ John under his wing.
Wells, who traveled to the show from Florida, told fans on Sept. 13 that he and his collaborators didn’t know how their comedic skits would perform, but they took a chance.
“And thank God, most everybody liked what we did,” Wells said.
Among The BIG Adios Muchachos Show’s more than 100 vendors, Drac and Countess Carita set up a booth with paintings of horror icons and greeted fans. Nearby, vendors sold comic books, action figures and vintage records.
Daniel and Mary Anne Ergezi, owners of Northfield-based Art-Toons, showed off original celluloids, or “cels,” from the production of American and Japanese animation programs, such as “Looney Tunes,” “The Simpsons,” “The Ren & Stimpy Show” and “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.”
Tony Musachio, reporter on WERE 1490 AM, attended. He was on “The Big Chuck and Lil’ John Show” in a popcorn-themed capacity.
Musachio said he used to own a popcorn business. He said he met Big Chuck and Lil’ John at the latter’s Rinaldi Jewelers in downtown Cleveland to talk about setting up a popcorn machine in the WJW studio.
It happened, and they included the popcorn in sketches.
“They didn’t charge me,” said Musachio.
The BIG Adios Muchachos Show traces back to GhoulardiFest, which started in 1997.
Fans still have time to say “adios, muchachos” to Lil’ John at his event in Cuyahoga Falls, which runs until 6 p.m. on Sept. 13 and from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sept. 14. The schedule includes panel discussions, movie screenings, live music and a pizza-eating contest.
Beacon Journal Photographer Lisa Scalfaro contributed to this report.
Patrick Williams covers growth and development for the Akron Beacon Journal. He can be reached by email at pwilliams@gannett.com or on X, formerly known as Twitter, @pwilliamsOH. Sign up for the Beacon Journal’s business and consumer newsletter, “What’s The Deal?”
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Lil’ John, big presence: Rinaldi says ‘adios’ at Saturday, Sunday Cuyahoga Falls event
Reporting by Patrick Williams, Akron Beacon Journal / Akron Beacon Journal
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