His Royal Hipness
His Royal Hipness was as unique as they come, an eccentric white cat who made his mark by recasting familiar tales--from Shakespeare, the Bible, and beyond--in a frantic spray of black street lingo, jazz-speak, and hipster jive. In Buckley's mind, Jesus became "The Nazz," Gandhi "The Hip Gan," and explorer Vasco da Gama "Cabeza de Gasca." That would be adventurous now. It was simply unheard of in the 1940s and 1950s when Buckley was plying his trade, entertaining audiences he called his Royal Court. He was too weird to be more than a cult figure, but his defiant persona, deep individualism, and comic sense of cool certainly influenced the likes of Mort Sahl, Lenny Bruce, and even Bob Dylan. Gone, wailin' stuff.--Michael Ruby