The wheels are turning inside the heads of my readers.
Rubber City
Bob: I just want to put an idea out there.
There is nothing I can think of that is a tangible image of Akron’s rubber heritage.
Harvey’s statue [Mr. Firestone’s bronze likeness at the Bridgestone Americas tech center in South Akron] is cool but would not be recognized as connected to rubber by most.
What is needed is a figure of a tire-builder, very much like what is on the cover of the excellent “Wheels of Fortune.”
The Canal Park area would be a good spot due to pedestrian activity, and also quite near the start of rubber in Akron — B.F. Goodrich.
Thoughts?
Joel Neilsen
Broadview Heights
Joel: I have plenty of thoughts. That’s why they pay me the big bucks.
First thought: marvelous idea.
The Firestone statue is nice, as is the Charles Goodyear statue in the little park between the Summit County Courthouse and the Ocasek Building. But nothing says “rubber industry” better than a filthy factory worker.
The cover of Wheels of Fortune, the definitive history of the industry, published in 1999 and written by all-stars David Giffels and Steve Love, features a gritty black-and-white photo that mirrors the grit and toughness of the era.
A worker wearing knee-high boots, an apron, a cap and a rolled-up long-sleeve shirt, constructing a large tire, would translate nicely into a statue.
And I have the perfect location for it.
I would use it to replace the dumbest statue I have ever seen.
At least I think it’s a statue. I’m not really sure what it is.
I do know, via a bronze plate on the ground next to it, that it was donated to the city by local lawyers and their auxiliary in 1975, the centennial of the Akron Bar Association.
Today it stands in front of the PNC Center on South Main Street.
The thing looks like a cartoon character that was run down and then painted over by a road crew. Give it the hook!
But we digress.
I agree, Joel. Somewhere near Canal Park would be great.
But we still have a, um, monumental problem, the same problem that kills a lot of good ideas: funding.
Elaborate statues are expensive, and these days the city struggles to pay for the basics. Creating this kind of tribute would require someone or some group to ante up most of the money.
Right now someone is placing fingers on a keyboard and starting to type “LeBron should do it!” Stop. Just stop. The man can’t fund everything.
Signs of LBJ
Speaking of that kid from Akron, another reader came up with another good idea.
An unnamed voicemailer said it’s time to update the signs at the city limits honoring him, particularly the one everybody sees while driving north on Main Street at the Coventry Township line. That “Home of LeBron James” sign is passed by the thousands of visitors to the Bridgestone Invitational, our biggest annual event.
Today it credits LeBron with an array of achievements:
“2012 Olympic Gold Medal
“2012 NBA Championship
“2012 NBA MVP
“2003-2004 NBA Rookie of the Year”
What’s missing is — well, you know.
On the other hand, given everything he has accomplished, why not save a bunch of paint and reduce driver distraction and just go with “Home of LeBron James,” period?
Fine fellow
So I’m strolling down the sidewalk along High Street the other day, not far from the police station and the courthouse, when suddenly I hear an outburst from the other side of the street.
“M***** f*****!” a man shouts at the top of his lungs.
As I look over, a stocky guy with a beard, cap and shorts is pulling a parking ticket out from under his wiper blade. He is alone.
“Bastards!” he continues.
After airing out a bunch of other words not generally aired in public, he yells — to no one in particular — “I just came down here to pay a f****** fine!”
Clearly, he’s a very slow learner.
Bob Dyer can be reached at 330-996-3580 or bdyer@thebeaconjournal.com. He also is on Facebook at www.facebook.com/bob.dyer.31