1985 . . . TINY TIM Tiptoes thru our small town BIG TOP

Tiny Tim enjoyed international stardom in the 60's after his first big break on the TV show "Rowan and Martin Laugh-in". He was a novelty to say the least but his popularity had dwindled considerably by 1985 so I was surprised to see that he could draw a huge crowd.  He was the star attraction of a small time circus being held in my home town of Vass, NC and the "Big Top" nearly burst it's seams when he came on stage strumming his uke and singing his signature rendition of "Tiptoe thru the Tulips"  

I only stayed for that one song however since I had to be up by 6AM  when my shift began at the emergency room of our local hospital.  Little did I know that I would see a far different Tiny Tim then !

The minute I walked into the ER the next morning I could see that everyone was upset.  There was Tiny Tim holding a small paper bag and pleading to have the ER Dr. see him "in private".  He was refusing to be registered so the Nursing Supervisor had been called and she finally determined that he was carrying a urine sample that he swore he had obtained from a girl in Vass (!).  She, according to Tiny  Tim, was accusing him of getting her pregnant and he wanted the Dr. to prove her wrong.  Remember, this was back in 1985, long before you could get a pregnancy test kit from a drugstore.  

The whole scene was getting more and more bizarre and now both the ER Dr. and the Supervisor were telling Tiny Tim to calm down.  This just seemed to make him more agitated and he started yelling about "my rights as a citizen" and "people taking advantage of me because I am a star", and it was at this point that a local news photographer arrived.

It didn't take a genius to see that this was all a set-up.   Tiny Tim got a big spread in the local paper, as well as those in Raleigh and Fayetteville.  The "un-named girl from Vass" conveniently disappeared and Tiny Tim, with a big "gotcha" smile on his face, tiptoed his way out of our lives. 

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