I was shocked and heartbroken at the news of John Dunsworth’s death this past week. His role as "Mr Lahey" in Trailor Park Boys changed my life forever. I quote him regularly in conversation and, let’s be honest, nobody can fall like John Dunsworth can. I read an interview once where he mentioned that he hated watching stuntmen do the falling and stunts because he enjoyed doing them so much.
With this great actor gone, I thought I would write about the actor behind one of the greatest characters of all time.
He didn’t drink
Even though he might have brilliantly portrayed a fumbling, stumbling alcoholic on Trailer Park Boys, he didn’t drink in real life. I guess he was able to observe the drunkenness around him for so long that he was able to portray it better than any other actor I’ve ever seen.
Some of his best “drunk” quotes:
“I am the liquor”
“Nice disguise Bubs. You might be able to fool the FBI, but you can’t fool the FB-me”
“Randy, I’ve decided to go off the food for a bit, and go on the booze”
“I’m sober enough to know what I’m doing, and drunk enough to really enjoy it”
He appeared on stage with Guns ‘n Roses
Axl Rose was a huge fan of Trailer Park Boys and of Jim Lahey’s character in particular. John Dunsworth went on stage with Guns ‘n Roses at one concert. Mike Smith (Bubbles) also appeared on stage with the famous band to play a rendition of his song “Liqour and Whores”.
Man, how I wish I could have been there for that.
He has a net worth of $500 000
This is a figure that is much less than I expected while researching him. Even though this figure is less than expected, in my heart (and I’m sure the hearts of all his fans) he was worth way, way more than that. Every time I watch a bad situation unfold I can hear him refer to the “Shit Abyss” ,nevermind the countless times I have said the words “I love ya bud” or asked someone if they’d like a cold “drinky-poo”.
He spoke out about gambling addiction
He once campaigned against Video Lottery Machines in Nova Scotia. His campaign was to get rid of all VLT’s in all bars in Nova Scotia. With gambling addiction becoming a larger problem day-by-day he felt that having the VLT’s in bars was making it too easy for gambling addicts to get their “fix”.
He recorded his own audio stories
This CD contains 16 funny and important stories from his life. Some from his childhood, others from his tours. His audio book “Stories” is available for download at www.johndunsworth.com. Recorded with the help of a friend in a home in Chester, these stories aim to entertain and inform the listener.
I don’t know about you but I am so grateful for his 71 years in this world. Let’s all raise our drinky-poo’s and cheers to this great man. You can take the John Dunsworth out of the world but you will never get the Mr Lahey out of the trailor park.
