Ron Hebbard

[NickVon]

I never met Ron, except through these forums. And I've always loved his anecdotes and stories. He seemed like a real rowdy gent.

Now who will like every single post?
Toodleoo Ron.

 

[Catherder]

Was browsing Craigslist and saw this - might have been some of the first shows Ron worked. He would have been 21-22 then. https://portland.craigslist.org/clc/clt/d/portland-vintage-framed-1967/7649035770.html

 

[Jay Ashworth]

Damnit; this just showed up.

I will always quote the "2-in chain"story.

Ron Hebbard... now *incredibly* far north of Trump's wall.

 

[TheaterEd]

Just seeing this today. Incredibly sad news and Ron will be very missed here at CB. I will miss seeing his posts and reading his stories as it was always a good read.

Its very hard to put into words how sad I feel to have lost a person who I have never met, but interacted with so much over the past decade. Rest in Piece Ron!

Toodle-oo!

 

[Van]

Just noticed the Banner on top of the page. Thanks @dvsDave, that's very nice.

 

[almorton]

Yes, I thought that was a very nice touch.

 

[derekleffew]

Just noticed the Banner on top of the page. Thanks @dvsDave, that's very nice.

MacOS users may have to zoom the page to see the banner. In my "normal" view, the logo only shows as the CB shield.

Should look like this:

 

[What Rigger?]

Nothing like putting up a straightforward post that you think is well thought out and there is NO chance for a pun or a bazinga...and then the notification pops up. Godspeed Ron!

 

[Dionysus]

Oh my! I am late to finding out about this. I haven't been very active at all since the pandemic. Ron and I had some great discussions, and he had been PARTICULARLY useful to me in tracking down information on how my venue was wired.... as he was the one who wired it.
As everyone has said Ron was an amazing man who spread the light of technical theatre. He had amazing stories and useful knowledge in spades and will be missed immensely.
I wish I'd heard about this sooner, I guess I should poke my head in a little more often!

 

[EdSavoie]

I've written this repeatedly at this point, half because I accidentally clicked off into my inbox to read one of the several DM conversations Ron and I had, which sounds like something he'd take mischevious glee in, and half because I feel like I at least owe him a post that reflects that little smirk I'm sure many of us have had from reading his posts.
Like @Dionysus , I dropped off the industry because of the pandemic, and then the site for reasons I still don't entirely understand. I wasn't back into this crazy industry we work in any capacity until mid 2022, but then I came back "beyond full capacity" as it were doing my covid renovation job as I was moonlighting theatre work, until I convinced myself that I had enough stability to shift back over to events full time, which has been full throttle ever since.

Point being, I'm sorry for my tardiness on this.

One of the first things that popped into my head when I stumbled back onto the site through a google search (as one seems to often do in this field) and saw that signature sign off was "I wonder how Ron is doing."

I'm sure going to miss reading that sign off.

His Wit, anecdotes that weren't always related to the industry , as well as ones that were. and the odd little ways we'd have comonality and the stories that gave insight into the people who in some cases *made* the very equipment I'm working with at this moment.

I'll let Ron speak for himself with some snippets i've dug out from DMs I've had with him:

Sep 7, 2019
Hello Mr. Savoie; How's school and can you still see Detroit over Donald's wall??
Toodleoo!
Ron Hebbard

Sep 7, 2019
I regularly THANK the Lord and Devious Dave for the Control Booth forum; without the forum, I'd have no life at all.
Thanks for the chat Mr. Ed.
Toodleoo!
Ron Hebbard

Dec 10, 2018
Mr. Savoie Sir; I remain a staunch supporter of Shaun Johnson's products and the quality of his builds. I still say Shaun builds Strand better than Strand did although @RonFoley 'd make me hurt for stating this.

Title: ALL ENR racks are WEIRD!!!!​

Sep 12, 2019
Don't get me started AGAIN!!!
Toodleoo!
Ron Hebbard

Title: J. J. Jeremy will be pleased. . .
Oct 1, 2019

John Joseph Jeremy will be pleased to have you mentioning Raynock.
Joe and I worked together for three or four years, we built the rock opera "Tommy" together for Germany in '95 and again for London in '96 before ~~(SNIP! this part is staying a DM).~~ Joe began his own company. Joe and I swap e-mails several times per year; Joe's company had 37 full time employees the last time we were chatting.
Sometime, dig into how Joe named NISCON; you WON'T pry it out of me.
Toodleoo!
Ron Hebbard

So it wasn't just me! @gafftaper

Jan 15, 2018~snip~
Edit: I did hear an approximate cost, I believe I was told $2K or $3K Canadian per square Metre installed and powered. It's nice to be able to spell colour with a 'u' while writing you.

Oct 10, 2017

Title: I note you've relocated . . .​

~snip~
My only other connection to Windsor was spending a couple of weeks living in a third level basement beneath a large, "dancing waters" fountain in their casino's ground level main entrance lobby which "performed" hourly, pneumatically firing water cannons to nearly the peak of their lobby, somewhere in the neighborhood of seven stories. At one point, their main central cannon was changing the colour of their domed plaster ceiling. That was when they figured they ought to dial back the speed of their pumps just a touch rather than risk having the dome collapsing into the fountain as a somewhat grander finale.
Someone, WestSun possibly, had taken a contract to refurbish the fountain's audio and control systems, then realized they knew how to sell audio gear and felt they could install (non water-proofed) EAW speakers around the fountain's periphery but quickly found themselves 'in over their heads' when it came to stripping out the fountain's existing control system and replacing it with a DMX interface to permit programmed control via a cue stack system synchronized via SMPTE to a solid state playback system WITHOUT interrupting the fountain's 24 / 7 / 365 operation. This was when they subcontracted the more "interesting" aspects of their contract to MacLean Media Systems who contracted Gregory Cross and I to design, de-ug and install the interface electronics permitting the fountain to "perform" to DMX512 from software developed by Rob, the brains currently behind Pathway. Not even Doug Fleenor was offering a DMX to compressed air and water control interface as a standard product at the time. The fountain played and performed hourly 24 / 7 until 2:00 a.m. when it quit playing frenetic music and throttled back to a gentle, non-dancing, routine of "elevator music" without the explosive sound of the pneumatic water cannons. All aspects of the fountain had to return to its normal hourly performances by somewhere around 10:00 a.m. Over the course of three or four consecutive nights living three stories below the fountain and sleeping days several stories above grade, my-self and an associate stripped out their old control system and replaced it with a DMX based system such that a no longer needed IBM PC could run a lighting program treating the fountain's solenoid water and pneumatic valves as Non-Dims and their proportional water valves as water dimmers. We managed our final transference of systems in a single four hour window when we were given permission to have the fountain sit there as a silent, unlit, puddle of water between three and seven a.m. Some months later, they asked us to return and retrofit a speed control function for their main, and standby, pumps. To the best I can recall, that was the last installation I was involved with in Windsor. I believe I heard they eventually stripped out their fountain as part of a total renovation of their lobby. I can't recall working west of London, Ontario since. [And won't be now since my mini-stroke, blindness, loss of driving privileges and virtual incarceration in a home for retirees plus the aged and infirm. Thanks for putting up with the blatherings of a geezer and with all best wishes for your time in Windsor.
Toodleoo!
Ron Hebbard.

It figures the refit to that fountain was his doing. I'd heard legend of it from several local techs here in Windsor. I'd heard about the shenanigans that lead to the refit he did, and that it no longer caused:

changing the colour of their domed plaster ceiling

after he was done with it.
A real shame. It was indeed ripped out, replaced with a small stage, and the world's most unfortunate place for a bartender - right in front of that stage - as well as some tech booths for LX and audio.

It took even longer for him to type a reply; he literally typed around five words a minute on a good day. You'd never know it from his posts; they were always delightful and rarely succinct; he freely shared his technical theatre knowledge accumulated over 50-plus years of working in the industry. The amount of time and love he put into each post is astounding, given how much work it took for him to read and type. Every post, PM, or email he sent always ended the same way, and now it's our turn to give a final farewell. Toodleoo Ron! We'll see you at the big dimmer beach in the sky someday.

I had always assumed he used *something* or *someone* to help him type it out given his vision. I now have an even deeper respect for the time he took to send posts to someone he's never met before.

The longest single DM message I have from him (which I'l be leaving private, though it sounds some of you have heard similar things from Ron ) is over 3,139 words. at an average of five words per minute, about 10 and a half hours writing that one message alone. Though a passage from it is quite meaningful to me:

Thank you Ed. When I first read you, my initial thought was "Oh! Another Canadian, how nice." In order, my thoughts were: Ottawa, maybe he's crew in the NAC. He's a sensible adult, he not only noticed there're 'shift' keys but knows how and when to use them and does. Without any conscious thought, I presumed you to be in your twenties / thirties with your plans in order, putting your past experiences to good use by referencing them while mapping out your future. One day I learned how to right click on avatars and my jaw hit my space bar when I read you were (In my memory) 19. Now reading you're in actuality 18 further amazes me.
a; Because you've discovered the 'fountain of youth'. [Although possibly I merely mis-read your profile]
b; Because you're clearly a sensible adult with your head together.
c; Because you've donated your time to not only read the ramblings of an old blind geezer but afforded me the benefits of your well thought out perspective and replied promptly besides.

Thanks Ron, this one stuck with me.


I'm sorry I never got back to you on that last one Ron.

Toodleoo!