May 4, 1991

A CRAZIER PLACE.....

Graham Nash, of Crosby, Stills, and Nash told 20,000 people at an Atlanta concert last night that "when you say goodbye to someone, be sure you've said everything you want to say, because you may not see them again".

Heed his words for he is right.

Most of you don't know Ray Rexer's background. Ray has been on the Bay City Police Department for 14 years. He has a wife, Elyce, and two great kids, Matt 14, and Tracey 10. Ray is the creator of the "Castle Schlock" Stephen King parody newsletter based on the real SK newsletter "Castle Rock". Ray also co-wrote two Paddy McRexer epics with Paddy McKillop titled "Noonies" and "Geezer" which were given to friends and family. Paddy and Ray are currently into four chapters of a new McRexer epic. Besides doing reviews and interviews for the Overlook Connection, Ray also wrote for a local cable channel TV program titled "Nightbeat". His contribution was called "Inspector Rex". Sounds like Ray, doesn't it? One of Ray's closest friends, Leonard Norman, worked on the force with him. Leonard and Ray spent many a day off looking in the used book stores in surrounding areas. Their homes becoming mini libraries in the state of Michigan.

On April 26th, around 5 p.m. officer Ray Rexer and fellow officer Terry Jablonski answered a call which appeared to be a routine disturbance. They didn't know that they would soon be face to face with an armed lunatic and then gunned down from behind by his brother. Terry passed away almost immediately. Ray clung to life until 3:00 a.m.

Seems these perennial trouble makers had spent the day getting tanked and being rowdy but, when they threatened to "start a war" the police were called. It was an ambush clear and simple and any officer who had answered that call would have met the same tragic fate as did our dear friend Ray. The culprits are in custody sure to get the maximum penalty (which in Michigan is life imprisonment) but what of our loss? Ray and Terry were not just cops they were fine men, fathers, husbands, friends....
No punishment suffered by the perpetrators will bring them back.

I hesitate in writing any of the above, but a lot of you knew Ray from his columns and interviews. Several had met Ray at conventions, and you should know what happened to our friend. It is not an easy thing for me to tell you.

Ray and I became friends over four years ago. I consider myself lucky for meeting him at all. Ray was one of the first to write to us for an Overlook Connection catalog when we started. Soon his orders, and wacky correspondence led to even wackier letters and phone calls between us. I have a file on Ray that is crammed with everything from letters to unusual newspaper clippings which run the gambit from the horror scene to my daytime job in the music industry. He was always sending notes and things. In the middle of April he sent an envelope bearing no return address, addressed at this end to "Laurie Hinchendaveberger" the envelope contained an article on "The Scorpions" a heavy metal band on my record label. No note, no anything. I didn't see it until a week later when Laurie, who thought we had gotten some crackpot mail (we did!) thought to give it to me to check out. No one was safe from the Rexer humor machine. Thank God.

Over a period of time, Ray and I had discovered that we had very similar tastes in fiction and we would recommend books back and forth to each other constantly. As the Overlook has grown, and my responsibilities in my daytime profession have increased, my reading time has been drastically reduced. Early last year I approached Ray to write book/magazine reviews for us. I could think of no one else whom I would fully trust to recommend books to our valued customers. Books that I would recommend. (of course Paddy is still hammering away at you gang - don't worry - the 'ole Englishman will continue to give you the time of your life). I've always taken great pleasure in this part of my "job" here at the Overlook but, I'm not at this point able to read the deluge of fine offerings (Geezer) in our preferred genre. (Heaven knows I'd have more time if I could just get those rockers to do their thing in the daytime!) Ray and I had spoken just two weeks before. He had called to see how the new catalog was coming along, and to check the progress of the limited edition of Steve Spignesi's "The Shape Under the Sheet" which Ray is a part of. Ray asked how I was doing and in response I told him "the Booger be fine Ray". The catalog was almost done and to the printers, and the limited was coming along nicely. I was very glad to be at the end of both projects. The Booger was fine.

I received an early afternoon call from Paddy McKillop on Saturday, April 27th. Paddy was under the impression that our mutual friend Leonard Norman had already contacted me. Leonard had called, but had not reached us. When Paddy realized that I was in the dark he was forced to break the sad news.

The sorrow that I feel is deep. I've never lost such a close friend before. I am very angry. I'm devastated.

Laurie and I flew into Bay City, Michigan for the first time on Sunday, April 28th to attend Ray's wake that evening and the funeral the next day. Leonard and Meg Norman met us at the airport. Paddy was flying in from England and was expected that evening. Thanks go to Len and Meg for not only picking us up but rushing us out to the local mall for clothes after the airline lost our luggage. You two are the best!

Leonard told stories at the wake from Ray's times on the force. One of my favorites is the time Ray answered a call from a daft woman who was sure that aliens were bombarding her with "gamma rays". Ray calmly told her, with a straight face mind you, to put aluminum foil over all of her electrical outlets thus preventing the gamma rays from entering. It worked, the Bay City Police Department never heard from her again! Yes, gang, Ray was a treasure.

I was almost on the floor with all the stories that Leonard, and fellow officer "Penny" (sorry Penny I've forgotten your last name but, not you or your excellent stories) told of Ray's antics. I thought he just did that stuff to Paddy and me - boy did I ever do a quick turnaround.

Ray had an unusual collection. When ever the image of any of his coworkers appeared in print, newspaper, snapshots wherever...lookout! Ray would clip them out and save them for just the right moment when they would undergo a miraculous transformation via the Xerox machine in the station. They would reappear upon the bodies of movie stars, dinosaurs, you name it, Ray did it. My personal fave was the one of Len's face on Stallone's body in the "Cobra" movie ad. Great muscles pal, you'll have to share your workout routine with me! The best part of it was that although these things showed up all over the place, no one ever caught him at it. They were so sure that it was him that they banned him from the copy machine but, they never saw him. Good work Ray, you could've had a second career as a criminal. They could never prove it. Our own Bart Rexer!

Why, even Chief T. Lochinski of the Bay City Police, said on local television that "Ray's greatest contribution was that he helped keep the force loose; but, he was very serious about his job".

Leonard also read a special piece written by Steve Spignesi which will appear in the "Shape Under the Sheet". It is titled "A Death in the Family" and it is kind, sad, and funny.

Leaving the wake with the Normans, Laurie made the comment that "this is the best wake any of us will ever attend." She's right. Ray was so full of life, so energetic and funny, that he helped us all to deal with his parting. Laughing through our tears at his zaniness through the end.

Laurie and I visited Ray's home for the first time the evening after the funeral. We entered Ray's office known as "The Kingdom" which was full of his Stephen King collection, books, posters, pictures, and all sorts of crazy, zany stuff. On one wall, Leonard showed me a post-it note that Ray had stuck to it. It read "the booger be fine". Leonard said he was always writing down quotes like that, and putting them somewhere to glance back at. It certainly hit me with a quick smile.

This was our first time meeting Ray's family and they were all so kind, and wonderful to us. They invited us to be as much a part of their family as possible. The Rexers really helped Laurie and I alot and we'd like to thank them for their kindness.

Mark and Karen Bradford were also kind enough to rush these excellent photos of Ray out to us in time for this catalog. Thanks you two.

Ray, Elyce, Matt, and Tracey have some good friends up there in the northern territories.

Ray has good friends all over the globe. I'm proud to be one of them. He is one of my closest friends, and I love him for the joy he brought to my life. I miss him so much that it aches. Thank God for the memories - he left me with lots of photos and video. Some video I haven't even viewed yet. But I will see it, and it will be good to visit with Ray.

Although Ray was a dedicated officer, Elyce buried Ray in jeans, and a Stephen King T-shirt because as she said "being a policeman was his job, this represents what he was".

The priest at Ray's funeral gave us all a pleasant pause for thought when he unwittingly gave me the title for this tribute to Ray. He said "heaven is a much crazier place because Ray is there. Look out God, look out God......"

Amen

Keep reading and writing my friend. The Booger is fine.

We love ya Ray.

Dave & Laurie

ADIEU - A-J00 - WHATEVER

As I write this tribute to Ray Rexer, I sense that he's up there in Heaven, looking down over my shoulder and reading these words. And I can assure you he's cussin' like a lumberjack! Because he knows he will not get the chance to reply. So when I reveal that his enthusiasm for Horror and Stephen King novels was merely a front masking his real abiding passion, for the works of Danielle Steele, he can't mislead you otherwise. When I tell you he paid a ninety-year-old woman at the Bay City Home for the Mentally Bewildered to ghost-write all his stories, poems and articles, he's not gonna call me liar. And when I confirm that he only avoided being classed as "certifiably insane" because his certificate was lost in the mail, you won't hear one word of denial. But hey, I wouldn't want to ruin Ray's image, so rest assured your secrets are safe with me, pal.

What is not a secret, and what I appreciate the opportunity to make public, is that Ray Rexer is the best friend I have ever known. THE VERY BEST! In his haste to beat me to that great used book store in the sky, he has left behind a void so immense that to contemplate it for even a moment is to admit the ultimate in sorrow and pain.

In time, I hope the memories I have of Ray will ease the pain, but I'm certain it will never fully fade. As desperate as I feel at losing you, my friend, I bless the day our kindred (and almost certainly warped) spirits found each other.

Good book-hunting, Ray. I'll love and miss you always.

Your partner-in-pen,

Paddy McKillop

Ray's light burned so bright, time and distances never seemed to matter. He's a friend I'll miss terribly, until we meet up again, somewhere down the road.
-- CRAIG GODEN

The Overlook Connection Spring 1991 #14, pp. 199-204