Harvey Pekar Was a Hoot

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Harvey Pekar is one of those guys who if ever one could be a bit of a caricature of himself, he was it. Words that come to mind are ones like "animated." He was definitely a character and someone you would not immediately forget after meeting him. No. I never met him. But he made several appearances on David Letterman's late night talk show between 1986-1994, and every time he appeared it was a literal show. In the end, while Letterman always seemed to be annoyed by Pekar's often times brash, in your face, and sometimes annoying demeanor, he said he actually liked the guy and appreciated him more after he died. Pekar was a cynical man who just didn't give a damn what you thought about him. I like that in a guy. It's admirable. He wasn't going to take things lying down, and he wasn't going to play "the game." When he showed up on Letterman's show, everything was on Harvey Pekar's terms. The video compilation of Pekar's appearances on YouTube is a bit long. But I swear to you it's worth every minute to watch it.