Difference Maker June 2

DIFFERENCE MAKER -- JB "Jellybean" Dick

As he sits behind his keyboard, one can easily see why JB “Jellybean” Dick made the decision to become an entertainer — after his first retirement. Now, just shy of his 80th birthday, he continues to delight the crowds, sometimes as a magician, sometimes as a clown, and on Wednesday as the one tickling the keys and the funny bone of his audience at the Council on Aging center in St. Augustine.

Dick plays the oldies; it says so on his business card. He said he didn’t want false expectations to be made of him and his music. He was asked to play for a function at the COA about three years ago and has been a regular ever since. One look at octogenarians jitterbugging about the center’s small “dance floor,” and it’s no wonder Jellybean, as he prefers to be called, has a longstanding engagement.

How long have you been playing music?
’Bout 106 years [laughing]. I started playing piano when I was 4 years old. My mother made me take lessons until I was 6. Then I completely stopped playing. I wanted to play the bass for my high school orchestra, but joined a dance band instead. I didn’t start playing the keyboards again until I turned 75.

Was your mother the driving force behind you being an entertainer?
My mother was a very domineering woman. She’s the reason all of this happened. I knew it would not go over well if I told her what I wanted to do with my life, so I went into education. I was a teacher for 15 years, a principal for 15 years and a dean for 5 years.

Then what happened?
My mother had passed away. I retired and four days after leaving education, I was on a circus lot as a clown — my lifelong ambition!

Thus the name Jellybean?
Yep. For 12 years I traveled as a clown in various circuses. I also taught clowning and had my own circus for a while. Then I retired again. I’m thinking about doing it again real soon. Retiring seems to be a hobby of mine. I also met my wife, Phyllis, through the circus. She, too, is a clown, as well as a costume designer and seamstress. Now she’s my roadie.

You must get a great deal of satisfaction from entertaining the folks here at the center. What do you enjoy most about it?
I play music that makes memories. It’s the songs that were playing at their high school prom or playing on the radio when they were driving home from the hospital after having their first-born child. The last time I was playing here, I had a woman come up with tears in her eyes. Her husband had passed away and said my music reminded her of all the songs he loved. That said it all.

— TERRY BROWN

Know somebody who makes a difference in your community? Tell us about them by e-mailing stjohnsnews@jacksonville.com, and be sure to include your contact information.