Tribute courtesy of Phil Berrier, Roller Derby Forum
John Parker
Roller derby legend "Chief" John Parker passed away on Thursday, August 19, 2004.
With his passing, roller derby lost another of its all time great skaters.
The great Roller Derby star, who became famous around the world with Roller Games, had been ill the past few years. Parker was born in Los Angeles on March 23, 1931 and joined Roller Derby in November, 1956 after attending college. A naturally-gifted athlete, strong and powerful, John was a Roller Derby All-Star with the Red Devils in 1961 & 1962. By the mid60s, he became a major star with Roller Games, doing whatever it required to promote the game, skating wherever he was needed and impressing everyone with his all-around skating ability and personality. Fans will always be grateful to John Parker for years and years of incredible thrills and memories from his participation on the banked track. He is survived by his wife Patty & his son Dutch and fourteen grandchildren. May he rest in peace.
Gary Powers
I knew John Parker from the day he entered the training school to becoming a part of the Roller Derby in 1960. Being a fan of 12, and John, at that time being a NY Chief, he was not a favorite of mine. But things change. He was my first trainer at Oakland, California. That is where he met Patty. I recall talking with her while I was waiting to skate, and she was waiting for John to finish a class. I grew to like him very much. Always polite, always. He took a great liking to Eddie Krebs. The first night of the 1961 season was skated at the training school at 8525 E. 14th Street, Oakland, California, and it televised from there during that season. During the first game, Bombers v. Red Devils, O'Connell put Krebs into an upright and almost broke his leg. Four by Four upright on a wooden track. John was the only one to say anything to Charlie; not that it mattered, but he did.
Later on tour, I traveled with John, and he was so entertaining. He had a story for everything. In those days, 1965, we were traveling 400 miles between games and playing 6 nights a week. The people loved John on white and hated him on red. Truly a professional, even when he was upset. He did his job first.
The last time I saw John was in LA some years ago when Burt was trying to open at the Olympic. He looked the same. I saw Patty, but she didn't remember me. Can't blame her it had only been thirty some years, and I no longer look like I did at 12.
Prior to that, I was working as courier while going to law school. One day, I was coming back to the bay area from the valley after making a delivery. This car kept following me, passing me, then slowing down, I would pass, and then the process was repeated to the appoint of road rage. To my surprise, the vehicle exited where I did. I stopped at a gas station for fuel. While fueling, I went to use a pay phone. At the pay, was the car, and John Parker on the phone to Nick Scopas looking for directions to the golf course he was working at. John looked at me. I looked at him, and then it hit both of us who each other was. I had him follow me to the golf course.
Will miss him. God Speed John.
Donald Drewry
John Parker was one of the skaters I remember seeing on television when I was a child. Many of those childhood memories are hazy now, but many of the memories of Roller Derby stay with me. John Parker was a commanding presence on the track, not just because of his size but more for his skating talent and his ability to sell the game. Years later when I ran across Roller Games on television one Saturday afternoon I was excited to rediscover many of the skaters I had enjoyed years before. John Parker was one of those skaters. Very little about him had changed. No matter who was on the team with him, John Parker was the skater that drew the viewer's attention. Call it "track presence", "charisma", or whatever you like. He had it.
John Parker joined the Derby in November 1956 in Los Angeles. Yearbooks of that era state that John was born in Los Angeles on March 23, 1931. He attended Long Beach State College before joining the Derby. He was listed as standing six feet tall and weighing 200 pounds. It appears that John Parker's long association with Roller Games began in 1966. Still, he turned back up in Roller Derby every now and then. He could bring the crowd to its feet wherever he skated.
There was hardly a team in Roller Derby or Roller Games at the time he was skating that Parker was not a member of at some point or another. The Bucks and Renegades are the only two that come to mind. He usually wore the red shirt and he wore it well.
I was disappointed when I heard that the Florida Jets franchise with John Parker as coach was unsuccessful. Parker was a skater around whom a franchise could have been built. He was a man who deserved the fans respect and admiration, so it was gratifying to see him become coach of the New York Chiefs several years later. Parker remained with Roller Games through, at least 1983 and skated with other leagues as late as 1999.
Phil Berrier