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Nov 03, 2024
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A Regina man who got his 15 minutes of fame thanks to an unusual name has died.
The Late Show with David Letterman first heard of Dick Assman in 1995 during a segment called dumb ads with a newspaper advertisement, which included the Regina man’s name. The comedy bits continued for a few months, with Assman eventually travelling to New York to be on the show.
An obituary published Friday said Assman died peacefully Monday. He was born in Neudorf, Saskatchewan in 1934 and worked at various service stations as a manager, mechanic and gas attendant throughout his life.
Before Letterman retired last year, News Talk Radio caught up with Assman to talk about his short-lived fame. He said even after 20 years people still come up and talk to him about it.
“They recognize me right away. Everybody tells me I haven’t really changed in 20 years. There’s still quite a few (who) come get autographs and take pictures with me,” he laughed.
Assman said his name was actually pronounced “OSS-mun,” but he always went along with the joke.
“I thought if they wanted to have fun with it go ahead,” he said.
His funeral will be held Monday, but the family is declining flowers. The obituary said donations can instead be made in his name to the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Saskatchewan.