Everybody Has Something to Hide Except Me and My Monkey: A Conversation with Paul Dini and RaSHy

Everybody loves a comical chimp! Even Ronald Reagen

It seems that the entire world loves a man and his monkey.  Ever since Ronald Regan made Bedtime for Bonzo, the appeal of the comical chimp has been a staple in the entertainment industry.  Sometimes it works (David Shwimmer and Marcel on Friends); other times it does not (Kurt Russell in The Barefoot Executive).  Personally, I have never been a fan of the comical chimp, but the day I first saw a little film featuring comic book writer and animation icon Paul Dini talking about guns with his sock monkey son Little Rashy outside of an ice cream truck, my feelings towards films featuring comical chimps changed forever.  Perhaps the appeal had something to do with the fact that Rashy was a sock monkey.  I mean, if there is one thing the world loves more then a man and his monkey, it’s a man and his sock monkey.

The Dini Household - Comic/cartoon writer Paul Dini, magician/comedian Misty Lee and sock monkey brothers Little Rashy and Super Rica

The short film, titled Ice Cream Time with Dad and Rashy, was one part of a larger body of work called Monkey Talk, which is the brainchild of Paul and his lovely wife Misty Lee.  Originally, the series of films involved Paul Dini interviewing people in the comic book industry and other pop culture icons, including Mark Hamill, Grant Morrison and Dan Didio, which the mischievous Rashy, a sock monkey with a sadistic, yet loveable, streak, would interrupt with his own brand of mayhem.  However, as time went on, the films grew to be more of a look at the type of insanity that takes place within the Dini household when you are living with a monkey like Rashy.  The addition of Rashy’s long lost brother SuperRica, added to the fun as viewers were able to watch the abuse that SuperRica takes at Rashy’s pranks.

As Paul and Misty kept creating the Monkey Talk films, I decided that I wanted to get in on the fun, but with Paul and Misty being two of the busiest people in the pop culture industry, I decided that instead of contacting them, I’d drop a note to Rashy’s Live Journaland request an interview with him.  It took him a number of months, but I eventually received a simple message that stated “I’ll Do It.  Rashy.”

Paul and Rashy were kind enough to take the time to talk to me about their life and projects a few weeks before Christmas 2007.  With Misty Lee sitting in, I had probably one of the fastest paced interviews I have given to date.  The chemistry between Paul and Rashy is wickedly funny, and I found myself often unable to ask questions because I was to busy wheezing through my laughter as I waited to see what Rashy would come out with next.

So, friends and readers, get ready for the mayhem as PCA becomes part of the Rashy experience as

CONFESSIONS OF A POP CULTURE ADDICT PRESENTS:

EVERYBODY HAS SOMETHING TO HIDE EXCEPT ME AND MY MONKEY: 

A CONVERSATION WITH PAUL DINI AND RaSHy

I spoke to Paul Dini, Misty Lee and Rashy at their home in California via telephone on December 5th 2007.

DISCLAIMER:  THE OPINIONS EXPRESSED BY RASHY THE SOCK MONKEY ARE THOSE OF RASHY THE SOCK MONKEYAND DO NOT NECESSARILY REPRESENT THOSE OF CONFESSIONS OF A POP CULTURE ADDICT OR PAUL DINI. 

Sam:  Well I really want to thank you for talking to me today.  This is really exciting for me because I’m a big fan of your work Paul. 

Paul Dini:  Thank you.

Sam:  Your books, your television programs and your characters and, of course, the whole Rashy thing.  The first Rashy film I saw was you and Rashy trying to buy a gun from the ice cream man and you guys had me sold.

Paul:  Oh yeah.  That was a good one.

Sam:  Is Rashy there?

Rashy:  Yeah I’m here.  What do you want?

Sam:  Rashy, it’s really good to talk to you.

Rashy:  Where are you?

Sam:  Where am I?

Rashy:  Yeah.  I can’t see you.

Sam:  I’m on the phone.

Rashy:  I can’t see you.  I’m looking in the phone mouth piece.

Paul:  Rashy, it’s not a video phone.  You just have to listen to him over the phone.

Rashy:  What kind of old person conversation am I having here?  Don’t you even know how to I-chat?

Paul:  No.  We’re not set up for that right now.

Rashy:  This is an outrage and you’re both an embarrassment.

Paul:  Well you’re just going to have to do it old school Rashy.

Sam:    Well look Rashy.  I just want to tell you that this is the second time I’ve ever interviewed a sock and a monkey.  The first was Canadian talk show host Ed the Sock and the second being Monkee Davy Jones. So thank you for taking time to talk to me.

Rashy:  Hey.  It’s the least I can do.  I mean I know that you like to talk to celebrities and I don’t mind donating my time to a worthwhile cause.

Sam:  Well the first question I want to ask is how did you two come together and meet.  I mean a man and a sock monkey.  How did that happen?

Rashy:  I smelled money.

Paul:  Really, I had this sweet little story all planned out and you put a monetary value on it Rashy.  That’s not good.

Rashy:  Well go on and tell your story.  I’ll interject if I have something to say.

Paul:  Well the honest story is that Misty likes sock monkeys and she let that be known to me one day when we were in a toy store but there were no good sock monkey around.  We had seen that there were a couple of them and they just didn’t seem to have any appeal to them and I asked “would you like one” and she said “well, you know, if I find one I like.”  This was about three years ago exactly.  Christmas 2004 and I found this store that sold little handcrafted toys and there were a few sock monkeys in a barrel and Rashy seemed to have the most appeal of any of them.  There was this one little one in there that, I don’t know, for whatever reason he just spoke to me.  I said, “Well that’s the one.  He looks cute.”  I think it was his eyes.  He has these googley eyes and he always looks like he’s wide eyed with surprise or outrage or about to do something.

Rashy:  It’s because I’m staring at you, Porcupine.

Paul:  Oh.  Okay.  That’s it.  I’m trying to tell a nice story here.  I didn’t think much about it and then on Christmas Eve we were at this cabin we have at Lake Tahoe and Misty came out to the living room and the tree was all out and Santa Clause had just visited and she saw her stocking and it had been taken off the chimney and it was being held up by the sock monkey and his attitude was like “Mine!  All mine!” and we took a picture of it, and I guess that’s his baby picture, and from that moment on he just began making his wishes known and…

Rashy:  You forgot the part where you punched me in the eye, ass!

Paul:  I was just about to get to that part. 

Rashy:  Yeah!  I was just about to get to that!  I was just about to gloss over that piece!

Paul:  Christmas night we were going to bed and Misty had the monkey with her all day.  She’s taken him out in the snow and they bonded the moment she picked him up. 

Rashy:  She’s cool.

Paul:   Yes she is.

Rashy:  Dad’s another story.  He’s a Porcupine.

Paul:  Yeah.  Right.  He’s been watching the Three Stooges so everyone who’s not his Mom is now known as Porcupine.  So, anyways, it’s getting close to bedtime and I turn off the light and after a minute or two of silence I hear this little voice calling to me and going (whispers) ‘Daaaaaaad. Daaaaaaad.”  And I say “hey wait a minute.  I’m not that monkey’s Dad.  Is that the monkey?  I’m not that monkey’s Dad.  No.”  So the monkey started talking at night and I said “I’m not talking to the monkey” and then I turned over and my fist..uh…hand accidentally whacked him in the face.

Rashy:  That is not correct!  You need to call child services because Paul Dini makes a habit and a hobby out of beating small children and sock monkeys!  He’s a sick, sick individual!

Paul:  No, no Rashy! 

Rashy:  He needs to be taken away! 

Paul:  No!  That’s not true!

Rashy:  Help!

Paul:  No!

Rashy:  Help me!  Please!  I know we haven’t known each other very long Sam but you and I go back far enough that I’d hope that you care enough about my well being!

Paul:  RASHY!  No!  Sam, don’t listen to him!

Rashy:  Get me out of here!  Sam, do you have money?

Paul:  Don’t answer that Sam!

Rashy:  Sam!  Please help me!

Paul:  He plays on everybody’s sympathy!

Sam:  I can see that.

What does James Garner have that Rashy wants? A tank!

Rashy:  Sam, I need a tank.

Paul:  No.

Sam:  You need a tank?

Paul:  Misty took him to the mall today and got him some beautiful holiday outfits and he’s….

Rashy:  She got me a fairy Christmas dress with wings!

Paul:  It’s adorable Rashy.  You look like the sugarplum fairy.

Rashy:  It makes me feel cold inside.

Paul:  Well the Santa costume is nice and SuperRica has a cute little elf costume.  He looks just like Jingle Bell.

Rashy:  SuperRica is an embarrassment to the family and himself.

Rashy's brother SuperRica

Sam:  Well there’s another question I have to ask you.  Is SuperRica the Cousin Oliver of this whole operation?  How did he come to join your family?

Paul:  Well he’s Rashy’s brother.

Sam:  He came from the same barrel?

Paul:  Yeah, but different times.

Misty Lee:  SuperRica was found outside a taco stand in a little show box and we brought Rashy over because we understood that he was orphaned and there was a little note pinned to his front and Rashy looked into the show box and immediately punched him and that’s how SuperRica became a part of our family.  He’s actually named after the taco stand we found him at.

Paul:  Yes.  We found him outside of a taco stand in Santa Barbara and yet, somehow, Rashy knew him to be his brother.

Rashy:  Laying in a box and being embarrassing.

Paul:  However, they were separated, if that is in fact what happened, is a story that they haven’t divulged to us yet.  But they are brothers and they hang out together and they play all the time as brothers.

Robert Rodriquez - SuperRica's real father?

Rashy:  Robert Rodriguez is his real father.

Paul:  No he’s not.

Rashy:  Yes he is and he’s got money and maybe he’s my real father too.

Paul:  Well I don’t know who your real father is.

Rashy:  You don’t know who yours is either.

Paul:  I know who my Dad is!

Rashy:  Yeah, you think you do!  When was the last time you had a DNA test?

Paul:  I don’t need one Rashy.

Rashy:  They’re making some fantastic progress in the human geneome.  Perhaps you should investigate.

Paul:  Where have you been picking this up?

Rashy:  Where have YOU been picking this up?

Paul:  Rashy, c’mon.  Anyways.  That’s Rashy’s real origin and that’s what…

Rashy:  Sam?  Are you my real grandpa?

Sam:  I’m not old enough to be your real grandpa I’m afraid.

Rashy:  HA HA!  He’s calling you old Dad!  HA HA HA HA HA HA!  HAAAAAAAAA HA HA!

Paul:  Rashy, that’s enough out of you.

Rashy:  That’s enough out of you!  Porcupine!

Paul:  Actually, Rashy’s grandfather does live with us too.  The boys do have a grandfather named Grandpa Angus who is a surely Scottish sock monkey.  He’s actually a used, rather old, stank sock monkey.  I think the boys sold him on a shop for….

Rashy:  37 cents.

Paul:  And a couple of bananas and the old man was shanghaied and spent several years at sea and eventually turned up at a junk shop in Monterey, California and ended up making his way to the family again.

Sam:  Okay.  Well this is going to be a two part question.  Paul, I’m going to ask you the first part and Rashy, I’m going to give you the second part.

Rashy:  I wait for no one!

Sam:  Alright Rashy, I’ll give you the first part.

Rashy:  That’s what I’m talkin’ about.

Sam:  No.  No.  I’m sorry Rashy.  I have to give Paul the first part…

Rashy:  No.

Sam:  And then you can have the rebuttal.  It could be better that way.  You can trump him.  Okay, so I’ve been trying to explain the relationship between you two to people who have never seen Monkey Talk, and one of the girls I work with said that the relationship between you two sounded like Alvin and David Seville.  I thought, well, sort of, but not really.  So Paul, how would you explain the relationship between you and Rashy?

Rashy is the embodiement of Pinocchio

Paul:  Well, for one thing, Alvin brought in a lot of money for David Seville.  Rashy has yet to bring a cent into the family and the few times we’ve put him in front of a microphone he won’t sing.  He just knocks things over and runs away and just hurls abuse at us.  Abuse and anything else that he can get his hands on.  So our attempts to make money off of Rashy has not worked out where, I understand, Dave Seville has a breeding farm of chipmunks  that don’t sing and the other ones sing out of fear.  There has been actually about 88 Alvin’s at this point since 1958 or from whenever Alvin was created.  There may be a little of that, but Rashy’s more like…have you ever read the original book of Pinocchio?  He’s more like the original version of Pinocchio.  He’s very mischievous and always loves to get into trouble.  He says he’s going to be a good boy but temptation comes along or he just loses interest and off he goes.

Sam:  Well Rashy?  How would you describe your relationship with Paul?

Rashy:  I think it’s a sad, sad situation over here.  I am stuck in a state of servitude.  I am punched in the face and the eye on a regular basis.  I get nothing that I need or require to survive comfortably and in the way that I deserve to live.  I am mortified.  I am traumatized and I’m calling my lawyers!  HELP!  Help!

Paul:  Rashy has a lovely life here in a beautiful home.

Rashy:  Says you!

Paul:  And you have a lovely place to sleep and you have toys and you have a brother who loves you.

Rashy:  My brother pees the bed and my Dad won’t take care of it and I don’t even think he’s my real father.  Nobody loves anybody around here and he’s trying to dress me up like a fairy.  Apparently I’m supposed to be a part of his perverse and sick fantasies.  I’m some kind of sock monkey Lolita.

Paul:  That’s enough.  This interview is over.

Rashy:  That’s enough for you, Nabaokov.

Rashy and his "mother" Misty Lee are very close. In fact, you could say she puts the words in Rashy's mouth

Paul:  It was your mother who took you shopping.

Rashy:  You’re a sick person.

Paul:  Your mother took you shopping and picked out those clothes for you.  You take it up with her.

Rashy:  I blame you.

Paul:  Well your mother is the one who does it.

Rashy:  Well I blame you.

Paul:  You’re scared of your mother because she can make you disappear.

Rashy:  Yeah.

Paul:  Or turn you back into socks.

Rashy:  Yeah.

Paul:  Yeah.  You pick on me cause I can’t do that.  All I can do is chase you and I can’t run very fast.

Rashy:  That’s right.

Sam:  Well there seems to be an eternal and worldwide love and fascination for the sock monkey.  Where do you think that comes from?

It's a sock monkey's world. We're just living in it.

Paul:  I don’t know.  I just find them very appealing.  I think, visually, a lot of people find them just funny.  You take a few socks, use some imagination and you got a little person there.

Misty:  Also, it’s an original creation from a common household everyday item.  Their sweet, their floppy, their huggable and yet they have the form of something that represent trouble and mischievousness and a lot of personality and people can customize them to meet their fancy.  So many of them are so different and original that they are difficult not to love.

Rashy:  Shut up Mom!  He’s talking to me!  Gimme the phone back!

Paul:  Rashy, behave and be nice to your Mom.

Rashy:  Your not being have.

Paul:  That doesn’t even make sense.

Rashy:  You don’t make any sense.

Sam:  Well I know my favorite Christmas present ever was a sock monkey she made me named Roderick.  I named him after Rod Serling.  He’s actually sitting behind me here on the couch.

Rashy:  What’s a couch?

Sam:  Uh…it’s like a sofa.

Rashy:  Oh.

Paul:  Rashy.  Behave yourself.

Rashy:  You’re not.

Sam:  Do you not say couch in California?

Rashy:  No.

Sam:  Well up here we have a few different words.  I mean, in Canada we say pop instead of soda and you folks don’t have dill pickle chips down there apparently.

Rashy:  What the hell is that?

Sam:  its potato chips with dill pickle flavoring.

Rashy:  Yeah, we have those.

Sam:  You do?

Rashy:  Yeah.

Sam:  What about ketchup potato chips?

Rashy:  No, but I’d like to try them.

Sam:  You would?  Well I’ll tell you.  I’ll be coming to San Diego in July and if I run into you I will give you a bag of ketchup potato chips.

Rashy:  It’s a date my friend!  I may not talk your crazy moon language but it sounds fantastic and tasty!

Sam:  Well as long as customs brings it in and it doesn’t think it’s some kind of terrorist thing then that’ll be no problem.

Rashy:  If you tell him it’s for me, they’ll let you through. 

Sam:  Will they now.

Rashy:  Yeah.  You just tell them that you got some potato chips and a bomb in there and they’ll say “where is that going” and you just say “it’s for Rashy!”

Paul:  Oh yeah.  That’s just great.  We have to go to New York tomorrow and it’s….

Rashy:  Ha ha ha ha!  I got my little plastic bowling ball and a little clock that goes tick…tick…tick…tick…and I just slip it into my Dad’s luggage and he always gets pulled out of the line and they put on the rubber gloves and I laugh and I laugh!

Paul:  Yeah.

Rashy:  Ha ha ha ha ha haaa!

Paul:  Yeah, Rashy always refers to me as Abdula.  He’ll go “Abdula.  Take this through the metal detector.”

Sam:  Well, obviously you’ve been making the Monkey Talk videos for a while now.  Is there any more coming out and where are you planning on taking that franchise?

Paul:  Well, I want to get back to doing more interviews and profiling people in comics and animation and that was what it originally started out to be.  To talk to people that weren’t getting a lot of exposure and….

Rashy:  I don’t know.  I’ve heard that a couple of those dudes expose themselves on a regular basis.

Paul:  No Rashy.

Sam:  Really?  Like who Rashy?

Rashy:  I’m not at liberty to say because sometimes I have a tendency to make up stories and cause trouble and I get in big trouble with my Mom.  I need a kazoo….

Sam:  What do you need a kazoo for?

Rashy:  What don’t I need a kazoo for!

Paul:  Is it on your Christmas list Rashy?

Rashy:  No.  It’s on my list of demands!

Paul:  Well what’s on your Christmas list this year?

Rashy:  I’m not telling you!

Paul:  I heard you’re not too good this year and you might be off the list.

Rashy:  No, that’s impossible!

Rashy:  Well we got a letter from Santa saying that he was looking forward to coming here and that he has lots of gifts for SuperRica.

Rashy:  Yeah.

Paul:  You were not mentioned in the letter.

Rashy:  Well if that’s the case and he’s not coming then my bribes aren’t working and I want my cash back.

Sam:  Well Rashy, what is on your list this year?

Rashy:  What is on my list?  Well I would like some grenades and then a paintball gun and a very large van with no windows in the back and also a large deep freezer. 

Sam:  And Rashy…you need this why?

Rashy:  That is not an issue here and it is your job to do the supplying and it is my job to do the enjoying.

Sam:  I understand.  And you do realize that if you did get guns…I mean….

Rashy:  I’ll take a gun.  You can add that on the list.

Sam:  Right, and then the grenades and the van…

Rashy:  Yeah.

Sam:  Umm…that you…you know, I’m about to go down a political road that I don’t feel comfortable putting up on my web-site so I’m going to just move on.  Sorry abut that.  I don’t need any more controversy now that the whole Herman Hermit thing has finally died down.

Paul:  Well, quite honestly, the last thing we need is the department of homeland security showing up here again.  It’s very humiliating seeing them handcuff a sock monkey and take him away because then I need to bail him out and make explanations.

Sam:  And have you had to do that yet.

Paul:  Yeah.

Sam:  Now Paul, I am really enjoying Countdowna lot but I need to ask, Rashy, what the heck is going on in Countdown, and if you were writing it what would you be doing differently.

Rashy:  It would very closely resemble the soldier of fortune web-site.

Sam:  I see.

Paul:  Except with gorillas, right?

Grodd

Rashy:  YES!  And you know what?  The only thing I want to see in Countdown and it would make it all okay is Grodd.

Paul:  That’s right.  He hasn’t shown up yet.

Sam:  That’s right.  We haven’t seen Grodd yet.

Paul:  No.  We haven’t seen a lot of Grodd.  He’s busy over in Justice League.  I think he’s going to get shipped off the planet soon.  I’m not really sure.

Rashy:  Oh the humanity.

Paul:  Well Rashy is a big fan of Gorilla Grodd.  In fact, Rashy was campaigning for Grodd’s release.

Sam:  Well do you have any emotional connection to Bobo the Detective Chimp?

Rashy:  He’s alright but he’s not as cool as Grodd.

Sam:  So Bobo versus Grodd, Grodd wins?

Rashy:  Oh!  Totally does!  Hands down!  Why do you even need to ask me that question?

Sam:  Well how about, say, Grodd versus Titano?

Rashy:  Hmmmmm…..Grodd.

Sam:  Grodd versus Superchimp?

Rashy:  Grodd.

Sam:  Grodd versus Congorilla?

Rashy:  Is that a chick?  Grodd versus Grodd, Grodd wins!

Sam:  Got it.  I don’t think there is a better answer then Grodd.

Rashy:  That’s right.  There’s no better answer to a DC comics question then Grodd.

Paul:  What about Grodd versus Angel and the Ape?

Rashy:  I don’t even know what that is.

Paul:  Well he might be able to take the ape but he’d never be able to take the Angel.  She’s to strong for him. 

Rashy:  No.

Paul:  I’ll show you one of those books.  You might enjoy it.

Rashy:  Yeah.

Paul:  It’s basically a gorilla that’s a cartoonist who teams up with a girl who’s a detective.

Rashy:  Kind of like B.J. McKay and his best friend Bear but not at all?

Paul:  Yeah, but with a girl and there’s no trucks.

Rashy:  Well if there’s no trucks I’m not reading it.  I want to go to Taco Bell.

Paul:  Are you going to Taco Bell?  Are you going right now?

Rashy:  Yeah.  Give me the keys.

Paul:  You’re not driving the car.

Rashy:  Yes I am.  I’m going to drive it into a lake and then I’m going to walk to Taco Bell.

Paul:  There’s no lake between here and Taco Bell.

Rashy:  I’ll find one.

Paul:  Actually, there is.  There’s Toluca Lake.

Rashy:  That’s right!  Bob Hope will be REAL surprised to see me!

Paul:  Yeah.  Especially since he’s been dead for four years.

Rashy:  He’s in Forest Lawn.

Paul:  Yeah, well you’ll have to take a round about way to get there.

Rashy:  I’ll find him.

Paul:  Yeah, I bet you will.  You know who’s buried up in Forest Lawn? 

Rashy:  You.

Paul:  No!  Not yet.

Rashy:  Not yet!  Add that to my Christmas list!

Paul:  Hey!  The Three Stooges are there.

Rashy:  Porcupine.

Paul:  They are kind of spread out.  I think they were cremated and spread out.

Sam:  So that’s pretty much the end of my questions.  So Rashy and Paul, what can we expect from you in the future.

Rashy:  Wild success from me.  Wild, wild success.

Sam:  And how are you going to accomplish that Rashy.

Rashy:  That is not your concern.  All your job is to do is to spread the word about how great and fantastic I am.

Sam:  Well I think I can do that.

Rashy:  And get my a grenade, a deep freezer and a van with no windows.

Paul:  Rashy, you’re not getting those for Christmas

Rashy:  Says you.

Paul:  Yeah.  If those show up I’m sending them right back.

So, in order to do the job that Rashy gave me, make sure to check out Rashy and Paul’s misadventures at Rashy’s web-site (http://www.littlerashy.com) and Quick Stop Entertainment (http://www.quickstopentertainment.com/?cat=20).  Monkey Talk is also available at YouTube, but to save you from searching yourself, we are proud to present Paul Dini and Rashy’s YouTube videos right here for your convince.  And remember, spread the Rashy experience.  Make sure to forward all of these videos to your friends and relatives.

POP CULTURE ADDICT NOTE: The majority of the photos used for this article are the property of Paul Dini and Misty Lee and were accessed from www.littlerasy.com.  Please make sure to visit and read the Rashy stories and see the photos in their original context.