Ivan Stang
Ivan Stang (21 August 1953) is an American humorist, animator, comic artist, writer and publisher, who co-founded the parody religious organisation Church of the SubGenius. The SubGenius Church has deliberately silly origin stories, rituals, merchandising and religious holidays, all built around their deity, Bob Dobbs, a pipe-smoking man with a bright smile. Several people have joined it for fun, including some celebrities, like Robert Crumb, Gary Panter, Penn Jillette, Ken Kesey, Paul Reubens, Richard Linklater, David Byrne and Devo.
Stang is a fan of Frank Zappa (whom he first heard at age 15[1]) and Captain Beefheart [2]and has given both of them official holidays on the official SubGenius calendar (in Zappa's case: 3 May, in Beefheart's case, 25 September).
Contrary to what is sometimes claimed, Zappa himself wasn't a member of the SubGenius Church, though in The Real Frank Zappa Book he did say that he sympathized with most of the SubGenius' ideas.
When a caller gave Zappa greetings from the SubGenius Church during the radio interviewOde To Gravity - Frank Zappa: World Affairs Commentator (15 April 1991), Zappa asked how old Bob was doing and said the best thing about him was that he's a smoker.
