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, Pee-Wee Herman, 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.
