The man looks grimly at Mickey. "Sorry, man," he says. "We said we didn't want it."
"All right, all right," Mickey mumbles, and he stops coloring. As if in one motion, he loads up his crayons and marker, hops on his bike, and pedals off into the darkness. He leaves the drawing on the bar.
A few minutes later, the group of three decides to leave too. As they exit, one of the women unwittingly knocks over a beer with her oversized purse. She doesn't look back.
The beer creeps toward the drawing, soaking its edges. But before it gets too far, a bartender rescues the paper, waving it dry. He holds it up and examines it: the green and yellow trees blurred into the background, the bright-blue jacket, the colorful dresses, the happy drinkers.
He takes a piece of clear tape from under the bar and finds a clean spot on the wall.
"This one's a keeper."
We just received an honorary Mickey Clean drawing Friday night on our weekend get away to Fort Lauderdale. His presence is priceless and unforgettable. We tip him a $20.00 but would have given a $50.00 if we had not already spent it. The entertainment was worth every cent. And, I'm framing the pic!:) If you ever get this opportunity, don't judge the book by the cover- or, you'll miss an amazing experience!
April & Ajay
A few years ago when I visited my daughter in Fort Lauderdale we were approached by this Zen like character....outside the kava bar he just rode up on his biycicle with his box of colorful Crayolas and stack of wrinkled plain white paper and asked if we would like a characture drawing....he did an outstanding job of drawing us! I have never forgotten that remarkable meeting*;-)
Thanks for the Psychology 101 lesson asdf jkl; but you're way off the mark. Most people are cool. In fact you're probably a pretty nice person yourself. But if you were aware of the history I have with this moron you'd understand. Despite the comments on this page, most people I know feel the same way about him.
This is a beautiful story about one of South Florida's beautiful souls. If you love Mickey like the rest of us, join the Facebook group dedicated to him.
Good reporting but overdone writing. Too many adjectives. Trying too hard. Where's the editor?
People like Geordie are what's wrong with Fort Lauderdale. Most of the people in these bars are laid back and cool with everyone else. Most people love Mickey. But then there total dicks like this POS who just like bring everyone else down. Sorry your wife left or your parents didn't love you or your boss is an ass. Sorry your life sucks dude, try not taking it out on everyone else.
I sure did. Why not? It was your sandbox. That wet spot you were rolling around in wasn't from the rain.
Sure did--why not? It was yours. That wet spot you were rolling around in wasn't from the rain.
The door guys at the Elbo are absolutely right. This moron is an annoying crackhead. He intrudes on people's privacy, interrupting conversations to draw doodles I could have created in kindergarten. His "caricatures" look nothing like the people he's drawing. He once said "If I was a good caricature artist I'd kill myself". I offered to pay for the schooling.
I've been hanging out at these bars for the last 8 years and I've always wondered if anyone else saw the magic in this man. He is sweet and funny in a place where you expect people to be cold and mean. I've always wondered if his stories were true. Thank you so much for this great article and all the research! I will never forget this story.
Great article, I amhappy I could contribute somehow.Love Mickey, just told him last week that all the caricatures up my walls will make me money someday...Chrys - Pirate Bar
Anyone who has met Mickey knows how wonderful he is. Anytime I see him I buy him a beer and ask him to tell me a story. He doesn't have to get bigger. He's great where he is. I hope he sticks around doing exactly what he has been for 40 more years. I have introduced more people to Mickey than I can count and they all love him too.
Amazing article! I can't believe Mickey Clean is still alive and doing crayon drawings in South Florida! This is literally the first time my Google Alert on Mickey Clean has gone off for a year!
Beautiful story. He's a very interesting man, maybe the saddest happy guy I've ever met.
Mickey was supposed to play a Sailboat Bend block party 2 years ago, and apparently forgot (after multiple reminders). If he wants to make make it big again, I suggest trying to remember dates of gigs. We still love him anyway.
Great article. A lot of stuff I didn't know about him.
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