Sun Valley loses a beloved friend.
August 30, 2020
Todd Anthony Rippo
1964 – 2020
“The edge…There is no honest way to explain it because the only people who know where it really is are the ones who have gone over…”
– Hunter S. Thompson
Todd Anthony Rippo was born on December 14th, 1964 in San Diego California. A true native San Diegan, his early years were spent in Point Loma, Ocean Beach, Mission Hills, La Jolla, Del Mar and Rancho Santa Fe. He received a bachelor’s degree from UC San Diego.
Todd was a rock star in every sense of the word. Music was his pulse. He awoke each morning with a song in his head and had an uncanny ability to spontaneously riff remarkable lyrics. Band night with Todd was legendary. His taste in music was original and eclectic. You never knew if Miles Davis, Bowie or Hiss Golden Messenger would be spinning on his old-school turntable while he enjoyed a cigar. In 2018, Todd released his first album, “Thought I Knew You.” This was a compilation of many of his favorite original songs. The album is a raw and soulful glimpse into Todd’s captivating mind, his life and his loves.
Todd was larger than life. His remarkable energy captivated all who met and knew him. Todd was always the coolest guy in the room, but not for the reasons one often associates with the word. He was cool because he was both unsettlingly powerful and profoundly fragile all at once. Todd was fearless and brave, yet had no fear of showing you his vulnerabilities. He was the epitome of manliness, yet fostered and proudly displayed his feminine side simultaneously.
A beautiful man, he was generous, sexy, elegant and romantic. Todd was a deep thinker, inquisitive, complex and clever. He was superstitious, stubborn, spiritual, political and soulful. He was remarkably intelligent, funny and fiercely loyal to those he loved. When Todd loved you, you felt chosen. He was magic. There wasn’t a disingenuous bone in his body. He was a profoundly sensitive old soul.
He had a singular, enviable sense of style and impeccable taste. Aside from music, Todd loved art, passionate and creative people, skateboards, dive bars, live concerts, socks, beach walks, leather jackets, a chain wallet, motorcycles, beautiful women, a great cigar and a “good” margarita. He kept treasures and talismans in his pockets – a coin given to him by his Navy Seal friends, a knife from his father and a Chimayo cross from his sister.
Todd loved his home. It was a magical place to gather for sunsets, Todd’s “Almost Famous Cookies” and cigar nights lasting well into the night. His house was full of albums, art, trinkets and mementos from his colorful life – heart rocks, beach glass, cigar wrappers, flowers, candles, pinup girls, musical instruments, interesting books, hot wheels, peanut M&Ms, icons of every sort and a well-adorned jackalope at the top of the stairs.
Todd had beautiful, singular friends in this life’s journey – people that loved him dearly and whose love he reciprocated with equal passion. He had magical stories of traveling the world and told remarkable tales of the characters he met and the music he heard along the way. Todd always said, “I love you.” He often cried. Todd greeted you with a bear hug and a kiss.
Todd adored his beautiful daughter, “Frankie” Francesca Rippo. She was the light and love of his life. He beamed with pride when she rode on the back of his motorcycle or learned to skateboard, ski or surf. They shared a love of music and had their own language. He was so proud to be anywhere with Frankie. Their connection profound, Todd was a “Rad Dad.”
The Idaho Java coffee shops – located in Ketchum, Hailey, Boise and Twin Falls – are his legacy. It all started with pre-law student Todd studying in coffee shops in San Diego. Todd fell in love with the coffee culture. He bought a motorcycle and took some time off of school to figure out his life. That motorcycle took him out of California and to the front door of what is now Java on Fourth in Ketchum, Idaho. You could be anywhere – any random place in the world – and someone would always recognize the “guy from Java.” Todd was and still is the heartbeat, soul and rock & roll of this thriving business.
Todd passed away in his home in Del Mar, CA on Wednesday, August 19, 2020. Todd was proceeded in death by Anthony J. Rippo, MD. He is survived by his daughter Francesca Rippo, mother Madeline D’Atri Rippo, father Rick Maxey, sister Annie “Belle” Rippo-VeneKlasen, brothers Tobin and Josh Rippo, step brothers and sisters and innumerable in-laws, aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces and nephews.
Todd’s departure from this life will leave a lasting void in all our lives. He was the brightest of shooting stars. Fly free, soar with the angels and rock the heavens Todd.
https://www.legacy.com/obituaries/idahostatesman/obituary.aspx?n=todd-anthony-rippo&pid=196714659
Chadwick.
The Russo Brothers:
“He inspired an entire generation to stand up and be king. Honor him by emulating him…show kindness and love to others. Share your talents in ways that impact. Always strive to be a light in the darkness.”
President Barack Obama:
“To be young, gifted, and Black; to use that power to give them heroes to look up to; to do it all while in pain–what a use of his years.”
AP News
At the 2019 Screen Actors Guild Awards, “Black Panther” won best ensemble, electrifying the room. Before an auditorium full of actors, Chadwick Boseman stepped to the microphone. He quoted Nina Simone: “To be young, gifted and black,” and put the moment in context.
“We know what it’s like to be told there isn’t a screen for you to be featured on, a stage for you to be featured on. … We know what’s like to be beneath and not above. And that is what we went to work with every day,” said Boseman. “We knew that we could create a world that exemplified a world we wanted to see. We knew that we had something to give.”
NPR
Chadwick Boseman speaking at his alma mater, Howard University, to the class of 2018:
“Sometimes you need to get knocked down before you can really figure out what your fight is and how you need to fight it. Whatever you choose for a career path, remember, the struggles along the way are only meant to shape you for your purpose. When I dared to challenge the system that would relegate us to victims and stereotypes with no clear historical backgrounds, no hopes or talents, when I questioned that method of portrayal, a different path opened up for me, the path to my destiny.”
‘Live amongst people in such a manner that if you die they weep over you and if you are alive they crave for your company.’
-Ali ibn Abu Talib
♥
‘…make of us a garland.’
And if our earth needed to
She could weave us together like roses
And make of us a garland.
-Rilke
✿`*•✿ ✿`*•✿
Gaia will be fine. She will rejuvenate and make new. Humanity…our species…must decide now if we are to survive. Gaia wants to make us a garland. And we continue destruction…politically, socially, economically.
~
How many times does a person have to lie before you stop listening to them?
If he is given, or steals, another election, greater karmic forces are at play beyond what we know.
We have so much to atone.
C O V I D
Masks work. It’s a pandemic. P A N D E M I C.
U.S. tops 6 million Coronavirus Cases
Deaths: 183,000 +
Daily COVID U.S. deaths: 1,200 +
Visual: Picture the 1,500 people attending the White House Lawn/GOP political event this past week. That’s how many American’s die every. single. day.
Global cases: 25,079,330
Global deaths: 843,842
How Democracy Dies
Carole Cadwalladr is a British author and investigative journalist/The Observer.
“We are what happens to a western democracy when a hundred years of electoral laws are disrupted by technology. Is this what we want? To let them get away with it?”
A Kenosha Militia Facebook Event Asking Attendees To Bring Weapons Was Reported 455 Times. Moderators Said It Didn’t Violate Any Rules. It remained up. Two people were shot dead. Then it came down.
Their excuse? ‘Operational mistake.’
https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/ryanmac/kenosha-militia-facebook-reported-455-times-moderators
Free Press:
“Over and over again Facebook fails to stop the glorification and celebration of white supremacist violence. It’s disgusting and unacceptable.”
Jay Rosen, Journalism professor at NYU:
“The conservative commentator Ben Shapiro has gotten 56 million total interactions on his Facebook page in the last 30 days. That’s more than the main pages of ABC News, NBC News, The New York Times, The Washington Post and NPR combined.”
Seth Godin, author and former ‘dot com’ business executive:
‘Systemic problems demand systemic solutions.
First, we have to pay attention.
Then we need to acknowledge that a solution is possible.
And then we need to commit. To the long, persistent road to altering the status quo.
The world is forcing us to pay attention to lingering problems more urgently than ever before. Real change on issues of dignity, justice and health are long overdue
Urgent problems are too important to earn only a moment of our attention. Important projects demand that we keep showing up to make the change we seek. Showing up and showing up, at the root and at every turn, consistently working toward systemic solutions.
When we think about the problems we’ve solved as a community, this is the way it always happens. Making things better, over time, with focus. Persistent commitment doesn’t lower the urgency of the moment, it acknowledges it.’
Kevin Roose, NY Times Columnist:
“If you don’t think DT can get re-elected in November, you need to spend more time on FB. The result is a kind of parallel media universe shaping its own version of reality.”
August FB interactions:
CNN: 21 million
NYT: 8M
Ben Shapiro: 55M
August FB video views
CNN: 73M
NYT: 12M
The Hodgetwins: 84M
August FB shares:
CNN: 2.2M
NYT: 800K
Dan Bongino: 5.6M
CNN’s Brian Stelter talks ‘Citizens Agenda’
#MSM
The news media needs a reset.
Jay Rosen explains ‘Citizen’s Agenda.’
The Citizens Agenda is a model for generating more responsive, inclusive & useful news coverage for voters.
www.thecitizensagenda.com
Center for Action & Contemplation, Aug. 28th:
‘Group egocentricity is even more dangerous than personal egocentricity. It looks like greatness when it is often no more than disguised egotism. Loyalties at this level have driven most of human history—and most wars—up to now.’