C4 - Sunday, July 18, 1982 - North Shore News

.

Savior in a big Thunderbird

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (UPI)
— Willie Perry doesn’t wear
a cape and avoids evil-doers,
but he drives a Batmobile
and spends his spare time
doing good deeds. He figures
it’s reasonable to call himself
Batman.

Wearing a obright” red
motorcycle helmet instead
of a black houd-withesrs,-h¢
cruises Birmingham in a
specially equipped 1971
Thunderbird, a_ self-

appointed savior to those in
trouble.

Perry, 32, searches for
stranded motorists. He
delivers gas to those who
have run out, fixes flat tires,
directs people to hospitals
and gives rides to. the
elderly.

“Anytime | see somebody
who needs help, I'll stop and
see if there’s anything I can
do,” he said. “You'll find
people are not going to stop
for anyone who's in trouble,
especially during rush hour.”

Batman was known for
helping people in distress,”
he added. “And that’s my
image, too.”

The Caped Crusader
would be proud of Perry's
car, officially designated as
the Batmobile by the city's
license bureau

It is equipped with run-
ning water, a toaster oven, a

black-and-white _ television
set, a computerized
telephone, a_ refrigerator

that dispenses cold water
and a stereo.

It carries 48-inch red
fluorescent lights on both
sides, flashing yellow lights
in the back and _ two
revolving lights on the hood.

“One night lady passed me
while I was driving down the
expressway,” said Perry,
who earns his living as an
employee of a building
materials firm. “We stopped
together at a light and she
asked me if 1 was some kind
of UFO.” -

A flat tire left Dorothy
Clark on the side of the
interstate when Perry came
to her aid. She was taking
her five children to a state
park when the mishap oc-
curred.

“The guy jumped out and
showed me his Batman
identification card and
offéred to take us to the
park,” she said. “I thought,
‘This is really weird.’ But |
said, ‘I've got to trust
someone.”

At the end of the day he
picked the family up at the

park, returned them to the
car, put on a new tire and
sent them on their way.

“I tried to give him
money, but he wouldn't take
it,” said Mrs. Clark. “He-
said, ‘No, you must be
careful,’ as he drove away.”

Perry said several gas
station owners give him free
gas and lend him tools. He
said he began his efforts
after reading about a woman
who was raped by two men
who found her in trouble on
the interstate.

The worm turned

TORONTO (UPC) - The
Great Worm Caper has left

Ontario Science Center
officials squirming.

They have no. clues
whatsoever to the

whereabouts of a petri dish -
home to SO two-day-old
silkworms in the museum's
China cxhibit - that was

stolen from a glass display |

case sometime last weekend.

The missing silkworms - a
miniscule 2 millimeters long
and weighing one-hundredth
of a gram - are unlikely to
survive long without their
favorite diet of mulberry
leaves.

A LITTLE after the
show entertainment for
the kids at W.V. Rec.
Centre. Three year old
Ryan Johnsen gets a
cuddle with two rabit
puppets. Puppeteers
Debbie Lick (left) and
Gerri Clarke of
Canadian Folk Puppets
perform at various
parks around town. (Ian
Smith photo)

_ DINNER AT

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