Richard Arthur "Dick" Assman (February 14, 1934 – August 15, 2016) was a Canadian

gas station A filling station, also known as a gas station () or petrol station (), is a facility that sells fuel and engine lubricants for motor vehicles. The most common fuels sold in the 2010s were gasoline (or petrol) and diesel fuel. Gasoline ...

employee whose name propelled him to celebrity status across North America for four months in 1995.

Career

In 1995, Assman moved from working at one

Petro-Canada Petro-Canada is a retail and wholesale marketing brand subsidiary of Suncor Energy. Until 1991, it was a federal Crown corporation (a state-owned enterprise). In August 2009, Petro-Canada merged with Suncor Energy, with Suncor shareholders rece ...

station to another. The latter station's owner took out an advertisement in the local newspaper that was sent anonymously to

David Letterman David Michael Letterman (born April 12, 1947) is an American television host, comedian, writer and producer. He hosted late night television talk shows for 33 years, beginning with the February 1, 1982 debut of ''Late Night with David Letterman' ...

, who was amused by Assman's name. Assman was introduced on July 24, 1995, on the ''

Late Show with David Letterman The ''Late Show with David Letterman'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by David Letterman on CBS, the first iteration of the The Late Show (franchise), ''Late Show'' franchise. The show debuted on August 30, 1993, and was produced by ...

'', where he was a nightly feature for about a month. During this time, he was known as "Assman the Gasman". Live field units in Canada interviewed him for the show. Over the weeks,

Joe Namath Joseph William Namath (; ; born May 31, 1943) is a former American football quarterback who played in the American Football League (AFL) and National Football League (NFL) for 13 seasons, primarily with the New York Jets. He played college foot ...

declared himself an "Ass-maniac", while Assman received a musical tribute from

Tony Orlando Tony may refer to: People and fictional characters * Tony (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Gregory Tony (born 1978), American law enforcement officer * Motu Tony (born 1981), New Zealand international rugby leag ...

on Letterman:

Northgate
Petro-Canada Petro-Canada is a retail and wholesale marketing brand subsidiary of Suncor Energy. Until 1991, it was a federal Crown corporation (a state-owned enterprise). In August 2009, Petro-Canada merged with Suncor Energy, with Suncor shareholders rece ...
Oh, they're relocating Their new office at Victoria Square They're celebrating Oh vaya con dios, Dick Assman Vaya con dios, my love

As his fame grew,(9 August 1995)
Assmania goes on tour
''

Waterloo Region Record The ''Waterloo Region Record'' (formerly ''The Record'') is the daily newspaper covering Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada, including the cities of Kitchener, Waterloo and Cambridge, as well as the surrounding area. Since December 1998, the ''Re ...

''(4 August 1995)
What a cheek: The Assman is coming to Ontario
''

Toronto Star The ''Toronto Star'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper. The newspaper is the country's largest daily newspaper by circulation. It is owned by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary of Torstar Corporation and part ...

''(28 July 1995)
Letterman's Regina pal takes the Late Night ribbing in his stride
''

'' Vancouver polling company

Angus Reid Public Opinion Angus Reid (born December 17, 1947) is a Canadian entrepreneur, pollster, and Sociology, sociologist. He is the chairman of the #Angus Reid Institute, Angus Reid Institute and CEO and founder of Angus Reid Global. He is director of the Reid Campb ...

reported that 49 percent of surveyed Canadians in September 1995 had heard of his name.Luscombe, Belinda.
NEXT: I.P. DALY ON NIGHTLINE
, ''

Time Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, to ...

'', published October 2, 1995, accessed February 8, 2007. Assman received a number of contracts for commercial appearances, was asked to run for public office, and received many marriage proposals. He received a request to judge a

bikini contest A bikini is a two-piece swimsuit primarily worn by women that features two triangles of fabric on top that cover the breasts, and two triangles of fabric on the bottom: the front covering the pelvis but exposing the navel, and the back coverin ...

in August 1995 for the Janetville Jamboree and Truck Pull in

Janetville, Ontario The Township of Manvers (area ) was a municipality in the former Victoria County, now the city of Kawartha Lakes, in the Canadian province of Ontario. History From 1792 to 1974 Manvers Township was located in Durham County, which was united wi ...

. "Assmania" came to a close in August when Assman visited the

Ed Sullivan Theater The Ed Sullivan Theater (originally Hammerstein's Theatre; later the Manhattan Theatre, Billy Rose's Music Hall, CBS Radio Playhouse No. 3, and CBS Studio 50) is a theater at 1697–1699 Broadway, between 53rd and 54th Streets, in the Theater ...

and was presented with a bouquet of roses by Letterman.(21 August 1995)
What's in a name? Ask Letterman guest
''Free Lance Star'' (Associated Press) In October 1995,

James Blanchard James Johnston Blanchard (born August 8, 1942) is an American retired attorney, diplomat, and politician who served as the 45th governor of Michigan from 1983 to 1991. A member of the Democratic Party, Blanchard previously served in the United ...

, the U.S. ambassador to Canada, paid a visit to Assman at his gas station, citing his status as "an international celebrity".(5 October 1995)
Ambassador visits Assman
''

'' Assman or

Assmann Assmann, Aßmann or Assman is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Aleida Assmann (born 1947), professor of Egyptology, literary and cultural studies * Arno Assmann (1908–1979), German actor and film director * Charles As ...

is a German-language surname derived from the name Erasmus. Dick Assman himself, who took all this ribbing good-naturedly, pronounced his name "oss-man".

Personal life

Assman was born in Neudorf, Saskatchewan, to Adolf and Elizabeth Assman. He died on August 15, 2016. Another Saskatchewan resident surnamed Assman, Dave Assman of

Melville, Saskatchewan Melville is a small city in the east-central portion of Saskatchewan, Canada. The city is northeast of the provincial capital of Regina and southwest of Yorkton. Melville is bordered by the rural municipalities of Cana No. 214 and Stanley No ...

, earned notoriety in 2019 when he attempted to get a vanity

licence plate A vehicle registration plate, also known as a number plate (British English), license plate (American English), or licence plate (Canadian English), is a metal or plastic plate attached to a motor vehicle or trailer for official identificatio ...

with his surname on it; when

Saskatchewan Government Insurance Saskatchewan Government Insurance (SGI) is a Canadian insurance company and a Crown corporation wholly owned by the Government of Saskatchewan. SGI's operations consist of the Saskatchewan Auto Fund, the compulsory public auto insurance program for ...

rejected his request, he had a tailgate-sized replica of an "ASSMAN" licence plate painted on the back of his truck. News reports did not indicate how closely (if at all) Dick and Dave Assman were related, but did note both pronounced their names the same way and were of German descent.MacPherson, Alex (14 February 2019).
"Assman Strikes Back: Denied Licence Plate, Saskatchewan Man Emblazons 'Offensive' Last Name on Tailgate."
''

National Post The ''National Post'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet newspaper available in several cities in central and western Canada. The paper is the flagship publication of Postmedia Network and is published Mondays through Saturdays, with ...

''. Retrieved 7 November 2019.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Assman, Dick 1934 births 2016 deaths David Letterman People from Regina, Saskatchewan