Funco Files: Rocky the Ninja Dancer

We had many unique customers at Toms River FuncoLand. One was an old man, probably in his 60s, named Rocky who would come in a lot with his Grandson. Rocky was kind of a strange bird because he behaved like a cartoon character at all times. He was always very loud, he would make ridiculous faces, and he’d be cracking jokes at his grandson’s expense at every moment. I dreaded it when they would come in because they would be in the store FOREVER. Their trips lasted so long because Rocky would only let his grandson spend a certain amount each visit, usually under $3 or $4. The grandson would then grab the price sheet and proceed to ask us if we had each game on the list under that amount until we said we had one. It didn’t matter if it was a good game or not, if he could afford it he got it.

Sometimes, we knew a game was so bad we would often let our customers know to spare them the wasted money. Sometimes we did this with Rocky and his grandson. The grandson would never listen to us or his grandfather who would usually yell at him, “They are telling you its a bad game!” After an hour or so, a game would finally be selected and they’d be on their way.

One day while waiting for his grandson to make a selection, Rocky proceeded to tell me that he was a “Ninja Dancer”. I of course took the bait, “What is a Ninja Dancer?” Basically this 60+ year old man would rock a Ninja outfit, a Ninja sword, and other accessories and visit different night clubs on the Seaside Heights circuit. I did not understand this and to this day still do not. How could this be allowed?

After he left the store, I turned to Wooza and asked him if he heard him tell me about his Ninja Dancing. Wooza said, “Oh yea bro, I’ve seen him in the clubs.” Wooza proceeded to tell me that Rocky would show up and do his dancing, and make a huge scene. He often would bring a rose with him to give to a lucky lady too. Wooza also said he would setup a boom box and to it on the boardwalk too. My mind was blown. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing.

Sadly, I never was able to see Rocky in action. I’ve told this story over the years and it seems very few people have seen the Ninja Dancer in action. If you have see him in action or have a story about him, leave it in the comments as I’d love to hear it.