Writing about Howard last night made me want to reach beyond the bacon and eggs and pile of sweat socks and learn more about this mysterious gentleman. It's amazing how much information we have at hand in this day and age. Nothing too earth-shattering here, but I found it interesting to get to know more about Howard than he ever shared with anyone while alive.

His father was British and had either passed away or left the family by the time Howard was 8 (1919-20). His mother was Westelle Rosaliehowar Drummond (1872-1952). She, like Howard, was born in Texas. Her mother's maiden name was Davidson. Her father and mother were from Ohio and Indiana respectively. Her father's first name was Howard, so we can surmise that he was our Howard`s namesake.

The 1920 census finds Westelle and Howard living in Los Angeles. Westelle was employed as a kitchen helper in a cafeteria. By 1930, she was a laundress in a laundromat, while 19 year-old Howard worked as a collector in a bank. This is a job he appeared to do until at least April of 1942, when he enlisted as a private in the Army. He listed no wife or children, but did have dependants, who I can only assume was his then-70 year-old mother.

Any other ideas for similar searches would be welcomed. Try to keep your suggestions in the pre-1950 range (or at least to somebody who would have been active at that time, even though their UM infamy may have transpired later).

I LOVE THIS story! Everyone was amaze how stingy he was. WE SHOULD be this stingy. The older folks never go into debt. They hoard what they have and don't buy what they don't need.

This may be a bit down in the weeds, but it was just announced the post office that Howard visited all the time (specifically, the Collins Road post office in Lansing) is set to close. 200 employees will be affected.

Was he the gentleman that had a ton of of Princess Diane magazines in his room?

Was he the gentleman that had a ton of of Princess Diane magazines in his room?

yes indeed.

I LOVE THIS story! Everyone was amaze how stingy he was. WE SHOULD be this stingy. The older folks never go into debt. They hoard what they have and don't buy what they don't need.

But... this guy ate the same meal 3 times a day, every single day :confused: :confused: :confused:

I mean I love breakfast food to the point where I could eat it more than a once a day, but that was ridiculous!

And it was strange to me that he had a woman at the post office buy him anything that wasn't from the newsstand or deli. It seemed like he was in the middle of a big city, I figure other stores should've been available to him?

But... this guy ate the same meal 3 times a day, every single day :confused: :confused: :confused:

I mean I love breakfast food to the point where I could eat it more than a once a day, but that was ridiculous!

Haha, same here. I love food and a variety of it! The same food, three times a day, every day? Nope, nope, nope.

These segments always intrigued me, guys like Howard Drummond, Curly Green and Charlie Scheel I find interesting.

Thanks for the tidbits on Howard.

These segments always intrigued me, guys like Howard Drummond, Curly Green and Charlie Scheel I find interesting.

Thanks for the tidbits on Howard.

I don't remember Charlie Scheel but I always found Howard Drummond and Curly Green interesting.

Curly because he had such an interesting past and I loved hearing from his one love's little sister. It really made him a real person.

I don't know why I find Howard Drummond so interesting. Maybe it's even the actor - he seems like he's having a great time.

Howard Drummond...fired for stealing scotch tape!

But... this guy ate the same meal 3 times a day, every single day :confused: :confused: :confused:

I mean I love breakfast food to the point where I could eat it more than a once a day, but that was ridiculous!

And it was strange to me that he had a woman at the post office buy him anything that wasn't from the newsstand or deli. It seemed like he was in the middle of a big city, I figure other stores should've been available to him?

Why does anybody in the world ever eat anything but breakfast food?

Howard Drummond...fired for stealing scotch tape!

I keep trying to picture this.

Was it a few pieces? A roll and dispenser? A few cases of rolls? Such an odd and charming and odd detail.

Was it a few pieces? A roll and dispenser? A few cases of rolls? Such an odd and charming and odd detail.

My guess is, there's more to that story than the scotch tape, and it's really an unsolved mystery in and of itself.

My guess is, there's more to that story than the scotch tape, and it's really an unsolved mystery in and of itself.

Good morning,

Just watched this segment again...I'm willing to bet he had Asperger's Syndrome. (More functional than Gordon Page Jr.) A lot of his idiosyncrasies would fit under that diagnosis.

Think along the lines of Sheldon Cooper in the early seasons of the Big Bang Theory.

I just finished watching his segment five times, No wonder he had all that money he was making himself look poor so people would buy him stuff. I keep getting the impression of him being a dirty old man not showering daily because he was a miser that didn't want to spend money on soap, shampoo, toothpaste, dental floss, and deodorant. I'm assuming the washcloths were a hint from the mail lady he needs to shower everyday not once a week? I wonder if Howard has more money hidden somewhere at a undisclosed area.....

Just watched this segment again...I'm willing to bet he had Asperger's Syndrome. (More functional than Gordon Page Jr.) A lot of his idiosyncrasies would fit under that diagnosis.

Think along the lines of Sheldon Cooper in the early seasons of the Big Bang Theory.

I always thought that Gordon Page Jr, Howard Drummond seemed very normal to me, except for hoarding that extreme amount of money. Being able to eat the same food every day for every meal is my idea of heaven. If I wasn't married I would probably eat 2-3 things tops. Gordon Page Jr. in particular looked like an extreme version of me, right down to memorizing the baseball stats! I do that to this day only with hockey.

I always thought that Gordon Page Jr, Howard Drummond seemed very normal to me, except for hoarding that extreme amount of money. Being able to eat the same food every day for every meal is my idea of heaven. If I wasn't married I would probably eat 2-3 things tops. Gordon Page Jr. in particular looked like an extreme version of me, right down to memorizing the baseball stats! I do that to this day only with hockey.

Gordon Page Jr couldn't hold a job or take care of himself because of his disability hence why he was put into a special home. Whatever Howard Drummond had was mild or on the border. He was a civil servant for the state/city after all

I sometimes wonder if Gordon was identified as Autistic today how we would have turned out. I think back to the husband of a former coworker: he was a brilliant scientist but because of his now obvious Asperger/Autism traits could only get a job at McDonalds for years.

It almost makes me cry thinking about how if I was properly diagnosed as a child, I wouldn't have had such a miserable childhood and been chronically underemployed because of my inability to read social cues or make eye contact. I could have been helped into a field I would have excelled in rather than throw to the wolves. I imagine Gordon would have been one of MLB's best statisticians if he was given the chance.

Does anyone else wonder what became of his gym bag that he was always seen with? And what the key to that locker held? I know nothing about train station lockers but I assume they're checked somewhat periodically to the point that there is almost no way that whatever he had in that locker is still there.

I think it was pure speculation that such a locker even existed. Howard was always alone. How does anyone know that he even used the supposed locker? Was someone tailing him to the train station? I doubt it. Once he received his daily allotment of mooched rubber bands at the post office, do you think he said, "Well, off I go to the train station to lock up my valuables."? Of course not.

I think it was pure speculation that such a locker even existed. Howard was always alone. How does anyone know that he even used the supposed locker? Was someone tailing him to the train station? I doubt it. Once he received his daily allotment of mooched rubber bands at the post office, do you think he said, "Well, off I go to the train station to lock up my valuables."? Of course not.

I believe a train station locker key was found in his apartment. I could be wrong but I'm fairly positive that's where the theory of the gym bag being in the locker came from.

Correct, but again, it's just speculation that he was using such a locker at the time of his passing. He was a hoarder, so he could have just as easily found the key on the ground and added it to his hoard. Perhaps it was something he used a long time back in a different place. At this point, it's just a meaningless key.

Would they not have actually gone to all locations in the city which offered the rental of such lockers and checked with each place? If not, that's shoddy work on their part. Howard was a pedestrian, so if the key was local to the area, it would have been a locker close to the Y where he lived. Doesn't seem like that would take much detective work to solve.

I love this case, what a curious fellow.

It's been a long time since we've had any action on this thread. I know we have a lot of Howard Drummond lovers here! :)

I Googled Howard and this came up. Check out the comments section for first-hand recollections of meeting Howard! The best comment came from a worker at the YMCA:

"I worked at the YMCA front desk and was the one who actually checked him in. I was also working the night that someone, I believe it was him, accidentally set their mattresses on fire. I grabbed the mattresses and ran it down the stairs outside and tossed it on the ground. The fire department came and put it out. I recall they said he had money in his mattresses. I wasn't working there when he passed away but was shocked and surprised when I saw the unsolved mystery."

Because, of course Howard Drummond stuffed money in his mattress! The coffee jars were see-through and provided no security whatsoever.

The next best tidbit was that someone shared the name of the wonderful actor who portrayed Howard: Marion Stutes.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/137660544586/posts/10160376822484587/

I remember this case, it's actually more common than you think. people who live as if they have nothing, yet all the while are squrilling away a fortune.

i wonder what howard thought, getting to that age, why not live a little more comfortably knowing he can't take it with him?

i wonder what howard thought, getting to that age, why not live a little more comfortably knowing he can't take it with him?

As I believe I've mentioned years ago, it was extremely likely that Howard was on the autism spectrum. He also survived the Depression and was fired from at least one job that we were told about. All of these factors likely made him extremely worried about his financial security and led to his very frugal life of penny pinching.

It would be so wonderful to piece together his life prior to arriving in Michigan. Did he spend decades living in YMCAs in other parts of the country? Also, why did he move to Michigan? My guess is he likely did live in other YMCAs, being the stickler for routine that he was.

As I believe I've mentioned years ago, it was extremely likely that Howard was on the autism spectrum. He also survived the Depression and was fired from at least one job that we were told about. All of these factors likely made him extremely worried about his financial security and led to his very frugal life of penny pinching.

It would be so wonderful to piece together his life prior to arriving in Michigan. Did he spend decades living in YMCAs in other parts of the country? Also, why did he move to Michigan? My guess is he likely did live in other YMCAs, being the stickler for routine that he was.


the autism theory makes sense, i remember he had a really rigid routine in what he would he eat, when he would pay his rent, autistic people depend on these routines... didn't he also keep a really detailed collection of notes about radio shows?

i once took a job at a flight center when i was at college, a guy would come in every year, old timer to book a flight so he could pay his respects at normandy being a vet...always wanted the cheapest seat, cheapest rooms... when he died it turned out he had a fortune.

the autism theory makes sense, i remember he had a really rigid routine in what he would he eat, when he would pay his rent, autistic people depend on these routines... didn't he also keep a really detailed collection of notes about radio shows?

i once took a job at a flight center when i was at college, a guy would come in every year, old timer to book a flight so he could pay his respects at normandy being a vet...always wanted the cheapest seat, cheapest rooms... when he died it turned out he had a fortune.

Yes, everything screamed ASD with Howard.

-The rigid routine
-Eating the same meal three times a day, every day,
-The obsession in writing down headline news from the TV in his room
-Wearing the same clothes every day
-Having many identical copies of the same clothes
-Needing the receipts for his rent payments stapled to a particular piece of paper (in the same way each time)

I wonder what happened to that gym bag he carried everywhere he went. One theory could be that someone else in the Y discovered him dead before anyone else and grabbed the bag.

I feel for him because ASD was not even talked about back then.

Reading thru this thread there is a post from about 15 years ago that mentioned his parents(?) -- i had never heard any of his family had been found and any info i knew about HD was from the UM.

So with only my UM knowledge over the years - based on the description of his "hobbies" -- monitoring the news in great detail, the English Royal Family...reading Soviet Life magazine...I always wondered if he was some sort of super low level Russian spy tasked with giving the Kremlin information on the overall Zeitgiest of America. Maybe I was just overthinking it LOL.

So with only my UM knowledge over the years - based on the description of his "hobbies" -- monitoring the news in great detail, the English Royal Family...reading Soviet Life magazine...I always wondered if he was some sort of super low level Russian spy tasked with giving the Kremlin information on the overall Zeitgiest of America. Maybe I was just overthinking it LOL.

I'm pretty sure the Soviet Union wasn't terribly interested in the price of the blue plate special, the elasticity of mooched rubber bands or the goings-on at the Lansing Y.

I'm pretty sure the Soviet Union wasn't terribly interested in the price of the blue plate special, the elasticity of mooched rubber bands or the goings-on at the Lansing Y.


maybe the soviet union stuff was part of his autism. a very rigid and structured society. not a free market, but a very planned society in every sense.

it reminds me of the onion bit, where they sent an autistic reporter to report on a local prison and the guard tells him that they wake up at 6, breakfast, 3 hours of exercise... bla bla bla.. and the reporter wants to stay!

the soviet union was pretty much an open air prison.

I'm pretty sure the Soviet Union wasn't terribly interested in the price of the blue plate special, the elasticity of mooched rubber bands or the goings-on at the Lansing Y.

My theory is thin and half tongue in cheek but i was more leaning that way because of the way he was doing what? - hour by hour? - recording of news reports daily.

My theory is thin and half tongue in cheek but i was more leaning that way because of the way he was doing what? - hour by hour? - recording of news reports daily.

Oh, I know! My reply was fully tongue in cheek! :lol: