Mr. J as a small boy with his father. The confused look on his face would soon become a permanent fixture. He is on the front porch of one of their homes in Detroit. Mr. J's father was a character, a blue collar dreamer who began working at Fords as a teenager, then became Operations Manager at the old Olympia Stadium downtown. He later took destiny in his own hands and moved the family to Ohio, where he bought a bar. A former boxer, his father was never afraid to take chances, and Mr. J inherited his restlessness.