Regular attendees of our Zoom meetings will be sorry to hear this news from Martin:
Conrad Jay Bladey
I have heard from Mary, the wife of TSF Colleague Conrad Bladey, that he passed away on 16 June following complications with Parkinson’s Disease. Conrad was a long-time member of TSF and, until recently, a regular attendee at our online meetings, always ready with a question or comment. His research work on aspects of folk song, particularly his work on Guy Fawkes and bonfire societies was extensive.
I corresponded with him over several years and, in 2009, Shan and I visited Conrad and Mary at their home in Linthicum, MD. There we learned more, not only about his work on folk song but about his artistry. This took its most extreme form in his ‘Art Cars’ – standard automobiles to which he added all sorts of objects to create vehicles that developed a theme. During our visit took us sightseeing in Baltimore in one of his cars – we became, for a time, part of a sight that others were seeing with amazement. On another occasion he joined us on a journey by train to visit the Library of Congress. The concept of a ‘quiet carriage’ was anathema to him.
You can read his obituary here: https://tinyurl.com/Conradobit. You can also find out more about Conrad’s work on his website – https://cbladey.com/, including a short video describing and explaining his art cars.Martin Graebe
30 June 2025
Conrad Bladey, wearing his ‘Horn Hat’, standing in front of one of his ‘Art Cars’ while
Martin Graebe and Judy Cook look on. Laurel, MD, June 2009.