After beginning life as a minor character in the Peanuts comic strip, Ricardo Alessio spent most of his growing-up years learning the use of the pencil and looking for new ways to make and control noise. Although he doesn’t generally like animals, he did at one point own a Bichon puppy named Mr. Perkins. He has also spent large amounts of time studying Irish mythology, though he won’t usually admit it in the course of a normal conversation. Possibly the most cherished object of memory in Ricardo’s childhood is a Jaymar toy piano, complete with color-coded key stickers.

Soon enough, he discovered the activity of designing and screeprinting t-shirts… which resulted in many long nights spent with pens, paper, computers, printers, exposure boxes, presses, and dryers, and many cross-country trips in a 1991 Volvo 240GL to attempt to sell the results.

For the past several years, Ric has been on the road making music with an assortment of bands, including J.S. Bach, Electric Light Orchestra, T. S. Eliot, Daft Punk, and, more recently, The Beatles. At the same time, he has continued to create art for himself and others. Unfortunately, he remains only a fictitious character, but he can still be conversed with through electronic means, the Postal Service, and various forms of telepathy.