DJ Weep Dies in Crash
“He touched a lot of people in this town”
Tuesday November 29, 2005
By Jim Stanford - Jackson Hole Daily
Chris Blank, the DJ whose disco and hip-hop dance parties made him one of the leading musical figures in the community, died Sunday of injuries sustained in a car crash.
Blank, also known as DJ King Weep, died of internal bleeding at Portneuf Medical Center in Pocatello, Idaho, after the pickup truck he was riding in flipped on an icy patch of Interstate 15. He was 36 years old.
Blank played music two or three nights a week at various locations in Jackson Hole, notably Disco Night at the Stagecoach Bar in Wilson. He also composed music for movie soundtracks and recorded CDs of his dance mixes.
A New Jersey native who moved to Jackson in 1992, Blank was well known among youths, having volunteered at the Teen Center of Jackson Hole and worked at the Mountunes music shop and The Board Room of Jackson Hole, a skateboarding and snowboarding shop.
The diminutive DJ was one of the most outsized characters in Jackson, with his dreadlocks, many piercings and low-rider cruiser bike he would pedal around town.
His death shocked the community, as friends bemoaned the loss of someone they described as a gentle and thoughtful soul.
“He touched a lot of people in this town,” said Rocky Vertone, his friend from high school and fellow DJ. Vertone and Blank were partners in the entertainment company Four4 Productions, which they founded in 2000.
Blank’s brother, Craig, is a veteran Jackson Hole News&Guide employee who works in prepress and advertising photography.
Vertone recalled his friend as someone who tried to be positive in all aspects of life, advising people to be “righteous” to one another. “He was a righteous dude, for sure,” Vertone said.
The accident occurred at about 10:30 a.m. Sunday. Blank and a friend were returning from a trip to the Brighton Ski Area near Salt Lake City, his brother said Monday.
Blank was in the front passenger seat of the Toyota Tacoma. About 20 miles south of Pocatello, Idaho, the truck slid on ice, went off the road and flipped multiple times, his brother said.
Blank was not wearing his seatbelt at the time and was thrown from the vehicle, his brother said. He suffered a broken pelvis.
When authorities responded, Blank was conscious and tried to get up, his brother said. He was transported by ambulance to the hospital, where doctors detected internal bleeding and attempted surgery but could not save his life, his brother said. Blank died at about 4 p.m.
The driver, who was wearing a seatbelt, was unhurt, Craig Blank said.
There will be a viewing from 5 to 7 p.m. Friday at Valley Mortuary, followed by a memorial service at Snow King Resort.
Blank’s acquaintances said the town will not be the same without him.
“Weep was one of the kindest, nicest people I’ve ever met,” said Mountunes owner Suzi Woodward. “It was my privilege to call him a friend.”
