‘We will forever cherish him.’ Bozo’s icon Anton Kihyet has passed away
Bozo’s Grocery & Grill in Pascagoula has sadly announced the death of iconic employee Anton Elias Kihyet II, “the voice” of Bozo’s Seafood Market.
“We will forever cherish him and our special memories,” a Facebook post about his passing said. The post had 223 comments and 631 shares Friday afternoon.
Kihyet died peacefully Tuesday at age 81, his obituary says.
Bozo’s owner Keith Delcambre is fond of saying Kihyet came into Bozo’s for lunch one day and never left. He liked to help Delcambre’s father at work.
When Delcambre’s father passed away in 2002, Kihyet retired after 36 years at Ingalls and started working full time at the popular restaurant.
“I’m afraid if I quit, that I wouldn’t live long because I don’t have hobbies,” Kihyet told the Sun Herald in 2015. “I’d sit home and end up being in the cemetery, and I’m not ready to go to the cemetery.”
People loved the way he said, “Bozo’s,” in a clipped voice when he answered the phone. That detail made his obituary.
“All it took was one clear, distinctive, sharp word, ‘Bozo’s,’ and you knew who you had on the line and you had better be ready to order because he was busy,” his obituary says. “Anton loved working at Bozo’s and everyone loved him. He will be deeply missed by all of us.”
Kihyet told the Sun Herald in 2015 that some of his customers even used his “Bozo’s” greeting as their ringtone.
Because of the new coronavirus, burial was private, the obituary says. But a big celebration of Kihyet’s life will be held once danger passes.
Employees called Kihyet “Grumpy,” the Sun Herald’s 2015 profile said. But it was an ironic nickname. The profile noted that Kihyet kept lollipops on hand for children and liked to sing “Happy Birthday” to customers.
“Parents bring kids in here on the way home from school and don’t even order anything,” Delcambre said then. “They just stand in line to get a chance to talk to Kihyet and get their sucker.”
