By Joseph Akahome
Such occasions were rare, owing to my dad’s all consuming job, but those rare opportunities offered us the kids rare glimpses of our dad’s smiling teeth and the chance to join in his hearty laughter.
More often than not, it was a programme like ‘The New Masquerade’ that achieved that effect. And it was no mean effect, I might add, since he rarely did so, at least not in our presence. The ridiculous bombasts of Chief Zebrudaya, coupled with the humorous antics of the comic duo of Clarus and sometimes faithful friend, sometimes backstabbing
enemy, Gringory, along with the shenanigans of the gang of Jegede, Natty, Ovularia and one or two others, (whose names I can’t quite recollect now), almost always had the
the magical effect of unfailingly revealing my old man’s dentition!
The New Masquerade had quite a run in the early 80’s and 90’s, enjoying massive viewership on the Nigerian Television Authority network.
At the time, NTA was practically the only station on tv, cable tv being a thing alien to many at the time. At the height of its popularity, the show was the most watched sitcom on Nigerian television.
Everybody who had access to a TV had to finish up or postpone to a later time whatever they were doing, in order to enjoy a rib-cracking session of the whole ‘Masquerade’ crew pulling up entertaining acts while educating with their satirical pieces.
In more ways than one, we have James Iroha to thank for all of that entertainment while the series lasted. It was he who basically conceptualised and wrote the programme, which originally started out as part of a radio programme, ‘In the Lighter Mood’ presented by Bob Nwangoro in the late 70’s. His hilarious and believable portrayal of the funny sounding character, ‘Gringory’ a corruption of the name, Gregory in the sitcom was enough to reverse a bad day. Very few people, even now, would imagine that the ‘houseboy’ was actually the ‘master’ of the show, which is a testament to his unassuming and humble nature as well as his creative genius.
The popularity of the programme eventually made the image and name stick, even after the show was rested in the 90’s. And while it may be lost on many, ‘Gringory’ was actually one of the first set of people in the country who actually gave Nigerian comedy, through the success of the ‘Masquerade’ sitcom, its head start, birthing the ever burgeoning scene which its practitioners, from Basorge Tariah Jr. to Ali Baba and today’s crop of young entertainers now enjoy and make a decent living out of.
It is, however, sad that the man had little to show for it. Apart from the honour done him by the Shehu Shagari administration when it conferred on him the Officer of the Order of the Niger title in 1981, not much succour came his way, even when he needed help.
James Iroha was in a pitiable condition till his death on Tuesday, February 28, 2012. Once again, as with the likes of Pa Taiwo Akinkumi, (designer of the national flag) and many others, the country and its leaders abandoned one who had done a great deal to castigate the ills of society in a bid to make the country great(er) using the vehicle of entertainment.
Indeed, Nigeria lost a great gem in James Iroha, one whose immense wealth of creativity and experience could have added more value to the content of family television these days, which, unfortunately, is hardly fitting for family consumption in the first place.
However, and in the words of his second son, Uche James Iroha, the late comic actor even in death would ‘not want Nigerians to be downcast’, but to celebrate the fact that he influenced the development of the entertainment industry which is fast being recognised globally today.
His death, after a brief illness, exacerbated by recurring eye problems which saw him being treated in various hospitals within and outside the country, drew many tributes from friends and colleagues who praised his ingenuity and exceptional talent in creating the memorable programme, which will remain evergreen in the minds of many.
Adieu Pa James ‘Giringory’ Iroha. You will be missed by many but your legacy will continue to live on.
Tribute to James 'Giringory' Iroha
