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LYNCHBURG, Va. (CAP) - While Lynchburg investigators have not officially charged anyone in the sudden death of evangelist and Liberty University founder Jerry Falwell, they have announced that they are holding for questioning Dave Thompson, the actor who played Tinky Winky on the children's show, Teletubbies.
"At this point in time, he's a character actor of interest, nothing more," said Lynchburg Police Department spokeswoman Wanda Levitt. "We've placed him near the scene of the crime, and he certainly has motive. There was also incriminating evidence at the scene, but I can't get more into that at this time."
It was in 1999 that Jerry Falwell outed Tinky Winky in a national broadcast, claiming that everything from the character's color (purple) and the symbol on his head (a triangle) to his red handbag all pointed to the fact that Tinky Winky might have been batting for the other costumed team. The show vehemently denied that either Tinky Winky or the actor that played him were gay, but shortly thereafter the show ceased production.
Many industry analysts at the time blamed the show's cancellation on microhomophobia (fear of little gay people).
"Dave Thompson had no animosity towards Jerry Falwell, nor did he kill him," said the actor's publicist. "Losing that gig was the best thing that ever happened to Dave, and he's very busy now doing a number of other projects, including a gig wearing a mattress outside the Abbottsville, Md. Slumberland this weekend.
"As such, we're asking for his immediate release," added the publicist.
Thompson claims he was in Illinois at the time of Falwell's death, attending a keg party thrown by the Wiggles to celebrate the opening of the Six Flags America park, Wiggles World. Investigators countered by releasing evidence that they believe puts him in Lynchburg, in his Tinky Winky costume, several hours before the evangelist's death.
Sources within the Lynchburg Police Department also say that Falwell had a number of triangular-shaped contusions upon his body, and odd radiation burns on his forehead that might have come from prolonged exposure to a television screen-type device similar to those built into the Teletubbies' costumes.
"Forensics has the suit, we've got the man behind Tinky, and the Wiggles are cooperating, so we'll see where it leads us," spokeswoman Levitt said. "At this point in time, we're mostly looking to send an 'eh-oh' out to Dippy, Laa-Laa and Po to see if they have any information on this investigation."
