UPDATE:  Willem's step daughter Devon wrote to let us know that there is a memorial page for Willem at
http://memorialwebsites.legacy.com/willemvanes/Homepage.aspx

Residents of the Chelsea Hotel were saddened to learn of the passing of their longtime neighbor and friend, Johnnybday2 Willem Van Es. Willem died on Christmas night in an airplane en route to Amsterdam. We all remember Willem as the owner of Johnny, the recently deceased Behemoth of the Chelsea, whose odor lingers in the elevators to this day. The photo is from Johnny's final birthday party.

In addition to Willem’s life work as a crafter of hand painted and hand made wall paper, he had spent the last 10 years working on a boat which he had jokingly christened the Sea-Banana. Sadly, Willem will never get to set sail in the bright yellow craft. We feel confident, however, that he has set sail on a much more joyous voyage.

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5 responses to “Sad Passing of Chelsea Hotel Legend Willem Van es”

  1. easy target Avatar
    easy target

    Willem was a one-of-a-kind lovely guy who I had the pleasure of knowing (and Johnny too).
    May he rest in peace. He will be missed

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  2. Tom McManus Avatar
    Tom McManus

    Willem was the best. I will miss him.

    Like

  3. Devon Yates Avatar

    Hi All,
    This is Devon, Willem’s step daughter. Thanks so much for posting this. Willem loved the Chelsea, the time of his life here. We have set up a memorial web page for him, with pictures and a place to comment, as well as in the future information about his memorial service.
    http://memorialwebsites.legacy.com/willemvanes
    As Willem would say, “Fabulous!”
    Devon

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  4. Paul Manes Avatar
    Paul Manes

    Willem was my friend over many years. We only had fun. Smooth sailing Willem!

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