Paul Escolar (02/06/84 - 04/17/21) was an illustrator, prolific trick creator, and prominent figure in the Bay Area scene. A godfather of modern 1A yoyoing, in 2002 he was named Trick Innovator of the Year. His most enduring contributions to yo-yo play include tricks such as the Green Triangle, Magic Drop, White Buddha, and Kamikaze. He was one of the original Spin Doctors, and a member of the Duncan Crew. As an artist he collaborated with various yo-yo brands large and small. Following a short-lived competitive career, he served as a contest judge for many years.
Several of his tricks (such as White Buddha, Green Triangle, Orange Tulips, Red Clover and Yellow Airplanes) were named after an image on a webpage of different ecstasy pills found by Spencer Berry and Scott Coyle which showed some green pill with triangles, some white pills with buddha symbols on them and so on.
On April 17th, 2021 Paul passed away unexpectedly. His legacy lives on through his hugely influential tricks as well as the countless bonds people in the community had formed with him. As Ed Haponik put it at one point on YoYoExpert:
it could be argued that no progressive modern player has been more innovative/inspirational than him.
awesome doesn’t even begin to cover it. red clover, pure 143, kamikaze, white buddha, yellow airplanes, pink hippo, poodlin, GREEN TRIANGLE… not to mention all of the cross-pollination beween guys like he and spencer berry, and the rest of the spindox.
without even knowing he existed, if you’re a yo-yo player… you owe him something.[1][2]
Tricks Created[]
- Green Triangle
- Magic Drop
- White Buddha
- Kamikaze
- Yellow Airplanes (aka Kamikaze II)
- Red Clover
- Orange Tulips (aka Red Clover II)
- Pure 143 (alternate clip from the X Games)
- Pink Hippo
- Poodlin
- Pepto Bismol
- Hitchhiker
- Green Smurf
- A 1
- Rice Burn
- 3 in 1 Maximum Hold
- Fishbrain
- Repeater 1
- Demo Combo
- Freestyle Trick
Achievements[]
2000[]
- Bay Area Classic Invitational - Freestyle - 2nd Place
- National Yo-Yo Contest - Single A Freestyle - 10th Place
2001[]
- Bay Area Classic Invitational - Freestyle - 4th Place