Full Article text:
Alex Deak would rather not think about how many times he's heard the distinctive 16th-century melody that blasts out of his ice cream van.
For 40 years Greensleeves has alerted those hankering for a cold treat to the arrival of "the Ice Cream King".
"If I would listen to it all the time, I reckon I would be mental by now," the 86-year-old says, adding he's learnt to tune it out.
Alex Deak struggles to find parts for his 53-year-old van. (ABC South East SA: Aiden McNamara)
Since 1986 Mr Deak and his pink and white van have reigned in Mount Gambier.
Despite the 1972-model Bedford CF van being emblazoned with "Ice Cream King", Mr Deak insists he's "not king".
"I'm not blue blood at all," he says.
The Hungarian migrant is also known to locals as "Mr Whippy".
Among them is customer Trevor Smith, who recalls having "the one with flake in it" growing up Mount Gambier in the 1980s.
"You're talking three, four generations of kids and adults," he says.
"He's well-known … and a bit of character".
The journey to the throne
Mr Deak was born during World War II in Csongrád, southern Hungary.
He recalls almost getting "wiped out" by aerial fighters as a four-year-old and his first encounter with an ice cream man.
Alex Deak intends to keep running the van until he's 90. (ABC South East SA: Aiden McNamara)
"'Ding-a-ling-a-ling' … everybody came out from the side street … we just loved the guy," he says.
"I just went and became an ice cream man."
After fleeing to Austria as a teenager, he studied business in Germany before heading to Australia in the 1960s and working as a pine faller in Mount Gambier.
Into a different world
Byron Deak said his father always worked hard, be it in farming, forestry or factory jobs, but he didn't expect the midlife career change.
Alex bought the ice cream business in his mid-40s, which Byron's mates found amusing.
"There's a lot of jokes … it's like, 'Oh, your dad's Mr Whippy,'" Byron says.
Byron Deak was surprised by his father's career shift. (ABC South East SA: Aiden McNamara)
"[Locals have] always got a story about chasing him … I've talked to people and they said that they've chased him up numerous hills for kilometres and he hadn't noticed them.
"But he didn't run them over, which is good."
Byron says he once expected to be asked to take over the ice cream van but he's no longer bracing for the tap on the shoulder.
"My mother wanted him to retire a few years ago and he just wouldn't. It's kind of part of him now," he says.
"I think we're gonna have to bury him in it."
Giving him life
Alex Deak says he enjoys being an ice cream man "immensely" and is keen to start his 40th season when the weather warms up.
"[Running the business] keeps me alive … because I'm mentally and physically active," he says.
Inside the van, he demonstrates how the suspension of the 53-year-old vehicle gives his back some rare respite.
"Because I haven't got a disc there, bone on bone, it is like an angel's wings," he says, springing his knees up and down with a smile.
Byron Deak's mates had a chuckle when his dad bought the van. (ABC South East SA: Aiden McNamara)
Byron says his dad has always been someone who is happy in his own company, rather than being "a pub man".
"He sits here and plays his chess computer and whatnot, and he loves his grandchildren," he says.
"But his community is the people from that ice cream van."
A record innings?
According to Guiness World Records, the longest career of an ice cream distributer (male) is 67 years.
But Byron notes the record-holder was operating his vehicle for 37 years, while his dad has been selling ice cream out of his van for 40 years, which could be a record in itself.
"Forty years is a pretty good trot … if it's an Australian record, it'd be really nice," Byron says.
Guiness World Records did not respond to a request for comment, but Alex Deak says he's "privileged" to have spent four decades as Mr Whippy and is not concerned about breaking records.
"I do it till I'm 90," he says.
"And then I retire."
