UPDATED: 11/4/19: 4:44 p.m.
“Let’s go set the world on fire.”
Tonight Seminole Heights resident John Moll is going to burn a giant globe in his front yard.
Sometimes he wears nothing but a speedo and a gold necklace, but on this night, his 6-foot tall, 80-year-old frame strides toward the metal sphere in a shirt. Colorful beads at the end of two braids on his billowing grey beard sway back and forth as he walks.
He doesn’t hesitate as he pours lighter fluid all over and lights it. The flames dance just a few feet away from his bright blue eyes, but he doesn’t flinch.
The week before, his neighbors across the street called the fire department because they thought the fire was unsafe. Authorities said Moll was fine to carry on, so he continues his ritual.
A passerby on foot screams, “I’m melting, I’m melting! Have a safe night!” and laughs.
“I set the world on fire every night, or I try to,” Moll says as he smiles and waves.
Scattered across the front yards of his three houses, evidence of John Moll’s lifelong effort to collect the obscure, strange and confusing stare out from under oak trees and Spanish moss.
His yard is now littered with an assortment of D.I.Y. art or “Molls” as he calls them; One piece is a hockey-masked madman Jason Vorhees wearing a green cowboy hat and holding a machete. It stands next to a topless mannequin wearing a dirty American flag bandana, which shares the yard with a sneering giant metal dragon with red lights for eyes, a hungry werewolf, a scrap metal scorpion and a deep sea monster fish with a glowing mouth.
John says he treats his last name like an acronym, and says M.O.L.L. means “More or Less Legal.” It’s a testament to his rebellious and unique lifestyle.
But not everyone shares in John’s joy.
In 1996, the Weekly Planet (now Creative Loafing Tampa) published a story about John’s nudism. At that time he’d been arrested four times while wearing a skimpy G-string bikini in public. His charges were based upon a violation of rule 16D-2.04(1)(e) of the Florida administrative code which states, “In every bathing area all persons shall be clothed as to prevent any indecent exposure of the person. All bathing costumes shall conform to commonly accepted standards at all times.” In West Palm Beach, Moll won $9,000 for wrongful arrest. John says he’s been arrested once and ticketed once since then for dressing inappropriately in public. Both charges were dismissed in court.
Most recently, Moll’s antics have been noticed in the Seminole Heights Community Facebook group, a corner of the internet typically reserved for complaints of rogue dog poop, and porch camera videos of “suspicious” people ringing doorbells.
But for Moll, his Facebook is arguably another audience for his front yard.
Always speaking in the third person, John’s posts stretch from complaints about his inability to be nude at all times, which he calls his “John Moll suit,” observations about art and existence, and genuine rallies against the City of Tampa.
“Should JOHN MOLL be charged $200 + for having impervious umbrellas on his homestead? Roofs? Boats? Tractors? Art works, Etc,” John wrote in one post. “A city attorney says yes! And it will be collecting that stormwater users fee on his tax bill. Because interest must be paid on a millions of dollars load the City of Tampa go to fight king tide. What do you say?"
His posts have their own fans. “Love John Moll…keep posting mister,” says a commenter. Another chimes in, “For those of you who don’t like Seminole Heights go live in the sterile suburbs of North Tampa.”
Some disagree with his posts. “They are just trying to push you out of the neighborhood. I’m sure your neighbors can’t wait,” says one commenter. “Seems like John Moll can live somewhere were John Moll doesn’t have to pay into a society and only relies on John Moll to take care of John Moll,” says another.
If John’s not posting about a current battle with the city, he’s showing his internet audience a new artistic addition to his yard, or sharing info about his home. He’ll sometimes post a picture of himself in a speedo or skimpy getup. In person, he’s very similar to his internet persona, but there’s a drive to spark his neighbors’ imagination that doesn’t always translate online.
John was born in 1939 in Paterson, New Jersey. He moved to Tampa in 1951 and began living with his family in the house his grandfather built in 1908, which is neighboring to the other properties he owns. John says he treats all of the three houses as one big home.
Since 1951 he’s remained in Tampa, except for his time in college and the Marines. He lives with his wife of 52 years, Patricia Moll, whom he met at Florida State University. Patricia was working on a degree in child education and John was studying math education. They went on to be teachers for many years. Now they are retired, and John says Patricia fully supports and sometimes collaborates with his artistic work. They don’t have children, so they have plenty of time to create weird art, travel and freak out at Burning Man festivals.
Since he moved to Tampa, Moll has collected the strange and unusual. He combines his own forms of mannequin or found junk and sign sculpture with other artists’ creations in the area. To him, the collaboration is what makes it special, that multiple artists can become one in his very own yard.
A car rounds the corner between John’s houses and slows down into neutral, revs its engine to say “Hello.”
“Man that’s something there, I’ll tell ya!,” the driver says, acknowledging the giant burning globe.
“I set the world on fire every night, or I try to!,” says John. For his next adventure, Moll is going to teach people to ride a unicycle.
“Stay young forever!” He says, as he invites attendees to River Crest Park. “Speedo optional.”
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