David Zancai

David Zancai (born May 7, 1968 Zancai has received mixed responses to his Zanta character, and has been banned from several public areas around Toronto, including the Toronto Transit Commission.

Media appearances

Citytv Toronto For his first appearance as Zanta, Zancai showed up behind the street window of the CHUM-City Building and began performing. As a result of Citytv using streetscapes as backdrop to live news programming, Zancai was frequently seen in the background of the morning news and entertainment program Breakfast Television. Reportedly aggravated by Zancai's presence, CHUM filed a number of complaints which resulted in Zancai being banned from the area of the building.

Other appearances

Zancai has attended several Christmas parades, pointing out that "Santa's at the back, while Zanta's at the front." He finally was photographed with Cruz and Michael Keaton. Zanta is one of the many characters profiled in Jason Kieffer's comic book, "The Rabble of Downtown Toronto". Jason Kieffer created a short story for Taddle Creek Magazine's Christmas 2009 issue called "Why, Zanta?...Why?..."; In July 2012 Jason Kieffer published a full graphic novel about Zanta, titled "Zanta The Living Legend".

Reception

In 2005, Zancai's desire for fame and exposure resulted in at least one arrest on mischief charges.

In August 2006, Zancai received a provincial probation order stating that he is "not permitted on any TTC property or vehicle other than surface routes" for two years. Most bus drivers in the city refuse him access to surface routes. Zancai is fighting the ban, with an attorney handling his case pro bono. Former TTC Chairman Adam Giambrone acknowledged there is no specific TTC bylaw against doing push-ups on TTC property, but has defended the ban by stating that such behaviour may pose a "serious safety hazard".

Adam Vaughan, then-councillor for Trinity—Spadina, has stated that Zancai is "a much-loved character when you don't have to do work around him" but he is nonetheless "probably a public nuisance," and that some people understandably take issue with his behaviour. In an interview with the National Post, Vaughan stated: "Just because you have a right to freedom of speech doesn't mean you have a right to an audience. And when you impose yourself in a public space consistently and without much regard for whether other people can enjoy that public space, boundaries are broached." Zancai's lawyer has responded by saying that Zancai is "entitled to be as strange as he wants to be" and has defended his right to make use of public spaces for doing pushups.

An article titled "Where's the line between mental illness and sexual harassment?", exploring Zancai's harassment of people, including sexual harassment, on the TTC, was published on the TVOntario website in October, 2015.