David “Davyo” Thompson 

November 20th, 1955 – October 7, 2026

Musician. Comedian. Hairstylist. Entrepreneur. Professional Troublemaker. Las Vegas Original. Las Vegas lost one of its most colorful originals on October 7, 2026, with the passing of David “Davyo” Thompson at the age of 71. A lifelong Las Vegan, accomplished musician, stand-up comedian, hairstylist, entrepreneur, and unapologetic eccentric, Davyo spent seven decades making music, making people laugh, occasionally making headlines, and generally refusing to behave himself.

 Born and raised in Las Vegas, Davyo was the son of professional musicians Glen Thompson and Phyllis Dunbar. His father, a respected guitarist and banjo player, performed and recorded with prominent jazz musicians, including Louis Armstrong, and is credited on Armstrong's celebrated Hello, Dolly! album. His mother was also a professional Las Vegas entertainer. Music wasn't simply part of Davyo's childhood. It was the family business.

 At just 16, Davyo joined the Las Vegas musicians' union and went on the road with his first band, beginning a lifelong love affair with performing. A talented bassist and vocalist, he would play with numerous bands over the following decades, including Teaser, Three Bitchen Dudes and Tanner, and Forget to Remember, becoming a familiar presence in the city's clubs and live music venues.

 For many, Davyo was inseparable from the legendary Moby Grape era, when Las Vegas rock clubs served as gathering places for musicians, entertainers, and an entire generation of colorful characters. Those friendships remained important to him throughout his life. He helped preserve the club's history through photographs, an online archive, and reunion events, serving on the organizing committee for the 2015 Moby Grape reunion, which raised $20,000 for the Las Vegas Academy of the Arts.

 Music, however, was only one of his creative outlets.

 At 19, Davyo enrolled in cosmetology school, later admitting that his initial motivation had considerably less to do with hairstyling than an interest in meeting women. What began as an unconventional career choice became a successful lifelong profession.

 In 1990, he opened Curl Up N Dye, an alternative salon that would become a Las Vegas institution. Never one to settle for the ordinary, Davyo subsequently opened A Little Off the Top, a lingerie-themed salon that attracted national attention, including coverage in TIME magazine, and put him squarely at odds with local officials and the Nevada State Board of Cosmetology. 

Davyo fought to keep his business open, successfully challenging opposition to a concept that seemed perfectly suited to a city famous for its unconventional entertainment. Although he eventually retired the lingerie concept, Curl Up N Dye endured for more than three decades, surviving changing fashions, economic downturns, and a pandemic. Friends had once predicted his salon wouldn't last six months. Davyo spent the next 35 years proving them wrong. 

A natural entertainer who was rarely at a loss for words, Davyo eventually turned his attention to stand-up comedy. He approached the craft with surprising dedication, studying, attending workshops, and learning the business of making people laugh. He performed regularly and hosted open-mic nights that provided local comedians with a place to develop their material, test their confidence, and occasionally bomb spectacularly. 

His comedy circle included longtime friends and fellow performers Jeremy Flores, Brandon “Gooch" Hahn, Rob Sherwood, and Gary Couette, among many others. Davyo loved the camaraderie of the stage as much as the spotlight itself and understood the importance of giving other performers room to grow.

 Away from the stage and salon, Davyo was an enthusiastic foodie, a devoted friend, and an accomplished practitioner of the inappropriate joke. He had a particular talent for turning an ordinary conversation into an ongoing comedy routine, frequently conducted through social media, where his relentless exchanges of jokes, insults, and questionable Photoshop creations entertained friends and followers for years.

 He was irreverent, opinionated, fiercely independent, and stubborn to a fault. He could debate almost anything, frequently long after everyone else had surrendered. But beneath the wisecracks, outrageous humor, and ever-present cigarette was a gentle, creative, and deeply loyal man.

 His friendships were not casual acquaintances but relationships nurtured over decades. His circle was enormous, encompassing musicians, comedians, hairstylists, clients, and people from nearly every corner of the Las Vegas community. To many of them, he was more than a friend. He was family.

 Preceded in death by his parents, Glen Thompson and Phyllis Dunbar, Davyo leaves behind an extraordinary extended family of friends and colleagues, countless memories, and a legacy woven into the history of the city he always called home. 

Trying to summarize Davyo's life in a few paragraphs is rather like trying to convince him he was wrong about something. Nearly impossible. He lived loudly, laughed often, loved deeply, and never felt much obligation to follow the rules simply because someone else had written them. Las Vegas is a little quieter without him. And he would undoubtedly have something to say about that.

Celebration of Life A secular memorial service celebrating Davyo's life will be held at Davis Funeral Home in Las Vegas, with a gathering of friends to follow. The date, time, and additional details will be announced. A memorial concert honoring his musical legacy and contributions to the Las Vegas entertainment community is being planned for January 2027. Further information will be forthcoming.