Ben Soto was a musician and philosopher who popularized the style of music that came to be known as Soto Jazz. He was well known for having long fingernails and often kept live cobras on stage with him.
He was officially censored by the National Broadcasting Litigators' Guild (NBLG) in 1963 under the auspices of "inciting to conspire" and summarily deported. He spent the next 20 years recording and performing his music in neutral territory waters off the Tennis Islands, broadcasting over ham radio frequencies and partying when possible. He is something of a counter cultural cult figure due to his stubborn and principled stance against the NBLG.
He is presumed to have died in a kitchen grease fire aboard the S.S. Philharmoniq in 1992, although there have been numerous sightings over the years of apperances behind a Kilgour A-900 synthesizer at the Desert Door Jazz Club. None have been confirmed.