BOWMAN'S COACH: 'I WILL MISS HIM' FIGURE SKATING: FORMER U.S. CHAMPION EULOGIZED IN ENCINO.

Byline: Ramona Shelburne 

Staff Writer

Christopher Bowman picked up many nicknames over the years. The two-time U.S. men's figure skating champion was known as "Bowman the Showman," for his incredible flair and charm on the ice.

The former child actor from Van Nuys was also knowns as "Hans Brinker from Hell," for his brushes with the law, admitted substance abuse problems and penchant for self-destructive behavior.

Thursday afternoon, as family, friends, former competitors and skating legends paid their respects to Bowman, who was found dead at the age of 40 in a North Hills motel room last week, his longtime coach and mentor Frank Carroll added another memorable nickname to the list: "Houdini."

"Let me tell you, over the years, Houdini gave me the slip many, many times," Carroll said during his poignant eulogy of Bowman, which was attended by several hundred mourners who gathered at Saint Cyril's Catholic Church in Encino, where Bowman attended grade school and was confirmed.

"Christopher was funny, he was smart, he was generous to everybody. I loved him and I will miss him," Carroll said in his first public comments since Bowman's death.

Carroll first met Bowman in 1972 at Iceland in Van Nuys, when Bowman was just 5. Bowman was cute, extraordinarily talented and wildly mischievous. He was so rambunctious as a child, his mother Joyce had to use a harness on him when they went out in public.

Carroll said the first time he watched Bowman skate, he knew Bowman could be a champion someday.

"There's only three times I thought that," Carroll said. "With Christopher Bowman, this lady here (four-time U.S. champion Linda Fratianne) and Michelle Kwan."

Over the next 18 years, Carroll tried, with mixed results, to harness that talent and make Bowman into a champion. When Bowman was younger, Carroll said he used to pick him up and put him face down into a trash can, to keep him from misbehaving. From then on, when his prodigy would act up, Carroll would say, "Do I need to get the trash can?"

One time, Carroll said, Bowman got his hands on a paintball gun and brought it to the ice rink.

"He shot Jennifer Ito in the butt with it," Carroll said, as the crowd inside St. Cyril's laughed.

Bowman won the U.S. men's figure skating title in 1989 and 1992, but finished seventh and fourth in twoWinter Olympic Games.

"If he would've reached his potential, he could've been, maybe the best ever," said Brian Boitano, who won the gold medal at the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary, where Bowman finished seventh. "But Christopher was never the kind of guy who wanted to take something from someone else. He was never like, 'I want to beat that guy.' If he didn't win, he was genuinely happy for other people."

Boitano, who flew from his home in San Francisco to attend Bowman's funeral, said one of his fondest memories of Bowman came in 1988, when Bowman burst into the bathroom to tell him he'd won the gold medal.

"He just came bounding in with that look that he's happy to see me ... He's like, 'You won! You won!' Your name's on that monitor!" Boitano recalled. "He was so endearing. Everyone loved him. ... You know how some people light up when they see you? That's how Chris was.

"Look at all the people here who were touched by Christopher. He had his troubles, but people can see past that. They can see past troubles and see what a good person he was. People loved him, and there's a reason they loved him."

The mourners included Bowman's parents, Nelson and Joyce Bowman; his ex-wife Annette and their daughter Bianca; 1980 Olympic pairs skaters Tai Babilonia and Randy Gardner; three-time Olympic pairs skater Todd Sand; "Champions on Ice" promoter Tom Collins; and skating choreographer Sarah Kawahara.

Bowman was cremated. The Los Angeles county coroner's office is awaiting toxicology reports to determine the cause of death. Police have said there was no evidence of foul play or illegal drug use at the scene.

His girlfriend of the last six years, April Freeman, told the Daily News last week that Bowman had suffered from a variety of health problems in recent years. The last time she saw him alive on Dec. 27, Freeman said Bowman complained of tingling in his fingers and chest pains.

"May the peace that he found so elusive in life be his now forever," said Monsignor Cyril Navin, who presided over Thursday's mass. "Life was not always exactly fair to Christopher... He had his ups and downs in life and had many demons to contend with. Many people chose to be judgmental in that aspect. But Christian charity should really motivate what we say at a time like this.

"He was given many talents by God and he perfected them and gave joy to thousands of people with those talents."

Dr. Kenneth Williams, a retired pediatric hematologist/oncologist who attended Thursday's funeral, was one of those people. Williams said he'd known Bowman for the past 25years and followed his career with pride.

"The turnout today really shows the love people had for Chris," said Williams, who attended Bowman's wedding and remained close with his family over the years. "It's a real honor for him. Chris was so exuberant, so full of life ... and so full of mischief."

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Christopher Browman was found dead ina North Hills motel Jan. 10.