Chimpanzee-Minkey - Beyond Tiki

T tikibars Tiki Socialite Aku Hall, Chicago Joined: Apr 11, 2002 Posts: 2034	T tikibars Posted posted on Thu, Apr 8, 2004 11:47 AM On 2004-04-01 18:09, Formikahini wrote: ...and I helped her out a couple of times. This involved answering fan mail. This was very funny, no - sad, no - funny. The letters are addressed: "For (e.g.) Nick Beggs only," with additional "Only to be read by Nick Beggs," "Only for Nick", etc. all over the envelope. Riiiiip! I would heartlessly tear open those suckers, with no regard for privacy, and begin reading (we did read every single letter): Dear Nick, I don't know if you'll remember me, but I was at your show in Manchester. I was sitting in the 4th row to your left, wearing the blue jumper [sweater], and I was standing next to my sister, who was screaming your name the whole time. Do you remember? I hope you do, anyway..... They were ALL like this. I have a big manila file folder full of psycho and quack letters written to members of various bands I have worked with. I have some sort of vague ambition to do some sort of project with them at some point. Maybe black out the incriminating names and publish them as a collection or something. Some are TRULY bizarre. My favorite one of all isn't an original, it is a photocopy sent to me by a friend of the wife of 70's talk show host Wink "Tic Tac Dough" Martindale (how's that for three degrees of separation?). Turns out that Wink's wife and the wife of one of the guys in Devo were best pals. When Wink began receiving bizarre letters from a guy calling himself "Cowboy Kim", Wink's wife (who thought the letters were funny) passed the letters on to the Devo guy's (Bob2 I think) wife, who showed them to the band. Devo used phrases from the letters verbatim for the lyrics to the song Big Mess on the LP Oh No Its Devo. So through a friend of a friend of a friend, I got photocopies of the original letters which are amazing in their quackery and insanity, but also historically cool for Devo fans because every line of Big Mess can be found verbatim in the letters. But the Cowboy Kim documents aside... working backstage at the PArk West Theatre in chicago for some 750 shows over 5 years, I saw a LOT of bizarre stuff. Collected some of it. One day....

On 2004-04-01 18:09, Formikahini wrote:
...and I helped her out a couple of times. This involved answering fan mail. This was very funny, no - sad, no - funny.
The letters are addressed: "For (e.g.) Nick Beggs only," with additional "Only to be read by Nick Beggs," "Only for Nick", etc. all over the envelope. Riiiiip! I would heartlessly tear open those suckers, with no regard for privacy, and begin reading (we did read every single letter):

Dear Nick,

I don't know if you'll remember me, but I was at your show in Manchester. I was sitting in the 4th row to your left, wearing the blue jumper [sweater], and I was standing next to my sister, who was screaming your name the whole time. Do you remember? I hope you do, anyway.....

They were ALL like this.

I have a big manila file folder full of psycho and quack letters written to members of various bands I have worked with.

I have some sort of vague ambition to do some sort of project with them at some point.

Maybe black out the incriminating names and publish them as a collection or something.

Some are TRULY bizarre.

My favorite one of all isn't an original, it is a photocopy sent to me by a friend of the wife of 70's talk show host Wink "Tic Tac Dough" Martindale (how's that for three degrees of separation?).

Turns out that Wink's wife and the wife of one of the guys in Devo were best pals. When Wink began receiving bizarre letters from a guy calling himself "Cowboy Kim", Wink's wife (who thought the letters were funny) passed the letters on to the Devo guy's (Bob2 I think) wife, who showed them to the band. Devo used phrases from the letters verbatim for the lyrics to the song Big Mess on the LP Oh No Its Devo.

So through a friend of a friend of a friend, I got photocopies of the original letters which are amazing in their quackery and insanity, but also historically cool for Devo fans because every line of Big Mess can be found verbatim in the letters.

But the Cowboy Kim documents aside... working backstage at the PArk West Theatre in chicago for some 750 shows over 5 years, I saw a LOT of bizarre stuff. Collected some of it.

One day....

Post #85314 by tikibars on Thu, Apr 8, 2004 11:47 AM