R.I.P. Wally George

Even though he was an idiot, he made local t.v. entertaining.

Father of Rebecca DeMornay???

I thought she was in that movie called "And God Created Women"."First gained notoriety as the host of an extreme right-wing TV talk show in Orange County, California, who would have assorted "liberals, perverts and left-wing lunatics" on his show and insult them, berate them and then throw them off. He gained even more notoriety when it became known that many of the "guests" on his show were actors who were hired by George and his staff to play the assorted "loonies" (Rhonda Shear, before she became host of "USA Up All Night, " was one of them). In one well-known incident, a young woman who owned an agency that sent strippers to deliver telegrams appeared on his show; he hurled insults and abuse at her, called her a "prostitute" and a "tramp" and threw her off the show. It later turned out that he had asked her for a date before the show started and she turned him down."

Whatever happened to Rhonda Shear? Furthermore..what the heck ever happened to 'Night Flight' on USA. That would keep me home from going out and getting smashed which was a hard thing for me to do back then. Speaking of Night Flight...anybody remember 'New Wave Theater'??????? Could use a program like that right about now.

[ Edited by: donhonyc on 2003-10-10 23:14 ]

I agree Ben. He will be missed. A true patriot. Kinda.

I agree too, Ben.

He was an idiot.

He kinda reminds me of Bong.
Kind of an idiot
But really entertaining

Whatever happened to Rhonda Shear? Furthermore..what the heck ever happened to 'Night Flight' on USA. That would keep me home from going out and getting smashed which was a hard thing for me to do back then. Speaking of Night Flight...anybody remember 'New Wave Theater'??????? Could use a program like that right about now.
[ Edited by: donhonyc on 2003-10-10 23:14 ]

Night Flight ruled. I used to come home AFTER going out and getting smashed, and stay up watching it all night. That show turned me on to so much good music and so many cool movies (remember Liquid Sky? haha). It was a staple of the mid-1980s. I still have Cabaret Voltaire videos taped off of that show, with Shear talking over them. She always had so much info about the bands, it was really interesting, even if she wouldn't shut up until half way through the songs!

Ah yes, 'Liquid Sky'. When I think of things like that it's almost as if the '80s were cool in some way. That of course is in retrospect. Actually living through the '80s was kinda pretty boring. "Night Flight" was however an oasis in that rather culturally boring landscape dominated by Michael Jackson, Madonna, and Lionel Ritchie.

The other flick that was shown on 'Night Flight' pretty regularly was 'Ladies & Gentleman, The Fabulous Stains' starring Diane Lane, Paul Simonon (from the Clash), and last but not least Fee Waybill (from The Tubes). Anybody remember that one?

Would love to get my hands on some old 'New Wave Theater'. THAT was very cool!

Wow, I went to a taping of the Wally George show back around '82 or so. I couldn't stand his show, which was a Jerry Springer prototype, but friends were big fans of his kitschy act and they dragged me along. What struck me was how polite and funny he was with his audience before the taping, then tore 'em apart on camera. Ah, showbiz.

On 2003-10-13 01:05, donhonyc wrote:
When I think of things like that it's almost as if the '80s were cool in some way. That of course is in retrospect. Actually living through the '80s was kinda pretty boring. "Night Flight" was however an oasis in that rather culturally boring landscape dominated by Michael Jackson, Madonna, and Lionel Ritchie.

Mmmm...too bad you missed Miles Davis, Bill Laswell, and P-funk.

em.

"Mmmm...too bad you missed Miles Davis, Bill Laswell, and P-funk."

Nice try em, but I would hardly call the 80s the heyday for any of these artists with the exception of Laswell, who I did see with Painkiller in like '89 or 1990 or something like that.

80s (for the most part) = yawnsville. Gimmee certain parts of the '60s or 70s anyday, and even perhaps the early 90s.

cheers! :drink:

[ Edited by: donhonyc on 2003-10-13 19:24 ]

Wally George was definitely cutting edge!!! Brings back memories of another "OC Mouth" (I think he was OC?), Morton Downey!!!

I liked him. but he was definately a tupee wanker.

On 2003-10-13 19:23, donhonyc wrote:
"Mmmm...too bad you missed Miles Davis, Bill Laswell, and P-funk."

Nice try em, but I would hardly call the 80s the heyday for any of these artists with the exception of Laswell, who I did see with Painkiller in like '89 or 1990 or something like that.

80s (for the most part) = yawnsville. Gimmee certain parts of the '60s or 70s anyday, and even perhaps the early 90s.

cheers! :drink:

[ Edited by: donhonyc on 2003-10-13 19:24 ]

'Strewth - gawd knows why I should be defending the '80s. Sheer contrariness. But I heard a lot of good sounds among the shite.

:)
em.

Night Flight ruled. I used to come home AFTER going out and getting smashed, and stay up watching it all night.

NIGHT FLIGHT was indeed the shit. Liquid Sky was cool, but Ladies and Gentlemen, The Fabulous Stains really blew me away.

No doubt....lotta good sounds back in those 80s. All the SST bands: Black Flag, early Sonic Youth, etc. Dead Kennedys, X, Fear, The Germs, Clash..the list goes on Yeah alot going on back in the day. Van Halen (Dave era only), Cheap Trick (before all the power ballads), U2 (pre-Joshua Tree), and The Cars are also on the list!

Now this is totally open to debate, but for me the 80s was probably the last time there was actually an active 'underground' in music, and in other forms of art and cultcha as well. I think the end of the underground, at least with rock music, ended after the whole Seattle-Grunge thing was over. There is no more music underground, nor do I think there ever will be again.

Great musical undergrounds of the latter part of the 20th Century: '60s-garage/hippies/blues revival via rock and psychedelia, Fillmore East, etc., 70s-punk, 80s-punk & hardcore, 90s-grunge.

MTV has done such damage to music as a culture or a movement or whatever over the last 20 years, that there can never be an active underground in music again. A few good bands pop up here and there, like your White Stripes, Hives, yadda yadda. But as I said in another posting here.....

'Rock is Dead.....long Live Rock'

On 2003-10-13 20:09, jonboy wrote:
Wally George was definitely cutting edge!!! Brings back memories of another "OC Mouth" (I think he was OC?), Morton Downey!!!

...dont forget talk show host Joe Pine before George and Downey came along.

So Wally George is dead huh? Funny, I didn't hear anything about it on any of the news channels up here. Mind you, I'm not a news junkie...

My fondest memory of W.G. was when he had El Duce and the other members of the Mentors on his show. That was brilliant TV.

WALLY:
"You guys preach something called friendly rape. Now what is that supposed to be?"

(Sorry, but I'm paraphrasing and going from my crappy memory) Hardy harr harr!

Wally will be missed...by Rebecca and the rest of his family.

[ Edited by: Slacks Ferret on 2003-10-14 12:28 ]

I've been debating with myself whether to post here since I had such mixed feelings about the man, but since I seem to be the only person posting here to've met & talked to the man...

When I 1st moved to L.A. back in the mid-'80s I would watch his show & argue with it, yelling @ the screen that he was wrong. I watched him everyday to disagree with what he was saying.

After living in L.A. about 6 months/a year I found better things to do with my time & stopped watching him, eventually coming to think that what he was saying wasn't important since I wasn't interested in it any more.

I later met him while I was an Intern @ KROQ, about the time he was thinking of running for Mayor of L.A., & found him to be an articulate & private man. I asked him how he could run for mayor when he lived in O.C. & he told me he lived up by canyon country but still in the city environs of L.A. He later dropped out of the mayor race 'cause people couldn't differentiate between his public & private faces. I came to realize that although he was a republican, conservative & a patriot (as he measured it), he still wasn't as extreme as he made himself out to be on his show. His show was sort of the talk show equivalent of an interview with a pro wrestler: Screaming, spraying spittle, throwing things, belittling his opponents & occasionally his fans... Very much like an old-school pro wrestler.

Later I remember someone belittling his daughter for some role she took, I can't remember if it was on his show or in another interview, but he took the guy apart verbally from top to bottom & back 3 generations. And anyone who defends his kids like that, right or wrong & whether he agrees with'em or not, is OK in my book. At least @ that moment.

On 2003-10-13 01:05, donhonyc wrote:
Ah yes, 'Liquid Sky'. When I think of things like that it's almost as if the '80s were cool in some way. That of course is in retrospect. Actually living through the '80s was kinda pretty boring. "Night Flight" was however an oasis in that rather culturally boring landscape dominated by Michael Jackson, Madonna, and Lionel Ritchie.

The other flick that was shown on 'Night Flight' pretty regularly was 'Ladies & Gentleman, The Fabulous Stains' starring Diane Lane, Paul Simonon (from the Clash), and last but not least Fee Waybill (from The Tubes). Anybody remember that one?

Would love to get my hands on some old 'New Wave Theater'. THAT was very cool!

"Join the professionals!
Be a professional!"

The Night Flight memory I have is the 1/2 hour promo they would play about the band from New Zealand, "The Swingers"."It ain't whatcha dance, its the way ya dance it,
It ain't what you groove, its the way ya groove it"

TG

On 2003-10-13 01:05, donhonyc wrote:
Would love to get my hands on some old 'New Wave Theater'. THAT was very cool!

I have 2 tapes of New Wave Theatre that I bought in the 80s. They include the Suburban Lawns, the Blasters, Dead Kennedys, Black Flag, and others. I could copy them and perhaps we could trade. Send me a private message if you're interested.

Reverend Ben!
Would you believe that in 1984, I, King Kukulele was an audience member at a taping of Wally Georges "Hot Seat" and I was able to get up for a question at the end of the show. I started off with a compliment so I knew I would get my 2cents in, then I hit him with the whammy! I said, "It's great that you expose these smut peddlers for who they really are! You know though, the only place on TV where you can see this smut is on YOUR SHOW!" Boy he did not like that. The great thing about that night was that we brought our visiting cousin from Dublin, Ireland. He still talks about "that bleedin' eejet (idiot) Wally George". Did you know Ben that I recently wrote a song about Wally that starts out like this: "Wally George, LANCE THAT BOIL! Bring alot of joy to every boy and goil!"...I'm having a little trouble with that last rhyme.

KING KUKULELE

[ Edited by: KING KUKULELE on 2003-10-20 22:49 ]

Wally George was so wonderfully horrible.