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- From: ndr@tazboy.jpl.nasa.gov (Niles D. Ritter)
- Newsgroups: alt.comedy.firesgn-thtre,alt.fan.firesign-theatre,alt.answers,news.answers
- Subject: Firesign Theatre: Introduction and Table of Contents
- Supersedes: <fs_intro_752990782@tazboy.jpl.nasa.gov>
- Followup-To: poster
- Date: 13 Dec 1993 18:14:06 GMT
- Organization: Jet Propulsion Labs
- Lines: 854
- Approved: news-answers-request@MIT.Edu
- Distribution: world
- Expires: 26 Jan 1994 18:14:03 GMT
- Message-ID: <fs_intro_755806443@tazboy.jpl.nasa.gov>
- Reply-To: ndr@tazboy.jpl.nasa.gov
- NNTP-Posting-Host: 137.78.80.135
- Summary: This posting contains an introduction to the Firesign
- Theatre comedy group, including a table of contents,
- and should be read by anyone who wishes to post to the
- alt.comedy.firesgn-thtre newsgroup.
- Keywords: firesign,comedy,faq,bozo
- Originator: ndr@jane
- Xref: senator-bedfellow.mit.edu alt.comedy.firesgn-thtre:995 alt.fan.firesign-theatre:255 alt.answers:1411 news.answers:15734
-
- Archive-name: firesign-theatre/intro
- Last-modified: 1993/12/13
- Version: 1.8
-
- About This Archive
- ------------------
-
- This archive is posted monthly to alt.comedy.firesgn-thtre,
- alt.fan.firesign-theatre, alt.answers, and news.answers. It is
- also available via anonymous ftp to rtfm.mit.edu in the
- directory /pub/usenet/alt.answers/firesign-theatre/*, or by
- sending e-mail to mail-server@rtfm.mit.edu with the message
- "send usenet/alt.answers/firesign-theatre/*". Include the line
- "help" in the message for more information on the server.
-
- Changes:
-
- 1. New CD's out
-
- The Firesign Theatre: Introduction & Table of Contents
- ======================================================
-
-
- This series of files is intended to provide a general information base
- for discussion, and answer some frequently-asked questions posted on
- alt.comedy.firesgn-thtre and its mirror-clone alt.fan.firesign-theatre.
- For the rest of this document "alt.comedy.firesgn-thtre" will be used
- to refer to both groups.
-
- Additions and corrections to this file should be directed to the FAQ
- editor (###-a fancy title for ndr@tazboy.jpl.nasa.gov (Niles Ritter).
-
- Some portions of this document are copyrighted by the members of the
- Firesign Theatre; you may want to get permission before using parts
- of this document in *for-profit* publication -- we are their
- fans, after all!
-
- PC Disclaimer: Any terms below considered derogatory to ethnic groups
- are used only in a *satirical* manner. A Bozo would never offend
- anyone! Honk! Honk!
-
- ###-Editor's remarks are denoted by three #'s
-
-
- Table Of Contents
- =================
-
- (Each "Side" is a separate file.)
-
-
- Side 1) Firesign Theatre: Introduction
-
- 1.1) Who Am Us, Anyway?
- 1.1.1) The Four or Five Crazy Guys
- 1.1.2) A Forward Into the Past History
- 1.1.3) The newsgroups and fan clubs
-
- 1.2) Published Works
- 1.2.1) Radio/TV/Stage production
- 1.2.2) Vinyl
- 1.2.3) Video
- 1.2.4) Books
- 1.2.5) CD's
-
- 1.3) References
- 1.3.1) Interviews/articles on FT
- 1.3.2) Literary References/Background
-
- Side 2) Firesign Theatre: Frequently Asked questions
-
- 2.1) How Can I Get Copies of this FAQ?
- 2.2) How can I contact the NewsGroup with E-mail?
- 2.3) Any Reunions going on ?
- 2.4) Where are they now ?
- 2.5) Common FT Phrases
- 2.6) Who is Doctor Memory?
- 2.7) Is it "Back T0 the Shadows" or "..FROM the Shadows" ?
- 2.8) FT Questions posed to the Usenet Oracle
-
-
- Side 3) Firesign Theatre: Lyrics to Songs
-
- Side 4) Firesign Theatre: Lexicon
-
-
- --------------------------------------------------------------
-
- Side 1) Introduction to Firesign Theatricum
-
- Creating an FAQ for the Firesign Theatre is something analogous to
- "The complete works of Shakespeare, FAQ", so be aware that the
- world of FT is as vast and deep as the ocean and the azure sky.
-
- 1.1) Who Am Us, Anyway?
-
- Here is a description of the Firesign Theatre:
-
- A group of four gifted improvisational comedians and satirists, perhaps
- best known for several record albums they produced in the 1970s. These
- were famous for their depth of interaction among the characters, their
- range of literary allusion and references to popular culture, history
- and science, and the incomparable surreal quality of their pacing.
- Different listeners would each find different significance in the work
- and make different connections between themes within them. Much of
- their work anticipated developments in video, interactive media,
- computer technology and virtual reality by some 20 years.
-
- Their initial work began on radio in Los Angeles in the mid 60's, but
- their James-Joycean style of dramatic satire quickly expanded to
- include phonograph recordings, live stage productions, movies,
- books, and one of the first interactive video productions produced.
-
- More than one fan has noted the complexity of their recordings, which
- derived from their use of dense layering of sound tracks, as well as
- their ingenious use of puns, metaphor, and other literary allusions.
- The FT wove intricate stories which flowed, not so much like a river,
- but like a rapidly evolving organism, projecting pseudopods out this
- way, and then that. And yet the stories always seemed to maintain its
- own internal logic.
-
- None of this begins to do them any justice: we encourage you to buy one
- of their CDs (or old phonos) and hear for yourself. This is in fact,
- about the only way to really understand what the Firesign Theatre was
- and IS about! We're not insane!
-
-
- 1.1.1) The Four or Five Crazy Guys:
-
- Name -- Aliases, roles
- -----------------------------------
- Philip Austin -- Nick Danger, Hemlock Stones, etc,
- Philip Proctor -- Clem, Ralph Spoilsport, the Poop, etc
- David Ossman -- Porgie, Catherwood, etc
- Peter Bergman -- Babe, Mudhead, Nancy...
-
- We should also acknowledge the oft-ignored but ubiquitous female
- members:
-
- Annalee Austin -- Operator in "Don't crush that Dwarf"
- Tiny Ossman -- Announcerettes in "Bozos"
-
- For updates on where they are now, see the "Frequently Asked
- Questions" file.
-
-
- A series of quotes from the {BBOP} book:
-
-
-
- Philip Austin:
- -------------
-
-
- "I always wanted to be a part of something. Annalee and I used to
- secretly, separately, dream of rock and roll bands. I hadn't even
- *thought* yet that rock and roll could save me.
-
- "So I was in Hollywood in 1966, starving on all levels. I got a job in
- a radio station because I could always do that with my voice -- could
- make you believe that I was committed to the words coming out of my
- mouth. I mistakenly believed, therefore that I was an Actor. I'm not.
- I'm a musician. Interesting that it was the *sounds* of the words that
- got to me the most. The Firesign Theatre was the vehicle that allowed
- me to make that discovery.
-
- "The Firesign Theatre is a *Technique*.
-
- "These were the people who faced me across the microphones on the radio
- and this is what I think of them:
-
- "David Ossman is the first I met. The two of us are not what you'd
- think of right off as comedians. I was producing all these plays by
- dead authors -- acting, directing; got David to act, looked at the
- amazing books of poetry that he'd produced -- as if he had hand-printed
- every page. We had wonderful conversations about the Indians. Hopi.
-
- "Peter Bergman was the Voice that Wouldn't Die. What a talker! The
- Champ. I engineered _Radio Free Oz_ and appeared in a variety of stoned
- disguises. (This was fun. Not like acting, which is not real to me,
- therefore not fun.) Unlike most performers, Peter becomes *more* candid
- when he performs. Set him in front of a microphone and you have an
- angel. With most people, it's the opposite.
-
- "Philip Proctor *is* an actor. He is also not exactly a comedian. He is
- not so much trying to make you laugh as he is trying to explain
- something to you. I have always been his friend because I admire that
- so much. He can go places I can't. He was a friend of Peter's who was
- "funny". God, ain't dat de trufe!
-
- "So there we were, *four friends*. You see, we had no ambitions. It was
- a pure jam and the instrument we each played was verbal glibness or
- *radio*. We still continue that first conversation. This book, those
- recordings, are records of that conversation, a minute-book of the
- meeting.
-
- "Quickly, Ambition walked in the door. I thought we were good. I'd
- heard some pretty fast, funny cats in my time, but these three were as
- good as Spike Milligan. We started hanging out with each other, gave up
- our jobs, found more and more ways to earn livings using each other. I
- got my Globe Theatre, Phil P. got a Movie Company, David got a Great
- Work of Literature and Peter got the Forever Radio Show.
-
- "RECORDS ARE RECORDS (recordings of something). THEY ARE MEANT TO
- INCLUDE YOU IN OUR CONVERSATION.
-
- "Yes, we take it seriously. Read [in the Big Book of Plays] Hideo
- Gump Sr.'s intro to each script. Laughter and Dancing, Singing and
- Love. We love the Firesign Theatre. How do you get along with people?
- What do you have to show for it? Our work is, to me, my answer to those
- questions.
-
- "What does it mean?
-
- "1. The Firesign Theatre writes communally. Every word goes through
- four heads for approval. We therefore write very slowly. Our energy
- level is intense. Grown men leave the room when we fight with each
- other. Nothing is sacred.
-
- "2. Therefore, there are considerable areas of chance (*chance*) in
- our work since no overall motive is possible. All communal endeavors
- learn one thing, I think. *Only real things can be agreed upon*. The
- future is not real, therefore *motives* cannot be agreed upon. *Chance
- becomes the motive*.
-
- "What do we mean? We mean whatever's happening. ?Que paso, hombre?
-
- *Our records are records of what happened to us during the period
- we made them.
-
- *Our records are a continuous story that will last as long as our
- friendship.
-
- *May we be friends forever.
-
- --Phil Austin (Signature)
-
-
- Philip Proctor:
-
- " I was born in a trunk in the Princess Theatre, Pocatello, Idaho. No,
- I was born in Goshen, Indiana. I really have spent some time analyzing
- it. I grew up in an essentially schizophrenic existence. I was schooled
- on the East Coast, because I moved there when I was five. I went to
- Riverdale Country School and Yale University, but during my formative
- years of growth -- the pubic years -- I grew up in Goshen, Indiana,
- with my grand parents and my neighborhood friends. Radio and comic
- books had a lot to do with my youth. The comic books supplied the
- visual element. I finally became a professional actor after college.
- Acting led me to The Firesign Theatre because I found New York theatre
- to be dumb and limited. Silly. I wanted to create my own theatre.
-
- --Philip Proctor (Signature)
-
-
- David Ossman:
-
- "I'm a writer, a poet, which is to say I always did that. My life was
- totally in my head, and I wrote about it. I developed a historical
- sense of things and then I went into radio. Because that's what I
- always wanted to do.It was one of those childhood fantasies like
- growing up to be a fireman. I wanted to be a radio announcer, and in
- 1959 I became a radio announcer. I did that for quite a while. I worked
- in New York at WBAI for two years and then went back to the West Coast
- and worked for KPFK for four years. They laid everybody off, including
- me, so I got a job in television, which I hated, so I dropped out of
- that. The Firesign Theatre appeared at the same time.
-
- --David Ossman (Signature)
-
-
- Peter Bergman:
-
- "I owe everything I do tho my normal childhood. I had a very
- unrepressed childhood and I lived in the Midwest, and there were very
- few things to amuse myself, except softball, so I would do routines to
- myself, like "Why Isn't Everybody Happy?" was one of my routines, so
- they kept me indoors a lot. A kid named Bruce Berger and I opened up a
- parking lot one night in an empty lot across from an Emporium show. We
- made $50 wearing Cleveland Indians baseball caps, yelling, "*Park and
- Lock it! Not Responsible!*"
-
- "My honest idea of The Firesign Theatre is four artists getting
- together and grouping to create some new art form, some multi-art that
- comes our of all four of their minds. It's an interesting choice, and
- that's one of the things that fascinates me. It's not a loss of
- identity, really. It's more a gaining of a double identity. I'm Peter
- Bergman and I'm one-quarter of The Firesign Theatre. And when I have
- those two things together, in harmony, one feeds off the other.
-
- --Peter Bergman (A very Floral Signature)
-
-
- 1.1.2) A Forward Into the Past History
-
- Another excerpt from the "Big Book of Plays":
-
- Mark Time's True Chronology of The Firesign Theatre
- ---------------------------------------------------
-
- 1966:
-
- July 24 -- The first broadcast of Radio Free Oz over KPFK-FM (*)
- (Peter and various collaborators are on the air five nights a week
- until March).
-
- November 17 -- The Firesign Theatre's first performance, "The Oz
- Film Festival," a three-hour improvisation on Radio Free Oz.
-
- December -- Peter, David, and Phil and Annalee Austin attend the
- Soyal Ceremony in Hopiland. (Phil P. is On Tour in Florida).
-
- 1967:
-
- March -- The first broadcast of a four-hour radio documentary on the
- American Indian, written and produced by Peter, David, and Phil A.,
- followed by a weekend Colloquium, followed by the first Love-In,
- organized by Radio Free Oz, which moved to KRLA (AM) the same
- day (March 26).
-
- April-May -- After Phil Proctor's return from the East, The Firesign
- Theatre writes and records Waiting For The Electrician or Someone
- Like Him.
-
- April 29 -- The Firesign Theatre performs their Bulgarian play called
- "Waiting for the Electrician" at a UCLA Experimental Arts Festival.
-
- June-July -- David and Phil P. conduct Oz during Peter's return trip
- to Turkey.
-
- September 14 -- Peter and David begin broadcasting Oz for three hours
- every Sunday night from a Studio city club called The Magic Mushroom.
-
- October 29 -- Bridey Murphy Eve on Oz begins a series of weekly radio
- plays written and performed live by the FT at the Mushroom. Among the
- scripts are "Exorcism in Your Daily Life," "The Last Tunnel To Fresno,"
- "20 Years Behind The Whale," "The Giant Rat of Sumatra," "The Sword and
- the Stoned," "Sesame Mucho," "The Armenian's Paw," and "Tile it Like
- It Is."
-
- December 9 -- The Firesign Theatre performs its first stage piece,
- "Freak For A Week," for a KPFK benefit at the Santa Monica Civic
- Auditorium.
-
- 1968:
-
-
- *(All locations in Los Angeles, unless otherwise mentioned)
-
- ###-More to Follow (really ! I promise!).
-
- Lynn Gustafson writes:
- In the mid-sixties the Renaissance Pleasure Faire in So.Cal. was a
- fund raiser for KPFK. They did live broadcasts from the fairesite.
- The Flying Karamazov Brothers were also working at the faire at that
- time.
- When the Living History Centre was first incorporated, their motto was
- "Forward Into the Past." LHC and RPF are still around, in our 31st year
- Some of the guys still show up occasionally.
-
-
-
- 1.1.3) The newsgroups and fan clubs
-
- There are two newsgroups: alt.fan.firesign-theatre, and
- alt.comedy.firesgn-thtre. The first group causes some news servers
- problems due to its name having >14 chars. Most people seem to be
- gravitating towards the "comedy" group these days.
-
- For the rest of this document, "alt.comedy.firesgn-thtre" will assume to
- refer to both of these groups.
-
- As near as anyone can figure, alt.comedy.firesgn-thtre is
- composed of a bunch of the old guard, sitting around and exchanging
- FT lines with each other ("What about my pickle?" "You're lucky you
- still have your brown paper bag, small-change!"), together with
- neophytes who might have just run across the newsgroup, discussions
- about where the FT members are now, reunion announcements, the deep
- philosophical and metaphysical implications of Bozos, and other such
- musings.
-
- Four-Alarm FIRESIGNal
- ---------------------
- Elayne Wechsler-Chaput <72672.2714@CompuServe.COM> produces a
- tri-annual newsletter called "Four-Alarm FIRESIGNal"
- (or FAlaFal for short). The newsletter is free; the publisher does
- however welcome SASEs and monetary donations. She is also said to
- have an extensive personal collection of FT information, tapes, etc.
- Her address is:
-
- Four-Alarm FIRESIGnal
- c/o Elayne Wechsler-Chaput
- 1747 65th Street
- Brooklyn NY 11204
-
- E-mail updates may be in the offing, as well
-
- Hot Flashes
- -----------
- Michael Packer <packerm@GVSU.EDU> at West Michigan Public
- Broadcasting, runs a e-mail mailing-list called "Hot Flashes" of
- latest events, etc. He also maintains a large and growing archive
- of FT and related audio, video, etc. works, Including Harry Shearer,
- Ken Nordine, Stan Freberg, Goon Show, etc. His address is:
-
- Michael Packer
- PO Box 3540
- Grand Rapids, MI 49501
- Phone:(616) 363-8231 or (616) 771-6714.
- Fax: (616) 771-6625
-
- The Firesign Theatre used to have a fan newsletter called, "It's just
- this little Chromium Switch, Here!", but is now defunct.
-
-
- 1.2) Published Works
-
- 1.2.1) Radio/TV/Stage production
-
-
- The following are the entries from the complete movie/TV credit
- databases (portions of which are on refuge.colorado.edu) for the FT
- members:
-
- All 4 wrote the 1971 movie Zachariah (along with Joe Massot).
-
- Details from David Miller:
-
- The "original" FST movie is 1971's (?) _Zachariah_. That is, they wrote
- the first version and have small parts in it, but it was rewritten by
- its producers, and shows only occasional FST touches. They now refer to
- it in very unkind terms, and boy does it look dated--wild west rock 'n
- roll starring an unbelievably young Don Johnson. It's still available
- from Playhouse Video, 39000 Seven Mile Road, Livonia, MI 48152.
- It turns up sometimes *real* late at night...
-
-
-
- Acting credits for Peter Bergman:
-
- Fantasies (1980) (TV)
- Money, Power, Murder (1989) (TV) [Brant]
- Woman on the Ledge (1993) (TV) [Bob]
- "All My Children" (????)
-
- Acting credits for Phil Proctor:
-
- Lobster Man from Mars (1990)
- Bad Attitudes (1991) (TV)
- Tunnel Vision (70's?)
- A Safe Place (1971)
- Diana Rigg Show -- played fashion designer "Mr. Vincent" who
- was Diana Rigg's boss.
- ...often appears on TV
-
- Other:
-
- Americathon (writing credits for Proctor & Bergman)
-
-
- Thomas M. Niccum writes of yet another (dare we call it?) credit:
-
- In about 1976 I was present at a lunch with a few friends and Phil
- Proctor was there - my friend was a reporter for the U of Minnesota
- Daily, and had volunteered to do a piece on Proctor and Bergman who were
- in town to open for (get ready) Sha Na Na (ook). Anyway, he told us
- that he had met up with the Starland Vocal Band (who had a hit entitled
- "Afternoon Delight" if I'm not mistaken). The band had been offered a
- summer replacement show, and Proctor and Bergman had volunteered to
- write.
-
- Thus forewarned, I looked for it the next year, and managed to catch
- one episode. It was pretty normal "variety" show type TV. I'm pretty
- sure they did the "Shoplifters" supermarket commercial, which shows up
- in their Eat or be Eaten CD and Video.
-
-
- 1.2.2) Vinyl
- ---------------
-
- Firesign Theatre:
- -----------------
- 1968 - Waiting for the Electrician or Someone like him Columbia CS 9518
- 1969 - How Can you be in two places at once, when you're not
- anywhere at all? Columbia CS 9884
- 1970 - Don't Crush that Dwarf, hand me the pliers: Columbia C 30102
- 1971 - I think we're all Bozos on this bus: Columbia C 30737
- 1972 - Dear Friends: Columbia PG 31099
- 1972 - Not Insane or Anything You Want To: Columbia KC 31585
- 1974 - The Tale of the Giant Rat of Sumatra: Columbia C 32730
- 1974 - Everything you know is Wrong!: Columbia KC 33141
- 1975 - In the next world you're on your own: Columbia PC-33475
- 1976 - Forward into the Past: Columbia PG-34391
- 1977 - Just Folks ... A Firesign Chat: Butterfly FLY 001
- 1979 - Roller Maidens from outer Space: Epic (Phil Austin)
- 1979 - Fighting Clowns: Rhino
- 1980 - Carter/Reagan: Rhino
- ???? - Eat or be eaten.
-
- Proctor & Bergman :
- -------------------
- ???? - TV OR NOT TV: Columbia KC-32199
- 1975 - What this Country Needs: Columbia PC-33687
- 1978 - The Comedy of Proctor and Bergman / Give Us A Break:
- Mercury SRM-3719
-
-
- Solo/Subgroup Albums:
- ---------------------
- How Time Flys: Columbia C 32411 -- David Ossman
- Lawyer's Hospital
- Shakespeare's Lost Comedie (Rhino Records)
- Nick Danger and the Case of the Missing Shoe
-
- Reunion Album:
- --------------
- The Three Faces of Al
-
-
- Syndicated Radio Pressings and other stuff:
-
- Howard Landman writes:
-
- In the booklet of the Mobile Fidelity CD of DEAR FRIENDS, it says
- that there was a 12 hour syndicated version released to radio stations
- (on 12 vinyl records, of which only 100 copies were pressed.
-
- John Leving writes:
-
- FYI, when Proctor and Bergman were at Yale, they did a lot of goofing
- around on WYBC-FM, the student radio station. There may still be old
- airchecks of theirs lying around on tape cartridges.
-
-
- 1.2.3) Video
- ----------------
-
- 1985 - Eat or be Eaten (0:30)
- 1983 - Nick Danger: Missing Yolks (1:00)
- Originally an Interactive Video (SelectaVision).
-
- 1979 - J-Men Forever (1:20)
- 1985 - Hot Shorts (FT voice-over) (1:30)
- ???? - Everything you know is wrong
- ???? - Martian Space Party
- ???? - Love is hard to find (###-get?) -- Peter B.
-
- 1.2.4) Books
- ---------------
-
- 1.2.4.1 Big book of plays:
-
- Type of Material: Book
- LC Call Number: PN6120.R2 F47
- Author: Firesign Theatre (Performing group)
- Title: The Firesign Theatre's big book of plays.
-
- Publication Info: [San Francisco] Straight Arrow Books [1972]
- Phys. Description: 143 p. illus. 26 cm.
- Subjects: Radio plays, American.
- Other Names: Big book of plays.
- LC Card Number: 72079024 //r82
- ISBN: 0-87932-028-1 0-87932-027-3 (pbk)
-
- There are at least two different versions of
- "The Firesign Theatre's Big Book of Plays". The first printing (so
- marked) has a red cover, with white and gold outlining the shape of
- an old-time radio; the knobs are a little kid and a man in a sad-face
- mask, and has two scantily clad women in silhouette, with a cover
- price of $4.00.
-
- The other version has a yellow border, an old-time radio at the top
- of the page segues into a window at the bottom, through which a road
- runs. A guy is waving through the window at four guys on the other
- side, who are playing leap frog. The cover price is $5.95.
-
- The first printing makes reference to a hardbound edition.
- The SBN for the case bound in my book says 0/87932/028/1,
- whereas the paperbound is 0/87932/027/3.
-
-
- 1.2.4.2 Big mystery joke book:
-
- Type of Material: Book
- LC Call Number: PN6120.R2 F48 1974
- Author: Firesign Theatre (Performing group)
- Generic Title: Big mystery joke book
- Title: The Firesign Theatre's Big mystery joke book.
- Publication Info: San Francisco : Straight Arrow Books;[New York]:
- distributed by Simon and Schuster, [1974]
- Phys. Description: 150 p. : ill. ; 26 cm.
-
- Notes:
- Money song.--An invocation from the Book of Punter.--The
- mysterious history of the Firesign Theatre.--The tale of
- the giant rat of Sumatra.--The further adventures of Nick
- Danger, third eye.--Temporarily Humboldt County.--The
- adventures of Mark Time.--Hundred Dollar Ben.--Young Guy,
- motor detective.--The year of the rat.--Gramps'
- world.--Rubbergon dumn Toyko.--Le trente-huit
- cunegonde.--The dream play.
-
- Subjects: Radio plays, American.
- Other Names: Big mystery joke book.
- LC Card Number: 74076601 //r832
- ISBN: 0-87932-078-8 : $5.95
-
- 1.2.4.3 The Bozobook
- ------------
-
-
- Source: Yale Catalog:
- -----------------------------------------------------------------
- Author: Firesign Theatre (Performing group)
- Title: Bozobook : or, clam calendar & book of ours : excerpts from
- the notebooks of the Firesign Theatre, volume '71.
- Published: Isla Vista, Calif. : Turkey Press, 1981.
- Description: [48] p. : ill. ; 23 cm.
- Notes: Paper wrappers.
- ----------------------------------------------------------------------
- LOCATION: CALL NUMBER: STATUS:
- SML, Stacks, LC PS3556 I73 B6
-
-
- Joe LoCicero writes further:
-
- So how many people have ever heard of the Bozobook? I have it sitting
- right here in front of me... and it says:
-
- 400 copies were letterpressed in the Spring of 1981 from a
- variety of hand-set types and found art. Twenty-six copies
- have been hardbound, lettered A-Z, and signed by The Fire-
- sign Theatre. Design, printing, and binding by Harry and
- Sandra Reese at TURKEY PRESS, 6746 SUENO ROAD, ISLA VISTA,
- CA 93317. This project was supported, in part, by a grant
- from the National Endowment for the Arts, our federal
- agency, in Washington, D.C.
-
- It also says:
-
- Material in this book is from THE NOTEBOOKS OF THE FIRESIGN
- THEATRE, August 1970-August 1971, the original scripts and
- research for the album, I Think We're All Bozos On This Bus.
-
- It is presented as part of The Firesign Theatre's 15th Birth-
- day Celebration, and on the 10th anniversary of the release
- of the "Bozos" album.
-
- Edited for The Firesign Theatre by David Ossman, in asso-
- ciation with Harry Reese and Turkey Press, March 1981.
-
- Your 'OUR 12 CENTERFOLD' could be a page from the produc-
- tion script of "Bozos," xeroxed for this edition, or an origi-
- nal mimeographed page from one of several version of the
- script to the ABC Films production of Zachariah by Joe Mas-
- sot and The Firesign Theatre.
-
- 1.2.4.4 The apoca[l]ypse papers
-
- Andrey Yeatts found this at the Univ. of Arizona:
-
- CALL # PZ2001.F523 A6
- LOCATIONS Special Coll
-
- AUTHOR Firesign Theatre (Performing Group)
- TITLE The apoca[l]ypse papers : a fiction.
- SERIES Famous science fiction chapbook series ; v. 1.
- PUBLISHER Topeka, Kan. : Apocalypse Press, 1976.
- SUBJECTS Science fiction.
- NOTE "This is book no. 267 in a series of 500 unsigned copies."
- Includes bibliographical references.
- DESCRIPTION [32] p. : ill. ; 22 cm. --
-
-
- 1.2.4.5 Other Works by David Ossman
-
-
- Source: Univ. Calif. Berkeley (GLADYS) Library:
-
- Title List
- ----------
- 1. The day-book of the city / David Ossman. <1982>
- 2. Hopi set : 12 poems for chance reading / David Ossman. <1985>
- 3. The Moon-sign book : Los Angeles/San Juan / David Ossman. <1984>
- 4. The Rainbow Cafe, Hollywood, 1967 / David Ossman. <1982>
- 5. The sullen art; interviews by David Ossman with modern American
- poets. <1963>
- 6. The sullen art; interviews by David Ossman with modern American
- poets. <1963>
- 7. Third mesa. <198->
-
-
- 1. Ossman, David.
- The day-book of the city / David Ossman.
- [Isla Vista, CA] : Turkey Press, 1982.
- Bancroft pPS3565.S7.D3
- Non-circulating; may be used only in The Bancroft Library.
-
- 2. Ossman, David.
- Hopi set : 12 poems for chance reading / David Ossman.
- [Isla Vista, Calif. : Turkey Press] c1985.
- Bancroft pPS3565.S77.H67 1985
- Non-circulating; may be used only in The Bancroft Library.
-
- 3. Ossman, David.
- The Moon-sign book : Los Angeles/San Juan / David Ossman.
- Isla Vista, CA : Turkey Press, 1984.
- Bancroft pPS3565.S77.M66 1984
- Non-circulating; may be used only in The Bancroft Library.
- Note: Blue paper wrappers.
-
- 4. Ossman, David.
- The Rainbow Cafe, Hollywood, 1967 / David Ossman.
- [s.l.] : Turkey Press, 1982.
- Bancroft pPS3565.S77.R39
- Non-circulating; may be used only in The Bancroft Library.
-
- 5. Ossman, David.
- The sullen art; interviews by David Ossman with modern American
- poets.
- New York, Corinth Books, 1963.
- Moffitt PS324.O8
- Main Stack 905 O84 sul
-
- 6. Ossman, David.
- The sullen art; interviews by David Ossman with modern American
- poets.
- New York, Corinth Books, 1963.
- Bancroft A6.O75S9 1963
- Non-circulating; may be used only in The Bancroft Library.
- Note: Black cloth; dust jacket.
- Note: Tram Combs collection
- STORAGE #: W 74 821
-
- 7. Ossman, David.
- Third mesa.
- [Isla Vista, CA : Turkey Press, 198-?]
- Bancroft pffPS3565.S77.T55 1980z
- Non-circulating; may be used only in The Bancroft Library.
- Note: Signed copy.
-
-
-
-
- 1.2.5) CD's
-
- The following FT albums are currently available on CD:
-
- Bozos (MFCD 785)
- Don't Crush That Dwarf (MFCD 880)
- Waiting for the Electrician (MFCD ???)
- How Can you be in two places at once... (MFCD 834)
- Dear Friends (MFCD 758);
- Fighting Clowns (MFCD 748);
- Shoes for Industry! (double CD Collection)
-
- Available through Mercury (Columbia):
-
- Eat or Be Eaten (Mercury 826 452-2 M-1; released 1986).
-
- Regarding this CD, Dave Lucas informs us that more than just sound
- is found on this CD:
-
- I read in a technical book (sorry, can't remember which) that
- 'Eat Or Be Eaten' was the first CD+G disc published in the US.
- [actually, this was some time ago, and the book said that it
- was the *only* CD+G disc published in the US]
-
- So I popped it in a CDTV box, and sure enough...
-
- The screen gets refreshed every 2-3 seconds, and it does
- add a dimension to the fun.
-
- Other CD collections are or were rumored to be available through
- Rhino Records, though this has not be substantiated.
-
-
- Upcoming:
- ---------
-
- A new CD based on the upcoming "Illusion of Unity Tour" may
- be in the works.
-
-
- 1.3) References
- ----------------
-
- 1.3.1) Interviews, by interviewer
-
- David Reitman, Rock Magazine
- Tony Vellela, Go Magazine
- Michael Ross, Creme
- Ernest Leogrand, N.Y. Daily News
- John Carpenter L.A. Free Press
- -- San Diego Door
- Richard Hill, Rolling Stone
- Terry Gross "Fresh Air" Radio Show Interview, 17 Nov, 1993
- (inquire at FRESHAIR@HSLC.ORG)
-
- New York Times, May 3 1993: a review of the '93 Seattle reunion show
- LA Times, Nov 20. 1993: Calendar Section: Interview w/ FT.
-
-
- 1.3.2) Literary References/Background
-
- [### This is just a start. Other ref's appreciated!]
-
- Books:
-
- Discography:
-
- THE ROLLING STONE RECORD GUIDE, ed. D.Marsh and J.Swenson
- Random House/Rolling Stone Press, 1979, ISBN 0-394-73535-8
- and THE NEW ROLLING STONE RECORD GUIDE, ed. D.Marsh and J.Swenson
- Random House/Rolling Stone Press, 1983, ISBN 0-394-72107-1
-
- Samuel Becket:
- Waiting for Godot -- "Waiting for the Electrician"
- Krapp's Last Tape -- "Dont Crush that Dwarf"
-
- James Joyce:
- Ulysses -- Molly Bloom's Soliloquy in {TWO PLACES}
-
- Isaac Asimov:
- I, Robot -- Robot's Rules of Order in {BOZOS}
-
- William Shakespeare:
- Twelfth Night
- As You Like it
-
- William S. Boroughs:
- The Naked Lunch -- "Returned for Regrooving"
-
- The Bible, Book of Revelations -- "Roller Maidens from Outer Space"
-
- Book of the Hopi, (Published 1963)
- Hopi/Moqui Indian Folklore & Mythology -- "Temporarily Humboldt County"
-
-
- TOPS-10 SAILON LISP Programmer's Manual -- "Dr. Memory"
-
- "If At All Possible, Involve A Cow": A history of University of
- Southern California, David Ossman's alma mater. Documents their mascot
- in the 40's, a dog by the name of George Leroy {TIREBITER}!
-
- Movies:
-
- "The World of Tomorrow"
- An excellent documentary on the 1939 World's Fair, one of the
- motivations for the "Future Fair" on {BOZOS}. With Jason Robarts
- as the Narrator.
-
-
- -------------------------- End Side 1 of 4------------------------
-
-