Thursday, March 29, 2007

The Mike Douglas Show with guests The Turtles

The sound is kinda muddy on this one, but I guess that's what we've come to expect from our bootleg internet gems. After profiling Frank Zappa on The New Steve Allen Show, why it's only natural to watch his future Mother members Howard Kaylan and Mark Volman in The Turtles on another classic talk show. Here they perform Eleanor.

The Tomorrow Show with guests KISS --- The Mike Douglas Show with guest Gene Simmons

KISS makes an appearance on The Tomorrow Show with Tom Snyder. Its so great that Shout! Factory has taken to releasing some of these complete shows on DVD.


Part Two:

What's more fun than seeing Gene Simmons walk out to that groovy 70s showbiz music as the walls part? Nothing.

The New Steve Allen Show - with guest Frank Zappa

September 20th, 2007: This footage has been posted, removed, posted, removed, posted and removed every other month. Seems to be offline for the time being - keep checking in - it will probably return soon. You can't keep a good clip down!.

This footage had been written and speculated about for many years in various books and articles about Frank Zappa but next to nobody had seen it until the YouTube age came along. By 1963 Steve Allen had abandoned the show he essentially created, The Tonight Show. He went on to host several different incarnations of the same show more or less. Names included Tonight, The Tonight Show, The Steve Allen Show, and this clip from The New Steve Allen Show - which after two years would change its name to The Steve Allen Show. I find it funny how part one has been viewed by over thirty thousand people, but part two's viewership drops off by a good twelve thousand. Well, Zappa ain't for everyone, even clean shaven.

Wednesday, March 28, 2007

The Merv Griffin Show - Guest Stars REVEEN & THOR


Reveen, with that crazy voice of his, was always hard to take seriously. His series of hammy hypnotism LPs are hypnotic in their silliness only. Here he is at The Tropicana Hotel on an episode of The Merv Griffin Show.




A tour de force of entertainment is how this commercial describes Reveen. Unfortunately the quality of the clip is very poor as someone filmed it off their TV with a camcorder. I guess they were trying to bring back the concept of Kinescopes.




Well, we've watched Australian illusionist Reveen who was a popular act all across Canada for three decades. Now here is rock act Thor on another episode of The Merv Griffin Show filmed in Vegas. I love how he is introduced as John Thor (but Reveen was not introduced as Peter Reveen). I mention Canada, because Thor now lives in Vancouver. He makes occasional in-concert appearances with Nardwuar the Human Serviette and also once gave me a ride home.