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Remember that great show on channel 9? That was my first exposure to "weird" stuff - Devo, The Residents, early punk. I'd love to see some of those tapes. The guys that id VideoWest went on to provide all the graphics and content (bumpers and commercials and such) for the first couple years of MTV, which is why it was tolerable at the beginning.
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Re: VideoWest
Sat, August 26, 2006 - 12:22 AMI remember that show, they also had a real life Zippy the Pinhead, lot's of "punk" black humer...they air'd the Tuxedomoon "Victims of the Dance" video, heavy ralph records influence.
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Re: VideoWest
Sat, August 26, 2006 - 1:54 AMOMG!!!
I met that guy a few years ago - he was the camerman on some lame thing Chuck Cirino was doing for Planet Hollywood... I almost fell on the ground at his feet when he said he directed Video West. He was so happy that someone remembered it!
I saw the Souixsie and the Banshees video of Spellbound there - I musta been 11... I bugged my dad for that album... and he finally took me to see them in for the first time 1984...
I'll bet Chuck Cirino knows him... I told him he should rebroadcast Video West... what a great show!
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Re: VideoWest
Sat, August 26, 2006 - 8:05 AMLOL! I interned for a short time at VideoWest in the 80s. Amazing place. -
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Re: VideoWest
Sat, August 26, 2006 - 3:33 PMI did a search for "video west" on youtube, but no luck :-(
I'd love to see some of those old shows.
Elaine, do you have any tapes from when you interned? -
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Re: VideoWest
Sun, August 27, 2006 - 2:21 AMI remember it well and fondly. Tommy Twotone was on their with"Girl In The Back Seat", way before their smash...Jenny You Got My Number.
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Re: VideoWest
Sat, August 26, 2006 - 10:10 AMWowza. Yes indeed I remember Video West. For the life of me, I couldn't remember the name that program. It was quite a good effort and a window into a whole other life outside of my suburban town. First time I really say music as "art," waaaay before MTV. -
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Re: VideoWest
Sun, August 27, 2006 - 3:19 AMI loved Video West! Jaya, remember "Two Triple Cheese Side Order of Fries" (if you like greasy eatin' & you wanna feel good...) by Commander Cody? I swear that guy stuck his tongue in my mouth at the Sound of Music.
2 other highlights from watching Video West at your house while we smoked and dyed our hair: Adam Ant, Hazel O'Connor with red hair and a big trapeze dress pogo dancing and looking, in your words, like Carol Burnett! and black and white footage of an early Prince performance. He was rockin' out on guitar and dressed in a long army coat and had a bandanna kerchief on, and black boots with chains and bandannas wrapped around them. We were like, shit, he looks and acts like a fucking punk! I also remember a skit with Hulk Hogan walking around in his little gold briefs (we were really grossed out by his orange tan) and, of course, who could forget Zippy the Pinhead who made guest appearances! Somebody, somewhere must have some of these on video tape (although this was several years before VCRs became popular--this was still back in the days of Betamax, when only libraries, colleges & universities could afford them). -
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Re: VideoWest
Sun, August 27, 2006 - 9:35 AMI just downloaded that Commander Cody song the other day, and remembering where I first heard it, it was on Video West! I am in another tribe that is all about music, and somebody mentioned songs about food, and that was the song I posted...trippy! -
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Re: VideoWest
Sun, August 27, 2006 - 10:33 AMRe: [I just downloaded that Commander Cody song the other day, and remembering where I first heard it, it was on Video West!]
Ugh. I was trying to disassociate the memory of Video West with Commander Cody. But you two just had to bring it up, didn't ya? ; )
Seems to me that the Video West VJ played that awful video at the end of every Video West show. It was like wearing bell bottoms with a spiked neck collar.
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Re: VideoWest
Sat, August 26, 2006 - 1:07 PMI remember the 1st music video I've ever seen. The Tubes "TV is King" on Video West. I distinctly recall Fee Waybill humping the TV.
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Re: VideoWest
Sun, August 27, 2006 - 3:53 PMVideo archives of Videowest do exist, however they are not yet accessible according to the info posted on the SF State library Page.
www.library.sfsu.edu/special...tml#kqed
"Other collections that are not yet accessible include Guitar, Guitar, Patchwork, VideoWest, the Paul Bentley Moving Image Study Collection, Berkeley in the 60s and Selected Newsreels 1937-1948."...
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Re: VideoWest
Mon, August 28, 2006 - 10:33 AMGosh, Lia, it didn't even occur to me at the time to try to bring any videos home with me - I didn't even own a VCR at the time. :)
I worked with the company sadly far too shortly - as I recall it it was located in a warehouse on Harrison Street or somewhere near there and I to squeeze the time in between school, Rasputins and everything else, which meant I would arrive in the middle of the night and generally work until the BART started again in the morning. It was just too hard to manage after a very short time.
But I remember Wes Dorman very fondly and Fabrice Florin, and did some fun work on things that are virtually a blur to me - I think something for a Blondie video? And logged some DEVO video tapes.
If I had been more self-aware I probably would have pursued serious work with the company.
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Re: VideoWest
Wed, December 20, 2006 - 2:35 PMThis was a GREAT show! It seems like everyone remembers Zippy (aah, Ding Dongs and Taco Sauce!), Hulk (in his banana hammock), and Commander Cody, but does anyone remember Huey Lewis and the American Express (on Baker Beach)? or the Greg Kihn video of "Our Love's in Jeopardy?" (bonus points for guessing the church that he gets kicked out of; not "I Lost on Jeopardy" by Weird Al, but just as fun :-))...
Yeah, I think they (Ch 9) could make a bundle off of DVD releases, but I think they might have their [legal] hands full with some of the content if they did. A friend of mine and I had a "discussion" about Ch 9 and its content a while back (including VideoWest, aamof), and we agreed that, over the years, Ch 9 has gotten a bit "snooty" and wouldn't want to associate itself with this type of entertainment, b/c it isn't "highbrow" enough. Before you raise the "Monty Python" argument, look how LONG it took them to get THAT one back on the air (and I think it's off again; KTEH has it now)... -
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Re: VideoWest
Fri, December 22, 2006 - 3:42 AMThat church was on 16th St. between Guerrero and Dolores.
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Re: VideoWest
Sat, December 23, 2006 - 4:40 PM"...or the Greg Kihn video of "Our Love's in Jeopardy?""
I am pretty sure Sid Terror had something to do with that video too - special effects, I think. -
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Re: VideoWest
Mon, April 16, 2007 - 6:41 PMSid did some of the effects, and he used to have the zombie bride and groom sitting in his living room! -
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Re: VideoWest
Tue, April 17, 2007 - 7:53 AMI remember seeing a Tommy Tutone video on there, "There's a girl in the back seat, going down slowly, doing the roly poly..." Do you think her name was Jenny? LOL!
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Re: VideoWest
Sat, March 3, 2007 - 9:30 AMFrom what I've heard, SFSU has all the surviving show tapes of Videowest in their Broadcast TV Department. I worked at Videowest, hell, learned a trade there. I slowed down my participation after I got a paying job at KPIX cutting news. I cut the first MTV News pieces using much the same format as KPIX but with more and better music. Met quite a few strange and wonderful people. Several are still friends. We had a great time making TV we liked. We were very happy that others liked it too and kept us working mostly for free. The money we did make went into production and twinkies and taco sauce for Fabrice and the other "brains" of the outfit.
Jim Turner, a local comedian working with Duck's Breath Mystery Theater at the time, played Zippy. I've seen him in a few films and he was a regular on Arliss on HBO playing Kirby Carlise. -
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Re: VideoWest
Sat, March 3, 2007 - 11:54 AMJim Turner was also Randee of the Redwoods. -
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Re: VideoWest
Sat, April 7, 2007 - 10:00 AMHi all, thanks for your kind words about Videowest.
I'm Fabrice Florin, founder of Videowest, and it's so great to hear you share fond memories about our madcap adventure.
We're just now looking into making some of the Videowest footage available to the public. We've kept all the programs and master tapes (about 600 hours), which are in three different cities right now. Some of the footage is still pretty good, some is not so good. We're trying to figure out which tapes to digitize, which clips to post online, which programs to offer on DVD, and how to pay for all this. There are many rights issues with music and comedy performances, but we maybe able to make some of them available as historical documents. Also, most of the interviews are cleared.
We've got lots of work on our plate for this restoration, so it will take a while, since this is mostly a labor of love. First order of business is to scan all the pages of our catalog with OCR, so we can start posting a list of what's available, and prioritize which tapes to restore first. Once that's done, we'll ask for donations from Videowest alumni and fans, to pay for the digitization of their favorite footage. Then will come the process of editing, tagging, posting clips online, etc. Volunteers will be welcome at that time.
Stay tuned for more. I'll come back here every few weeks, and will let you all know once we have a site up.
Again, it's such a pleasure to hear from you all - I'm so glad that you liked our shows and still remember all these cool details. Reading this page brought back so many memories, thank you all!
I leave you with a couple of links of Videowest clips that somehow found their way onto YouTube:
Calling Dr. Howard by The Finders
www.youtube.com/watch
Richard Thompson - Videowest's "Guitar Player"
www.youtube.com/watch
Oh, and if anyone's wondering what I'm up to now, check out NewsTrust, our social news site devoted to good journalism:
www.newstrust.net/ -
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Re: VideoWest
Sat, April 7, 2007 - 3:13 PMHey Fabrice,
and welcome! I'm glad you found us! Thanks for the work you did.
I'm looking forward to your updates and maybe some behind the scenes info. -
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Re: VideoWest
Mon, April 16, 2007 - 5:24 PMVideoWest literally changed my life, especially seeing Devo and The Residents. Wasn't the Fishheads video shown, too, and The Boomtown Rats' "I Don't Like Mondays?" -
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Re: VideoWest
Tue, April 17, 2007 - 8:11 PMI remember the "I don't like Mondays" video! Awesome song.
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Re: VideoWest
Sat, April 21, 2007 - 6:52 PMI wonder if you had a copy of the music video 'Shelly's Boyfriend' by the Punts (Later called Bonnie Hayes and the wild combo).
The video was made in SF around 1981 or 1982? In the video, I played the 'dairy queen' at the dairy queen restaurant that steals Shelly's boyfriend from her. I was told the video made it onto MTV, at the time... but I was anti-TV then and never saw it.
:) -
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Re: VideoWest
Fri, April 27, 2007 - 1:42 AMI also seem to recall a Los Microwaves video, Adam & the Ants.
I know what you mean Jaya, about bell bottoms & spiked collars, but the spirit of the Commando Cody video was very contemporary. Besides, even the Dead Boys had long hair & bell bottoms during their early performances.
Of course, those guys were from Cleveland..... -
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Re: VideoWest
Fri, April 27, 2007 - 4:30 AM...and we all know, "Cleveland Rocks!"
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Re: VideoWest
Fri, April 27, 2007 - 12:33 PMdid you look on youtube sugar pie? Hey where the hell was I when you did that.. omg wait don't answer that one! haha -
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Re: VideoWest
Sat, April 28, 2007 - 3:41 PMHeh! It was after I moved into the tiny studio on Hugo st. Maybe 1982?
I did look on tube, also emailed Bonnie Hayes... she says the guy that made it is dead... but she will keep her eyes/ears out for info.
MTV never responded to my re: asking em if they still had a copy...
So I wait.
PS Jen did you see my "homeboy" post on the berkeley kids tribe... about the trip to LA with the movie?
> Jenocide said:
> Re: VideoWest - Shelly's boyfriend video by Bonnie hayes (The Punts/combo)
> "did you look on youtube sugar pie? Hey where the hell was I when you did that.. omg wait don't answer that one! haha"
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Re: VideoWest
Wed, November 14, 2007 - 4:04 AMI loved that song! But I never saw the video.
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Re: VideoWest (Mo!, Larry!, Cheese!)
Wed, June 6, 2007 - 11:15 PMI played Larry in the Finder's video (Mo!, Larry!, Cheese!). Fun time at Marin General Hospital! Met some neat folks. I've had a copy of the video for many years (about the same quality as u-tube). I believe it played on MTV.
I also PA'd on a few shoots. Nice to see how many folks from there went on to great things!
It'd be great to be able to see the show again! (Maybe people would actually believe my stories)
Now what did I do with my Videowest T-shirt?
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Re: VideoWest
Wed, July 11, 2007 - 5:20 PMHey Fab,
Volunteers? You mean we can work on Videowest stuff again? Should I tell Robyn and Marco?
T
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Re: VideoWest
Sun, June 17, 2007 - 9:17 PMI was googleing for "Videowest" info and lo and behold here I am! It's a beautiful cyberworld.
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Re: VideoWest
Wed, September 26, 2007 - 12:24 PMyeah! video west! my dad was on video west air brushing once.. I still have vhs cassettes of it back home.. I watched it in utter amazement. the residents were so wierd.. and video west used to do comic skits too..fake commercials etc.. oh and they used to do these interviews, once they interviewed the creature features host.. thts exactly why I dont watch TV anymore because it used to be artistic and now its all about money..phooey..
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Re: VideoWest
Wed, November 14, 2007 - 12:03 AMYes, I absolutely remember Video West. I loved watching the music videos and the comedy skits. KSAN was a major part of my life back then, and always thought that KSAN was some how connected with the show. The very first music video I ever seen was called “Calling All Girls” by Hilly Michaels, this video can still be seen on you tube. I am looking forward to the time when Video West is available on DVD or on the net. Making Video West available would make an incredible resource for new generations, After all, Video West in many ways tracked the change in culture ,music, media, and technology in the bay Area. These were very special times. -
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Re: VideoWest
Wed, November 14, 2007 - 4:03 AMWow, your post really jogged my memory. I remember that cheesy Hilly Michaels video! Groups of us kids gathered to watch Video West back in 1980-81. I vividly recall the Devo video "Are We Not Men", the Residents' videos, and the Zippy the Pinhead skits. I was transported back in time about a month ago when I was at a 50th birthday party. The host's mad scientist brothers played the Residents' birthday song, which is apparently a family tradition. I had to take a moment in the corner with the album cover. :-)
I agree that making Video West available will provide new generations with a window into a special period of time in the Bay Area. I'm glad I was there.
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