Forum Home Forum Home > Other music related lounges > Get The Word Out
  New Posts New Posts RSS Feed - Space Pirate Radio
  FAQ FAQ  Forum Search   Events   Register Register  Login Login

Space Pirate Radio

 Post Reply Post Reply Page  123 26>
Author
Message
dmastous View Drop Down
Forum Newbie
Forum Newbie


Joined: May 04 2008
Status: Offline
Points: 15
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote dmastous Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Topic: Space Pirate Radio
    Posted: May 04 2008 at 02:20
Space Pirate Radio was a program created and hosted by Guy Guden. The show started in the mid 70's and concentrated on music from outside the US, heavy on the prog rock, ambient, and post punk genres.
The show ran from midnight Sunday to 5:30am Monday. Mr Guden introduced the show during around 10 minutes of ambient music from either Ashra Temple or Klaus Schultz. He then started playing what he said he would play. It was comercial free (with the exception of the sponsor bit at the beginning and end) and loaded with soundbytes, and self created comedy bits, influenced by, but nowhere nears as good as Peter Sellers and Monty Python.
He played full sides of albums, and of course the extended side long songs from various prog rock bands. He also played some of the, at the time, bourgeoning new wave music from England, as well as music from France, and Japan.
I found the shows by accident one night (and thought I was dreaming) on KHTy in Santa Barbara, but I know it was also on KTYD in Santa Barbara for a while as well. In fact due to the irracible nature of Mr Guden the show made the rounds of nearly all the stations in the Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo area both public and commercial. I was only able to listen to it for a little over a year from late 1986 to 1988. I taped a number of the shows, and listened to the tapes repeatedly over the next 6 or 7 years until they were stolen from my car in '94. Everytime I listened to the tapes I found a new musical treasure or treasures.
I used to frequently scour music stores and now web sites looking to identify some of the music that I had on those tapes. A few years ago I was in touch with a prog rock fan who had also listened to, and taped the show as well. He was kind enough to fill up about 10 CDs with some shows from 1978-1981. I listen to them frequently now. Again finding gems from the prog rock archieves.
I put up a Space Pirate Radio tribute page hoping to find peope who had, as I had done, recorded shows. Especially from the period I listened. I've gotten little response, but keep trying. Guy Guden himself emailed me for a time. But he has fallen off the map. I'd like to expand the information on that site as much as I can. All I know now is that the show existed and who did it. That's about it. What I am looking for are playlists, and historical facts about the show. When did it air, and where (what station). Of course I'm always interested in recordings of the show. I'd like to set up some kind of trading between members who do remember the program, or even offer some of my digitized recordings on the web site.
Back to Top
spacemissing View Drop Down
Forum Newbie
Forum Newbie


Joined: July 31 2008
Status: Offline
Points: 11
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote spacemissing Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 31 2008 at 15:59
I tried to send a few emails to Mr. Mastous, but they were bounced back as undeliverable.
 
In looking around, I found this forum, and whaddayaknow?
     - Mr. Mastous had posted something on it.
 
I signed up so that I could tell him:
 
I have many, many hours of recordings of SPR material.
Some are compilations; some are complete shows.
All are on VHS HiFi.
 
Arrangements can be made for copying any or all of what I have,
although I can't put other things on hold to do it.
 
To all others: Please don't swarm all over me about this.
I am specifically responding to one person's plea; I cannot afford
the time to answer requests from anyone else for this material.
If doing so ever becomes possible, I will say so. Thank you.
 
Confused I have to use the library's konfuzers to skid across the infernalnet,
so my response to anyone  may take several days. Please be patient.
 
                                                                                                                                                      
Back to Top
spacemissing View Drop Down
Forum Newbie
Forum Newbie


Joined: July 31 2008
Status: Offline
Points: 11
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote spacemissing Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: September 16 2008 at 18:04

Update: I have 32 complete Space Pirate Radio shows in mono and 2 in stereo; plus two other tapes that may also have complete shows in stereo.

I also have 21 full 6-hour compilations, plus between 1 and 2 hours on one more tape.
 
 
Back to Top
spacemissing View Drop Down
Forum Newbie
Forum Newbie


Joined: July 31 2008
Status: Offline
Points: 11
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote spacemissing Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: September 25 2008 at 13:17
Another update/correction: At least some of the 32 "mono" tapes are actually stereo, but the VCR I used to record them had audio problems; sometimes noise intrudes, especially on the right channel;  it may be necessary to use only left-channel audio when copying some tapes.
Back to Top
misterdirk View Drop Down
Forum Newbie
Forum Newbie


Joined: October 16 2008
Location: Santa Barbara
Status: Offline
Points: 4
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote misterdirk Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 16 2008 at 20:00
Hi, nice to find other SPR fans here. I'm actually the registrant of "spacepirateradio.com" which I have left dormant until I can get it into Guy's hands some day. It would be a dream come true if he is still doing shows somewhere, or would resume using a website. I suppose I could use the domain name as a sort of fan site, because I have 20 or 30 hours of shows that I recorded myself (late 80s, early 90s). I spoke to Guy occasionally back then, and tried to turn him on to the networked future that was coming around the corner, but for various unfortunate reasons SPR never made the leap to the Internet.

Anyway, if anyone has contact info for Guy, or ideas for a fan site, give me a reply here, public or private.

Cheers!
Back to Top
moshkito View Drop Down
Forum Senior Member
Forum Senior Member
Avatar

Joined: January 04 2007
Location: Grok City
Status: Offline
Points: 17422
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote moshkito Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 10 2008 at 14:23

I ended up with quite a few tapes of the show and just threw them away in the past year.
 
No worries ... none of the music in them was missed, with the exception of a couple of cheap tapes from Radio Shack and such, but in general, they are excellent and are now MP3'd ... the only thing I have not done is finish the Excel Spreadsheet that listed the music played and the many of Guy's comedy highlights.
 
I have not shared these with anyone, mostly via Guy's request. For the most part the life of an artist sux, and for as much as Guy has done for so many in music, not enough of them have returned the favor ... and helped him. Not to mention the Radio Station blues and wars ... I know .. I helped pay rent to help Guy get going for the first several years and put up the money to produce his record album and a SPR T-shirt (the one with the nun) ... I finally left in 1978 when I was accepted into UCSB and could not afford rent and 40 hours per week of work and do my Theater work at nights.
 
It was the best of times ... no doubt about that!
 
All told I have over 400 hours of shows and they span 1974 to 1978 mostly with one show in '81 or '82 and then a show in '87 or '88 and then one more that I got from Paul B in '95.
 
When I first started recording these, I did them all in 120 Cassette tapes, and always turned the tape over during the ID"s (top of the hour) ... which on occasion was a source of fun and consternation for Guy, since that was one minute where he would always like to play with what he had if he was bored ... so you might here Bela Lugosi backwards! And Guy the translator behind it ... but all in all, I really wanted the music I did not have yet ... and Guy was playing in those days everything that both him and I had ... and could afford, mind you ... which means that there were priorities, like Klaus Schulze, Tangerine Dream, Amon Duul 2 (still the best ... ever the best ... I miss more Wolf City's and Apocalyptic Bore's! ... do I ever!!!) ... before one could splurge.
 
Since then, I have dutifully taken care of the tapes, as best as possible, always protected and covered.
I have not undertaken to spread the word that I had them ... well ... at Guy's request. He knows I have them, and I think he would like to gain something from it all, however ... there might be copyright issues ... and selling of these may not be the appropriate forum for it ... but sadly ... Guy also needs to live, and support his family ... I just never thought of sharing it openly. And I have respected the wishes, although somehow I accidentally shared a few shows with one of the friends here. 
 
I did see him at Progfest in 1999 .... where I was one of the official photographers for the event. I think a few emails since.
 
With all the commotion and lousy situation that music is in, I was trying to tell GONG (whom I toured with some and took pictures) what they had already started doing ... you gotta own your own and get on the Internet and maximize your visibility ... there is no such thing as record contract anymore or waiting to sign on the dotted line.
 
Guy needed to do the same thing ... and I think he wanted to ... but ... there are a lot of geeks out there ... not a single one that can put together 2 cd-roms (or 3 or 4) and a microphone, and then record these with a mp3 tool (you can get it free on the internet) ... and plug it ... and I am positive that Guy is capable of putting together the computer systems ( I have them now Guy ... come on over!!!) and then find a place to accept it, and not charge an exhorbitant fee ... I would even go so far as to see if we could get the musicians themselves to do promos for a trade off ... so Guy could do this ...
 
But it is not likely to happen ... I'll tell you why ...
 
The biggest secret to Guy's comedy ... and it showed in our own apartment more than once, was when you let him flip on his insanity and no one could see it ... and in that way he could rehearse it himself and then ... unload it on us, the unsuspecting audience. In this way he also would play off his memories and experiences that afflicted him ... be it a movie, a show, a person ... anything ... which added a large amount of freshness to his comedy material ... the good side of this is that you would fall off your chair laughing so hard ... the bad side was that there were times when the political jusdgment/commentary was ... pushing it a bit far ... and something that in the Bush era's would not be acceptable and only get him in trouble ... and I'm not sure that you can keep a Spike Milligan down, or Peter Sellers, or Chuck Jones, of Mel Blanc ... or a Guy Guden ... you can only contain them for so long.
 
But it was always a dichotomy ... no one but him ... can ever explain the connection between The Goons, and Klaus Schulze ... Edgar Froese maybe since he has a connection to that surrealistic thing ... which his music doesn't btw!!! -- not at least like FAUST (for example).
 
I do think of Guy, now that I am 58 ... as very DALI'esque ... in both comedy, acting and presentation ... he is not afraid to experiment (witness the weirdness and all the stuff he did on radio no one else did) ... and this ... of all things was what radio does not have, has never had ... and Sirius/XM will never have ... because the extent of their "talent" is not about "the art" or "the music" ... it's about Howard, or Martha ... like they needed to do the same thing over and over again for your benefit!
 
Progressive, Experimental stuff and thing (as Guy would say) ... is never going to get better and better and be more visible, until all the progarchives, progrocks and what not ... accept someone like Guy ... that can be a "personality" that is capable of putting them on the air and make them more visible.
 
But sadly ... like everything else ... the Internet is as much about information as it is about mis-information ... and I don't think that Guy is wanting to do it anymore ... I would move to where he is with all my computers and wash dishes if I had to ... if we had a chance to get things going on the Internet ... specially now that bandwidth is a lot less of an issue than it was 15 years ago. But I am not sure that he has the energy or the heart to do this anymore ... he took a massive beating physically and health wise ... because there were unsavory types around him many times ... and it was not a pleasant sight to see on occasion!
 
For all intents and purposes, when I saw him last in 1999 ... he looked good, and seemed well. But between you and I ... another KTYD ... which paid less than I made as a cook to help pay rent ...
 
There you have it ... my ancillary name was Chef Bruno (at least so I thought!) ... otherwise my name is Pedro ... I go by Moshkito or Moshkiae these days, both names based on Aldous Huxley, and one was a Bard character created in Everquest, where I did a lot of poetry and published several Bard poetry issues ... and Moshkito was the World of Warcraft equivalent. I don't play those that much anymore but the names mean something to me -- personally.
 
Yes, I hope that he can return ... but it will take a heck of a lot more than talk and hope ... and he certainly deserves more than for his work. 
 
Thx


Edited by moshkito - December 23 2016 at 12:54
Music is not just for listening ... it is for LIVING ... you got to feel it to know what's it about! Not being told!
www.pedrosena.com
Back to Top
songdog View Drop Down
Forum Newbie
Forum Newbie
Avatar

Joined: December 26 2008
Location: Cuyama
Status: Offline
Points: 1
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote songdog Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 26 2008 at 21:07
I'm so glad to find out that "Guy Guden's Space Pirate Radio" actually happened and that I wasn't crazy back in grade school. Back then I was a city boy that got moved to the deserted outback of Santa Barbara county. On cold clear nights I found I could climb to a fairly high point near where I was and tune in far away stations like Dr D. One Sunday Night late I still had battery in my portable radio and scanned around. I found this oddity of music with crazy overdubs and wild adventures. I told my parents, and my few friends (remeber I was a new kid out of the city in cuyama , which is NOT anything like Santa Barbara) about my new find and they thought me crazy. I've never been the same since! Every Sunday at midnight there after I made the same trek to tune in "Guy Guden's Space Pirate Radio" until I graduated High School in 82. (Mondays sucked BTW). I am now an actively employed audio engineer and work at Cal Poly SLO and I in part owe it to Guy for streaching my imagination out to the point of breaking! I so often reflect back on those shows (in my mind) when looking for a creative twist.
I think to my self, " what would Guy Guden do?"

Thanks for the memories!
I would love to re-introduce his shows of the past or any of the future to KCPR, the cal poly radio station.
hell, I'll do the graveyard shift my self!

-songdog
Back to Top
moshkito View Drop Down
Forum Senior Member
Forum Senior Member
Avatar

Joined: January 04 2007
Location: Grok City
Status: Offline
Points: 17422
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote moshkito Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 31 2008 at 13:18
Hi,
 
As far as I know, Guy is living in Santa Maria ... what he is doing these days ... I have no idea ... have not received an email from him in eons ...
 
I can tell you that 30 years later, there still is no radio half as good as that ... I can also honestly say that the variety of music has never been duplicated and I am not sure that it ever will.
 
I listen to a few channels on Live 365, and they have the potential, but not sure they would know the difference between a Space Pirate Radio and just another show ... they are nice, but way too repetitive. And there is too much music out there to have to be repetitive ... so it becomes a matter of choice and desire.
 
I think that Guy is tired of dealing with folks that have ideas about music and radio, but it is all centered around their top ten ... not music itself. And this is the problem with Sirius/XM in my book as well as any other station out there.
 
Just for kicks, I showed up at KBOO here in Portland and asked what were the chances of doing something on the air ... and the lady in charge there asked me ... what was the social relevance of what I wanted to do after I talked about music and what I had been close to with Space Pirate Radio, my endeavours touring and photographing a couple of these famous bands, and then wanting to play "something that radio did not have" ... I might as well have spoken to a brick wall, when she asked that ... I got up and didn't say anything ... and just left. I don't want to deal with those people either!
 
In the end there are a lot of compromises that need to be made ... Guy, for all intents and purposes, was rather serious about his desire to take his show and its meaning, which to him were more spiritually inclined than anything else, while his comedy bits and writing was more of a display of his witty nature and often fun persona.
 
It reminds me of seeing Magma in San Francisco ... and the 15 minutes standing ovation ... I think there were more tears in that minute and appreciation for music that is out there -- which Guy played so much and so many times, that I was hoping Christian Vander would thank Guy after that show. Sorry.
 
I doubt I will hear Guy again, ever, on radio, or in person ... and yes, it saddens me terribly ...
 
But there is not enough care or desire to hear something different out there ... if there was, I guarantee you Guy would be out there. A Sirius or XM or Live 365 would have called by now ... or someone else.
 
You know what this reminds me of? I posted in another thread ... the ending of the movie "Woodstock" .... top me this has always been symbolic about what it all meant ... nothing ... only trash ... and here was an artist trying to lift it up and make it meaningful ... and only a few people saw it ... and still today ... that is the one Jimi Hendrix that no one remembers ... everyone talks about the blues and this and that ... but never about his intelligence and what was the most meaningful moment of our (Guy and mine's) time ...
 
It was an important show ... but it did not mean much to too many ... that were only interested in the drugs or the sex or the rock'n'roll and nothing else.


Edited by moshkito - December 23 2016 at 12:57
Music is not just for listening ... it is for LIVING ... you got to feel it to know what's it about! Not being told!
www.pedrosena.com
Back to Top
guitarman5 View Drop Down
Forum Newbie
Forum Newbie
Avatar

Joined: January 03 2009
Location: Santa Barbara
Status: Offline
Points: 2
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote guitarman5 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 03 2009 at 10:31
I was an avid listener of Space pirate radio and used to also record the radio shows.  unfortunately, I loaned my recordings to a friend who never returned them.  What a great program that was and so rich with material, Bill Nelson, Tangerine Dream, Michael Froom, Steve Roach, talk talk, Roxy music..  I listened to the show on KTYD from 1982 thru the late 80's.  I believe he was on Saturday at midnight originally, then changed to Sundays nights.  I search the internet from time to time to see if there are people out there who have recordings or information and this is the first post that I found that seems promising.  If anyone out there has recording of SPR that I could get a hold of, or program information, please contact me. 
Richie
Back to Top
misterdirk View Drop Down
Forum Newbie
Forum Newbie


Joined: October 16 2008
Location: Santa Barbara
Status: Offline
Points: 4
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote misterdirk Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 04 2009 at 17:14

Hi folks,


Thanks for shared memories about SPR. Reading over your notes makes me really pine for a show like Guy's, which was one of a kind as we know. I listen to internet audio all day and night, and the worldwide explosion of sound is like paradise for me, but I still hold a fond place in my heart for the memory of SPR and Guy Guden's unique world.


The sense I got from talking things over with Guy was that he was making Art, and he valued the Art over any other consideration. It's pretty ironic that his chosen medium was radio, which is one of (if not "the") most cravenly mercenary industries. That's why I was so excitedly motivated to get in touch with him when the web started opening up, because I saw it as a perfect way for him to flourish artistically without all of the BS at the radio stations. A window of opportunity has passed since then, but I still think we're in the early days of networked media and Guy could absolutely still do it now if he went for it.


As I mentioned, I have some cassettes of partial shows from the late 80s/early 90s. I don't actually have a player at the moment, but I could probably round something up and digitize a few bits of the shows from here and there. I don't want to tread on any copyright issues, so I'll just do some excerpts, for "review" purposes, and post them at spacepirateradio.com. Look for those in the next couple of months.


Out of respect to Guy, I don't want to hoist the name spacepirateradio into anything other than his show. If he wants to get it going again, then I'd be thrilled to sign it over to him and bless the endeavor. If not, then maybe it will have to lie dormant, or be a repository for our memories.

Back to Top
moshkito View Drop Down
Forum Senior Member
Forum Senior Member
Avatar

Joined: January 04 2007
Location: Grok City
Status: Offline
Points: 17422
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote moshkito Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 16 2009 at 10:41
Originally posted by guitarman5 guitarman5 wrote:

I believe he was on Saturday at midnight originally, then changed to Sundays nights.  
 
The very first set of shows were after Joe Collins' Miles High at 2AM in the morning on Mondays.
 
This changed later to 1AM and then Midnight, with Joe's show before it.   
 
From about 1975 or so on, most of the shows were pretty much 6 hours long until Larry Johnson, or Ray Breer (Brier?) would come in the morning.
 
Sometime in that period, Guy became one of the backups and alternates, and eventually was given Friday and Saturday nights (Saturday and Sunday mornings actually).
 
To my ears, there are some "dailies" he did that were ... out of this world ... I have a couple of them:
 
Carfax Abbey (for Halloween)
Dis-Orient Express (for the Ides of March)
Christmas (self explanatory)
The Real Don Steel (April Fool's)
at least one or more Halloween Shows in different years
 
I really have to finish the spreadsheet I have!
 
Even though the Halloween "specials" are fun and specially enjoyable, my favorites of them all still are the "Mind Melts" (as I called them -- might have been Guy's word for them -- don't remember properly) ... and the insanity and fun madness in them coupled with sound effects, music, craziest stuff in the world .... I always thought that "Revolution #9" was cool and (to me!) quite self explanatory and a massively good snap shot of the times and era ... you took a camera and snapped 20 seconds apart ... and there you have it. Guy did the same thing, and in my book was probably a bit more focused and less "Godard'ian" in the "laissez-faire" department of the creativity. On top of these he would add some of his own comedy bits that made these ... special ... and while it could take away from the background sound/music/effects, more often than not they complemented things ... which focused the thinking and energies better. In general, in those days, many folks might have thought that it was simply "ston'y" radio, but I can tell you that by that time Guy and I had already "graduated" ... we got really mad when Reagan said ... "let them smoke dope .. I'll win all the elections" ... the fudger knew exactly what he was doing!
 
There were times when things were decidedly weird and strange ... but even then, for me personally, it has been very rare to see/hear these and think of them as "abstract" ... when it comes to acting, theater, film and in general any of the arts ... there is very little that is abstract in it, and Guy is one of those folks ... he does not usually do anything because it does not mean anything ... even his comic timing is a normal reaction to our slow-ness and his ability to sink in and swim on our wavelengths. The same applied to radio and his choices of music and themes ...
 
The best part of this was his mercurial ability to shift and match themes and create whole shows around a specific theme and have more stuff based on those specifics than just 2 songs on your regular radio station ... if he ever did a teacher/student thing, I can tell you that even Van Halen and what's his name would blush! And I will bet you that the comedy bit would be a take off on the twit song about the teacher! Of course it won't happen now that I said it ... but something like it would be there.
 
And that was the beauty of the way he worked.
 
But he needed the space to do this ... in a formulaic station that couldn't give a darn about his opinions ... this would be a major problem.
 
But on the internet ... Guy ohh Guy ... there is no better place for it!
 
f**k radio ...


Edited by moshkito - December 23 2016 at 13:01
Music is not just for listening ... it is for LIVING ... you got to feel it to know what's it about! Not being told!
www.pedrosena.com
Back to Top
spacemissing View Drop Down
Forum Newbie
Forum Newbie


Joined: July 31 2008
Status: Offline
Points: 11
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote spacemissing Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 17 2009 at 13:17
I have read the much-expanded array of posts.
There is too much to absorb.
 
My short story is:
I visited Guy several times at his residence, and I purchased some of the records and a few CD's he played, along with some Dr. Demento shows from 1992 and 1993 ( WESTWOOD ONE shows on LP's,
and ON THE RADIO shows on CD's).
 
One of the neater acquisitions I made was three PERU CD's with autographed inserts; I got the titles Guy didn't have from someone way back east, and she was able to get the inserts for those autographed for me, so all of the PERU CD's I have include autographed inserts. The main problem is: Who in the U.S., outside of those who heard SPR, has ever heard of that band?
 
What I am most interested in for now is how to contact Guy. I don't have any address, PO box, phone, or other info to go on.
Back to Top
spacemissing View Drop Down
Forum Newbie
Forum Newbie


Joined: July 31 2008
Status: Offline
Points: 11
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote spacemissing Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 17 2009 at 14:12
Another thought:
 
I believe one reason why Guy's comedy bits work so well is that his absurd sense of humour combines rather favourably with his lack of fear in delivering a live-on-air improvisation.
This shows his confidence in his material, and rightly so.
 
One thinks easily of Jonathan Winters and Robin Williams.
Guy may have a narrower range, and less time to practice, than either of them, but I have laughed harder at some of Guy's efforts than I have at any Winters or Williams bit.
 
For me, two "champions of comedy" are Chef Bruno, fat as he is, disguising himself as a hat rack, and Oscar B. Chow being sexually excited by small appliances. Both of these ideas still crack me up when I think of them.
 
We miss SPR because it was fun.  Although we may never find its like again, we have our memories (and some of us have recordings) that  will serve us for a while, at least. Even if that's all we have, it's better than nothing.
Back to Top
moshkito View Drop Down
Forum Senior Member
Forum Senior Member
Avatar

Joined: January 04 2007
Location: Grok City
Status: Offline
Points: 17422
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote moshkito Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 19 2009 at 12:13
HI,
 
I think I directed Guy once or twice but only in a scene, not a play. I also helped design some of the work for his plays at SBCC, "Void in Wisconsin" and "Nothing is Sacred". Later, I was not a part of "Casanova's Lips", which was also a big hit at SBCC. Somewhere arounf this time, I helped co-produce his album as well.
 
He was not a tough actor to work with as he always knew his lines faster than others and that helped prepare him much better than otherwise. But he had/has a keen sense of reaction ... that is pretty close to that of Spike Miligan and Peter Sellers. He did like Jonathan Winters. Not sure he liked Robin Williams, although things like GMVietNam is almost the same kind of thing and stuff that Guy had to put up with for a long time.
 
His Chef Bruno, may have started with me around 1975, as I was working as one of the Chef's at a dinner house in Santa Barbara on a temporary basis (The Bull Market) ... and then moved on to work at JK Frimples for many years (same company). Guy would not eat much of my cooking ... he was one of those people that could only eat his own meal, even if it was his own mac and cheese. But my mom liked serving him, and he liked visiting mom's house in Santa Barbara (over 40k books of Portuguese/Brazilian and Spanish literature ... which probably helped give him another idea or two. Specially voices and accents. He could do a really nice impression of my father ... and mother as well. And his version of my father was very funny!
 
When we shared that 1 room closet on Chapala ... you know who our best friend was, right? A TOASTER .... if you cooked anything else other than boil a cup of water for tea, the whole place might catch on fire or wake up the neighborhood .... but Altair 4 ... was where it all got moving forward!
 
Stories ... I have so many that Guy would probably think I'm embarasing him ... but these days I bet he loves it a lot and laughs at it.
 
I did think that radio became his only chance ... he was a superb actor, but the political theater stage in Santa Barbara, like Hollywood, meant that he would not get the better and meaty parts that would gave him the attention he deserved. And that left him having to over work himself by writing things and creating a couple of stage opus' that were good for his "oevre", got great reviews (Max Whittaker at SBCC is god!) ... but he could not break into the greater circle for bigger and better parts. It's too bad ... that circle could have done a lot more with people like him ... and he could do one thing that most actors could not ... he could do Shakespeare, Ionesco, Albee, PeterSellers, Stoppard ... and no one would even know/recognize that was him ... his greatest compliment I ever saw was backstage for "Abelard and Heloise" ... (he wanted to do Abelard originally) ... and someone said ... oh my god, look at how young he is.
 
His acting, as far as I can tell, was almost always centered on his voice elements -- as it had been for Peter Sellers - his hero. He could adjust physical anything to that easily enough. It's a shame that what's his name is doing Closeau now ... if they ever saw Guy's Closeau, that _______ would be put out on the street to go walk his dog! And Guy's Closeau was NOT a copy ... was a great extension. His best example of some of his acting, that should be heard, was his "Dis-Orient Express" series of shows, doing an imitation of Peter Ustinov in that one famous set of shows ... (Poirot) ... but unlike ____'s or Ustinov, Guy was way more instinctive and able to skate through just about anything ... and this he did with sound effects in his bits ... there are many times, and I mean MANY TIMES ... when the comedy bit accidentally continue and he is able to continue and not miss a beat ... most actors have already "stopped" by that time and get caught ... and I think he fine tuned that ability via the sound effects and playing with them, backwards, forwards and what not ... if you only knew what a ____ sounded like backwards!!! It extends the comedy ... and this was Peter Sellers secret with Spike Milligan ... the sound effects extended the "reality" ... and Guy knew that ... thus many actors try to stretch a scene via ad-libs and rehearsals, and these often fall flat ... if you "have" the wavelength, it never falls flat regardless.
 
So you can guess what Guy did with his voice stylings. I think he thought radio might help Him get into film better, and instead it all became something else ... I think he gave up his stage/film dreams ... but when I saw him in 1999 he looked much better than when I had seen him in 1995 prior.
 
Gawd .. can't believe I wrote this much !!! ... but it tell you one thing ... he was worth it and always will be ... this was not just a radio dj trying to get famous!


Edited by moshkito - December 23 2016 at 13:13
Music is not just for listening ... it is for LIVING ... you got to feel it to know what's it about! Not being told!
www.pedrosena.com
Back to Top
spacemissing View Drop Down
Forum Newbie
Forum Newbie


Joined: July 31 2008
Status: Offline
Points: 11
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote spacemissing Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 20 2009 at 13:27
 
I brought a list with me this time.
 
The complete shows I have are:
 
1988    Nov. 14
 
1989    Aug.  21   28
             Sept. 11   18    25
             Oct.    02   09   16    23   30
             Nov.   06   13    20   27
             Dec.   04   11   18    25
 
1990    Jan.   01    08   15   22   29
              Feb.  12    19   26
              Mar.   05   12   19   26
              Apr.    02
 
1991    Aug. 26
 
1994   June 13
 
The compilations I have are from shows in the period  1991 Sept. 02   to  1994 Feb. 07, 
and a few after that.
The last dated info I have handy is for  2001 Sept. 24. I believe that is the last show I have anything from.
Back to Top
spacemissing View Drop Down
Forum Newbie
Forum Newbie


Joined: July 31 2008
Status: Offline
Points: 11
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote spacemissing Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 26 2009 at 17:20
Space Pirate Radio started   January 27, 1974.
 
It's likely that Guy would have been celebrating a bit this morning, if the show was on.
Back to Top
moshkito View Drop Down
Forum Senior Member
Forum Senior Member
Avatar

Joined: January 04 2007
Location: Grok City
Status: Offline
Points: 17422
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote moshkito Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: February 04 2009 at 12:28
Hi,
 
My first recording was a couple of weeks after that ... how well I remember it! Like yesterday ... gosh ... I don't even remember the date of the first show I have ... I'll let you know soon enough ... and list the work.
 
The 1st show I have was from the week that PFM's The World Became the World came out in the West Coast .... and that is the opening cut of the show. I think it is either the 3rd or 4th week of March or so.
 
Now you got me in tears ... that was a real special time for me ... goodness ... 34 years ago!
 
Thx


Edited by moshkito - February 04 2009 at 12:43
Back to Top
felixthecat View Drop Down
Forum Newbie
Forum Newbie
Avatar

Joined: March 13 2009
Status: Offline
Points: 1
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote felixthecat Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 13 2009 at 21:50
Hi All,
I Did not know if youall know about his LP Guy did  "Guy Guden Space Pirtate Radio" from 1978 with about 17 of his comdy bits.  I bought my copy used from Morning Glory Record in Isla Vista in the earl eighties.  It is a pretty good sample of his stuff.
Back to Top
moshkito View Drop Down
Forum Senior Member
Forum Senior Member
Avatar

Joined: January 04 2007
Location: Grok City
Status: Offline
Points: 17422
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote moshkito Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 18 2009 at 11:23
Hi,
 
Haha ... I put up the money for that and my name is on it ... and still have a couple of copies left.
 
That same year I put together on cassette a compilation of comedy bits from the many recordings I had ... and on one birthday show, Guy played like 3 hours of it (maybe it was 20  ... and he finally said ... he had to stop it ... it was an overload ... and it was ... but it was fun.
 
I'm considering putting these together again, now that I can mix and match these better and have more fun ... still can't sell them ... but I'm sure we can all enjoy the love and laughter ... and I think that Guy ... for once can look at us and say ... thank you ... and I will say the same. And if he doesn't say it a la Spike Milligan I will demand a translation on the spot and give away the money to the Genghis Khan Ducks Appreciation Society.
 
If anyone deserves a pat in the back, he really does! If anything ... I'm sure that he would enjoy knowing that there are folks that appreciate some of the fine work he did ... now if we can tie him up, force him to walk that plank and get his mouth near another microphone .... and I don't mean do another NL!


Edited by moshkito - March 18 2009 at 11:24
Back to Top
spacemissing View Drop Down
Forum Newbie
Forum Newbie


Joined: July 31 2008
Status: Offline
Points: 11
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote spacemissing Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 19 2009 at 15:56
I got a copy of the LP from Guy himself. 
 
As to its content, I really prefer things I heard on shows in the 1980's and 1990's.
 
Preferences are personal, of course, rather than universal.
Back to Top
 Post Reply Post Reply Page  123 26>

Forum Jump Forum Permissions View Drop Down



This page was generated in 0.188 seconds.
Donate monthly and keep PA fast-loading and ad-free forever.