TV PARTY – HALLOWEEN SHOWHalloween 1979 happened to fall on a Wednesday, which means it was TV Party night! At 11PM, when White House records show that President Carter had retired for the night, Glenn O’Brien welcomed viewers to, “the TV show that’s a costume party, but which could be a political party.” What makes this a great episode is that it’s a real party, featuring lots of home viewers on the telephone. This is TV Party at is most dense and abstract, filled with cross-talk, double entendre and obscure information. Particularly amusing is a long stretch with Jean-Michel Basquiat talking to home viewers on the phone, talking them out of their negativity. Bonus footage includes “Samson and Delilah” – Klaus Nomi, Snuky Tate & The TVP Orchestra, “Caca Disco” – Compton Maddux, and “The Joke” – Walter Steding.
TV PARTY – CRUSADES SHOW February 17, 1981. Reagan was the new President. Iran had just released its American hostages, and Israel and the PLO had rejected Egypt’s peace plan. It was a grim moment and TV Party decided to do something about it. Glenn announced a new Crusade to take back the Holy Land. It was a bitter cold snowy night and the studio audience was a small group of hearty partiers, but the TV Party gang made up for it in merriment. Famed DJ Johnny Dynell made a guest appearance as an angel. Glenn, crowned with a pre-cable rabbit ears antenna, performed the first live TV mass orgone transmission, combining the theories of Wilhelm Reich and Marshall Macluhan, and the screen was punctuated by the wry words typed on screen by Jean Michel Basquiat. Bonus footage includes James “The Secret Spy,” by Walter Steding, and “Killer Rabbit,” featuring Deborah Harry.
TV PARTY – TIME & MAKE-UP SHOW This episode was broadcasted live from ETC Studios on August 19, 1979. This show opens with a still frame. Just when you’re ready to go nuts, a voice reassures: “There is nothing wrong with your television set.” And mad action begins. TV Party was cable TV as pop art. It appeared sloppy and crude but it was deliberate sloppiness and crudeness. This episode plays with ideas of time and space, alternating between aggressive boredom and quick wit. The now legendary fashion photographer Steven Meisel joins the gang, performing a makeover on a hillbilly gal found in the bar across the street. Percussionist extraordinaire David van Tieghem makes music with toys and kitchen utensils. Tim Wright and his girlfriend Marianne are “Fifi and Claude” performing a punk Parisian accordion/guitar duo. Richard Sohl of the Patti Smith Group, artists Fab Five Freddie and Ronnie Cutrone and guitarist Robert Fripp answer phone calls from home viewers. It’s all about “the makeup of time.” Bonus footage includes Glenn & Walter on Socialism, “How Drugs Work,” and TVP at Mudd Club.
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