Tuesday, July 31, 2007
RIP Tom Snyder
Goodbye pal.
And in celebration of the life and beverages of Tom Snyder, mix yourself up a Colortini, sit back, and let this lime green wave of pure 70s goodness wash over you.
The downside: Leisure suits, guy-necklaces, impact-resistant hair, and everybody smokes.
Upside: You get to see Young Harlan Ellison (a writer who has influenced me as least as much as any other) set to full-tilt-boogie, Doohan in his Evil Spock goatee, Koenig getting to say more than “Yes, Kep-teen”, and Snyder interlocuting with that inimitable easygoing, interested-basset-look he had.
Everybody from Ayn Rand to Charlie Manson eventually did Snyder, who made late night boozily interesting and interestingly conversational.
If you want to raid the fridge for more, the four preceding slices are here:
Part One of Five
Part Two
Part Three
Part Four
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17 comments:
Señor Snyder,
We weel all mees joo.
Joo made late night television ho-kay for a generation of pipples who had no liking for the hokiness of a Carson, Allen or Leno.
Not that Carson was el Diablo, joo understand... (Hmphhh, thees gets complicated quickly.)
¿Señor Dreeftglass,
Was the leetle shouty-man Ellison ever on again to "name the names" as eet were?
¿eh?
I do not know; it is a mystery lost to the ages...
Ahh, Synder memories...
His show was one of the bright moments in what was otherwise a particularly '70's version of vast wasteland. (ie, it's not a wasteland, it has sparkly things on it!)
And I'll watch Ellison, as he puts it, "run his mouth" any time, any where.
I also miss David Suskind. Anyone remember him?
Yes, Suskind was the first unapologetic host as prick. I have memories of gathering round the television for Carson and then Snyder. Basset hound is the perfect description. In NYC, we had Joe Franklin too. Pre-cable.
Snyder was someone who did more than fill up airtime with trivia and titillation.
He wasn't afraid to think out loud and expose his own limits. And if he was wrong, he admitted it - No cheap justifications.
HE? That kid can write.
;>)
Back in my callow teenagerhood, there were only two TV shows I did my utmost to never miss. One was NBC Late News Overnight, and the other was wherever Tom Snyder was going to show up.
That Linda Ellerbee and Tom Snyder aren't, and weren't, treated with the respect they deserve by the news media of today is both a sin and a crime.
Harlan - he kinda started to lose his touch in the early 1980s, by my lights, but I have three collections of his stories next to my first edition of "The Sun Also Rises", as a sign of respect, and "Jeffty is Five", "Croatoan" and "And Hitler Painted Roses" is some of the finest American storytelling ever accomplished.
My two bits...
I love Ellison, prick that he is. I recently came across an early copy of Dangerous Visions, and the bookstore guy gave a wry smile and said something about wondering if anybody was going to know what it was.
That is an interesting bunch to have in the same room, knowing Ellison's history with Roddenberry. To be fair, what the hell were either of them thinking? Young Ellison? Writing prime time TV and wanting it to sound like Young Ellison? In the mid-60's? No shit they were going to change it. Oh, Harlan, how could you be bitter about that. Well, if anybody could be bitter about anything...
Not to mention, for his "The 3 Most Important Things in Life" alone he deserves a spot near the top of just about anyone's Pantheon.
Back to the real issue, RIP Tom, RIP.
Ahhhh - Tom Snyder & Harlan Ellison together. What a great way to start off the day.
R.I.P Tom...
justme said...
I love Ellison, prick that he is.
I hear this a lot. Maybe Mr. Ellison doesn't mind. But I do.
My personal contact with him is the extent of a shared ham sandwich during a convention. And, of course, he's easy to follow in the media, especially if one knows where to look.
He is, and proudly, outspoken, controversial, opinionated, impulsive, compulsive, loud, rude, and in-your-face. He self-describes as "gadfly."
But I don't know of many instances where he's anything less than honest, or will settle for anything less than what he sees as the proper dispensing of dignity and respect. Not only for himself, but for others.
So, to me, that doesn't make him a prick, at all.
It does make him a lively addition to any show with the guts to have him on. Tom Snyder, for instance.
Bartkid sez,
[insert sound of ice cubes clinking against glass]
This colortini's for you, Tom.
By coincidence, I ran across Tom's interview of Dennis Kucinich when Dennis was Mayor of Cleveland.
Entertaining and engaging:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xtnVjM5pTn4
And if anyone is looking for more Tom to watch, I recommend the couple of DVDs put out by NBC.
I bought the punk one. Tom surprised me by how much he "got it" and would actually ask intelligent questions.
Rest in peace, Tom, rest in peace.
werebear,
A) I'm from NY, therefore I'm allowed to use the term "prick" as a complement. Sorry if it didn't come off that way.
B) Yes, his general refusal to place pleasantry above substance has earned him something of a bristly reputation. No, that doesn't mean he's unfair.
If it makes you feel better, and I did not specify, feel free to assume I was using the term as an action verb, rather than a descriptive noun. He most certainly has been a two-fingered poke in the ribs to more than a few, mostly just when they've deserved it.
Tom Snyder once had the courage to host Ken Kesey and Jerry Garcia one night. Those boys were moving kinda quick for Tom to keep up. ;-)
RIP Tom.
Ah, the internets. If I had heard it said with a Brooklyn accent, I would have known precisely what you meant!
Priceless! Thank you, Drifty. Watched all the YouTube segments--I was too young in 1976, and I just realized that I don't know enough about this extraordinarily gifted man.
Priceless! Thank you, Drifty. We could use someone with Tom Snyder's wit and integriy these days.
Drifty: Thank you so much. I knew you were an(other) Ellison fan; there's something about the way we write.
Tom Snyder and Harlan Ellison. Be still my beating heart. (Oh, and if someone could please tell me which Ellison book has the Tom Snyder introduction in it, I'd be grateful -- it's on my bookcase somewhere, but I'll be damned if I can find it.)
Harlan Ellison.
Not only a great writer, commentator and all-around fuck-you to morons,
he was also deeply involved with the computer game "I Have No Mouth And I Must Scream", adapted from his short story.
I'd recommend everyone to hunt it down and play it.
It is one of the few that shows games can be more than just twitch-control, and can deal with moral choices. And hearing Harlan speak as the voice of AM cewrtainly doesn't hurt either.
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