TV Party was a public-access television cable TV show in New York City that ran from 1978 to 1982. Glenn O'Brien was the host. Chris Stein, the co-founder of the pop band Blondie, was the co-host and Walter "Doc" Steding was the leader of the TV Party orchestra. Amos Poe was the director. Guests included Mick Jones, David Byrne, Debbie Harry, James Chance and Jean-Michel Basquiat. Brink Films has re-released some of the best of the 80 plus episodes on DVD, as well as a documentary about the TV show.
Episodes
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This was the premiere show. Regulars included Jean-Michel Basquiat, Fab Five Freddie, Deborah Harry, John Lurie and Tim Wright of DNA. Extras: John Lurie, David Walter McDermott, Kate Simon, and Mick Jones of the Clash.
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The first 10% of this show sums up what we don’t get on TV anymore. Technical difficulties. TV Party was live and improvised, and this meant casual disaster. This early episode gets off to an artistically agonizing start–the sound person is late, overdosing on drugs or both. Or it was the broken down equipment. Once the sound kicks in the show gets lively. Compton Maddux, a droll singer songwriter, is backed up by Debbie Harry and Glenn; the unique futurist countertenor Klaus Nomi does one of his post-modern arias; Adny Shernoff, of the Dictators, plays the Beach Boys’ “Be True to Your School” backed up by pom pom girls Tish and Snooky, the Manic Panic designers.
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Halloween ’79 - Glenn is dressed in a casual Dolly Parton lesbian look. With Chris Stein, Debbie Harry,Richard Sohl, Fab Five Freddy & more. This is TV Party at is most dense and abstract, filled with cross-talk, double entendre and obscure information.
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This episode plays with ideas of time and space, (“time is money” and “dead air”) alternating between aggressive boredom and quick wit. The TV Party Orchestra (Walter Steding on violin, Lenny Ferrari on the New Yorker magazine, and Tim Wright on guitar) jams while host O’Brien performs the sublime feat of rolling a joint blindfolded while smoking a joint.
Runtime: 55m
There were two TV Party Heavy Metal Shows: one taped at the Mudd Club, now lost, and this live studio sequel featuring a “Mock Penis Envy” backdrop by Jean-Michel Basquiat, and a guitar line up of Chris Stein, Lenny Ferrari, Patrick Geoffrois of the Contortions, plus Glenn, Basquiat, Snuky Tate and Walter Steding on guitar and vocals, and Bradley Field on electronic drums. As Glenn and Walter send up rock clichés and discuss the nature of electricity, the band churns out a harrowing electronic miasma. Highlights include an actual fight between Fab Five Freddy and Jean-Michel Basquiat over a guitar and Walter Steding destroying his “extra wide deluxe” guitar.
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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. The TV Party Orchestra, featuring Chris Stein, Lenny Ferrari on flute, sorcerer Patrick Geoffrois slide guitar and Walter Steding, performed punk medieval music.
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TV Party’s final episode (season) was broadcast live in color on Channel J, a public access “commercial station.” TV Party tried to pay the extra expense of going to color by selling ads to downtown clubs and underground record companies. “Everything here is for sale,” Glenn announces.
