Posted on 06/20/2025 6:18:07 PM PDT by DoodleBob
Radio veteran Dr. Demento announced plans for his retirement after 55 years on the air.
Real name Barret Hansen, the comedy and novelty music specialist started out in October 1970 on KPPC in Los Angeles (later KROQ). His show was syndicated in 1974 and he continued on radio until 2010 when he went digital.
He popularized songs including “The Monster Mash,” “Shaving Cream” and “Fish Heads,” while introducing artists including Bobby ‘Boris’ Pickett, Benny Bell, Barnes & Barnes, Spike Jones, Jimmy Durante, Nervous Norvus, Allan Sherman, Stan Freberg and many others to a wider audience.
Demento, who’s now 84, confirmed that his final broadcasts will consist of archive material, ending in a top 40 of novelty songs on precisely the 55th anniversary of his first show. “It’s been a blast – but I have come to the decision that I need to hang up my top hat soon,” he said in a statement.
Probably his most notable introduction was that of ‘Weird Al’ Yankovic, who established his career via Demento’s show, first appearing in 1976 and becoming a mainstay as he presented spoof songs including “Another One Rides the Bus” and “My Bologna,” parodies of Queen and The Knack respectively. “If there hadn’t been a Dr. Demento, I’d probably have a real job now,” Yankovic once said.
In 2015 Demento – who has a master's degree in ethnomusicology – told Music Makes You Think that his song choices had always been extremely subjective. “There are no hard and fast rules,” he explained. “One song will suggest another. Once I’ve played something, audience reaction helps determine whether it’ll get played again.”
He reflected: “[H]umor has changed greatly through the years. People in the past were more easily amused; they didn’t need or even want to be shocked into laughter. On the other hand, they were not at all shocked by things that outrage and shock people today, especially the racial and ethnic jokes.
“And until quite recently people appeared to accept a certain level of sexism in humor that many listeners today will no longer tolerate – though others continue to love that stuff.”
Dr. Demento On ‘Weird Al,’ Frank Zappa and George Carlin
Asked whether the artists he worked with appeared “normal” when they weren’t performing, he said: “The more successful comedy entertainers just about all have a fairly serious attitude toward making their entertainment as good as it can possibly be.
“‘Weird Al’ is very serious about his work. So was Frank Zappa; probably the most intense workaholic I ever met. I interviewed George Carlin four times, and we spent a good part of each interview talking seriously about what makes comedy work.”
Demento noted that novelty songs had changed as much as other aspects of the industry over the decades. “Some… music holds its appeal many years after its creation, while other songs have become dated and aren’t as funny as they once were.
“Songs about politics would be an obvious example of the latter, as well as songs about fads like hula hoops or pet rocks – though I’ll play one of that kind now and then for nostalgia’s sake.”
Get Drunk With Dignity
Tim Cavanagh
When you’ve had too much to drink
there’s certain things to keep in mind.
Like when you find your hand and underarms are bleeding
your beer bottle might not have a twist off cap
and don’t ever go home with a woman they call Moose
or Vince
And never bet that you can fit your head inside a glove compartment
Get drunk with dignity
Keep in mind that just because a bulldog licks your face
its not necessary to lick him back
Stay away from drinks with names like
brain seizure or hippo laxative
Get drunk with dignity
If a bar has human ears nailed ot the walls
don’t pass out there
and if your homemade jello has some goldfish in it
you used the wrong bowl
And there are phrases you must learn to avoid
phrases like
“that badge looks stupid”
and
“I can prove these shoes are fireproof”
Get drunk with dignity
try not to drool on bikers
Don’t moon a nun
unless you got a real good reason
dont get romantically involved with farm machinery
Get drunk with dignity.
Discovered the Doctor in 1974 in California. Thank God American Forces Radio carried him. Way before the Internet and International Direct Dialing. Kept me sane while stuck overseas for 2 years as a CIA brat with nothing but occasional TV shows that we had to watch at home on a Station-provided movie projector.
Thanks to all those artists who kept on when their parents said they'd go blind, today I'm a Happy Boy!
Yeah!
I had a friend named Larry. He hated that song.
“I didn’t know he was still around.”
Same here. I remember listening to him when I was 16-18 late at night.
Me too...retiring now? I would have guessed Doctor D. retired 40 years ago!
“Over the Edge” from “Berserkeley” is still going strong tho....another late night teen/20’s “forbidden pleasure”.
“My Name is Larry” still cracks me up
Poisoning pigeons in the park.
Dead puppies aren’t much fun.
That’s because he went full subscription on the internet. I have many fond memories of listening to him with coworkers in the parking lot after work, but there was no way I was paying to listen to him decades later.
Jeez, I don’t even have to hear it. The moment you mentioned it it started playing in my head. Every word memorized. First heard it in 1979, and carry it with me to this day. What a silly thing to keep in long term storage.
Same here. Shortwave, also, was exotic stuff for a kid.
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