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Fred Schneider Hams It Up: Doris Wishman

fredSchneiderlogoFred Schneider has been partying out of bounds as the male mouthpiece of the B-52s since the late ’70s. Through that band’s commercial success and longevity, Schneider’s goofy, new-wave jester shtick has evolved into an iconic voice that’s now an inspiration to younger artists. Schneider’s latest project, the Superions, showcases both his supreme silliness (“Who Threw That Ham At Me?” is one of his most riotous efforts) and influence (the Superions’ debut EP, Totally Nude Island, features remixes by four Athens, Ga., bands). Along with fellow Superions Noah Brodie and Dan Marshall, Schneider has delivered a handful of songs that combine sex, sci-fi, shoplifting and a dance called the Disco Garbage Can. Schneider will be guest editing magnetmagazine.com all week. Read our Q&A with him.

dorisSchneider: I had the great opportunity to be in director Doris Wishman‘s last movie, Each Time I Kill. Doris was the pioneer woman director of ’50s and ’60s nudie films. I loved her—what a true character. She filmed no-one-knows-how-many movies. Nude On The Moon has the best opening titles of any film of that genre. How to get around the censors in the early ’60s? Everyone in the film (except the “star”) is naked because the moon is a giant nudist camp! Nudist films were legal, and they even have antennas on their heads! Dildo Heaven, from 2002, is a hysterical, incomprehensible mess. Something about a nerdy peeping tom, but I can’t even begin to explain the “plot.” A howl! The “Chesty Morgan” series stars stripper Chesty Morgan, who plays a detective(?!) who smothers to death the bad guys with her 70-inch (for real!) chest. The script for Each Time I Kill was actually great, and the premise was very original. Then I went down to be in it, and let’s just say it didn’t turn out, um, quite as good. Originally, she wanted me to play Luigi, the Italian (me, Italian???) owner of the malt shop. (Like kids today go to the malt shop.) Anyway, let’s just say, Doris—God, I love her—was a little out of touch. Also, she claimed to be in her early 70s when she was actually close to 90! I could go on and on, but I sure will miss her. Oh, BTW, I’m terrible in it. Video after the jump.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0JqHt3JcHuE

One reply on “Fred Schneider Hams It Up: Doris Wishman”

[…] Fred Schneider Hams It Up: Doris Wishman (magnetmagazine.com) – February 21, 2010Fred Schneider has been partying out of bounds as the male mouthpiece of the B-52s since the late ’70s. Through that band’s commercial success and longevity, Schneider’s goofy, new-wave jester shtick… more Fred Schneider blog posts … […]

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