A long time ago Miles Coverdale in Matrymonye (1541) offered the following sage advice; “That whych thou cannest do conueniently thyselfe commytte it not to another”. More recently Henry Wadsworth Longfellow circa 1858 or so, distilled that sentiment into one of my favorite proverbs: If you want something done right, do it yourself.
I have spent an inordinate amount of time and energy lately bitching about the current deplorable state of automotive television. And although I do enjoy grousing about crappy TV as much as the next guy, the truth is.... I really am not the next guy.
I am a guy more likely to to try to change the status quo, for better or worse. And taking on new projects isn't exactly foreign to me. Even if I am in an unfamiliar environment.
I'm the one, after all, that helped to bring the first sustainable kulture magazine to life with my brotha and long time co conspirator Zombie. And although people “in the know” laughed at our early attempts, ultimately the latest incarnation of that effort is the number ONE selling publication in the transportation sector of magazine sales on new stands everywhere. It has spawned literally EVERY OTHER MAG OUT THERE NOW. Even Hot Rod has come back to the table with “hot rod deluxe”. Does anyone think that happened by accident? I don’t. I personally have been immersed in the automotive customizing field since the early 80’s and found my way into our specific kulture shortly after I became aware, in the late 90's, of artists like Von Franco, and Diablo, along with clubs like the shifters and Lucky Devils who showed us all the way back to our TRADITIONAL roots.
It is with that eye towards, and knowledge of, our shared history then that it is all the more painful to watch know nothing TV producers foist barely viable content on us night after night, show after unwatchable show. Mostly these shows are crap, but more to the point they are at best a sad vestige of what could actually be accomplished if any of these producers gave a shit. Bad content is the rule of the day it seems and made all the worse with the use of “fast edits” and artificially enforced deadlines, or concocted conflict between show participants. The creators of this garbage opting for the easy buck, and throwing true creativity out the window with the baby, the bathwater, and the bathtub it would seem. Appealing instead to the lowest common denominator, what I like to call the “WWE crowd”. -If you dig pro wrestling, you probably have no idea what I'm talking about-. Formulaic at best, insulting at worst. These shows deserve nothing more than to be erased from our collective memory. Nevertheless, frustration builds to a boiling point, and recently after becoming aware of an even worse creation that has found its way onto TV (rat rod television) I find myself unable to take any more. It is, quiet simply, time for action.
I have debated myself unendingly for the better part of 3 months now. But every time I come to the end of the argument I reach the same conclusion. If I can do a better show, why AREN'T I doing it? It’s the same exact conversation I had all those years ago, when we sat down to do the first magazine. AND the same one Naga and I had when we set out to do the radio show. (which it should be noted, a little more than a year later has been a HUGE success for us). So it is then with more than just a bit of determination in my eye, and plenty of enthusiasm from the people that are connected with the project that I am announcing the following: I am currently well into the production process of creating, directing, producing, shooting, editing, and marketing my own television show. The first of its kind, and NOTHING like anything else you have seen. Although I have alluded to the project for some time now, on FaceBook, or my blog, or the radio show, I have yet to come out with specific details or a line by line explanation so to speak. That time is over. Going forward I want the process to be as transparent as possible. I want it to be collaborative and all encompassing. But what I want more than anything else is for this show to be one that YOU would want to watch. One that’s honest with itself, and honest with its viewership. The pilot has been shot, and I'm deep into the editing process as of the date of the writing of this post. Soon I will have a “teaser trailer” or “sizzle reel” as the industry insiders insist on calling it, up on line for everyone to check out. To date its been a labor of love that I have had the privilege to share with friends old, and new. But its been a secret labor. Well, now its time to let everyone in on the joke.
New posts here as shit happens, and much more detailed updates from here on in, as I want everyone to share the process going forward. Cause no matter what happens now, one way or the other, with network support or not, I'm doing this show, period.
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