Weird TV

Weird TV (1995) is one of those special TV treasures that could have been spliced from the DNA of the original Night Flight series—a sort of spiritual successor. The outrageously eclectic series was created by Chuck Cirino, best known for composing iconic scores for films like Chopping Mall. It played on syndicated broadcast television in 45% of the market in 1995-96. Cirino ‘hosts’ the show from his Land Cruiser, guiding the viewer through rapid-fire sequences of quirky serials, outsider artist profiles, experimental films and man-on-the-street style interviews from locations like tattoo festivals, wacky museums, and steam punk fabrication studios. The series even features some precious early footage from Burning Man.

Weird TV 101 - Hot Dog Hall of Fame

The premiere episode of the cult series Weird TV features a trip to the Hot Dog Hall of Fame, a tattoo convention in Anaheim, Hogman’s Pork and Beans Emporium, an art-rock tribute to the game Pong, and one man’s enormous wallet.

Weird TV 102 - Cathedral Under the Stars

In this episode, Cirino himself checks in from a makeshift shrine in the desert, stuffed animals are shot to shreds in a “Drive By Shooting Range,” video art by Iimura Takahiko, the Los Angeles chapter of the Cacophony Society opens their doors, and a visit to steampunk sculptor and inventor Clayton Bailey’s studio.

Weird TV 103 - Beatrice Wyatt's Yard

Episode 3 features Peoplehaters Fabrication Shop, a “tasteless toon” called Rudolph the Rabid Reindeer, a Mine tour in Nevada, a naked Queen Elizabeth in Australia and the mixed media, found object installation art created by Beatrice Wyatt in her front yard.

Weird TV 104 - Suicidal House Plants

Belladonna from Tattoo Magazine takes us on a tour of Melrose Ave’s Fetish Gallery, a short film subject covering suicidal house plants, demented hand puppets Francis & Buzz in “Trash,” Outsider art from Robert Williams, and insane automobiles from Burning Man.

Weird TV 105 - Don Glut, Dinosaur Collector

This episode features the debut of Weird TV’s serial: “Möbius - Outsider in the World of the Living Dead.” We’re also on the scene of a “Prehistoric Party” with Don Glut: preeminent Dinosaur Collector and Prehistoric Expert, 5000 hand-sculpted brasiers, and an interview with the proprietor of a bone store in LA called Necromance on Melrose Ave.

Weird TV 106 - Ken Fox, Family Dentist

This episode kicks off with super-powered Potato Cannons at Burning Man, followed by outsider artist and family dentist Kenneth Fox describing his monumental sculptures, strung out hand-puppets Francis & Buzz, and ‘90s stoner rock from Monster Magnet.

Weird TV 107 - Saint Stupid’s Day Parade

This episode kicks off with man on the street style interviews with revelers celebrating Saint Stupid's Day in San Francisco, a Dr. Rhuel segment highlighting the Museum of Jurassic Technology in Los Angeles, Zatar the Mutant King, and a were-caterpillar romance in “Weird Love.”

Weird TV 108 - The Eagle’s Nest

We’re back at Burning Man where “Bonsai Boy” shows us his flame spitting superkart. Plus, a very Night Flight-esque comedic overdub of Häxan (1922), a visit to the outsider art installation “The Eagles Nest” by Sylvester Williams, an interview with para-psychologist and psychic healer John Hubacher. and Cake’s video for “Rock ’n’ Roll Lifestyle."

Weird TV 109 - Hog Heaven

Weird TV visits a “shrine to swine,” aka the home of a woman who collects and creates signage related to pigs (“I’ve been crazy about pigs since I was four years old…” ). Plus, outrageous vehicles at the “Art Car” weekend in Houston, Texas, the original Weird TV serial “Babe in a Bottle,” Video Dave’s UFO sighting of the week, and handwriting therapy.

Weird TV 110 - Rudder

Explore a new species of big game hunting in Nevada: remote controlled cars from the ‘70s. Plus Spongearama!, a museum featuring the largest selection of natural sponges, microbots from Japan, Goop Boy at Burning Man, and the video for Silverchair’s “Pure Massacre.”

Weird TV 111 - Viewers Choice Special

An audience-selected “Best Of” episode of Weird TV with the interactive first person CD ROM “game” Sparky! featuring a dog’s-eye view of Los Angeles, piesexual performance artist The Pie Man, sculptor Al Honig’s assemblages created from manufactured objects, and Weird TV’s “Weird Eye.”

Weird TV 112 - Fiction or Not Special

A compilation episode of Weird TV focused on the shows’ wacky original serials: a “Trash” origin story with hand-puppet burnouts Francis & Buzz, Zatar the Mutant King, Möbius, and Babe in a Bottle. Bonus: the Ramones Spiderman song video recorded in 1995!

Weird TV - Weird America Pilot

Created by Chuck Cirino in 1994, this is the pilot for the “Weird America” show, which ultimately became a regular segment inside the greater Weird TV format, which was released a year later. This 30 minute pilot is the blueprint for Cirino’s off-the-grid explorations into the weirdos, subcultures, and outsider art savants that populate the US of A.

Shadoevision

This is the hour-long Shadoevision Special created and hosted by radio personality Shadoe Stevens and directed by Chuck Cirino in 1986 for the Cinemax Comedy Experiment. It features an accountant who finds himself thrust into a multi-dimensional talkshow broadcast. Segments from the “Shadoevision” broadcast are featured prominently in the Weird TV series.