I’m not going to bother getting in and explaining the story and history of TV Party, “The TV show that’s a party, and possibly a political party.” If you don’t know it, read the review that DVD In My Pants previously did on TV Party – The Documentary, and then go get it. It’s everything you need to know. 

Glenn O’Brien’s TV Party: The Halloween Show is merely a single episode of the infamous public access program. When you pop this disc into your player, you had better be prepared for some craziness, irreverence, and one bizarre abstraction of a variety show. In other words, I hope you’re high. I don’t say this because I advocate getting high, but because it’s what most of the people watching this episode late on Wednesday, October 30th, 1979 were doing. I think most of the cast was as well.

So, you’re probably wondering what this particular episode has in store for you, the viewer. Well, it’s Halloween (more precisely, the night before) and the cast is all dressed up and ready to turn TV Party into a costume party. The band is dressed as something Daft Punk might have looked like in 1979, Debbie Harry (of Blondie) is dressed like an umbrella, Fab Five Freddy is dressed as a “nickel bag” and our host, Glenn O’Brien, is dressed as a woman.

Aside from some minor jams from the house band, which is about 15 years too early for the IDM movement (although they’re intriguing to listen to for that reason), and an introduction to the episode from Glenn, nothing much happens during the first third of the show. Glenn, it’s worth noting, is way too convincing with his feminine mannerisms. If it weren’t for Glenn’s not entirely inaccurate description of the holiday, and the “Nickel Bag” interview where “Nickel” discusses the danger of having angel dust dropped into their Trick-Or-Treat bags, then there wouldn’t be much to keep the viewer occupied or entertained. But Goddamned if Nickel and Glenn aren’t entertaining as hell…

“If someone tries to give you angel dust just tell them you want a Clark bar instead.”

Brilliant.

The remainder of the program is much more interesting. Special guest star Dave Street, punk comedian, predicts what life will be like in the 1980s and, for public access, this was a pretty high-concept bit for the time, with him talking to himself live on a video monitor.

The real action begins once Richard Sohl, dressed as a high fashion model, opens the phone lines to the general public. It’s at this point that the show becomes a madhouse of entertainment. Some examples of the calls:

“I think Debbie looks more like Cousin It than an umbrella.”
“Excuse me. Uh… what is this show about?”
“Yes, I’d like to know if your umbrella flies.”
“We have some black people. Would you like to talk to a black person?”

The inane chatter that comes through over the phone line is hilarious much of the time, but even that becomes old-hat rather quickly. Thankfully, the end of the show goes into completely abstract territory with a botched magic trick, followed immediately by Chris Stein going off on a tangent about how Ted Kennedy will be elected President, and how he is the Anti-Christ. I love how the cast actually works out what to do after the show while they’re still on the air.

This is television at its most structureless and certainly a product of its time the likes of which will never be repeated. I haven’t seen any other episodes, so I don’t know how indicative it is of the average. What I do know is that this episode is pretty bizarre and was an awesome experience to watch. If you’ve seen the documentary and are interested in what TV Party is all about, this episode is a fun place to start.

The DVD Presentation
Late 70’s public access television - how do you think it looks? It isn’t pretty, but considering the age and the stock, I’m somewhat surprised it looks even this good.
The sound is pretty strong as well. At least that’s the case for the cast; some of the callers don’t come across so clearly. But you’ll get the jist of what’s going on without much effort. No subtitles, no surrounds, just a party like its 1979.

And the Extras Are?
Five musical performances are included on this DVD. They were all recorded on TV Party, but not from this particular episode. These include:

Klaus Nomi – “Samson and Delilah” (Live) – (5:58)
Amazing, regardless of the fact that it was done for TV. Klaus puts on quite a show singing the famous aria. The audio is quite crisp here with only slight popping. Like a really good vinyl. Awesome performance.

Snuky Tate and the TVP Orchestra – (5:10)
I don’t know if Snuky ever released anything outside of an EP or two, and I’m certain they weren’t transferred to CD, so including this live jam session is really an awesome sight. I kept singing this for at least a half-hour after watching it.

Compton Maddux – “Caca Disco” – (6:05)
This was from the same night as the Nomi performance. "Caca Disco" is my new favorite song. I don’t know anything about these guys, but if I can find a single record by them I’m buying it.

Walter Steding – “The Joke” – (7:05)
I won’t pretend to be familiar with Walter Steding, and I can’t say that I was impressed with what I heard. It’s typical forgettable late-‘70s’ almost-New Wave material. To satisfy my curiosity, I checked to see if Trouser Press had anything of value to say. They don’t. Trash.

Blondie – “The Tide Is High” – (4:32)
I’ve honestly never been a fan of this particular song, but I really like the way it is performed here. There’s just enough odd sonic background noise to make it an interesting variation on a tired single. Blondie fucking rocks! Also of note: it is the only performance in color on this DVD. Too bad that the quality isn’t the best; it’s even out of sync in some parts.

The Bottom Line
I wouldn’t even go so far as to call TV Party an acquired taste. I think you’ll decide whether or not you want to watch more of it within the first few minutes. Being the first complete episode of TV Party that I’d seen, I was mesmerized. It’s a fascinating time capsule of counter-culture and, while it drags in parts (boy does it drag), I was still in awe of the project. It’s certainly not for everyone, but if you have any interest in this period of time, for both style and music, you owe it to yourself to check it out. Then you can marvel that such a show has even made it to DVD. Thanks, Brink!