It's A Mad, Mad Daddy?

To know The Cramps is to know the namesake for one of their more popular songs and a huge influence on Lux & Ivy.  Pete "MAD DADDY" Myers first mesmerized listeners on January 1958 at WJW in Cleveland as the nighttime disc jockey.  There must have been something in the water in Northeast Ohio combined with the repression of blue collar monotony that spawn countercultural heroes Mad Daddy, Alan "Moondog" Freed and Ernie "Ghoulardi" Anderson (whom many claim was influenced by Mad Daddy).  On the radio Mad Daddy clearly drew upon his acting experience from the Royal Academy Of Dramatic Art In London to create his Mad Daddy character with a flowing black cape and signature phrases still used today like "mellow as Jell-O", "Wavy Gravy" and "Hang Loose, Mother Goose."

With the help of an extremely high IQ (174) and copious amounts of amphetamines his style was punctuated by rapid spontaneous rhyming through an entire four-and-a-half -hour show.  He even improvised the live bizarre advertisements for his show's sponsors.  His broadcasts were often the first (& only) chance rock 'n' roll fans could hear hundreds of blues, rockabilly and R&B artists like Link Wray and Howlin' Wolf.

His shows were clearly a huge influence on a then 12 year old Lux growing up in Akron.  He fondly remembers the Mad Daddy driving around in a pink Pontiac wearing a Dracula cape and his "Batty Bucks") bat winged sneakers and other off-air antics like parachuting 2,200 feet into Lake Erie from an airplane on June 14th, 1958.

A ghoulishly brilliant Mad Daddy next appeared on Cleveland's WHK in 1958 where he remained for about a year before moving to WNEW in New York in June 1959. There he was given one test evening in his "Mad Daddy" role.  The switchboards lit up like a Christmas tree and the adverse reaction forced him to play resume middle-of-the-road programming.  Frustrated in his efforts to recapture his Cleveland fame, Myers shot himself to death a decade later on October 4th, 1968.  His Genius has never been equaled and his influence upon the culture and music of The Cramps is undeniable.

Pete Myers - WJW Cleveland - February 26, 1958

Part 1

Pete Myers - WJW Cleveland - February 26, 1958
Part 2