Changes: "Weird Al" Yankovic

Revision as of 07:50, 31 December 2015

This is the page for the person. To see the album page, go here.

"Weird Al" Yankovic, the undisputed king of pop culture parody, (born October 23, 1959) has sold more comedy recordings than any other artist in history. In a career spanning over 35 years, he has amassed 30 Gold and Platinum albums, 7 Gold and Platinum-certified home videos and 3 Grammy Awards (with 11 nominations).

In The Beginning

ClassicAl — "Classic Al" Before having eye surgery and changing his hair

The singer-songwriter's first real brush with fame came in 1979 when he recorded "My Bologna" (a spoof of The Knack's "My Sharona") in the bathroom across the hall from his college campus radio station where he had a weekly DJ shift. A devoteé of musical satirists Spike Jones, Tom Lehrer, Allan Sherman, and Stan Freberg, Yankovic's budding career took off when the song became a sensation on the nationally syndicated "Dr. Demento Show." Just a few years later, Al landed his first recording contract and has since created an extraordinary legacy of music and ground-breaking videos, including hits like "Eat It," "Like A Surgeon," "Amish Paradise" and "White and Nerdy."

Videos

An accomplished director, Al has helmed many of his own award-winning music videos as well as clips for Ben Folds, Jeff Foxworthy, The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, Hanson, and The Black Crowes. His video for "Smells Like Nirvana," nominated for an MTV Video Music Award in 1992, was chosen by Rolling Stone as one of the "Top 100 Music Videos Of All Time." Al also created the critically acclaimed title sequence for the Leslie Nielsen feature film "Spy Hard."

Television

Making a successful transformation from pop music satirist to multimedia star, Al created his own television specials for MTV ("AL-TV"), Showtime and the Disney Channel, among others. His feature film "UHF" (1989) became an instant Top Ten best-selling DVD upon its release in 2002, and his CBS network series "The Weird Al Show" reached cult-classic status and was released on DVD earlier this year. Al has been featured on numerous TV shows and specials, and his profile on VH-1's "Behind the Music" remains one of the most popular installments in the history of the series.

Straight Outta Lynwood

Yankovic's 12th studio album Straight Outta Lynwood (Way Moby/Volcano) is a DualDisc release brimming with special features. The DVD side contains six brand new Weird Al music videos produced by some of the world's top animators, including Academy Award-nominated filmmaker Bill Plympton, "Ren & Stimpy" creator John Kricfalusi, acclaimed media artist Jim Blashfield, the creative team behind Cartoon Network's Adult Swim show "Robot Chicken" and popular Internet animators Thomas Lee and David C. Lovelace. The package also features a 9-minute behind-the-scenes documentary, as well as PCM Stereo, 5.1 Surround Sound and karaoke/instrumental versions of the entire album.

The centerpiece of Straight Outta Lynwood is "White and Nerdy," a parody of Chamillionaire's No. 1 smash hit "Ridin'." Al directed the highly-acclaimed video clip, which features hilarious cameos by Donny Osmond, Seth Green, Judy Tenuta and Mad TV's Keegan-Michael Keys and Jordan Peele. The "White & Nerdy" video went straight into heavy rotation on VH-1 (debuting at #5 in their Top 20 Countdown) and quickly racked up a few million hits on YouTube.

Straight Outta Lynwood also features parodies of Green Day ("Canadian Idiot"), Usher ("Confessions Part III"), Taylor Hicks ("Do I Creep You Out") and R. Kelly (the 11-minute epic "Trapped in the Drive-Thru"), as well as the now-traditional polka medley ("Polkarama!"), which this time includes accordion-fueled renditions of hits by such artists as 50 Cent, The Black Eyed Peas, Snoop Dogg, Coldplay, Weezer, Pussycat Dolls, and Kanye West.

"Don't Download This Song," the first song and video released from the album, is a tongue-in-cheek look at the hot-button issue of mp3 piracy, set to original music inspired by the celebrity-driven charity benefit songs from the ‘80s. The song was ironically offered as a free download on Al's web site and MySpace page , and quickly became a viral worldwide hit. Other original compositions on the album include an homage to both Brian Wilson and internal organs ("Pancreas"), an ode to computer-based paranoia ("Virus Alert"), a headbanger about frivolous lawsuits ("I'll Sue Ya"), an anthem for the relationship-impaired ("Close But No Cigar") and a cheery ditty about the most festive time of the year ("Weasel Stomping Day").

Straight Outta Lynwood debuted at #10 on the Billboard charts, making it Al's highest charting album to date until Alpocalypse.

Discography

The main article can be found here.

Studio Albums

Collaboration Albums

Peter And The Wolf

Filmography

Film:

1985: The Compleat Al
1988: Tapeheads
1988: The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad!
1989: UHF
1991: The Naked Gun 2 1/2: The Smell of Fear
1992: The "Weirs Al" Yankovic Video Library
1993: Alapalooza: The Videos
1993: "Weird Al" Yankovic: The Ultimate Collection
1994: The Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult
1996: Spy Hard
1996: Bad Hair Day: The Videos
1997: Safety Patrol
1998: "Weird Al" Yankovic: The Videos
1998: Desperation Boulevard
1999: "Weird Al" Yankovic Live!
2003: Haunted Lighthouse
2003: "Weird Al" Yankovic: The Ultimate Video Collection
2006: The Weird Al Show - The Complete Series
2008: Nerdcore Rising
2009: Halloween II
2011: "Weird Al" Yankovic Live! - The Alpocalypse Tour
2011: Alpocalypse HD
2015: Batman vs. Robin

Television:

1994: Wheel of Fortune
1994: Rock & Roll Jeoprady!
1997: The Weird Al Show
2006: Extreme Makeover: Home Edition
2011: Adventure Time
2011: How I Met Your Mother
2012: The High Fructose Adventures of Annoying Orange
2014: My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic
2015: Gravity Falls
2015: Wander Over Yonder
2015: Teen Titans Go!

External Links

Pop Literature

Conrad, Harold. The Glamorous Life of Al Yankovic. // SPIN, Vol. 1, No. 4., August 1985, pp 48 – 50.

Trivia

He made a cameo appearance on the music video by Michael Jackson, Liberian Girl.
He voiced Wreck Gar in Transformers Animated.
He made a cameo appearance in Annoying Orange - Weird Al Holiday Duet!

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 ''This is the page for the person. To see the album page, go [[Album:"Weird Al" Yankovic|here]].''
 [[Image:Weird Al Yankovic.jpg|thumb|Weird Al Himself]]
-'''"Weird Al" Yankovic''', the undisputed king of pop culture parody, (born October 23, 1959) has sold more comedy recordings than any other artist in history. In a career spanning nearly three decades, he has amassed 30 Gold and Platinum albums, 7 Gold and Platinum-certified home videos and 3 Grammy Awards (with 11 nominations).
+'''"Weird Al" Yankovic''', the undisputed king of pop culture parody, (born October 23, 1959) has sold more comedy recordings than any other artist in history. In a career spanning over 35 years, he has amassed 30 Gold and Platinum albums, 7 Gold and Platinum-certified home videos and 3 Grammy Awards (with 11 nominations).
 ==In The Beginning==