January 1, 2024
As we wind down the last few hours of 2023, I am reminded of Mark After Dark’s 27th anniversary. It all started back in mid-1996, when I went to see this band called, The Prissteens. They opened up for Nashville Pussy at The Continental in New York city . I think that was one of the first Nashville Pussy shows I ever saw. The next time they came to town was maybe two to three months later. I met Blaine outside and started talking to him about how much I loved his band.
Then, we started hanging out, talking about music, and trading up on concert videos. Then, about a month or so later, I met Greg Deutsch at one of their shows. He was impressed that I knew so much about these bands. Greg is the one that suggested I start a cable TV show. I thought about it for a few weeks and didn’t really want to do it. I went to work as I usually did, but the thought of doing the show was still on my mind. I'll never forget that day. Michael and I were walking down the street in The Village, talking about doing the show.
Also, during this time, I ran into Tracy Hightop, drummer of The Wives/pre guitarist of Helldorado and Jane Lee Hooker, and told her, “We're planning on starting this cable show.” She was like, “Oh cool.” So, in late 1996, I talked to Michael about the show, and then met up with Bill Johnson who also played a pivotal role at those early Nashville Pussy gigs. I mentioned it to him, and he said, “Oh, I want to be part of that.” The whole Team, now, consisted of Michael, Greg, Bill and me. I remember Greg doing these cheesy computer-generated intro credits for the show every fucking week! Looking back on it brings back great memories. While getting ready for the production of the cable show, I bought my first video camera at The Wiz, when I lived in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn.
The first episode was a split episode that featured a band called, Jack Black and Nashville Pussy. The show premiered on Friday night, Saturday mornings at 12:30 AM, January 3rd, into the 4th of 1997. This was the only time that I used the split episode method because I hadn't thought of the show’s format, yet. While it's fun to look back on, the cable show. The show was absolutely no fun to do. While producing the cable show, I kept trying not to do it. This disenchantment with cable TV led me into radio. Since 2008, I lost a lot doing The Mark After Dark Show, including my ultimate sidekick Mike G. I think, if he was alive today, he’d be thrilled that we continued on. I am truly thankful to my co-producer and manager, Laura Reynolds, also known as ‘The Gatekeeper,’ and ‘A Pain In My Ass' for always keeping me on track, and to my longtime Friend, Dave, thank you for branding my cable and radio show. I am truly thankful for all the bands that appeared on the TV Show way back when, and Radio Show. **Let the ugliness reign, and let us continue into 2024 with more ideas and great music!