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| American Misfits |
The Lounge Feature |
Words by: Casperello
If every time you aimlessly channel surf your way through TV’s murky labyrinth of dodgy infomercials, Oprah specials and Gilligan’s Island reruns you’re really searching for a show that offered an eclectic mix of skateboarding, skits, and seriously stupid stunts all kinda just bundled together under the pretext of having a plausible script, then it’s your lucky day! Hightail it to a casino buddy, pronto.
From Nov 7th, during FUEL TV’s Dedicate to Skate, a new thirteen-part series called American Misfits will screen at 8pm Australian EST every Tuesday. It’s a warped bunch of skits and action sequences loosely centred on skateboarding personalities Laban Phiedias and Ted Newsome as they deal with their blundering boss, played by comedian Jay Johnston (Anchorman, Men in Black II, Mr.Show).
Made exclusively for FUEL TV, and inspired by the movie of the same name, American Misfits
has already finished a successful debut run in the States before being offloaded our way. So if you believe half the crap you read on the web, the show is a stunt-filled, oddball frenzy that draws strong comparisons to the Jackass series, but with a drier sense of humour, and peppered with way more legitimate skate footage to appease die-hard sport fans.
The later is no surprise; the show was conceived, written and is hosted by former pro skater Laban Pheidias, who also happens to be an accomplished filmmaker best known for his work on Jackass with Jeff Tremaine and independent projects with Jackass’s Steve-O and Jason “Weeman” Acuna, and Ted Newsome, former Art Director and Editor at Transworld Media’s Skateboarding and Stance magazines, who co-founded TW’s influential skate video series before becoming a Fuel TV host and then Misfit extraordinaire.
When we tracked the dastardly duo down to get the scoop on the show, Ted volunteered; “viewers can expect to:
1. Get psyched on the skaters we picked for the show (not your typical X
Game athlete ... okay maybe one X Game athlete).
2. Laugh out loud at the idiocy our corpo boss dishes out so easily.
3. Fall in love with Jovanaté and want him to die simultaneously.
4. Actually feel sorry for the devil for the first time.
5. Want Jeff King to come to their house and Build them something to Shred.
The show is a roller coaster of shredding and chaos without age (or height)
restriction so anyone can jump on and enjoy the ride. And no one has puked
yet, so we have that going for us.”
As for Laban? To get to know his complex mind a little better we sent him a Q&A by email, which is lucky for us. If we’d used our usual means of homing pigeons that self-destruct after message receipt, got a feeling this PETA activist might have been slightly pissed at us…
Q: Did you know American Misfits was about to be syndicated to Australia?
I HAD NO IDEA. I'M GLAD BECAUSE I DIG AUSTRALIA.
Q: How do you think it will be received here?
I THINK AUSTRALIA WILL DIG IT. I'VE BEEN THERE 4 TIMES IN THE PAST ON SKATEBOARDING TOURS AND GOT TO HANG OUT AND MEET A LOT OF COOL PEOPLE. GOT IN A BAR BRAWL ON THE GOLD COAST, ATE VEGEMITE SANDWICHES AT TRUCK STOPS, AND SLAMMED REALLY HARD IN PERTH. AFTER THE SLAM THIS GIRL RAN UP AND GAVE ME A VEGAN POT BROWNIE WHICH I DEVOURED. AFTER THOSE THINGS GOT A LITTLE BLURRY, BUT I DO KNOW THAT MATT MUMFORD CARRIED ME ON HIS BACK FOR LIKE A MILE BECAUSE I COULDN'T WALK! THANKS MATT!
Q: How much influence does American Misfits the TV series draw from
American Misfits the movie?
THE ORIGINAL DVD THAT I DID WITH WEEMAN IS A LOT DIFFERENT, BUT I STILL BROUGHT BACK SOME OF THE PEOPLE THAT WERE IN IT LIKE JEFF KING (BUILT TO SHRED) KRISTIAN SVITEK (FEATURED MISFIT) AND JOVONATE THE ESCALATOR ANNIHILATOR!
Q: What about that Ted Newsome fellow - how'd you guys hook up?
I BECAME A PROFESSIONAL SKATEBOARDER WHEN I WAS 19 AND GOT A PRO SPOTLIGHT IN TRANSWORLD MAGAZINE. TED NEWSOME WAS FRESH FROM ALABAMA AND THE NEW ART DIRECTOR OF TRANSWORLD AND HIS FIRST LAYOUT WAS MY SPOTLIGHT!
SINCE THEN WE WORKED ON NUMEROUS SKATE VIDEO PROJECTS TOGETHER (REN, CAUGHT CLEAN, INVISIBLE, TRANSWORD, AND DOGTOWN) PLUS WE'VE DONE MUSIC VIDEOS AND SHORT FILMS AND NOW THE AMERICAN MISFITS TV SHOW FOR FUEL THROUGH OUR PRODUCTION COMPANY CALLED 2HEADEDHORSE.
Q: Now that the first series has already finished its initial run in the
U.S., are there plans for a second?
THERE IS A TOP SECRET, HIGHLY CONFIDENTIAL, PLAN OF ATTACK! IF SOMEONE FROM AUSTRALIA PAYS FOR ME AND TED TO GO OVER THERE, WE'LL DEFINITELY MAKE IT HAPPEN AND GET SOME AUSTRALIA RIPPERS ON THE SHOW. THAT'S A CHALLENGE.
Q: Which segment could you watch over and over again?
THERE'S A FEW BUT LUCI, JOVANATE, AND BUILT TO SHRED ARE UP THERE.
Q: You've had a long illustrious career in both the skate and filming industries, yet would you agree American Misfits is probably be the biggest platform in terms of putting you in the general public spotlight?
I'M ACTUALLY VERY BIG IN CERTAIN PARALLEL DIMENSIONS AND ALTERNATE REALITIES, BUT IF YOU'RE JUST TALKING ABOUT THIS UNIVERSE WITH NO OTHER PARALLEL WORLDS THEN YEAH, THIS IS PROBABLY THE BIGGEST PLATFORM FOR PUTTING ME ON THE MAP.
Q: You also do a lot of work for PETA, which is really commendable. But how
come you're all for the ethical treatment of animals yet film abuse of yourself + others for fun?
IT'S REALLY QUITE SIMPLE. I CHOOSE AND MY FRIENDS CHOOSE TO PUT OURSELVES IN DANGER. WHEN ANIMALS ARE LOCKED UP AND ABUSED IN A FACTORY FARMS, SLAUGHTER HOUSES, FUR FARMS, LABORATORIES, CIRCUSES, AT ZOOS, OR BEING HUNTED AND KILLED IN THE WILD, IT DOESN'T SAY "HEY, I WANT A LOBOTOMY RIGHT NOW". OR "I WOULD REALLY LIKE TO DONATE MY FUR TO SOME RICH WHITE BITCH IN BEVERLY HILLS", OR "PLEASE MURDER ME RIGHT NOW, I KNOW I'M A SENTIENT BEING WHO HAS JUST AS MUCH RIGHT TO BE ON THIS WORLD AS YOU DO BUT PLEASE, PLEASE MURDER ME". PLUS, NO MATTER HOW GNARLY ME AND MY FRIENDS GET, IT DOESN'T COMPARE TO THE GENOCIDE OF ANIMILS.
Q: What else are you working on?
I'M WORKING ON 9 PIECES FOR AN UPCOMING ART SHOW. I'M LEARNING TO PLAY THE ACCORDION IN HOPES OF ONE DAY STARTING A GYPSIE BLACK METAL BAND, AND REALLY WANT TO LEARN HOW TO JUGGLE FIVE CLUBS!
Q: Still get time to skate?
OF COURSE. NOT AS MUCH AS I USED TO OF COURSE. BUT OF COURSE! SHREDDING WILL ALWAYS BE A PART OF MY LIFE.
Q: Anything else going on in the world of Laban you'd like to fill us in on?
WELL, I'M TRYING TO SMASH THE LIE THAT IS DEMOCRACY, FREE ALL POLITICAL PRISONERS, END THE CLUBBING OF SEALS IN CANADA, FREE THE WM3, SAVE THE OCEANS AND FORESTS, AND END WAR FOREVER, BASICALLY I'M TRYING TO SAVE THE WORLD AND I NEED AUSTRALIAS HELP! AN EASY WAY TO DO THIS IS BY SPEAKING OUT AND VOTING WITH YOUR DOLLAR. NOW I GOTTA GET IN MY VEGGIE OIL CAR, DRIVE TO THE HEALTH FOOD STORE AND PICK ME UP SOME VEGAN GROCERIES! G'DAY, MATE!
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Tags: The Lounge, Sport
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