The World Beyond What?

May 29, 2008 1:00 PM

About twenty years ago, HBO aired The Mondo Beyondo Show, a sort-of send-up of avant-garde performance shows like Alive From Off Center and Night Flight. Hosted by Bette Midler (as the character Mondo Beyondo), it showcased artists that covered the broad spectrum between performance art, dance, and absurdist comedy. Strap on your Eighties Goggles; here's the meat of the show: Bill Irwin | La La La Human Steps | The Kipper Kids | Yes/No People | Paul Zaloom | David Cale | and the Divine Miss M as Eudora P. Quickly

• The Kipper Kids featured Bette Midler's husband, Martin von Haselberg. Wikipedia Page. More Youtubes of Kipper Madness.

• The Yes/No People eventually became STOMP. Here's their Brooms music video.

• Who is Bill Irwin? Oh, he's generally done everything. (No hating on Mr. Noodles, please--do hate on the red furball he's with. And hands off the McFerrin, too.)

• Paul Zaloom, activist and puppeteer, is also better known to the masses as Beakman from Beakman's World. C'mon and Zalooma-loomaloom-Zaloom.

• More from La La La Human Steps. Youtuberances.

• David Cale is a monologist. That's all I could find out about him, plus this duet with Syd Straw.

posted by not_on_display (16 comments total)

oh god oh god the kipper kids make it stop noooooo
posted by Atom Eyes at 1:07 PM on May 29, 2008

Bill Irwin turned 68 this year.
Excellent post.
posted by Dizzy at 1:38 PM on May 29, 2008

The Kipper Kids also featured somewhat prominently in the movie Forbidden Zone, written and directed by Richard Elfman, Danny Elfman's brother, featuring music by none other than Danny himself.
posted by shmegegge at 1:41 PM on May 29, 2008

this post is fucking awesome, by the way.
posted by shmegegge at 1:41 PM on May 29, 2008

I would give a limited loan of my left nut for Alive From Off Center on DVD. There must be literally dozens of fans who feel the same way.

Never heard of Mondo Beyondo before. Thanks!
posted by Lentrohamsanin at 2:01 PM on May 29, 2008

When I first saw the Kipper Kids in their clip, I immediately recognized them from a bit part in UHF. I feel sad.
posted by Dr-Baa at 2:06 PM on May 29, 2008

Bill Irwin turned 68 this year.

No, he turned FIFTY-EIGHT. You scared me.
posted by grubi at 2:12 PM on May 29, 2008

This program will prove an invaluable weapon in six-degrees games.
posted by box at 2:25 PM on May 29, 2008

I remember renting this on VHS some time early in high school and loving it. (IMDB says it came out in 1982.) Great post.
posted by clr at 2:46 PM on May 29, 2008

Bill Irwin is a genius.
posted by suelange at 3:06 PM on May 29, 2008

The red furball is Elmo not Grover.
posted by GuyZero at 4:18 PM on May 29, 2008

^The red furball is Elmo not Grover.

Yes! That's right!
posted by not_on_display at 4:42 PM on May 29, 2008

Is that Hamid Karzai about a minute in to the La La La Human Steps video? Crazy!
posted by snwod at 5:25 PM on May 29, 2008

Kipper Kids: Always a performance art trainwreck, you can't stand them, but you can't look away either.

Yes/No Kids: Segment obviously edited, but really brilliant.

Irwin: A fairly predictable sketch performed very well.

Zaloom: Heart monitor!
posted by KirkJobSluder at 6:15 PM on May 29, 2008

Oh, right. This is the show that my parents didn't watch.
posted by Afroblanco at 7:56 PM on May 29, 2008

Math is hard.
Don't fear the reaper.
posted by Dizzy at 8:21 AM on May 30, 2008