Nardwuar the Human Serviette
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| Nardwuar The Human Serviette | ||
|---|---|---|
 Nardwuar by William Jans
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| Background information | ||
| Birth name | John Ruskin | |
| Born | 1968 | |
| Origin | Vancouver, BC, Canada | |
| Genre(s) | Punk rock, Garage | |
| Occupation(s) | Media personality | |
| Instrument(s) | Keyboards | |
| Years active | 1986- | |
| Label(s) | Nardwuar Records Alternative Tentacles |
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| Associated acts |
The Evaporators Thee Goblins |
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| Website | http://www.nardwuar.com | |
Nardwuar the Human Serviette (born John Ruskin, July 5, 1968) is a Canadian celebrity interviewer and musician from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. He legally changed his name in 1986, and argues that "no one refers to Iggy Pop as 'James Osterberg'". When asked to explain his name, Nardwuar once quipped "Nardwuar equals dumb silly name, like Sting; Human means human, as in Human Fly; and Serviette is something you can't get in the U.S. because down there they're called napkins."
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[edit] Radio
Nardwuar got his start in media at the University of British Columbia radio station CITR 101.9 FM in Vancouver. His show has been running every Friday afternoon (3:30-5:00 p.m. Pacific) since October 1987.
The program features a mix of odd and obscure music, along with interviews and commentary.
[edit] Interviews
Nardwuar's favourite targets appear to be musical celebrities, but he'll interview pretty much anyone[1].
[edit] Interview style
His interviewing style can be quite grating and confusing to those who have had no prior experience with him.
A typical interview will begin with "Who are you?", followed by "From?" if the subject doesn't volunteer their affiliations. The interview will always end with "Keep on rockin' in the free world", and the "doot doola doot doo..." of "Shave and a Haircut", to which the interviewee must respond with the final "doot doo!" before Nardwuar will let them go. (Rob Zombie, notably, walked away from the telephone at this point, leaving Nardwuar to continue with his "doot doodle oo doot" for over twenty minutes, before a passerby explained the situation).
Due to his upfront and uncompromising style he has been attacked verbally, physically threatened, and intimidated by luminaries such as:
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- Sebastian Bach of Skid Row, who stole Nardwuar's tuque
- the band Quiet Riot who chased Nardwuar and crew down the street
- a member of the band Blur who was threatening
- members of Slipknot who have walked out on interviews
- Alice Cooper, Harlan Ellison and others have hung up on him
More often the experience confuses the celebrities:
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- members of GWAR trying not to laugh while in character
- Henry Rollins appeared unsure how to handle him
- Jello Biafra, also hijacked by Nardwuar, was impressed with his guerrilla interview style
Others appreciate Nardwuar's interview style, such as Kelly Rowland, Marilyn Manson, and Michael Moore. Notably Nardwuar does extensive research on the interviewee to confuse/scare/impress them, often bringing up facts about band members' pasts that they have a hard time recalling, until he coaches them along. Frequently, he will also attempt to make connections, no matter how obscure, between the person or band he is interviewing and Canada.
[edit] Music interviews
Nardwuar's interviews are frequently shown on MuchMusic's Going Coastal, or printed in Chart. He is known for researching obscure trivia about his interview subjects, and tends to surprise his interview subjects by not asking "normal" questions that are label- and musician-friendly.
[edit] Political interviews
Nardwuar has also been known to be a "guerrilla journalist", often sneaking in to press conferences under the guise of a more normal reporter, to confront political leaders or other non-musical celebrities with surreal questions. He has asked Mikhail Gorbachev which world leader had the biggest pants, and Crispin Glover whether he sleeps in a coffin full of tar; on another occasion, faith healer Ernest Angley told Nardwuar that "God will strike you down" for persistently asking if there was a cure for the summertime blues.
On another, more infamous occasion in November 1997, he cut off all his hair and was able to sneak into an APEC conference to ask Jean Chrétien if he supported the pepper spraying of protestors outside. Chrétien responded with a line that has become well known in Canada: "For me, pepper, I put it on my plate."
In June 2004, Nardwuar convinced an amused Paul Martin, former Prime Minister of Canada to play a quick game of the Hasbro game "Hip Flip" while he was on the campaign trail. [2] After Martin won the election, Nardwuar commented on the great predictive power of the "Hip Flip", as neither of the other two candidates had, at the time, performed the "Hip Flip", and both lost. On a campaign trip to Vancouver in December 2005, Nardwuar concluded an interview with New Democratic Party leader Jack Layton - who, in their first encounter, had taken the instructions to the game and said he would practice for their next encounter - with a successful, coordinated, swinging of their hips. Current Prime Minister Steven Harper is the only major candidate from the 2004 election who has never performed a successful "Hip Flip" with Nardwuar the Human Serviette.
[edit] The musician
Nardwuar is also the lead singer and keyboardist for the band The Evaporators and plays in Thee Goblins.
[edit] Health
In July of 1999, Nardwuar suffered a cerebral hemorrhage (aborting his planned ambush interview of Courtney Love), but recovered after surgery.
[edit] Trivia
- In 2005, he contributed to the UNICEF benefit song, "Do They Know It's Hallowe'en?"
- Nardwuar has a bachelor's degree (honors) in history from the University of British Columbia and wrote his honors thesis on the Kennedy assasination.
