Blackie Dammett
Blackie Dammett | |
---|---|
Born |
John Michael Kiedis December 7, 1939 Grand Rapids, Michigan, U.S. |
Other names |
Blackie Dammett Spider Head Honcho |
Occupation | actor, author |
Years active | 1967 - present |
Spouse(s) | Maragaret "Peggy" Idema (1960-1968) (divorced) (1 child) |
Children |
Anthony Kiedis (b. 1962) James Kiedis (b. 1988) |
John Michael Kiedis (/ˈkiːdɪs/ KEE-diss; born December 7, 1939), better known by his stage name, "Blackie Dammett"[1] is an American actor, author and father of Anthony Kiedis, lead singer of Red Hot Chili Peppers.
Biography
In Scar Tissue, Anthony describes how his father frequented the Rainbow Bar and Grill where he sold drugs to rock icons such as the members of Led Zeppelin and The Who's Keith Moon. As an actor, he appeared in the films National Lampoon's Class Reunion (1982), Meatballs Part II (1984) and Lethal Weapon (1987), among others. He also made frequent television appearances, on such shows as Starsky and Hutch, Trapper John, M.D. and It's Garry Shandling's Show. For many years Dammett was the president of the Red Hot Chili Peppers fanclub. Nicknamed Head Honcho, Dammett would help run the band's website, be in charge of all fanclub events, mail out the band's fanclub magazines and had a close connection with many of the band's fans, which he still maintains through his personal Facebook page.
Family
According to Anthony Kiedis' autobiography, Scar Tissue, Blackie Dammett's grandfather Antanas Kiedis (1878–1949)[2] and grandmother Julija (1883–1948)[3] were Lithuanian immigrants from Tauragė.[4] John Alden (1914–1984) was the youngest child in the family and the only American-born. He met and married Molly Vander Veen and had Blackie Dammett.
Antanas | Julija | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
4 children | John Alden | Molly VanderVeen | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
John Michael | Peggy Idema | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Anthony | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Blackie was close friends in the 70s with actor and musician, Sonny Bono who eventually became Anthony's godparent.[5][6]
Autobiography
Blackie has signed an exclusive publishing deal with Christopher Matthew Spencer's The Spencer Company. Dammett's autobiography Lords of the Sunset Strip was released on April 1, 2013 through Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing.[7] The book reached #38 in the Kindle store while it peaked at #77 on Amazon.com's "Biographies and Memoirs" chart.[8]
Spider and Son television series
Spider and Son is the title of the possible future television series which will be based on both Anthony Kiedis and Blackie Dammett's autobiographies. In 2008 it was reported that Anthony Kiedis was developing a television series for HBO titled "Spider and Son", loosely based on Anthony's autobiography Scar Tissue. The show was originally scheduled to premiere in late 2010 but was not picked up as a series, despite a pilot script penned by John Sayles.[9] The rights to the show were picked up by FX in 2011 although according to Dammett, production has been "mothballed" and he hopes to re-visit the project in 2013 once the Chili Peppers finish their I'm with You World Tour.[10]
Filmography
Year | Title | Role |
---|---|---|
1977 | Nowhere to Hide | John |
1978 | Jokes My Folks Never Told Me | |
1979 | Mr. Horn | Small Rustler |
1981 | Midnight Lace | Herman Laird |
1982 | Kiss My Grits | Bat Paterson |
National Lampoon's Class Reunion | Walter Baylor | |
1983 | The Lost Empire | Prager |
Doctor Detroit | Eddie Four Eyes | |
1984 | Meatballs Part II | Sgt. Paladin |
1985 | Nine Deaths of the Ninja | Alby the Cruel |
The Boys Next Door | Bartender | |
1986 | 52 Pick-up | Drug Dealer |
1987 | Lethal Weapon | Drug Dealer #3 |
1988 | A Night at the Magic Castle | Evil Magician |
The American Scream | Pastor | |
1989 | L.A. Bounty | James Maxwell |
1990 | Instant Karma | Ed Polski |
Television appearances
- Hammer, Slammer & Slade (1990)
- Adam 12 (1990) (Emmerson Cooper)
- Hunter (guest star)
- Crime Story (guest star)
- Night Court (guest star)
- Who's the Boss? (guest star)
- Trapper John, M.D. (guest star)
- The Fall Guy (guest star)
- The Lady in Red (Immigration Officer, guest star)
- Starsky and Hutch (Charles Deek, guest star)
- Charlie's Angels (guest star)
- ALF (guest star in unaired pilot)
References
- ↑ Laudadio, Marisa (2009-04-23). "Anthony Kiedis's Red-Hot Roommate? His Son - Anthony Kiedis". People.com. Retrieved 2012-01-05.
- ↑ Anton Kiedis find-a-grave
- ↑ Julia Kiedis find-a-grave
- ↑ Anton Kiedis tombstone
- ↑ "Anthony Kiedis". Angelfire.com. Retrieved 2012-01-05.
- ↑ "Cher - Kiedis' Bedroom Joy With Cher - Contactmusic News". Contactmusic.com. Retrieved 2012-01-05.
- ↑ http://www.showbiz411.com/2013/04/01/dad-of-red-hot-chili-peppers-anthony-kiedis-writes-a-book-about-sex-drugs-and-rock-and-roll
- ↑ http://www.mlive.com/entertainment/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2013/04/blackie_dammett_father_of_red.html
- ↑ Schneider, Michael (2008-11-11). "Kiedis' rock story heading to HBO - Entertainment News, TV News, Media". Variety. Retrieved 2012-01-05.
- ↑ http://www.mlive.com/entertainment/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2013/04/blackie_dammett_father_of_red.html
External links
- "Lords of the Sunset Strip" (Autobiography)
- Press Release Regarding Dammett's Autobiography
- Blackie Dammett at the Internet Movie Database
- Blackie's Facebook page
- Blackie Dammett on Myspace