It was a traditional kiddie show…that offered humor only adults would get and mocked the conventions of the genre. The host loved to play vintage vaudeville and novelty songs…while he welcomed such guest performers as Jon Bon Jovi, David Johansen, Cyndi Lauper, Paul Simon, and The Ramones. From its bare bones beginnings on New Jersey cable TV in 1974 through its incarnations on local UHF, public television, and syndicated formats until 1998, The Uncle Floyd Show was a one-of-a-kind mishegas of slapstick comedy, offbeat sketches, music, and unscripted silliness. The man in the garish porkpie hat-and-jacket combo who was behind the madness, Floyd Vivino, passed away last week at 74 from complications of a 2003 stroke.
Born in (where else?) Paterson, New Jersey, in 1951, Vivino’s love affair with music and performing began in childhood and ran through his family (brothers Jimmy and Jerry were members of Conan O’Brien’s TV band). After appearing in school revues and hosting a pirate radio program, he got his break in 1974 with a New Jersey-based cable station. Originally titled Uncle Floyd & His Friends, the show would soon move to a UHF channel for the remainder of the decade.
At first glance it was similar to the local children’s shows that were once a nationwide daytime staple. But, like The Soupy Sales Show before it and Pee-wee’s Playhouse after, The Uncle Floyd Show worked on different levels for different ages. Kids might not get characters like chef Julia Stepchild or mob boss Don Goomba, but their older siblings (and parents) did. The show’s threadbare budget meant that flubbed lines and prop mishaps often made it on TV (Floyd’s piano was once repossessed on the air). Joining Floyd was a repertoire of oddballs that included Scott Gordon, “Looney” Skip Rooney, Mugsy, Netto, and (in the ’80s) Weenie, but the most popular cast member was his red-haired puppet sidekick, Oogie.
Floyd’s most beloved character–to his fellow Garden Staters, at least–was country crooner Cowboy Charlie, who performed what would be to be his theme song, “Deep in the Heart of Jersey.” Set, of course, to “Deep in the Heart of Texas,” this “tribute” to his home state featured the lyrics “Oh, the factory smoke will make you choke, deep in the heart of Jersey. And the city rats run in big packs, deep in the heart of Jersey.” It ended, however, with him proudly proclaiming “But it’s my state, I think it’s great, deep in the heart of Jersey.”
A syndicated version of the series ran in several cities in 1982, and from 1983-1986 Floyd and his gang had a home at PBS’s New Jersey Network (for a while running in tandem with reruns of Dark Shadows). Vivino often took his crew on the road with appearances throughout the Mid-Atlantic region, as well as performing more “normal” musical shows at area clubs. It was during one such gig at New York’s Bottom Line that Floyd learned David Bowie was in the audience. Meeting him after the show Floyd asked Bowie how he knew of him, and the Thin White Duke told him that he was clued in by two old school ’70s fans: John Lennon and Iggy Pop (Bowie’s 2002 song “Slip Away” mentions Floyd and Oogie).
Along with his TV series, Vivino had a handful of motion picture appearances, most notably as an Army DJ alongside Robin Williams in the 1987 comedy/drama Good Morning, Vietnam. He also turned up in Crazy People, Mr. Wonderful, and A Pyromaniac’s Love Story, among others (his role in Paul Simon’s 1980 film One-Trick Pony wound up on the cutting room floor).
After many years of admiring him from afar, I finally got to meet Floyd Vivino at a comic book/nostalgia convention five years ago in…you guessed it, New Jersey. He was very gracious, talking about The Ramones’ numerous appearances on his show and signing my copy of The Uncle Floyd Show Album LP. I also picked up a repro Uncle Floyd Show button, which–once I finish shoveling out of this past weekend’s blizzard–I will proudly wear all this week as a tribute.