“Before there was MTV, there was New Wave Theater. Peter & The Acid King is a 10-part documentary podcast that explores the life and unsolved death of New Wave Theater host and key cultural curator Peter Ivers. The show takes us on a deep dive through the grimy, chaotic world of the early ‘80s Los Angeles punk rock scene from which he emerged. Created by Alan Sacks (Welcome Back Kotter, Du-Beat-e-o) and narrated by native LA punk and esteemed director Penelope Spheeris”
I was invited to be a speaker on this podcast because of a highly speculative and mythologizing essay I had written about Peter Ivers, who I became fascinated with after reading Josh Frank’s book In Heaven Everything Is Fine: The Unsolved Life of Peter Ivers and the Lost History of New Wave Theater. (You can read that essay here: https://offscreen.com/view/in-heaven-everything-is-fine ) What I was interested in about Peter Ivers was not necessarily his murder, or the punk milieu surrounding New Wave Theatre, but his life as an eternal connector; on both coasts he managed to introduce people who went on to form fruitful creative partnerships, while toiling in creative obscurity himself. He seemed to be at the center of everything and nowhere at the same time. I found his story highly relatable. In any case, I encourage you to become familiar with this strange and influential person.
Listen to the podcast here: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1119-peter-and-the-acid-king-149969319/