Dr. Demento leaves the airwaves

After nearly four decades on radio, Dr. Demento will be spinning his discs in the future only on the web. But he promises a new episode every Saturday. "This was a very painful decision for the Doctor ... but he has come to agree with his manager and his family that it's necessary. The broadcast has been losing money for some time." Demento, aka Barret Hansen, was a former roadie for Canned Heat and Spirit who had a blues and country show on KPFK, then while at KPPC came up with the Dr. Demento mix of obscure tunes and comedy. From his website bio:

Those who've listened carefully to the Doctor's show have undoubtedly realized that somewhere between his lively larynx and elegant top hat there resides the mind of a seasoned musicologist and dedicated scholar...a world-renowned record collector and music historian, whose lifelong passion for music of all kinds is reflected in his weekly selection of "rare records and outrageous tapes" for the Dr. Demento Show.

Demento, who has a masters in ethnomusicology from UCLA, introduced Weird Al Yankovic to the world and played early Frank Zappa and Tom Lehrer. He "was a staple on the old KMET for years, as well as KPPC, KSCA, and KLSX," says Gary Lycan at the OC Register. Below, a rendition of the Dr. Demento theme song, "Pico and Sepulveda."