Air Supply opened for Rod Stewart before snyone heard of Air Supply.
Nobody as there to hear Air Supply, and we let them know it.
Vague memories of an ancient Heart/Bob Welch/bunch of others playing an outdoor gig. Everyone went over ok except poor Nick Gilder (sang for the mind-blowingly mundane Sweeney Todd), who didn’t go over ok.
There was a band called (I think) One Free Fall, who were backing up The Butthole Surfers. The OFF vox started getting pissed off with people yelling “Buttholes”.
“yeah this is our last song and then you’ll get your fuckin buttholes.”
Can’t remember the network, but watching an NHL game and production buddy fell asleep on catching the seven-second-delay, allowing us to hear “NICE FUCKIN’ ELBOW, KESSLER!”
Play-by-play dude smooth as silk segue-ing out of that, if only I can remember how he phrased it.
I don’t go to see comedians.
What I’ve seen on cable is so “meh” (and those are the best of the best or why would millions be pissed away filming it?) that I’d rather have the money in my wallet.
I’d probably give even free tickets away (and if I thought they Really sucked, I’d stick the tix in the side of a White Castle cheeseburger box with a sign that says “Take Me Please” and leave it all on the counter at the restaurant.
I might take a picture of it to post on social media.
I heard there was once a comedian who had a really long production about hecklers, but I’ve also heard rumors that these days he’s a falling-down-drunk every time he shows up on stage… so there’s really no need to mention his name.
You were all out of love… 
Went to see Steve Poltz (with band Rugburns) play in Detroit. He got heckled - so he made up a song on the spot about the heckler being a child molester.
I was about 3 rows back at a Natalie Merchant concert. It was outdoors. It started during day light hours. I was drinking a Coca Cola. She actually stopped the show to criticize me. Later, she stopped the show again to complain about the type of popcorn that another concert goer was eating. Another time, she complained about the fact that it was not dark yet - as though anyone could control that. She’s a great singer. I had no idea that she is a whack-a-doodle.
Probably the worst thing that I, personally, have ever done to an artist, apart from drink a Coca Cola, was yawn during a magic act. I was warm, in a dark room, and hadn’t slept for over 20 hrs. I know it was rude, but I didn’t mean it to be.
The one time I went to a concert and the opening act was booed offstage happened when the originally scheduled opening act played at a bar in town and was replaced by a magician. Yes, a magician, the kind that performs at kids’ birthday parties. I do have to admit that it was quite funny when a scantily clad female assistant walked onstage and all the guys started cheering and the women booed louder, and then the reverse happened when she walked off.
Opening act was some random band that felt the need for a long pause between each and every fucking song. this was at the Moore in Seattle. Finally during an extra long pause I have had enough being bored to death and from the first row of the balcony I shout “Play Freebird”, the whole place started laughing. They played one more track and left.
Years ago, I watched an open mic night at a Baltimore comedy club. One guy in his early 20’s came onstage and introduced himself, adding that he was “McDonald’s Employee of the Month”. That got a tentative laugh, as it sounded like the setup for a routine at his own expense. But it soon became apparent that he had no such self-awareness. He really was McDonald’s Employee of the Month. His routine - read off 3x5 cards - was lame and rambling. He wrapped up with his big joke: we all should send President Bush broccoli.* As he left the stage, a man in the audience suggested, “Hey, don’t quit McDonald’s!”
*President GHWB, who had earlier stated his dislike of broccoli, had recently announced plans to break his pledge to not raise taxes.
Mostly I remember people ignoring the opening band and coming in to get their seats. Once I saw Steven Wright perform and Randy Newman opened. This was not some unknown. This was post “I love L.A.” and tons of other work. I would have thought the crowd would be on his side but they were actively hostile. After being treated poorly he did short people and LA and left. Wright was visibly pissed when he came on but rallied and had a good show.
No, I don’t care enough to bother. They’re the entertainment, let them entertain.
The singer (another r.i.p.) of a long ago local punk band eyed a girl at the front and told her that his cock was god-like.
When he put his mic up to her for a response she said, “you’re impotent.”
BOOM’ed him.
Heh. Air Supply comes to Thailand a lot. They love them here.
Jimi Hendrix opened for the Monkees in 1967, but only lasted 7 appearances before hecklers drove him off the tour.
Rush once opened for Sha Na Na. :eek: That didn’t last very long either.
The story about the newly-hatched Led Zeppelin playing at my alma mater, at what is basically a cafeteria with a stage, is believed by many to be an urban legend. I was one of those people until I asked my brother, who DJ’ed for a while at that college’s radio station and used to live in Kansas City, about it. He replied that on the same tour, Zep played at a 2,000-seat auditorium that was less than half-full and were themselves booed offstage. :eek:
A good heckler can save a bad night out, IMO.
Also, I still crack up thinking about Andy Kaufman’s various heckler, um, incidents.
If you’re into wrestling, of course, heckling is practically expected these days.
Enjoy this video of a comedian talking about the time he heckled the Great Khali into breaking character.
I remember going to plays where you were expected to heckle the bad guys. Lots of fun!
A very long time ago I saw The Waitresses open for Oingo Boingo (admittedly not the best match), and the crowd was absolutely merciless to Patty Donahue. She sang directly to the one guy up front who was beaming at her, and they left after half a dozen songs (which may have been their allotment anyway, but still). Just mean and brutal.
I also saw a local band called Three on a Hill open for a B-league supergroup called Havana 3AM. The crowd wanted the openers off the stage and heckled them without pause; at one point a very distinctly British voice shouted “Fuck off, big ears!” and everyone laughed.
An opening act that deserved better, and which was better than the headliner.
Yes, but what if they aren’t?
Need to clarify: The 2,000-seat auditorium was in the Kansas City area.