Derailroaded (2005)

A documentary on the life and music of manic-depressive, paranoid-schizophrenic cult music icon Wild Man Fischer.

Director:

Josh Rubin

Stars:

Wild Man Fischer, Harold Bronson, Solomon Burke

Cast

Credited cast:
Wild Man Fischer	...	Himself
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Harold Bronson	...	Himself
Solomon Burke	...	Himself
Ruth Buzzi	...	Herself (archive footage)
Josephine Chuey	...	Herself
Irwin Chusid	...	Himself
Dennis P. Eichhorn	...	Himself
Miguel Ferrer	...	Himself
David Fischer	...	Himself
Richard Foos	...	Himself
Freak	...	Himself
Robert Haimer	...	Himself
Barry Hansen	...	Himself (as Dr. Demento)
Fugly the Klown	...	Himself
Dick Martin	...	Himself (archive footage)

Storyline

A documentary on the life and music of manic-depressive, paranoid-schizophrenic cult music icon Wild Man Fischer.

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Plot Keywords:

rock music | rock 'n' roll | song | singing | musician | 

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Taglines:

My name is Larry. Manic depressive. Paranoid schizophrenic. Rock legend.

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Genres:

Documentary | Biography | Music

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

March 2005 (USA)

Filming Locations:

Bremerton, Washington, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Ubin Twinz Productions

Technical Specs

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

The filmmakers initially approached Wild Man Fischer as a novelty act.

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Quotes

Wild Man Fischer: They want me dead. D-a-d, dead!

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Connections

Features Barnes & Barnes: Fish Heads (1980)

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Soundtracks

"Last Man in the City'
Written and Performed by Wild Man Fischer

User Reviews

Wild Man Fischer, a life wasted

Derailroaded played at the Kansas Film Festival on 09/10/05 and I got a ticket. The documentary is of Wild Man Fischer, a Rock singer from the 1960's. I never heard of him but Frank Zappa produced one of his albums and he was the initial pitchman for Rhino records and recorded the Rhino radio jingle. Wild Man Fischer suffers from paranoid schizophrenia which has profoundly impacted his life and career. In some of the concern footage from the early 60's you see him jamming with Frank Zappa (very nice to see him again) and see glimpses of what might have been. For years Dr. Demento was a big fan. In fact he played once at Giants stadium with Zappa, Janice Joplin, The Byrds and Hendrix so he wasn't a hack. If you have never been around true mental illness this film is an eye-opener. Mental illness isn't funny; in fact it is extremely scary. Fascinating movie. Two things stand out for me. The first is Billy Mummy (the kid from "Lost in Space") turned out pretty well. In fact he seemed to have his stuff together. He might be Wild Man's only friend. The second was the Dr. Demento puppet show where Frank Zappa finds out how crazy Wild Man really is and breaks it off. The family interviews are touching and tragic. His family has pretty much stuck by Wild Man all these years and seem to truly care about his welfare. From the Aunt dying of cancer who gives him a place to live to his brother dropping off groceries. A wonderful glimpse into the birth of Rock and Roll and a life completely out of control. See it.