Not the comedian, Tony V.
Comedy
Things started to change abruptly in October of 1988. The management at the time wanted me to work evenings; they felt that I’d be cooler at night (although I was the very best interviewer that they had). On October 7, 1988, they made that change effective. On Monday night, October 10, my first night and the tenth anniversary of my first show on WMBR (then WTBS), I announced to my listeners that I was retiring from WFNX.
The same month, I was also diagnosed as HIV+ which I’m sure had a lot to do with my decision.
In my arrogance, I assumed that people
would be batting down my door but I really don’t think I wanted to go anywhere.
I thought they’d come to their senses but by the time the program director
was shown the door himself, too much time had passed. I was gone
from rock radio.
| But as the 80s began to come to a close,
I saw comedy as the rock’n’roll of the 90s. As part of my radio show,
I would present comedy at 5 pm and got to know people in the business.
Paul Barclay and
Bil Downes, owners of the Comedy Connection,
took me on as publicist and manager and I stayed with them for a few years
before taking over management of Catch A Rising Star in Cambridge
(now closed). A bad prediction, it turned out but it was still fun
working with many of the comics we now see on television.
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My only radio exposure during that time was Caught in the Act, with Tom Lane. A shame it didn’t catch on, really, as it featured Brother Cleve (yes, from TVOD, the former Bob Toomey is now a producer) on musical accompaniment, phone calls from the West Coast (e.g., Bill Dana a/k/a Jose Jimenez, and more), celebrity interviews (Phyllis Diller made Tom and I hard-boiled eggs with caviar), its own improv troupe (the Angry Tuxedos) and old comedy records and new comedians recorded live in the clubs and as guest hosts. It filled up two hours each Sunday night on WRCA (yes, an AM stereo radio station devoted to show biz – no, it didn’t last).
Another major change came at the end of 1992. Comedy wasn’t moving ahead, it was getting smaller.
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While I was doing my entertainment gigs, Mark Enos and I also owned Essence Natural Perfumes on Newbury Street (Boston’s Rodeo Drive) where scents were created for people from essential oils. Another great idea but definitely wrong time, wrong place; although we had high-profile clients (Madonna was seen shopping there on the front page of the Boston Herald – hey, I told you I was a publicist at the same period so I had some contacts), it just wasn’t working out financially. |
Laguna Beach
Then, Mark and I decided to take a vacation in Laguna Beach CA in October of 1992. It led to a complete life change. By that time we were more friends than boyfriends and it only took a couple of days of warm weather and surfer boys to make my mind up. We packed our things, closed the store (and changed its name from Essence to Elixir) and off we went.
We moved there just after New Year’s Day 1993. It was another monumental year in my life, meeting Jean Kaye and attending St. Mary's Episcopal Church. The rector at the time was an inspiring preacher, Ray Fleming+, who captivated me with a sermon I called "Tell It." (He's still there in 2001.)
Priest friends included Canon Ralph Deppen and Father Gary Erb, both of whom died around 1998, I believe.
I turned 40 years old that April and a couple of days before it was received into the Episcopal Church. Also during our stay there, I worked for the Coast Inn, a gay resort right on the Pacific Ocean and home of the world-famous Boom Boom Room.
[The following notes are redacted from
a 1993 appointment book which is very weak and only covers the period after
August 27.]
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By that mid-summer, I’d already left the Boom and was spending most of my time hanging with Ken from the Al-Anon meetings, going to Saint Mary’s (where I became a lay reader and Sunday school teacher) and working for Mark Enos at the various Elixir locations. In early September, I spent a lot of time trying to become a wedding dj, which I eventually did, spinning exactly once. Appointments listed indicate many unproductive schemes to get a job in any field I could think of. I rarely left southern California; however, November 3 to 6 was spent in Boston, and Thanksgiving at my parents with a side trip to Atlantic City with Mario and Jane seeing comedian Rich Ceisler, an old friend from Boston days. But everything fell quickly apart upon
my arrival back to Orange County and by early December all my job opportunities
were drying up and Mark Enos was about to move up to Los Angeles with his
new boyfriend, Ken. I took the only option that seemed open to me
and made the decision to move back to the ancestral home in Cranford, New
Jersey.
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Movers came on December 22 and made their delivery of all my possessions to Cranford on January 4, 1994.
I flew out of Laguna on December 23 and celebrated Christmas Eve at Saint Mary the Virgin (“Smoky Mary’s”) in NYC with Jane and her family. Mario opted out at the last second, so we took my mother’s car, Jane’s brother-in-law was almost boosted of his wallet outside the church, and we hit slippery snow on the way home.
What I found upon coming home was a brother in trouble, his marriage falling apart and the family business (he spent his whole adult life working for my father in his machined-parts business) in shambles.
Welcome back to the Northeast, Tony Vitale!
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How Did It All Begin I'm ready to go to Tufts with Tony Radio Days + Club Land The Bad Days + WFNX Comedy + Laguna Beach Moving Back East + Meeting Bryan |