David Ossman

Peter BergmanAs a founding member of the legendary comedy group, The Firesign Theatre and as the creator and host of Radio Free Oz (both the radio and online incarnations, ) Peter Bergman had been one of our culture's most insightful (and funny) pundits and political observers. Sadly, Bergman passed away as this collection was being readied for production. It was intended to be the first in a collection of essays, skits and comedic vignettes culled from his RadioFreeOz.com podcasts. Although the show could no longer continue, Bergman's commentaries in regard to the 2010 mid-terms and their immediate aftermath have proven to be not only cogent assesments of that era's political climate but now serve as a ghostly signpost to where we have found ourselves heading today. Ah, Peter Bergman, ever The Wizard. David OssmanPoet, writer, director, actor and cofounder of The Firesign Theatre and occasional RFOz co-host, David Ossman, adds his warm and soulful verse as well as his hilarious characterizations and social commentary to this collection. Mr. Ossman currently resides with his lovely wife, Judith, on Whidbey Island in the Great Pacific Northwest. Phil FountainBetter known as the House Illustrator and Cartoonist for Radio Free Oz, Philip (a/k/a Hal O'Dali, ) was responsible for the finest graphic elements found on any web-based audio program in the known universe. He also did the drawings found in "Trolling The Woe." He is currently holed-up in the shadow of Mount Shasta in Northern California with his wife, Christine, assorted grandchildren and their dogs.

The Ronald Reagan Murder Case A George Tirebiter MysteryTravel back to 1945 and the Hollywood of Ronald Reagan and Raymond Chandler. It's the Golden Age of Radio and B-Movies. A Notorious Unsolved Tinseltown Slaying Nudists Spies Stars A Hard-Boiled Dick A Celebrity Sleuth A Mysterious Lady At Last The Story Can Be Told George Leroy Tirebiter has had a long and distinguished career in American entertainment and politics. Born near Chicago on December 7, 1920, he was a child actor who appeared with Eva Le Gallienne in "Medea," and had a long run as the young Thomas Edison in the "Pageant of Electricity" at the Century of Progress Exposition in 1933. He soon moved on to roles in local radio shows and became well-known at 17 as YOUNG TOM EDISON, RAILROAD DETECTIVE. Under contract to Paranoid Pictures, Tirebiter directed wartime musicals, including BABES IN KHAKI and PARDON MY PIN-UP. His WHAT A FAMILY (Argyle Artists 1948) spoofed teenagers Georgie Tirebiter and his pals. In his startling Hollywood roman a clef STREET OF BROKEN GLASS (1954) he discusses the blacklisting which contributed to his sudden decline and fall at age 32. The Academy, however, voted him a Good Sport Award in 1958 after he was revealed to be the auteur of two memorable sci-fi classics: NOMADS FROM NEPTUNE (in 3-D) and THE BEAST FROM UNDER THE BED (both Monotone Pictures, 1953). Also contains the NEW short story, "Another Christmas Carol." Tirebiter's creator, David Ossman, is a co-founder of The Firesign Theatre and editor of Firesign's literary heritage. His other books include THE FLYING SAUCER MURDER CASE, FIGHTING CLOWNS OF HOLLYWOOD, DR. FIRESIGN'S FOLLIES, and a classic collection of conversations with major poets of the 1960s, THE SULLEN ART.

THE FLYING SAUCER MURDER CASE August 1953 - The shamelessly noir Los Angeles Mirror Headlines - Probing Sen. McCarthy, Racy Dr. Kinsey, the Riveting Barbara Graham Murder Trial, POWs finally returning from Korea, UFOs in Hollywood Sex and Death George Tirebiter, a 1940's radio and movie actor, was falsely blacklisted as a Red, but has continued working in the movie business (under various assumed names), as a sci-fi story and ad lib dialogue writer. In 1953, he owns the modest Rose-Bud Bungalow Court near USC and looks after his tenants. The Rose-Bud has ten little bungalows, each with its own surprise, including an electrified chair in Number 3, a tranquil corpse in Number 7, a seductive nude model in Number 2, and George, the amateur sleuth himself, in Number 1, just across the way from the appealing TV producer in Number 10. Also appearing - Main St. strippers, flying saucer abductees and tall blue Venusians Sgt. Cummings of the Death Squad and B-Movie gangsters An LP record from Outer Space, a screenland billionaire named Howard, Lenny Bruce and Marilyn Monroe The Ultimate Ear-Bomb Weapons Test David Ossman has chronicled the Hollywood adventures of George Tirebiter since George's debut in 1970 as a character on The Firesign Theatre's third hit Columbia comedy album Don't Crush That Dwarf, Hand Me The Pliers. George ran (in person) for U. S. Vice President on the Surrealist Party ticket in 1976, starred in The Ronald Reagan Murder Case, a mystery thriller set in the Golden Age of Radio, and is featured in Ossman's memoir, Dr. Firesign's Follies. Ossman's new memoir, Fighting Clowns of Hollywood and Screenplay , collecting two unproduced Firesign feature films, "Odyssey" and "Saucer " with the story behind "Zachariah," plus three additional collections of Firesign Theatre stage and radio scripts are all Bear Manor books.

THE FLYING SAUCER MURDER CASE August 1953 - The shamelessly noir Los Angeles Mirror Headlines - Probing Sen. McCarthy, Racy Dr. Kinsey, the Riveting Barbara Graham Murder Trial, POWs finally returning from Korea, UFOs in Hollywood Sex and Death George Tirebiter, a 1940's radio and movie actor, was falsely blacklisted as a Red, but has continued working in the movie business (under various assumed names), as a sci-fi story and ad lib dialogue writer. In 1953, he owns the modest Rose-Bud Bungalow Court near USC and looks after his tenants. The Rose-Bud has ten little bungalows, each with its own surprise, including an electrified chair in Number 3, a tranquil corpse in Number 7, a seductive nude model in Number 2, and George, the amateur sleuth himself, in Number 1, just across the way from the appealing TV producer in Number 10. Also appearing - Main St. strippers, flying saucer abductees and tall blue Venusians Sgt. Cummings of the Death Squad and B-Movie gangsters An LP record from Outer Space, a screenland billionaire named Howard, Lenny Bruce and Marilyn Monroe The Ultimate Ear-Bomb Weapons Test David Ossman has chronicled the Hollywood adventures of George Tirebiter since George's debut in 1970 as a character on The Firesign Theatre's third hit Columbia comedy album Don't Crush That Dwarf, Hand Me The Pliers. George ran (in person) for U. S. Vice President on the Surrealist Party ticket in 1976, starred in The Ronald Reagan Murder Case, a mystery thriller set in the Golden Age of Radio, and is featured in Ossman's memoir, Dr. Firesign's Follies. Ossman's new memoir, Fighting Clowns of Hollywood and Screenplay , collecting two unproduced Firesign feature films, "Odyssey" and "Saucer " with the story behind "Zachariah," plus three additional collections of Firesign Theatre stage and radio scripts are all Bear Manor books.