Cessation of a Dangerous Mind

Chuck Barris, America’s best known secret assassin, has died at the age of 87. Developer of a reality show empire 40 years and possessor of a fluid relationship with the truth before those were qualifications to be president, Barris is best known for hosting the original version of America’s Got No Talent, The Gong Show. Despite its craptastic production values and “celebrity” judges like Jaye P. Morgan who couldn’t have booked the C story on an episode of The Love Boat, the show lasted 6 years on network TV and in syndication and landed in the pop culture firmament, in part thanks to Barris’ performance as the antithesis of the composed host, with exaggerated clapping between sentences and leading into commercial breaks with the promise that "We'll be right back with more er ... stuff.” Other shows Barris created that didn’t take advantage of his matinee idol looks and charisma included The Dating Game, setting up ill-conceived romantic pairings, and The Newlywed Game, mocking same, while determining the most embarrassing place they’ve made whoopee; and the $1.98 Beauty Show, where unattractive women endured the witty musings of Rip Taylor and Marty Allen to earn a plastic tiara, rotten vegetables and bus fare. Barris also was a songwriter, with his biggest hit being Palisades Park for Freddy Cannon. He came to this life of pseudo-reality by way of the Central Intelligence Agency, at least to hear Barris tell it. In his autobiography, Confessions of a Dangerous Mind, he claimed to have been a CIA assassin in the 1960s and ‘70s, notching at least 33 kills. The resulting movie of the same name directed by George Clooney took a decidedly tongue-in-cheek look at his clams. The CIA denies his claims, as one would expect.