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Earl Oliver

August 20, 2023

Earl Oliver (born June 23, 1948) is an American writer, musician, variety, street entertainer, and graphic artist. An accomplished blues and jazz guitarist and singer in Northern California and the San Francisco Bay Area, popularly known as the Walkin' Blues Man, he hosted a popular cable-access television program, "Earl Oliver & Friends: Live from LaVal's", later called "Live on Location", that aired in 16 stations throughout the region from 1992 to 1995. He has also been the lead vocalist for several California-based bands, most recently, the Groovinators.

Earl Oliver
Born (1948-06-23) June 23, 1948 (age 75)
Indianapolis, Indiana, United States
OccupationWriter, musician, variety and street entertainer
GenreProfessional wrestling
SpouseLonna Oliver (c. 1974–present)
Relativeswrestler Ray "Rip the Crippler" Oliver (uncle)
Website
earloliver.com

From May, 2005 until August, 2013, Oliver was a regular performer on the Skunk Train, a heritage railway which runs daily from Fort Bragg and Willits, California, and at events such as the Palo Alto Art Walk and Project Read for the San Francisco Public Library. In 2001, he was called "one of San Francisco's undiscovered treasures" by San Francisco Arts Magazine.

The nephew of professional wrestler Ray "Rip the Crippler" Oliver, Oliver is a longtime wrestling columnist and historian. He is perhaps best known in the internet wrestling community as the founder of Solie's Vintage Wrestling, a historical professional wrestling website dedicated to the memory of announcer Gordon Solie, which is the oldest continually active pro wrestling website on the internet.

Biography

Early life and career

Earl Oliver was born in Indianapolis, Indiana, but later moved with his family to Southern California. At age 14, Oliver began playing as a professional musician and in 1969 moved to the San Francisco Bay Area, where he performed at local jazz and rock music night clubs such as The Melting Pot, La Bohème, The Vintner, Family Farmacy, and the Seventh Seal Coffee-House by the early-1970s.[1] While studying music, he was given singing lessons from one-time Metropolitan Opera diva Margo Weiss.[2] He also became involved in stage acting within a few years with memorable performances in Bye Bye Birdie, George M! and Don't Drink the Water at the Glendale Center, as well performing as a magician at The Magic Castle. In 1977, he portrayed the "evil sorcerer" in Aladdin at Pamela and Walter Gilmore's Golden Mall Playhouse. Around this time, he began producing a variety show, The Showcase, which included musicians, singers, comics, clowns, fire eaters, poetry readers and other entertainers. It was very successful on the night club circuit, being regularly featured at the Horn in Santa Monica, and received praise from the LA Weekly in July 1979.[3]

Music and television career

In the 1980s, Oliver returned to the music scene finding limited success with the bands JUMP CITY and The Sphere. He also entered the recording business producing radio advertisements for local camera stores and shoe emporiums, doing voice overs and writing advertising jingles. Also during this time, he began developing the stage persona of "a blues shouting, guitar playing" singer called the "Walkin' Blues Man". The character would become a familiar sight at countless parades, music and art festivals, county fairs, farmers markets and other outdoor events throughout the West Coast of the United States and in Canada for the next 20 years.[4]

By the end of the decade, Oliver had also developed a unique variety act by incorporating magic into his musical performances, such as draping a scarf over his guitar at the end of his set and making it disappear, which was favorably reviewed by the San Fernando Valley Daily News in October 1989.[2] In 1992, Oliver began producing a monthly cable-access television program, "Earl Oliver & Friends: Live from LaVal's", later called "Live on Location", which featured variety acts at La Val's Subterranean basement club.[5] The show became very popular in San Francisco and was eventually broadcast in 16 stations throughout the region until 1995.

Internet writing

Oliver held a number of entertainment and music-related occupations throughout his life including as a disk jockey, carnival barker, broadcast journalist, answering service operator, voice artist, and ring announcer. However, he was primarily employed as a graphic production artist and later, with rise of the internet during the 1990s, as a web designer and corporate trainer.

As a young man, he developed an interest in professional wrestling, being the nephew of Rip "The Crippler" Oliver, and was especially a fan of famed Championship Wrestling from Florida play-by-play announcer Gordon Solie. In 1995, Oliver started a website in his honor, Solie's Vintage Wrestling, dedicated to the history of professional wrestling.[6] It was the first of its kind at the time of its opening and remains the oldest professional wrestling website still active. He was also the editor of the weekly Solie's Wrestling Newsletter from 1996 to 2003.

In addition to Solie's Vintage Wrestling, Oliver has also occasionally contributed to WrestlingClassics.com and was later interviewed in The Wrestling Channel Radio Network's first original production Jeremy Hartley's Up Close and Personal.[7] In 1999, he publicly criticized SLAM! Wrestling columnist Eric Benner for a controversial article on the Hart family following the ring death of Owen Hart.[8] He was occasionally in contact with Solie, who later endorsed the website, shortly before his death in 2000 and was quoted by both wrestling websites and the mainstream media upon the publishing of Solie's biography Gordon Solie: Something Left Behind five years later.[9]

Recent years

In 2001, he was called "one of San Francisco's undiscovered treasures" by San Francisco Arts Magazine.[10] In October 2003 he moved to Fort Bragg, California where Oliver and his wife Lonna settled in a 90-year-old farmhouse. After being laid off from IKON Office Solutions' Print on Demand Division in 2005, Oliver left the corporate world to become a full-time musician and writer. In his familiar "Walkin' Blues Man" act, he has appeared at such civic events such as the Palo Alto Art Walk and Project Read for the San Francisco Public Library. He has been a regular performer on the Skunk Train, a heritage railway running between Fort Bragg and Willits, California,[11] and was on hand with Greg Schindel, The Trainsinger and The Black Bart Gunfighters to celebrate its 120th anniversary.[12]

Oliver also formed a partnership with Mendocino Coast music legend, Butch Kwan, releasing the Skunk Train Blues album, and performed together for over two years appearing at the 2004 and 2006 Caspar World Folk Festival, "Art in the Gardens" at the North Coast Botanical Gardens, and headlined the 12th annual "Local Licks Live" concert sponsored by KOZT 95.3 FM. Beginning in 2005, they were regular performers at Fort Bragg's annual "World's Largest Salmon BarBQ". In recent years, he has revisited several of these events as the lead vocalist for The Groovinators.[13][14]

On May 8, 2010, and again on May 26, 2012, Oliver sang with the Symphony of the Redwoods during their annual POPS Benefit Concerts. At the 2012 concert, Earl was asked to perform with the orchestra for the finale of the show, a "Tribute to Old Blues Eyes" medley of Frank Sinatra hits.[15][16][17]

Solie's Vintage Wrestling

Oliver launched Solie's Vintage Wrestling, a historical professional wrestling website, in 1995, named in honor of announcer Gordon Solie, and one of the earliest known pro wrestling website on the internet. It had a number of innovative features, most notably, the most extensive collection of wrestling title histories on the internet. It was also home to "Solie's Wrestling Newsletter", which Oliver edited, and all 753 editions were put online following the end of its run in November 2003. Solie.org is considered a valued reference among wrestling fans and the internet wrestling community.[18] As of 2010, it is the oldest continually active pro wrestling website on the internet.

  • Storefront: Professional wrestling memorabilia, usually DVD releases, personally recommended by Earl Oliver.
  • Title Histories: One of the largest collections of championship title histories from over 300 promotions throughout the 20th and early 21st century.
  • Wrestling Forums: A listing of major pro wrestling-related internet forums. The website had its own official forum from 1996 to 2000.
  • Newsletter: An archive of "Solie's Wrestling Newsletter" from 1996 to 2003.
  • Images: A photo gallery of snapshots, publicity photos, newspaper and magazine articles, and other memorabilia of the Television era from the personal collections of Joe Wolfe, Marc Friedland, Dixie Moulton and Earl Oliver.
  • Articles: A collection of pro-wrestling related magazine and newspaper articles from wrestling columnists from throughout the country. These include stories from The Charlotte Observer, the Dallas Observer, the Los Angeles Times, the Miami Herald, the New York Post and Sports Illustrated.
  • Interviews: Exclusive interviews with many professional wrestlers from the 1980s and 90s wrestling boom. These were later transcribed from various television, radio and internet interviews for "Solie's Wrestling Newsletter".
  • Rosters: A complete roster listing of World Championship Wrestling and the World Wrestling Federation from 1986 to 1998, from the United States Wrestling Association for 1997, and Extreme Championship Wrestling from 1997 to 1998.
  • Wrestlers' Win/Loss Records: A compilation of win–loss records from every wrestler competing in WCW from 1990 to 1999, and the WWF from 1987 to 1999.
  • A-List: A listing of websites recommended by Earl Oliver which range from a variety of wrestling-related subjects including journalism, history, statistics and research, official websites for promotions, schools, wrestlers and photography and video resources.
  • Awards: A section of the website which showcases awards and reviews received by Solie.org during its early years.
  • The Illustrated History of the Four Horsemen: An extensive 21-part series detailing the history of first three incarnations of the Four Horsemen from 1985 to 1992.

Uncle Earl's Classic TV Channel

Oliver created Uncle Earl's Classic TV Channel in early 2010 in conjunction with his work at Mendocino Coast Television (MCTV), the cable access (PEG) TV station in Fort Bragg, CA. The Uncle Earl site is a free repository of streaming classic television programs and movies, organized in an easily navigated library format.[19]

Discography

  • The Walkin' Blues Man! (2004)
  • Skunk Train Blues (2005)
  • Music of the Spheres (2007)
  • Groovinators (2010)
  • Groovinators at the 2011 World's Largest Salmon BBQ (2011)
  • Song for Ella: The Jazz Collection (2014)
  • Dinner & A Song: Earl Oliver Live (2016)

References

  1. ^ "Jazz, Rock This Weekend". San Francisco Chronicle. November 2, 1973. Retrieved September 28, 2010.
  2. ^ a b Blake, Bill (October 2, 1989). "Night Out". San Fernando Valley Daily News. Retrieved September 28, 2010.
  3. ^ Lenow, Mark (July 22, 1979). "Earl Oliver's Showcase A Hit". LA Weekly.
  4. ^ Carl Kress (September 20, 1993). "The Walkin' Blues Man lights up the parade!". Orinda Post. Retrieved July 22, 2013.
  5. ^ "Night Life: Dancing/Clubs/Comedy". Express. April 2, 1993. Retrieved September 28, 2010.
  6. ^ Gotlieb, Andy (May 29, 1997). "Pro Wrestling's Heart and Solie The voice of Florida wrestling, Gordon Solie, takes the Internet to the mat, and vice versa". Tampa Tribune. Retrieved September 28, 2010.
  7. ^ "The Wrestling Channel Radio Network!". The WAWLI Papers No. 202. WrestlingClassics.com. 1998. Retrieved September 28, 2010.
  8. ^ Benner, Eric (June 9, 1998). "SLAM! Wrestling: Responding to the Owen email". And Nothing But The Truth. SLAM! Sports. Retrieved September 28, 2010.
  9. ^ Hardison, Jeff M. (April 13, 2005). "Gordon Solie book captures announcer's voice". Largo Leader. Retrieved September 28, 2010.
  10. ^ Jasai (December 2001). . San Francisco Arts Magazine. Vol. 1, no. 12. Sheilah Boothby. Archived from the original on April 19, 2002.
  11. ^ "Skunk Train at Fort Bragg, CA". Carl's TrainWeb Reports and Travelogues. TrainWeb.org. June 2005. Retrieved September 28, 2010.
  12. ^ Hartzell, Frank (July 1, 2005). "Skunk Train celebrates 120th anniversary". Fort Bragg Advocate-News.
  13. ^ Dowd, Harvey (July 11, 2009). "Those who came had fun, fish, fireworks and fog". Fort Bragg Advocate. TheSeaOkies.com. Retrieved September 28, 2010.[permanent dead link]
  14. ^ DeMatteo, Pattie, ed. (2010). "The Groovinators". Music. MendocinoStories.com. Retrieved September 28, 2010.
  15. ^ Symphony of the Redwoods. "Symphony of the Redwoods 2012 Schedule". Retrieved June 23, 2013.
  16. ^ Jump City Productions. "Streaming Audio Recording of Earl Oliver with the Symphony of the Redwoods". Retrieved June 23, 2013.
  17. ^ Symphony of the Redwoods. "Symphony of the Redwoods 2011 Schedule". Retrieved June 23, 2013.
  18. ^ Latham, Nick. "Solie's Get's a Platinum Review". Review. Pro Wrestling Hardcore. Retrieved October 24, 2010.
  19. ^ Abrahamson, Brent. . The Massachusetts Observer. Archived from the original on December 14, 2012. Retrieved December 22, 2012.

External links

  • EarlOliver.com, official website
  • Solie's Vintage Wrestling
  • Uncle Earl's Classic TV Channel
  • Solie's Wrestling Videos

August 20, 2023
earl, oliver, born, june, 1948, american, writer, musician, variety, street, entertainer, graphic, artist, accomplished, blues, jazz, guitarist, singer, northern, california, francisco, area, popularly, known, walkin, blues, hosted, popular, cable, access, tel. Earl Oliver born June 23 1948 is an American writer musician variety street entertainer and graphic artist An accomplished blues and jazz guitarist and singer in Northern California and the San Francisco Bay Area popularly known as the Walkin Blues Man he hosted a popular cable access television program Earl Oliver amp Friends Live from LaVal s later called Live on Location that aired in 16 stations throughout the region from 1992 to 1995 He has also been the lead vocalist for several California based bands most recently the Groovinators Earl OliverBorn 1948 06 23 June 23 1948 age 75 Indianapolis Indiana United StatesOccupationWriter musician variety and street entertainerGenreProfessional wrestlingSpouseLonna Oliver c 1974 present Relativeswrestler Ray Rip the Crippler Oliver uncle Websiteearloliver wbr comFrom May 2005 until August 2013 Oliver was a regular performer on the Skunk Train a heritage railway which runs daily from Fort Bragg and Willits California and at events such as the Palo Alto Art Walk and Project Read for the San Francisco Public Library In 2001 he was called one of San Francisco s undiscovered treasures by San Francisco Arts Magazine The nephew of professional wrestler Ray Rip the Crippler Oliver Oliver is a longtime wrestling columnist and historian He is perhaps best known in the internet wrestling community as the founder of Solie s Vintage Wrestling a historical professional wrestling website dedicated to the memory of announcer Gordon Solie which is the oldest continually active pro wrestling website on the internet Contents 1 Biography 1 1 Early life and career 1 2 Music and television career 1 3 Internet writing 1 4 Recent years 2 Solie s Vintage Wrestling 3 Uncle Earl s Classic TV Channel 4 Discography 5 References 6 External linksBiography EditEarly life and career Edit Earl Oliver was born in Indianapolis Indiana but later moved with his family to Southern California At age 14 Oliver began playing as a professional musician and in 1969 moved to the San Francisco Bay Area where he performed at local jazz and rock music night clubs such as The Melting Pot La Boheme The Vintner Family Farmacy and the Seventh Seal Coffee House by the early 1970s 1 While studying music he was given singing lessons from one time Metropolitan Opera diva Margo Weiss 2 He also became involved in stage acting within a few years with memorable performances in Bye Bye Birdie George M and Don t Drink the Water at the Glendale Center as well performing as a magician at The Magic Castle In 1977 he portrayed the evil sorcerer in Aladdin at Pamela and Walter Gilmore s Golden Mall Playhouse Around this time he began producing a variety show The Showcase which included musicians singers comics clowns fire eaters poetry readers and other entertainers It was very successful on the night club circuit being regularly featured at the Horn in Santa Monica and received praise from the LA Weekly in July 1979 3 Music and television career Edit In the 1980s Oliver returned to the music scene finding limited success with the bands JUMP CITY and The Sphere He also entered the recording business producing radio advertisements for local camera stores and shoe emporiums doing voice overs and writing advertising jingles Also during this time he began developing the stage persona of a blues shouting guitar playing singer called the Walkin Blues Man The character would become a familiar sight at countless parades music and art festivals county fairs farmers markets and other outdoor events throughout the West Coast of the United States and in Canada for the next 20 years 4 By the end of the decade Oliver had also developed a unique variety act by incorporating magic into his musical performances such as draping a scarf over his guitar at the end of his set and making it disappear which was favorably reviewed by the San Fernando Valley Daily News in October 1989 2 In 1992 Oliver began producing a monthly cable access television program Earl Oliver amp Friends Live from LaVal s later called Live on Location which featured variety acts at La Val s Subterranean basement club 5 The show became very popular in San Francisco and was eventually broadcast in 16 stations throughout the region until 1995 Internet writing Edit Oliver held a number of entertainment and music related occupations throughout his life including as a disk jockey carnival barker broadcast journalist answering service operator voice artist and ring announcer However he was primarily employed as a graphic production artist and later with rise of the internet during the 1990s as a web designer and corporate trainer As a young man he developed an interest in professional wrestling being the nephew of Rip The Crippler Oliver and was especially a fan of famed Championship Wrestling from Florida play by play announcer Gordon Solie In 1995 Oliver started a website in his honor Solie s Vintage Wrestling dedicated to the history of professional wrestling 6 It was the first of its kind at the time of its opening and remains the oldest professional wrestling website still active He was also the editor of the weekly Solie s Wrestling Newsletter from 1996 to 2003 In addition to Solie s Vintage Wrestling Oliver has also occasionally contributed to WrestlingClassics com and was later interviewed in The Wrestling Channel Radio Network s first original production Jeremy Hartley s Up Close and Personal 7 In 1999 he publicly criticized SLAM Wrestling columnist Eric Benner for a controversial article on the Hart family following the ring death of Owen Hart 8 He was occasionally in contact with Solie who later endorsed the website shortly before his death in 2000 and was quoted by both wrestling websites and the mainstream media upon the publishing of Solie s biography Gordon Solie Something Left Behind five years later 9 Recent years Edit In 2001 he was called one of San Francisco s undiscovered treasures by San Francisco Arts Magazine 10 In October 2003 he moved to Fort Bragg California where Oliver and his wife Lonna settled in a 90 year old farmhouse After being laid off from IKON Office Solutions Print on Demand Division in 2005 Oliver left the corporate world to become a full time musician and writer In his familiar Walkin Blues Man act he has appeared at such civic events such as the Palo Alto Art Walk and Project Read for the San Francisco Public Library He has been a regular performer on the Skunk Train a heritage railway running between Fort Bragg and Willits California 11 and was on hand with Greg Schindel The Trainsinger and The Black Bart Gunfighters to celebrate its 120th anniversary 12 Oliver also formed a partnership with Mendocino Coast music legend Butch Kwan releasing the Skunk Train Blues album and performed together for over two years appearing at the 2004 and 2006 Caspar World Folk Festival Art in the Gardens at the North Coast Botanical Gardens and headlined the 12th annual Local Licks Live concert sponsored by KOZT 95 3 FM Beginning in 2005 they were regular performers at Fort Bragg s annual World s Largest Salmon BarBQ In recent years he has revisited several of these events as the lead vocalist for The Groovinators 13 14 On May 8 2010 and again on May 26 2012 Oliver sang with the Symphony of the Redwoods during their annual POPS Benefit Concerts At the 2012 concert Earl was asked to perform with the orchestra for the finale of the show a Tribute to Old Blues Eyes medley of Frank Sinatra hits 15 16 17 Solie s Vintage Wrestling EditOliver launched Solie s Vintage Wrestling a historical professional wrestling website in 1995 named in honor of announcer Gordon Solie and one of the earliest known pro wrestling website on the internet It had a number of innovative features most notably the most extensive collection of wrestling title histories on the internet It was also home to Solie s Wrestling Newsletter which Oliver edited and all 753 editions were put online following the end of its run in November 2003 Solie org is considered a valued reference among wrestling fans and the internet wrestling community 18 As of 2010 it is the oldest continually active pro wrestling website on the internet Storefront Professional wrestling memorabilia usually DVD releases personally recommended by Earl Oliver Title Histories One of the largest collections of championship title histories from over 300 promotions throughout the 20th and early 21st century Wrestling Forums A listing of major pro wrestling related internet forums The website had its own official forum from 1996 to 2000 Newsletter An archive of Solie s Wrestling Newsletter from 1996 to 2003 Images A photo gallery of snapshots publicity photos newspaper and magazine articles and other memorabilia of the Television era from the personal collections of Joe Wolfe Marc Friedland Dixie Moulton and Earl Oliver Articles A collection of pro wrestling related magazine and newspaper articles from wrestling columnists from throughout the country These include stories from The Charlotte Observer the Dallas Observer the Los Angeles Times the Miami Herald the New York Post and Sports Illustrated Interviews Exclusive interviews with many professional wrestlers from the 1980s and 90s wrestling boom These were later transcribed from various television radio and internet interviews for Solie s Wrestling Newsletter Rosters A complete roster listing of World Championship Wrestling and the World Wrestling Federation from 1986 to 1998 from the United States Wrestling Association for 1997 and Extreme Championship Wrestling from 1997 to 1998 Wrestlers Win Loss Records A compilation of win loss records from every wrestler competing in WCW from 1990 to 1999 and the WWF from 1987 to 1999 A List A listing of websites recommended by Earl Oliver which range from a variety of wrestling related subjects including journalism history statistics and research official websites for promotions schools wrestlers and photography and video resources Awards A section of the website which showcases awards and reviews received by Solie org during its early years The Illustrated History of the Four Horsemen An extensive 21 part series detailing the history of first three incarnations of the Four Horsemen from 1985 to 1992 Uncle Earl s Classic TV Channel EditOliver created Uncle Earl s Classic TV Channel in early 2010 in conjunction with his work at Mendocino Coast Television MCTV the cable access PEG TV station in Fort Bragg CA The Uncle Earl site is a free repository of streaming classic television programs and movies organized in an easily navigated library format 19 Discography EditThe Walkin Blues Man 2004 Skunk Train Blues 2005 Music of the Spheres 2007 Groovinators 2010 Groovinators at the 2011 World s Largest Salmon BBQ 2011 Song for Ella The Jazz Collection 2014 Dinner amp A Song Earl Oliver Live 2016 References Edit Jazz Rock This Weekend San Francisco Chronicle November 2 1973 Retrieved September 28 2010 a b Blake Bill October 2 1989 Night Out San Fernando Valley Daily News Retrieved September 28 2010 Lenow Mark July 22 1979 Earl Oliver s Showcase A Hit LA Weekly Carl Kress September 20 1993 The Walkin Blues Man lights up the parade Orinda Post Retrieved July 22 2013 Night Life Dancing Clubs Comedy Express April 2 1993 Retrieved September 28 2010 Gotlieb Andy May 29 1997 Pro Wrestling s Heart and Solie The voice of Florida wrestling Gordon Solie takes the Internet to the mat and vice versa Tampa Tribune Retrieved September 28 2010 The Wrestling Channel Radio Network The WAWLI Papers No 202 WrestlingClassics com 1998 Retrieved September 28 2010 Benner Eric June 9 1998 SLAM Wrestling Responding to the Owen email And Nothing But The Truth SLAM Sports Retrieved September 28 2010 Hardison Jeff M April 13 2005 Gordon Solie book captures announcer s voice Largo Leader Retrieved September 28 2010 Jasai December 2001 Rue De Nouveau Music Info from the Streets of the Bay Area San Francisco Arts Magazine Vol 1 no 12 Sheilah Boothby Archived from the original on April 19 2002 Skunk Train at Fort Bragg CA Carl s TrainWeb Reports and Travelogues TrainWeb org June 2005 Retrieved September 28 2010 Hartzell Frank July 1 2005 Skunk Train celebrates 120th anniversary Fort Bragg Advocate News Dowd Harvey July 11 2009 Those who came had fun fish fireworks and fog Fort Bragg Advocate TheSeaOkies com Retrieved September 28 2010 permanent dead link DeMatteo Pattie ed 2010 The Groovinators Music MendocinoStories com Retrieved September 28 2010 Symphony of the Redwoods Symphony of the Redwoods 2012 Schedule Retrieved June 23 2013 Jump City Productions Streaming Audio Recording of Earl Oliver with the Symphony of the Redwoods Retrieved June 23 2013 Symphony of the Redwoods Symphony of the Redwoods 2011 Schedule Retrieved June 23 2013 Latham Nick Solie s Get s a Platinum Review Review Pro Wrestling Hardcore Retrieved October 24 2010 Abrahamson Brent Columnist The Massachusetts Observer Archived from the original on December 14 2012 Retrieved December 22 2012 External links EditEarlOliver com official website Solie s Vintage Wrestling Uncle Earl s Classic TV Channel Solie s Wrestling Videos Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Earl Oliver amp oldid 1075596042, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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