It was on January 29th, 1974, that a beloved New Jersey institution debuted: The Uncle Floyd Show, starring Floyd Vivino. Uncle Floyd, “whose trademarks are a plaid jacket, a bow tie and offbeat humor,” as the New York Times put it, hosted the variety show until 1998. The show featured comedy sketches and a cast of characters that included a puppet named “Oogie."

While the show is known for being a low-budget affair, if you read a list of some of the acts that performed on the show, you might be surprised. New Jersey-based acts like the Smithereens and Bon Jovi were guests, but so were Blue Oyster Cult and Cyndi Lauper. The show ran on several different stations and combination of stations during its run, from cable to UHF stations to VHF, a small local syndication, and the New Jersey Network.

Uncle Floyd worked here at New Jersey 101.5 briefly in the ‘90s which allowed me to meet him, but I can’t say I know him. Here’s a sample that encompasses his musical talent and his satirical attitude.

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