Biography
In the early 1960s Jim Coyle and Mal Sharpe traversed the sidewalks of San Francisco, outwardly conventional yet inwardly unhinged, carrying a concealed microphone and eccentric schemes designed to draw unsuspecting passersby into elaborate deceptions. They thereby originated a singular prank style that anticipated Hidden Camera, the Jerky Boys, and later followers. Their dealings with Fantasy Records terminated when the label chief hurled the master tapes down a flight of stairs while shouting, "Get out of here, you Communists!" Although the forward-looking imprint already featured Lenny Bruce, it nevertheless judged the pair's stunts too outlandish. Warner Brothers subsequently signed them, a company then enjoying success with comedy albums by Bill Cosby and Bob Newhart. The Absurd Impostors, their initial release, moved only 13,000 copies but earned the duo an evening program on ABC affiliate KGO. Broadcast under the title Coyle and Sharpe On the Loose, the show became an instant success, its ratings climbing 2,200% within nine months. The partnership ended in the mid-1960s, after which the two were never again active as a team. Their long-unavailable LPs acquired legendary status over subsequent decades, leading to interviews for the RE/Search volume Pranks!, and in 1995 Henry Rollins' 213CD label issued On the Loose, a compilation of standout selections from the Warner Brothers catalog. Audio Visionaries appeared in 2000.
Albums
