Biography
Among the Firesign Theatre collective, David Ossman might assert the strongest claim to literary distinction. Santa Monica provided his birthplace in 1936. During junior high and high school he composed science fiction narratives and poems, securing publication for several works. Pomona College drew him into performance, where he took leading roles in The Crucible, Fumed Oak, and additional productions. He later moved to Columbia University, continuing to issue his poetry through independent channels. A 1958 summer post as replacement announcer and line producer at a New York City radio outlet stirred his interest in broadcasting as an outlet for his writing. Back in Los Angeles by the mid-1960s, Ossman co-hosted Radio Free Oz on KPFK, a program that served as a direct forerunner to the Firesign Theatre. What began as a platform for discussion and music gradually incorporated greater comedic content through contributions from Phil Austin and from Peter Bergman and Phil Proctor, who would become core Firesign members. Within the group, Ossman gained widest recognition for portraying George Tirebiter, the ordinary protagonist of Don't Crush That Dwarf, Hand Me the Pliers, a character who reappeared on subsequent recordings and in concert settings. His sole solo release, the 1973 album How Time Flys, enlisted the entire ensemble. Two years afterward he joined Phil Austin for a tour of colleges and comedy venues. Writing, production, and acting have remained central pursuits, encompassing a 50th-anniversary staging of War of the Worlds for NPR and a radio adaptation of Tom Lewis’s Empire of the Air. He also completed a second solo album, USA Mean Time, though it stayed unreleased.
Albums