Book Review: "The Call of the Weird"

To vidiots such as yours truly, Louis Theroux is best-known stateside as a reporter for Michael Moore's long-gone satirical television show TV Nation. In merry old England, Theroux - the British/American son of novelist Paul Theroux - hosted his own TV program, Louis Theroux's Weird Weekends, which explored various American subcultures like adult films and gangsta rap.

After a decade of creating these mini-documentaries on odd alt-Americana, Theroux thought about retracing his steps and checking up on some of his earliest subjects, people he had previously interviewed, to see how their lives ended up after he had reported on them. To this end, Theroux proposed a six-month cross-country tour of American in 2004 to "catch up" with his former subjects. The resulting tales are accounted in Theroux's first book, The Call Of The Weird.

No matter how weird and wacky his subjects - and believe me, they are - Theroux does a wonderful job in exposing the humanity that lay at the core of racists, porn stars, pimps, UFO chasers and snake oil salesmen. Among the more interesting stories, Theroux visited the Aryan Nations World Congress to reconnect with Rev. Jerry Gruidl, an aging racist and anti-Semite. In spite of his disturbing beliefs, Gruidl proved to be a genuinely nice guy, even going so far as to help Theroux find a lost laptop computer.

Gruidl wasn't the only white supremacist that Theroux talked to, the US/UK cultural hybrid seemingly fascinated by the politics of hate. The author also tells the tale of Lamb and Lynx, twin daughters of racist April Gaede, that sing under the name of Prussian Blue. The Gaede twins are fourth generation white supremacists, and as Prussian Blue they sing folk-oriented White Power music, a curious mix of racially-charged original tunes, traditional German songs and cover versions of songs by skinhead bands like Skrewdriver.

In many ways the duo are like any other pre-teen girls on the cusp of the entertainment world, chattering away about making records and music videos. On the other hand, Theroux pulls away the veil, revealing two young children that have been seeped in racism. It's at once both a profoundly sad and compelling tale.

Theroux isn't just obsessed with American racists, however - in his weird world, there's room for plenty of people, folks like Thor Templar of the Alien Resistance Movement. If you're being threatened or are under attack by hostile aliens, Templar will "eliminate" the problem for you, the interstellar security guard claiming to have personally killed ten aliens. Theroux interviewed Templar in 1997 for his TV show, but trying to track him down 7 years later proved to be difficult.

Theroux began looking for Templar by attending the International UFO Congress in Nevada, hoping to submerse himself in the UFO culture and find a trail that might lead to the elusive alien fighter. Although the conference provided Theroux with an eye-opening array of ideas and philosophies, it provided no leads to Templar's location. Never fear, tho', because the author later locates the enigmatic Templar only to find that he's gotten out of the UFO world and moved into an entrepreneurial field.

There are plenty of other distinct personalities in Theroux's weird world, from former porn star JJ Michaels and Nevada prostitute Hayley to rapper/pimp Mello T and anti-tax separatist Mike Cain. Some of Theroux's subjects are well-known, like singer Ike Turner, or notorious, like former Heaven's Gate member Oscody, but most of the people that he writes about are average folks with admittedly unusual ideas living semi-normal lives

Much like his old man, Theroux has a deft way with words, and he comes across in his book much like he does on TV - friendly, intelligent and entertaining. Yes, his subject matter here is somewhat odd, but the continued popularity of "reality television" and sleazy gabfests like The Jerry Springer Show prove that America loves a freak show. The characters in The Call Of The Weird are fascinating in their uniqueness, and Theroux presents them honestly, warts and all.