"Weird Al" Yankovic

Features > Timeline > Jul 2011

By Vish KhannaHe could've been a fad — a one-trick pony whose skilled mockery might get tiresome quickly. But for 30 years, "Weird Al" Yankovic remains the most successful and sharpest satirist of our time, absorbing trends in music and pop culture, and spewing them back at us, charmingly highlighting the absurdity of it all. From "Beat It" to "Born This Way," Yankovic's comedic genius lies in taking the trendiest songs and genres and reflecting them in a funhouse mirror, exposing their demented potential like few before him. With his nerdy, exacting nature, he's changed music videos and song parodies forever, but his humility makes him hesitant to cop to his unlikely greatness and the enduring adoration of his fans. "I see my influence on various things and parts of the culture and it's always gratifying to see that I've made any kind of impact whatsoever," Yankovic says. "I appreciate when other people wax poetically on my many achievements, but it feels a little odd for me to be saying that myself."

1959 to 1973
Alfred Matthew Yankovic is born on October 23, 1959 in Downey, California, the only child of Mary and Nick Yankovic, who raise their son in nearby Lynwood. Of Yugoslavian descent and raised in Kansas City, KS, Nick settled in California after a World War II stint, and works in a steel factory, a pipe factory, a bedspring factory, and as a forklift operator, security guard and gas station attendant. Nick often urges Al to choose a living that, first and foremost, makes him happy. Mary is from Kentucky and of Anglo-Italian descent; she marries Nick in 1949.

Going into show business was something that they wouldn't have actually encouraged," Yankovic says. "In fact, on a few occasions, I remember my mom telling me to stay out of Hollywood because everyone there was evil, which is pretty much correct. But it's nice that, when I finally did wind up with a career in show business, as it were, they were very supportive and proud. They'd come to see me when I performed locally. I had them introduce the show on a couple of occasions; on my last live DVD, they introduced the show. So they were always very supportive and happy for my success."

Al receives his first music lesson on October 22, 1967, the day before his seventh birthday, after a door-to-door salesman offers his parents the choice between accordion and guitar lessons. According to Al, they choose accordion in deference to "America's Polka King," Frankie Yankovic, who's no relation. Al graduates from a beginner's sized accordion to a medium-sized one, which he plays to this day, instead of the adult-sized version. Al learns pop songs, classical pieces, and many polkas. Aside from Frankie Yankovic, his early role model is Myron Floren of the Lawrence Welk Show. He watches an inordinate amount of television, including lots of cartoons, sitcoms, variety shows, The Twilight Zone, and, a personal favourite, Mr. Terrific, with Stephen Strimpell and Dick Gautier. He's an exceptional student at Woodrow Wilson Elementary, starting kindergarten a year early, skipping the second grade entirely, and developing a proficiency for math. He's deemed a nerd by his peers, who refer to him as Alfred, after the butler in Batman and Alfred E. Neuman, the geeky mascot for MAD magazine, which Yankovic reads voraciously. The first funny song he remembers hearing is Johnny Cash's version of Shel Silverstein's "Boa Constrictor," and he's drawn to the Mason Williams hit "Classical Gas" in 1968. He attends Lynwood Senior High, where he's a straight A student. His primary extracurricular activity is the National Forensics League; Yankovic often brings home trophies in speech competitions, where he's very funny, even when the context doesn't call for humour. He also joins two honour societies, a drama club, and the yearbook committee. At 12 years old, inspired by drafting class, he decides he'll become an architect when he grows up; in the interim, he works part-time as an accordion teacher and occasional accordion repo man. In the early 1970s, Yankovic discovers the Los Angeles-based Dr. Demento radio show, which airs Sunday night. He's fascinated by the warped, risqué content and hears Spike Jones, Allan Sherman, Tom Lehrer, and Stan Freberg, whom he counts as early influences. In 1973, Barret Eugene Hansen (a.k.a. Dr. Demento) speaks at Lynwood High; Yankovic gets an autograph and submits a tape for a Dr. Demento contest to pick the show's theme song. He doesn't win, but at 13, impresses Hansen.

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