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The "Weird Al" Eight List

loosely based on Elvis's "Weird Al" 27 List

We have Elvis (dprossi@orion.webspan.net) who does the The 27 List where there are some coincidences relating to the musical artist and the particular number 27. Look for the list in a USENET newsgroup alt.music.weird-al.

This list somewhat is based on that idea. The only rule is that there must be a simple way to get an "8" out of the situation.

Also included are other Demented eight coincidences as well!

flexidisk@aol.com (Flexidisk) wrote:

"Oh, hell. A 27 list? That's natural. A 17 list? That's next. A Thursday list? You're pushing it. An EIGHT LIST? Oh, jeez, you've fallen off the bandwagon a long time ago, and you're being dragged behind to oblivion!

"To put things in better phrasing: You've gone too far."

What can I say, too much is not enough! Or is this Eight list enough of the number lists? Check out the Eight is Enough Easter Eggs and Eight is Enough Coincidences for a seeming odder version of this magic eight number coincidence list.

Question: How many fingers does "Weird Al" Yankovic have?
Answer: Eight, the other two are thumbs!

As Elvis noted, throughout "Weird Al" Yankovic's illustrious career, one number magically seems to pop up throughout his songs, videos, and in other, well, weird places.

He and many listeners contributed to the list that became literally the monthly ritual as fans submitted many finds of that number and to see if Elvis would list them in his monthly report.

That number has been for almost a half of a century, the number 27.

Up until then, that was it, until Elvis posted a Weird Al Numbers Page that documented more numbers that "Weird Al" Yankovic mentioned in his songs. The list of numbers found in songs by "Weird Al" Yankovic was edited by Dave Rossi (dprossi@webspan.net).

Some of those findings in one particular number became the inspiration for another "Weird Al" number list.

It took me all of eight minutes to figure this out!

BTW: Elvis's list to the third root is 3, my Eight list to the third root is 2!

So, I figured that barring somebody coming up with a 64 list (4 cubed), I have come up with...

D.T.'s "Weird Al" Eight List!!!!

FINALLY SOME NEW 8's in the new millenium!

On Feb 10, 2001, Weird Al married Suzanne. 2 - 10 = -8.
On the Dr. Demento Basement Tapes #9, Weird Al's demo of "I Love Rocky Road" appears on track #8
"Running With Scissors" goes Platinum! Al's latest album has now officially sold more than a million copies in the U.S. since its June 1999 release, and was certified Platinum by the RIAA on May 8, 2001.

Please send any corrections, additions, credits, cute rich widows, to me!

You can find my list at http://www.davesfunstuff.com/27waylst.htm for "D.T.'s "Weird Al" Yankovic Eight List!"

Thanks to everyone who sent in an 8.

EIGHT LIST RULES!!!

  • rule 1: the number has to end with the number eight.
  • rule 2: the number can have the last significant digit be the number eight. It can be big like 8,000,000,000,000 or as small as 0.000,000,008!
  • rule 3: digits can sum up to or be the difference of eight.
  • rule 4: something has to occur eight times at once.
  • rule 5: It must be directly related to "Weird Al" Yankovic and may be in tandem with anything else, but anything else outside of "Weird Al" does not qualify.
  • rule 27: more rules can be added later.

      Some Weird Al and other Demented weird eight sightings...

    1. Added 2-4-98: 
      Joe DeAngelis  wrote:

>
>    Well, in the fifth and final installment of pictionary this week, Al's
>team won again, giving him a .800 winning percentage (4 out of 5)!! 
>    Now, we must wait until Monday night...  
>
   Hope .800 is enough for Al! :-)

d.t.
    2. Check out issue #368 of MAD Magazine; There's a parody of Entertainment Weekly within the issue (starting on page 17) and turn to page 8 of that glossy issue. Look under the movie title "Airship!" BTW: A couple of "8"'s and a "17" were found.
    3. There are eight letters in his "Weird Al"'s last name "Yankovic" and in the word "Dementia"
    4. In Dr. Demento's Basement Tapes #4, "Weird Al"'s Bonus Track is on track #18
    5. In Dr. Demento's Basement Tapes #3, "Weird Al"'s demo "I'll Be Mellow When I'm Dead" is on track #8
    6. In Dr. Demento's Basement Tapes #5, "Weird Al"'s Bonus Track is on track #8
    7. If you add the #3 and #5 Demento Basement Tapes numbers that "Weird Al" appeared on track eight, the sum is eight!
    8. In Dr. Demento's Basement Tapes #2, "Weird Al"'s "Happy Birthday" is on track #2 and runs 2:36; add the minute to the second and you get 38!
    9. "Weird Al" plays the accordion. He took his first accordion lesson on 10-22-66, one day before he turned 7. Add the 66 to the 22 and you get 88! Since Al was still 6, add his age to the 22 day and you get 28; in addition, he had one more day to go before he turned 7, so subtract 1 from 28 and you get 27 (which is another list).
    10. the USENET newsgroup alt.music.weird-al has 18 characters in it.
    11. In "Weird Al"'s parody of "Free As a Bird" he mentions that he has "8 Gigabytes" on his hard drive.
    12. "Weird Al" Yankovic guested on Tomorrow with Tom Snyder on April 21, 1981 CT/MT at 11:30pm, but on the East and Pacific coasts, the Tomorrow show began at 12:30am the next early morning, making it April 22, or 4-22. Add the digits 4+2+2=8!
    13. In the movie "UHF", "Weird Al" runs Channel 62 and its competetor was channel 8. Also, the UHF digits 6+2=8!
    14. Weird Al members drummer John "Bermuda" Schwartz, who has eight letters in his surname, was born on Aug 18; Steve Jay the bassist has eight letters in his whole name; Jim West the guitarist and background vocals was born on Dec 18, and Ruben Valtierra the keyboardist was born 12-26, adding up to 38!
    15. Weird Al produced, directed, starred in, and wrote the opening sequence and theme to the movie "Spy Hard", which has eight characters in it, if you count the space between Spy and Hard!
    16. "Weird Al" did a parody of The President of the United States' "Lump" called "Gump" in 1996. Add up the letters in the titles of both the original and parody and you get eight.
    17. "Weird Al"'s label Rock 'n Roll/Scotti Bros. Records is located at 808 Wilshire Blvd. in Santa Monica, CA.
    18. In 1978, "Weird Al"'s first released song anywhere was "Take Me Down", a San Luis Obispo city contest entry song that appeared in the locally based album "SLO Grown", which has eight letters in the album title.
    19. Dick Van Patten was in some of "Weird Al"'s videos such as "Smells Like Nirvana"; Dick was the father of "Eight is Enough"
    20. In the song "Headline News", one of the lyrics in that song went "Mmmm Mmmm Mmmm Mmmm Mmmm Mmmm Mmmm Mmmm," each Mmmm repeated eight times per set.
    21. Added 9-13-97: On the "Weird Al" Show, Al was asked in the mailbag segment if he had any brothers and sisters who are not cheap camera tricks; Al answered him by saying he has his brother, Alex, the eight-inch tall savage warrior.
    22. Added 9-13-97: Delivery Man: Our secret. No box. Most pizza places waste valuable time putting their pizza in a box. Pizza Palace, six seconds. Antonio's takes eight. Your pizza just got cold. At Pizza Quick. Your pie comes right out of the oven and goes right out of the door. No Boxes. No putting in boxes. No Boxes! (hands man pizza) Man: Oh thanks. (Elvis)
    23. Added 9-13-97: The TV channel D.T. and other San Diegans watch Weird Al's TV show on: eight!
    24. Added 12-18-97: The Oct 25, 1997 "Weird Al" Show featured Dick Van Patten dancing in a tutu. Dick's age at the time was 68. "Weird Al" just turned 38 two days before that week. The Dec 6, 1997 "Weird Al" Show had Dick Van Patten on again as a burgular. 12+6=18. Alfred, starting to "plant" some more eight's, eh? The days between those two occurrences: 42. Coincidently, that was the number Susan answered Merle in one episode how many Bradford residences were in Sacramento. Weird Al, been watching the show for deep messages like this?. Also, 4*2=8!

      "Weird Al" hit #1 on the Dr. Demento Funny Fives on these Sunday air dates:

    25. 1984/03/18 "Eat It" by "Weird Al" Yankovic (4th week in a row)
    26. 1984/07/08 "I Lost On Jeopardy" by "Weird Al" Yankovic (First time)
    27. 1985/08/18 "I Want A New Duck" by "Weird Al" Yankovic (First time)
    28. 1986/06/08 "Yoda" by "Weird Al" Yankovic
    29. 1988/05/08 "Fat" by "Weird Al" Yankovic (2nd week in a row)
    30. 1989/05/28 "Ricky" by "Weird Al" Yankovic (4th time) (in honor of the passing of comedienne Lucille Ball)
    31. 1993/11/28 "Bedrock Anthem" by "Weird Al" Yankovic (First time)
    32. 1995/05/28 "Jurassic Park" by "Weird Al" Yankovic (4th time) (he played the Billingual mix)
    33. 1996/02/18 "Since You've Been Gone" by "Weird Al" Yankovic (First time)
    34. 1996/12/08 "The Night Santa Went Crazy" by "Weird Al" Yankovic (First time)

      The following eights are noted from Elvis's Weird Al Numbers Page

    1. Weird Al did a great figure-eight in the middle of the interstate in the video "She Drives Like Crazy."
    2. "No Joni Mitchell eight-tracks in my car" was a lyric heard in his song "I'll Be Mellow When I'm Dead."
    3. "...or play some Tiffany on eight-track or CD" was a lyric heard in his "Achy Breaky Song."
    4. "She made a date for a half past eight, and I said, 'What the hey'" in Al's song about Gilligan's Island, "Isle Thing."
    5. "Yes, on these hallowed grounds, open ten to eight on weekdays" was a lyric heard in his masterpiece "The Biggest Ball Of Twine In Minnesota."
    6. "I hooked up eighty channels and each one stunk" was a lyric heard in his song "I Can't Watch This."
    7. "You go eighty in second-gear" was a lyric heard in his song "She Drives Like Crazy."

      Also noted by Elvis:

    8. The "Weird Al" songs, "Aardvark", "Ghandi II", "Hot Beets", "Moldy Now", and "Talk Soup" are eight letters long. (spaces don't count.)
    9. The "Weird Al" songs, "Cable TV", "Fun Zone" and "Spy Hard" plus the space between each word is eight letters long.

      Other Dementoids eights of note...

    1. Dr. Demento was born April 2, or 4-2. Multiply them and you get eight!
    2. By mutual agreement, Dr. Demento debuted on a Los Angeles radio station KPPC on October 8, 1970 (he actually doesn't remember, so he set the Oct 8 date when his 25th anniversary show aired in syndicated radio that day.)
    3. Dr. Demento's TV special "Welcome To The Fun Zone" aired on NBC on 6-2-84. The month and day = 8! Weird Al also wrote a theme song for the show, but it was not used. The song he wrote evolved into "Fun Zone", which is on the UHF Soundtrack Album.
    4. Whimsical Will's Demented News debut on KLSX March 8th, 1987.
    5. Barnes and Barnes' letters in their first names Art and Artie add up to eight. Bill Mumy (Art), his Lost in Space character surname "Robinson" and his space TV show "Babylon 5" each have eight characters in them.
    6. My first mention of my name on Will's Demented News occurred on March 18, 1990.
    7. I first discovered Demento on the radio when I tuned in my favorite rock station on Sunday night unbeknownst that KGB airs something special then on August 20, 1978.
    8. Very Keri who takes requests has eight letters in it!
    9. the Bradford city of Sacramento rhymes with Demento.
    10. The Compleat Al Aired on Showtime 8/85 (Elvis)
    11. From Gumby's TV appearances list: David Brenner's Night Life 12/8/86 (ELVIS) Can anybody tell me if that's a date Weird Al was on?
    12. From Gumby's TV appearances list:Robert Klein's Kleintime 2/8/97 (ELVIS) Can anybody tell me if that's a date Weird Al was on?
    13. Al Music #1 8/14/93 (ELVIS) Huh?
    Got more? Please e-mail me!
    Special thanks to:
    "The Ant Farmer", couch potato loafer and internet surf dude
    Elvis, "Weird Al" 27 List Author
    Visit the TV show Eight is Enough with its own eights of note.

    and of course, "Weird Al" Yankovic for making eight another number to pursue!

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