Dr Demento retires

Barret Hansen, better known as Dr Demento, has announced his retirement:

“It’s been a blast,” he wrote in a message to fans, “but I have come to the decision that I need to hang up my top hat soon.”

Throughout the course of his long career, Demento introduced several fantastically silly songs into the public consciousness, including “Fish Heads” by the comedy duo Barnes and Barns, and “Shaving Cream” by Benny Bell.

But his greatest achievement took place in 1976 when he dug out a cassette mailed into him by a 16-year-old high school student named Alfred Yankovic, and played his homemade song “Belvedere Cruisin'” on the national airwaves.

When I was a kid, I spent my summers in L.A. I started listening to the Dr Demento show on KMET (6pm Sunday) where I pissed myself laughing at "Another One Rides the Bus" and Tom "T-Bone" Stankus's "Existential Blues."

I hope he enjoys his retirement as much as we all enjoyed his shows.