Barret Hansen, best known worldwide by his on-air moniker, Dr. Demento, has announced his retirement. After more than five decades of broadcasting novelty songs and making countless listeners laugh, he has decided the time has come for him to hang up his iconic top hat.<\/p>\n
Dr. Demento announced his retirement at the end of the most recent episode of his long-running show. After wrapping up the top 10 countdown, he delivered a \u201cspecial announcement\u201d to his listeners. \u201cI\u2019m now 84 years old and I have been doing this show for nearly 55 years\u2013about two-thirds of my life,\u201d he began. \u201cIt\u2019s been a blast, but I have come to the decision that I need to hang up my top hat soon. The show you just heard will be the last of my regular shows,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
[RELATED: From Mozart To \u201cWeird Al\u201d: A Short, Incomplete History Of Humor In Music]<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n According to Suggest<\/a>, The Dr. Demento Show will continue to run until October. However, most of the forthcoming episodes will be pulled from the show\u2019s archive and will include recaps and re-broadcasts of classic episodes. The show\u2019s final episode will coincide with the 55th anniversary of its first episode. It will, fittingly, be a top 40 countdown of novelty songs.<\/p>\n Dr. Demento Introduced Generations to Novelty Songs<\/p>\n Barret Hansen\u2019s radio show started as a regular free-form rock show in Pasadena, California. A collector of novelty records, he would work humorous songs into his playlists, garnering positive reactions from listeners. Soon, The Dr. Demento Show became what it is today.<\/p>\n Over the years, Dr. Demento introduced listeners to countless novelty songs, including \u201cThey\u2019re Coming to Take Me Away, Ha-Haaa!\u201d and \u201cThe Monster Mash.\u201d He also kick-started Weird Al Yankovic\u2019s career by playing his early songs.<\/p>\n \u201cAs a teenager, Al began sending homemade tapes of his songs to Dr. Demento, a nationally syndicated disc jockey known for playing comedy and novelty music,\u201d according to Yankovic\u2019s website<\/a>. \u201cDemento found a certain charm in the accordion-powered ditties that Al recorded on a cheap cassette player in his own bedroom, and gave him his first airplay.\u201d He later made live appearances on the show, playing early songs like \u201cMy Bologna\u201d and \u201cAnother One Rides the Bus.\u201d The show\u2019s exposure helped him build a cult following.<\/p>\n