Talk:Fish Rap Live!

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I have re-ordered bits and pieces of the article, made a few slight style changes, added links, and written a new section on "Martin the Satanic Racoon" under the heading of "Non-going features." Other retired features can be added to that section if anyone cares enough about them to write blurbs.

The "Complaints and Criticisms" section is inadequately referenced and, frankly, rather sparse in potentially-hilarious detail. If anyone knows the (citable) sources of the listed complaints and is physically and mentally capable of fleshing out the section, he or she should feel him- or herself morally obligated to do so, under threat of horrendous punishment by Raptor Jesus or the Flying Spaghetti Monster or whatever Fish Rap fans are worshipping nowadays. Get to work! --Dynaflow 18:11, 23 March 2007 (UTC)


 * I am mildly surprised by the origins stated in this article - at Cowell and the late addition of the word "Live" to the title. I had a neighbor in the dorms at Porter in 89-90 who I understood, at the time, to have personally started/written/edited/published the Fish Rap. (No, I can't remember his name. Memory is a faculty that starts failing after 30.)  And I'm remembering that "Live" was part of the title even then in the paper's first incarnation, playing off the punning reference to rap music.


 * But the neighbor I mention liked to talk a lot and drink too much, so I'm not sure I was getting the straight story from him. And as I say, my memory is not necessarily the most reliable record any more.  So I'm not actually questioning the article as written, just maundering on about how my memory is different.  And, BTW, I'm surprised and pleased that the Fish Rap still exists - I thought it was history for sure 'bout 15 years ago.  Ipoellet 18:16, 22 July 2007 (UTC)


 * You might be confusing the Fish Rap Live! with the Santa Cruz Indedpendent, which was an alternative to City on a Hill started during the 1989-1990 academic year. From what I remember, the Fish Rap was based in Cowell, whereas a Porter student founded, published, and edited the Independent.  --FreeKresge 16:23, 7 September 2007 (UTC)

Fish Rap Origins
I feel compelled to comment upon some of the comments here regarding the Fish Rap, particularly Ipoellet's comments about the origins of the Fish Rap, which do not jibe at all with my experience. (My guess is Ipoellet's Porter friend had way too many mushrooms or acid and hallucinated his whole experience of starting the Fish Rap.) The commenter with the nom de plume "FreeKresge" is likely correct. Having been "present at the christening" I have (albeit limited and now hazy, it being almost 25 years ago now) firsthand knowledge; and I would like to set the record straight. First of all, to establish my 'creds' I was a Cowellee from 1984-88 (Parkman House). I received my BA (History) from UCSC in Dec. 1988. Some time during my first year ('84-85) the Rap was conceived and born the brainchild of my good friend, fellow Cowellee and dorm neighbor, Robert (Bob or Rob) Bielen. He should be given the lion's share of the credit for creating the Fish Rap. Anyone and most everyone who was there and worked on the Rap during the Rap's first years will tell you it was Bob's baby. He had help, but he was its first editor-in-chief and he was the heart and soul of the Rap. To talk about the Fish Rap, especially its origins, and not mention Bob (now Rob) Bielen is, in my opinion, a grave injustice to Bob, and a huge historical inaccuracy. However, it is easy enough to correct, as I just have.

So, it is not correct that the Fish Rap was created "in the late 1980s", nor that it was the creation of a Porter student. The origin of the name is correct (a play on wrapping fish; you might check with Bob about whether this was inspired by Mad Magazine, which used to tout the Alfred E. Neuman poster as "suitable for framing or wrapping fish"). And while it may have begun without official sponsorship from the university, that did come fairly quickly, because I received independent study credit for 2 quarters that I worked (I should say "worked") on the Fish Rap during my sophomore year (1985-86).

I hope this helps clear up some inaccuracies. Thank you for listening. Carpe Diem! (as the fish on the cover of one early issue declared).

J.A. Browne San Leandro, CA (Save the Bench!) —Preceding unsigned comment added by Jaybee755 (talk • contribs) 19:46, 9 April 2008 (UTC)

Rob Bielen now lives in London and has verbally comfirmed the origins of the Fish Rap. I'll see if I can convice him to come up with something formal. Fluffball70 (talk) 19:21, 8 August 2008 (UTC)

This Origins thing is very easily resolved.
I'm Ari Kahan. I am (correctly) listed in the article-in-the-main as having been the second editor-in-chief of the Fish Rap.

In 1986, I anticipated that there might someday be a controversy of exactly this sort on Wikipedia, so I took the step of retaining copies of all of the early issues of the paper. Including the very first issue. Including the very first page and the sixth page of that very first issue, which I have scanned and link to here: 	Fishrap Issue 1, Pages 1 and 6

As can be observed on the first page, the name of the paper was The Cowell Fish Rap, so obviously it didn't originate at Porter, or with a Porter student. The lead story on that first page discusses the fact that the name of the paper was indeed derived from "fish wrap," newspaper used to wrap fish in the market.

And, as set forth in the staff box on page 6 of this important historical document, Bob Bielen was indeed the first editor-in-chief (and I was apparently "Head Grammarian").

Glad to be of help; meditare piscum.

-Ari — Preceding unsigned comment added by 208.74.179.3 (talk) 03:16, 1 September 2014 (UTC)