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manticor225

To be fair, his cousin Tony Bongiovi owned the studio that was recording the album. Otherwise I highly doubt they would have randomly asked the janitor to sing lead vocals.


Super_Basket9143

He wouldnt be the first janitor to have a brush with success


Arrow_to_the_knee1

Yeah, look at Joe Dirt


Super_Basket9143

Or the bleach boys.


HabeLinkin

Or Noodles from The Offspring.


bonerfleximus

Or Will Hunting


Salsashark_21

Or Stanley Spadowski


[deleted]

Or Bruce Springclean


Clint129

Or Cyndi Mopper


TheZardooHasselfrau

Or Dr. Jan Itor


istasber

I love how this thread is half puns, half examples of real or fictional entertainers who started as cleaners. Peak reddit.


-SaC

Or Michael Wax-on.


[deleted]

Or Moply Crue


Super_Basket9143

Or the who-ver.


Lost-My-Mind-

Or Micheal Wax-off.


jereman75

MY MOP!


AlephBaker

SUPPLIES!


MJTony

Who wants to drink from the fire hose?


user_none

You get to drink from the fire hose!


PeteRock24

You get to drink from THE FIREHOOOOOOOOOSSSSE!


Mercutio77

DON'T YOU LIKE BONANZA??


Soaptowelbrush

His name is actually Good Will - you’re thinking of Doctor Huntings Monster


Super_Basket9143

Or clean day


ImAlwaysFidgeting

I went to one of their concerts. No one told me not to wear a black shirt. Now it's white.


Vio_

And Dr. Jan Itor


ScissorMeSphincter

Knife-wrench. For kids.


RadioHeadache0311

No mom, basinet and baby cage aren't the same thing.


Cascadification

That's Dirté


Ted_Denslow

Stop trying to church it up, Dirt.


FalloutGuy91

Trent Reznor


sevargmas

It’s pronounced Deer-tā


TummyDrums

Yeah I was gonna say, there are probably many aspiring singers that would take a janitor job at a studio just to be closer to the action. I highly doubt he would have been like "who me? But I'm just a janitor!". More likely he was begging every day to get in there and show off his voice.


DavoTB

One such singer/songwriter was Kris Kristofferson, who worked in the studio prior to his ascent to fame.


Super_Basket9143

Its not just music either. I know of a few janitors who have been able to get into acting by getting a cleaning job on a set. Dusting Hoffman comes to mind.


akeetlebeetle4664

> Dusting Hoffman I see what you did there.


ScrabbleTheOpossum

Meryl Sweep, too.


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THE_some_guy

According to Kris, [it was a National Guard helicopter, Johnny wasn't home, and the song wasn't 'Sunday Morning Comin' Down'](https://youtu.be/fZb41vyUcrQ?t=83). Also, since he mentions being worried about getting grounded rather than arrested, it seems like the helicopter wasn't so much "stolen" as it was "being used by an authorized person for an UNauthorized purpose".


ZenAdm1n

I'll add "misappropriation of national guard materiel" to my "list of things privileged boomers got away with that would land the rest of us in prison" list.


UrethraPapercutz

You gotta remember that even authorities are just people. If you can impress your superior with your stupidity and balls, you'll probably keep your job and it stays between you and them.


JinFuu

See, if you put that in a biopic of Kris I wouldn't believe you.


Professional_Content

Trent Reznor too I think.


T-STAFF19

How bout them apples?


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knightblue4

Ford was in Lucas' film *American Graffiti* prior to his role in *Star Wars*.


mightyneonfraa

Yep. IIRC he was installing the cabinets in George's house and the two got to talking so George remembered and called him when they were starting auditions.


amjhwk

IIRC he had already had a fairly decent role in George Lucas's first film American Graffiti so he already had an acting in with george aside from just being a carpenter


BadMedAdvice

That's how he got into American Graffiti. For Star Wars, Lucas wanted to use all new actors. He brought in Ford to coach the actor playing Han on having a more gruff demeanor, like Ford had in American Graffiti. Ultimately, Lucas realized that Ford was the correct choice for the role.


Super_Basket9143

He actually continued as a carpenter even after his star wars break. That's why his acting was so wooden.


Prowlerintheyards

Trent Reznor


Airsinner

You like apples?


orange_keyboard

So many folks missing the pun


Sherlockhomey

You mean Master of the Custodial Arts?


Indifferencer

Yeah, this wasn’t nearly as happenstance as the title suggests.


TannyBoguss

The probability is approximately 3,720 to 1


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K9Fondness

7440 to 2. Evened that for ya.


Holyvigil

This is a much more honest title. "The studio needed a new singer so the studio owner asked his cousin to do it."


quick_justice

Worth nothing said cousin had a good musical education and already formed two bands, so it wasn’t much of a risk either. It’s more like studio owner asked his cousin, an aspiring young musician, to sing on a track.


R-EDDIT

Cousin, but yeah.


Blutarg

Yeah, that would be like a Harvard scientist hiring his maid to categorize stars!


Super_Basket9143

And the name of that maid? Iron maiden.


jibba_jabba

Her name? Stella.


Mammoth-Mud-9609

“Pickering’s harem” https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/the-women-who-mapped-the-universe-and-still-couldnt-get-any-respect-9287444/ In case people don't get the reference.


[deleted]

The old "self made" illusion is shattered once again. Edit: from wiki "By mid-1982, out of school and working part-time at a women's shoe store, Jon Bon Jovi took a job at the Power Station Studios, a Manhattan recording facility where his cousin Tony Bongiovi was co-owner. Jon made several demos – including one produced by Billy Squier – and sent them to record companies, though failing to make an impact. His first professional recording was as lead vocals in "R2-D2 We Wish You a Merry Christmas," which was part of the Christmas in the Stars album which his cousin co-produced.\[17\]" ["It was different," he said. "Some kids spend all day in front of the tube, but when I was 16, I jammed with Bruce Springsteen.](https://www.oklahoman.com/story/news/1989/04/07/bon-jovi-ready-to-rock/62618168007/) \- And people are trying to argue he wasn't given special opportunities based on his connections?


andyschest

Yep. Damn near impossible to break into the janitoring field without a relative to give you a leg up.


NuffNuffNuff

I mean Jon Bon Jovi is insanely talented and a super nice guy too, I'm happy he's successful even if some uncle helped him out.


sje46

A lot of these nepo-baby conversations as related to the entertainment industry is really a combination of connections (duh), growing up in a supportive environment with a lot of inspiring creative genius around you, and actual hard work. I call it the George Harrison effect. George Harrison was a poor songwriter. He was also in a band with two of the greatest songwriters of the time. A few years of hard work later, along with a fair amount of inherent musical talent, and he became just as good as them. Ringo Starr, who didn't really put that much focus on songwriting, only write a couple of cute quirky songs. If anyone is ever upset about "nepo-babies" in the entertainment industry, I would suggest that the appropriate response to that isn't to tear down famous people with famous relatives, but instead to put potential geniuses in supportive environments, so they can work hard and grow in skill.


lonnie123

The whole point of the conversation is that those geniuses never get the chance to be in the environment because their uncle doesn’t own the record studio


ChunkyLaFunga

I guess, but it's hardly fair when other people are the ones pulling the trick. He's perfectly up front about working there to get the chance to work and being given the job by a relative. I mean he was a janitor, it's not like he demanded a production job or something. There's a difference between nepotism and using connections. The latter is universal no matter your status in entertainment industries and many others and it is absolutely not in the same league as CEOs being succeeded by their children or whatever.


[deleted]

It's not like the Star Wars Christmas Album launched his career or anything. Unless you were talking about his janitorial job, that does look like nepotism.


ThreeHourRiverMan

Any story that ends with “his name was ” I just assume is completely twisting facts to the point of being BS.


JerrSolo

I think I just learned that Jon Bon Jovi's last name is actually Bongiovi.


meatee

Also, Chef Boyardee's last name is actually Boiardi


Jkolorz

I wanna speak to Mr Bovine Jovi himself !


thundercockjk2

Thank you! This is the detail that everybody wants to skip over. He just wasn't working at some random place and they decided to take a flyer on a young kid full of spirit, he had the connections that allowed him to get through the door and that kind of connection is critical when it comes to Jon bon Jovi being a local name and an international name.


Fineous4

I saw a documentary on how a janitor did a bunch of math problems though


RunDNA

I saw that. It was called "The Janitor and the Diameter."


[deleted]

You’d be surprised. This type of thing was commonplace in studios back when they would have recorded this. JBJ was probably working there so he could get a shot at some time in the studio on either side of the glass in exchange for being a custodian. Most engineers of this era have a story similar to this, they start as a janitor and record after hours, then when someone calls up sick or whatever, they get thrown to the wolves and if they do well, get to stay behind the boards.


flipflapslap

Pretty sure this is exactly how Trent Reznor/NIN got started. Recorded Pretty Hate Machine while working at a studio.


manticor225

But that's exactly the point. This wasn't a random encounter as the title might lead you to believe. Edit: added "might"


[deleted]

Friggin nepotism. Lol


UnacceptableUse

I'd love to see what percentage of artists with top 10 songs are related to someone else who has been in the music industry since before their success


ovid10

Bon Jovi is the band. You’re thinking of Bon Jovi’s monster.


TheRavenSayeth

Knowledge is knowing that Bon Jovi is not the band. Wisdom is knowing that Bon Jovi is the band.


mvrander

Knowledge is knowing that Bon Jovi is the tomato and not the monster. Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad


ButterflyAttack

I say Bon Jovi, you say tomato.


alinroc

It's only Bon Jovi if it comes from the Middlesex region of New Jersey. It's Bongiovi if it comes from anywhere else.


Joghobs

Sparkling Bongiovi*


Grimsqueaker69

Everywhere else it's "sparkling rock"


[deleted]

Yes, Mr Bovine Joni himself


AudibleNod

But his name wasn't Jon Bon Jovi. It was John Bongiovi.


TallEnoughJones

Potato Potatovi


twec21

Potato, Poe Tah Toe


Surfing_Ninjas

Boil 'em, mash 'em, stick 'em in a stew


cgaWolf

Potato, Edgar Allan [Poe Poe Poe Poe Poe](https://youtu.be/ZMmLeV47Au4)


Dfrickster87

Bovine Joni


SoCalThrowAway7

For the record, when you go through chemo, your beard hair falls out too


WornInShoes

Well uh…filibuster


Surfing_Ninjas

How about we go toe to toe on bird law?


WornInShoes

First of all, through god all things are possible so jot that down


Ability345

I want to make a deal with MR. BOVINE JONI himself!


skaarup75

https://i.imgur.com/h7EWAjm.jpeg


ReadontheCrapper

I JUST got that Cows with Guns song out of my head… dammit!!!!!!!!


wut3va

Huh, so his name means John Goodgood?


Salarian_American

One of my friends who was a teacher has a student in his class whose last name was Lobrutto. My friend asked the kid if he spoke any Italian at all, which he didn't. Which is probably for the best, since "lo brutto" means "the ugly" in Italian. The kid's name translated to Joseph The Ugly.


Shock-because-shish

Technically, it would be “IL brutto”. “Lo” is the wrong article.


Canvaverbalist

Why is it LoBrutto then? Did the Italian just made a mistake in their own language and kept at it for generations?


Loocha

Knowing my wife’s immigrant Italian family, this sounds right.


renatoram

Italian didn't really exist until the end of the 1800s and even then almost nobody spoke it, it was for intellectuals and writers. None of the immigrants to the US (or almost none) spoke any Italian. They spoke "italic peninsula languages" (what is commonly called Italian Regional dialects) that are dialects of late medieval vulgar Latin, *not* of Italian, and are barely mutually intelligible (in the best of cases, meaning adjacent regions). The use of the article "Lo" instead of "il" is or was pretty common especially in southern languages/dialects. Hence surnames like "LoBrutto" but also "LoBello" (famous soccer referee IIRC). Source: am Italian, and a bit of a language nerd


fasterthanfood

My understanding was that “Italian” existed before that, it was just called Fiorentino, aka Florentine, because the dialect used in Florence (and by luminaries like Dante) was chosen as the national standard.


Thin-White-Duke

Dante is part of how it became standard. His Divine Comedy was insanely popular. The Tuscan/Florentine dialect was also the language of Petrarch, Machiavelli and Boccaccio--other figures that contributed to the popularity and spread.


renatoram

Yeah, but, and this is critical... Italian was not \*just\* Tuscan. It was Tuscan, plus a good 10-15% of Milanese, all filtered and simplified in pronunciation and standardized. Italians that are \*not\* from Florence feel \*most\* of the sounds are familiar (but not all: Tuscan languages have a VERY distinct sound and feel), and I can assure you that if someone speaks a Tuscan regional language, very few Italians that are not from there will understand it all. More than someone speaking Sicilian, Calabrese, Piedmontese, Ligurian... more than any other regional language. But believe me, Florentine is chock full of details that are \*not\* comprehensible by someone who speaks only Italian. Or that will feel \*extremely\* dated, or old fashioned, or "literary", because Italian has moved on in the last 150 years.


helpimlockedout-

Or famous coach Vince Lombardi, which if I'm not mistaken translates to "the mbardi"


nebuCHADnessarr

Jokes aside it means Lombard basically, a alternative spelling of Langobard, a Germanic tribe that conquered the peninsula for a period.


fasterthanfood

And that gave the Italian region of Lombardy (Lombardia in Italian) its name. The surname typically belongs to people whose ancestors immigrated from Lombardy.


huskersax

Reminds me of Elton John, spanish of course for "The Ton John"


helpimlockedout-

I'm learning so much today


_Noise

This is the most interesting thing I have read in a while - novel information that changes my understanding of the world.


lisalynne

It happens somewhat regularly when disparate populations are united by a political system. The dialect of the most influential area becomes the standard, “correct” version. Examples are Indonesia (bahasa Indonesia), Philippines (wikang Filipino), and China (Mandarin)


Local_Working2037

More like John Good Youths


Mekisteus

Eventually wouldn't he age and become John Goodman?


Drewy99

Jon Jabronei


capteni

You keep on using this word "jabroni" and... it's awesome.


MistahZig

He’s not delivery!


Benjammn

Nope, his name was Johnathan Bonithan Joviathan.


Skavis

What's his name now?


Super_Basket9143

Albert Einstein! *Sound of everybody clapping*


SoCalThrowAway7

Bovine Joni


KK867

I'll only speak to Mr bovine Joni himself!


Famous_Stelrons

So many jabronis


DigNitty

You fuck one goat…


Groovatronic

But…. Bovine means cow


bankrobba

Found the cow fucker


Groovatronic

You fuck one cow…


Twokindsofpeople

Owns an arena football team that does a lot of charity work with cancer patients.


SoCalThrowAway7

Nobody cares about arena football teams we’re doing the cancer thing now


flackguns

it still is, but it used to be, too


SchrodingersNutsack

Including such classics as: *Grandma Got Run Over by an AT-AT* *Frosty the Snow Mandalorian* and who could forget... *You're a Mean One, Mr. Vader* sung by James Earl Jones himself


TheGameboy

What do you get a Wookiee for Christmas when he already has a comb?


DenominatorOfReddit

He doesn’t wear a tie clip- and he doesn’t use shaving foam.


TheGameboy

You know, I always found that song off? Like, maybe he likes model cars? Do you know nothing about your friend? I mean, clearly your close enough to some extent to warrant buying a Christmas(life day) present, but you don’t know if he likes to settle down with a nice book?


valuemeal2

Spoiler alert: a brush! I got this album as a gift in 1998 and I still play it every year. It’s the best. My favorite track is “Merry Merry Christmas” because it’s freaking adorable to hear the droids making toys for the kids.


DanishWonder

And of course "I saw mommy kissing her twin brother"


InvertedParallax

He's making a list He's checking it twice He's going to find out Who's supporting his new Empire Anakin is coming to town He sees you when you're meditating He knows when you're awake He doesn't care if you're a master or youngling So don't get cocky for goodness sake


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spazzxxcc12

this reads like a who’s line skit, literally could hear collin and ryan saying it in my head


napp22

See, this is a bit, but the actual songs include titles like "What do you get a Wookie for Christmas (when he already owns a comb" and the lyrics "the odds against Christmas being Christmas are 365:1" I know this because I torture my friends with this album every holiday season


Kardinal

You are evil. Clever. Funny. But evil.


neiromaru

Rudolph the Red-Mawed Rancor.


impablomations

Silent Alderaan Vader Claus is coming to Hoth Rocking around the Ewok Tree Oh Little Town of Mos Eisley Little Jedi Boy


[deleted]

Oh, what a laugh it would have been if Ani had only seen Leia kissing her brother last night


TallEnoughJones

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ljoR6-D-f_E


itsme_timd

> "Our chimney's big and round, so you can come right down." R2-D2 is Santa?!?!!?


pegothejerk

I saw mommy kissing R2D2


Dashdor

That was so much worse than I expected. I listened to it all though.


39hanrahan

It is now one of my favourite Christmas songs.


anotherkeebler

Sweet Jesus.


dickb0tt

This sounds like one of those fake "remember this kid?" memes


gruesomeflowers

if this is a real fact, its one of those that sounds like complete bullshit..and is worthy of being a reply in one of those /r/askreddit 'whats a true fact that souds like bullshit' questions.


Mundane-Document-810

asdsadsadsadsa


RunDNA

As a long time Star Wars fan, I'm surprised that I've never heard of this album before in my life.


Thephilosopherkmh

Right, I even had the damn album when I was a kid and never knew that. Of course I didn’t care who sung the songs back then. If it was Star Wars, I wanted it.


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Thirty_Helens_Agree

My local college station played the album in its entirety a couple years ago. I had never heard it either and was too fascinated to turn it off.


theboyd1986

[And R2 repaid Jon’s efforts by contributing to Bon Jovi’s vocals](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JsO8NmispEc&pp=ygUWcjJkMiBsaXZpbiBvbiBhIHByYXllcg%3D%3D)


boringestnickname

Don't need to have sound on to hear that clip.


MoeSzyslakMonobrow

That's crazy he was named the same as the rock star Jon Bon Jovi.


VoiceOfRonHoward

Why should I change my name? He’s the one who’s wanted dead or alive!


lunex

And that Bon Jovi’s name? Albert Einstein.


dalv321

Mr. Bovine Joni


Dustmopper

Question: is this a laser pointer? Can I have it?


Kleatherman

.. No.


Dustmopper

I’m gonna go ahead and take it anyway


Voxicles

I wanna talk to Mr Bovine Joni himself!


chimusicguy

Christmas staple in our house. Doesn't get any better than "What Do You Get a Wookiee For Christmas (When He Already Owns a Comb?)"


fythismobile

Let’s get him a brush!


[deleted]

The janitor said about the opportunity: "We've gotta hold on to what we've got. It doesn't make a difference if we make it or not. We're got each other and that's a lot, for love. We'll give it a shot."


fuzzybad

He went on to state, "It's my life, it's now or never. Cause I ain't gonna live forever."


Vexvertigo

And that man's name? Lynyrd Skynyrd


monchota

There is way more to it, he was infto music and his uncle owned the studio. He was only cleaning because he uncle believed in hard work no matter who you are. He would of never had the chance otherwise.


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AggroPro

RIP Mitch


HapticSloughton

Today he wears a brown robe and calls himself Ovi-Bon Jovi. He's a strange old hermit who lives beyond the Jersey Shore.


heelspider

I read that in Casey Kasem's voice.


ChadHahn

I have this album. I don't think I've ever listened to it, but perhaps I should give it a shot.


hitssquad

Give it a shot? > She says, "We've gotta hold on to what we've got > It doesn't make a difference if we make it or not > We've got each other and that's a lot for love > ***We'll give it a shot"*** > Whoa, we're half way there > Whoa oh, livin' on a prayer > Take my hand, we'll make it, I swear > Whoa oh, livin' on a prayer


dawnharvester

This reads like an "... And that student was Alfred Eimsteim" memes lmfao


BabyFartMacGeezacks

Bovine Joni himself


Crumbmuffins

Music exec: “We need a way to shoehorn Star Wars into a Christmas album. Something like “R2-D2 we wish you a merry Christmas” but not as crappy.” *leaves room* Producers: “So track one is “R2-D2 we wish you a merry Christmas” *everyone agrees*


HopeFox

This is a cool (and true) story, but it's worth noting that John Bongiovi was already onto his fourth band at the time, opening for larger acts at local venues. His cousin Tony also owned the recording studio where this happened. Tony specifically recommended John to sing for the R2-D2 song. Yes, he happened to be sweeping the floors there (presumably to pick up a bit of extra cash between gigs, and/or to help out his cousin), but this wasn't one of those absurd fairy tales of discovering the janitor's hidden genius talent.


daveberzack

Remember the good old days before Lucas turned Star Wars into a cornball merchandising vehicle? Yeah... about that...


EdricStorm

There never existed a single day where Lucas wasn't merchandising Star Wars. It's literally what got his movie made. He kept the merchandise rights in exchange for the film profits basically.


hahamu

And then they all stood up and clapped


Responsible-Movie966

And the broom grew up to be Britney Spears


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Old_Sweaty_Hands

I wore the SHIT out of this album as a kid .,..... My Parents hated it lolol