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Lester Bangs

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The Resume

    (December 13, 1948-April 30, 1982)
    Born in Escondido, California
    Birth name was Leslie Bangs
    Rock critic for Rolling Stone, Creem, the Village Voice, Penthouse and Playboy
    Writings collected in 'Psychotic Reactions and Carburetor Dung' (1988) and 'Main Lines, Blood Feasts and Bad Taste' (2003)
    Recorded the album 'Jook Savages on the Brazos' (1980)
    Portrayed by Philip Seymour Hoffman in 'Almost Famous' (2000)

Why he might be annoying:

    He was fired from Rolling Stone for being 'disrespectful to musicians.'
    He commented, 'For a while every story seemed like, Lester Bangs gets drunk an insults another pop star.'
    He CAPITALIZED PARTS of his reviews. (Just like a random MESSAGE BOARD RANT!)
    He called himself 'Last of the white niggers.'
    He died by overdosing on the painkiller Darvon and the tranquilizer Valium.

Why he might not be annoying:

    When he was nine, his alcoholic father died in a house fire.
    When he was 11, a middle-aged man coerced him into having sex in exchange for comic books and gum.
    He said, 'Everybody comes from a fucked-up family. I'm a living example of not using that as an excuse.'
    His first published piece was a review that he sent to Rolling Stone with the note, 'You'd better print this or give me the reason why not!'
    Cameron Crowe considered him a mentor.

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    For 2024, as of last weekly ranking, Out of 4 Votes: 25.00% Annoying
    In 2023, Out of 4 Votes: 75.00% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 1 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 11 Votes: 54.55% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 2 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 4 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 2 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 17 Votes: 58.82% Annoying
    In 2016, Out of 3 Votes: 66.67% Annoying
    In 2015, Out of 13 Votes: 53.85% Annoying
    In 2014, Out of 18 Votes: 55.56% Annoying
    In 2013, Out of 15 Votes: 60.0% Annoying
    In 2012, Out of 17 Votes: 76.47% Annoying
    In 2011, Out of 17 Votes: 76.47% Annoying
    In 2010, Out of 25 Votes: 48.00% Annoying
    In 2009, Out of 44 Votes: 65.91% Annoying
    In 2008, Out of 13 Votes: 46.15% Annoying