The Lizardman.
Erik Sprague är den gröna tatuerade ödlemannen som kallar sig själv för ”en professionell freak”. På hans hemsida kan man bl. a. läsa att han skrivit en bok som även finns för nedladdning där.
Erik har också spelat in en CD med bandet Lizard Skynard som han själv frontar. CD:n finns att köpa på hans webbsajt. På hans hemsida kan du boka ett personligt framträdande med honom.
“The most unusual man in the world” -Edward Meyer VP Ripley's Believe It or Not "The Georges St-Pierre of freaks" -Joe Rogan
- My name is Erik Sprague, but I am far better known as:
"The Lizardman".
I'm that tattooed green guy with the split tongue that you may have seen on television, or as a young lady in South Dakota once succintly put it to me: "You're that motherfucker from TV and shit, ain't ya?" That one encounter speaks volumes about what it is like to be me.
I am a professional freak. I perform sideshows acts, stand up comedy, & front a band.
När jag vaknade i morse kände jag en sådan otrolig lust att köra en extremt stor sax genom min tunga. Här delar jag det ögonblicket med er alla!
Lite senare på dagen tyckte jag att det kanske kunde vara roligt att köra en ännu större sax rakt upp i näsan. Man vet aldrig vad man kan hitta därinne. Här delar jag det ögonblicket med er!
Framåt kvällen tänkte jag; vad händer om man stoppar in en väldigt tjock metalltråd i näsan? Var kommer den ut någonstans? ... Genom munnen såklart! Man lär sig något nytt varje dag! Men tänk om man sen vidare stoppar in den i ena örat, var kommer den då ut någonstans??
Vanliga öronhänge är för fegisar. Vad världen behöver är metallbitar som håller till att förankra en mindre lyxkryssare i.
The Lizardman Frequently Asked Questions:
How do you prefer to be addressed?
For various reasons, most of them related to business, I have pushed the use of Lizardman. However, lately I have been using my given name more often - usually when performing stand-up and in most non-sideshow contexts. I have also been using Erik 'The Lizardman' Sprague for most written credits. Very few people refer to me as Erik, so if you are trying to get my attention on the street go with Lizardman.
For various reasons, most of them related to business, I have pushed the use of Lizardman. However, lately I have been using my given name more often - usually when performing stand-up and in most non-sideshow contexts. I have also been using Erik 'The Lizardman' Sprague for most written credits. Very few people refer to me as Erik, so if you are trying to get my attention on the street go with Lizardman.
Where do you live?
Austin, TX.
Austin, TX.
How old are you?
I was born June 12, 1972 (do the math).
I was born June 12, 1972 (do the math).
Where did you grow up?
I grew up primarily in upstate NY (Ellenburg, Clinton County).
I grew up primarily in upstate NY (Ellenburg, Clinton County).
Om Elvis fått se mina polisonger hade han blivit så avundsjuk...
I first met Meghan on November 19th, 1999 when I played Austin as part of the Jim Rose Circus opening for Godsmack. Accounts vary but ultimately she ended up backstage and back at our hotel on the tour bus with me - and, as a result, we ended up together.We managed a long distance relationship for some time and then in September 2001 I moved to Austin and we moved into an apartment together.
In November of 2003, Meghan and I went to Las Vegas on vacation and on the anniversary of our meeting (November 19th) we got married at the Viva Las Wedding Chapel in a ceremony conducted by Elvis.
Do you have any children?
No. I do not and will not have children.
No. I do not and will not have children.
Do you have any pets?
Meghan and I currently have three ferrets: Houdini, Jezebel, & Kabuki. I also sometimes keep a north american rough green snake for use in my show as Cricket the Wonder Snake.
Meghan and I currently have three ferrets: Houdini, Jezebel, & Kabuki. I also sometimes keep a north american rough green snake for use in my show as Cricket the Wonder Snake.
What is your educational background?
I was a national merit scholar finalist, attended Hartwick College (Oneonta, NY) on a full academic scholarship and received a BA with Honors in Philosophy in 1994. In 1996 I began doctoral studies in philosophy at the University at Albany (Albany, NY). I left my doctoral work (ABD) in 1999 in order to pursue career opportunities as a performance artist full time.
I was a national merit scholar finalist, attended Hartwick College (Oneonta, NY) on a full academic scholarship and received a BA with Honors in Philosophy in 1994. In 1996 I began doctoral studies in philosophy at the University at Albany (Albany, NY). I left my doctoral work (ABD) in 1999 in order to pursue career opportunities as a performance artist full time.
What do you do for a living?
I am an artist and an entertainer. I make my living performing around the world. My show typically consists of a mix of stand-up, spoken word, and sideshow stunts. I am also the front man for the band Lizard Skynard.
I am an artist and an entertainer. I make my living performing around the world. My show typically consists of a mix of stand-up, spoken word, and sideshow stunts. I am also the front man for the band Lizard Skynard.
What does your family think?
My family has always been nothing but loving and supportive. I probably would not have managed to do this without them. While it may seem hard for people looking in to understand what I do, my family has seen me develop and grow over the course of my life and they can see it as part of an overall whole.
My family has always been nothing but loving and supportive. I probably would not have managed to do this without them. While it may seem hard for people looking in to understand what I do, my family has seen me develop and grow over the course of my life and they can see it as part of an overall whole.
Why have you transformed yourself via various body modification processes?
My physical appearance is part of a transformation project I began as an undergraduate working in body based performance art.
My physical appearance is part of a transformation project I began as an undergraduate working in body based performance art.
What is the transformation project?
While in college I hit upon the idea of using body modification procedures (initially tattooing) for a body based art piece that would explore the idea of what it means to be human from a linguistic standpoint.
While in college I hit upon the idea of using body modification procedures (initially tattooing) for a body based art piece that would explore the idea of what it means to be human from a linguistic standpoint.
I was working with philosophy of language and it occurred to me that some of the principles put forth by Wittgenstein in his later works offered an interesting potential for exploration in relation to the transformation ideas I had been working with in art.
Broken down it goes something like this:
(1) Wittgenstein suggested that one way in which we are able to apply one term to many different objects is because they share a sort of "family resemblance"
(2) Focusing on how this principle related to the use of terms like 'human being', 'person', etc in the sense that people identify others as humans more based on observation of surface physical characteristics and behaviors I decided to modify those aspects of myself in manner which would significantly differentiate me from other 'human beings'
(3) In order to achieve this differentiation I chose to use permanent body modification procedures because I felt that a permanent commitment to the artistic statement was preferable if not necessary.
Why a reptilian theme?I felt I should choose something that would work well for a total body theme (fit all areas, age well) and, even more importantly, something I would like for the rest of my life. After considering several options (mazes, stories, spots, stripes) I settled on the reptilian theme because I liked the look and it made a good fit with other ideas I had for the future at the time; like my split tongue and teeth, which did come to pass.
What body modifications have you had done?
I have undergone an estimated 650-700 hours of tattooing. I have several piercings, of which I currently retain and wear jewelry only in my half-inch diameter septum. Due to a severe reaction I stopped wearing jewelry in my one inch earlobes in February 2009 at which time they were unofficially the strongest pierced lobes in the world having successfully pulled cars on several occasions.
I have undergone an estimated 650-700 hours of tattooing. I have several piercings, of which I currently retain and wear jewelry only in my half-inch diameter septum. Due to a severe reaction I stopped wearing jewelry in my one inch earlobes in February 2009 at which time they were unofficially the strongest pierced lobes in the world having successfully pulled cars on several occasions.
I have had five Teflon horns subdermally implanted above each of my eyes to form horned ridges.
Four of my teeth have been filed into sharp fangs. And my tongue has been bifurcated.
Four of my teeth have been filed into sharp fangs. And my tongue has been bifurcated.
How much did all of this cost?
I have not kept an accurate record of the cost, as it is not a central issue to me. I have been fortunate in that much of the work has been done free or at reduced cost. An estimated cost / value for all of the work done at full price would be close to $250,000.
I have not kept an accurate record of the cost, as it is not a central issue to me. I have been fortunate in that much of the work has been done free or at reduced cost. An estimated cost / value for all of the work done at full price would be close to $250,000.
How long has it taken to get it all done?
I have been actively getting work done since 1994. My work and travel schedule greatly restricts how much time I can spend getting procedures and healing but the progress continues.
I have been actively getting work done since 1994. My work and travel schedule greatly restricts how much time I can spend getting procedures and healing but the progress continues.
Are you finished? Will you ever be finished?I am not finished but I do hope someday to complete my tattooing and other planned procedures. I won't say absolutely that I will be finished though; as new technology and ideas may arise that I can incorporate into my own work.
Does it hurt?
Yes. It all hurts and if someone says it doesn't then they likely have a problem with their nervous system. The very nature of what is done during these procedures (needles in skin et al) means they should hurt but pain is no reason not to do something. Lots of things hurt but they are worth it - childbirth for instance, or so I am told anyway.
Yes. It all hurts and if someone says it doesn't then they likely have a problem with their nervous system. The very nature of what is done during these procedures (needles in skin et al) means they should hurt but pain is no reason not to do something. Lots of things hurt but they are worth it - childbirth for instance, or so I am told anyway.
What about when you are older? What if you regret it?
My work has been done by some of the best and the design has good potential for aging. Given the risks I take professionally I will be more than happy to live long enough to become a wrinkled and faded old Lizardman. Regret is always a possibility for everyone, you could say the same to someone joining the army or going to law school.
My work has been done by some of the best and the design has good potential for aging. Given the risks I take professionally I will be more than happy to live long enough to become a wrinkled and faded old Lizardman. Regret is always a possibility for everyone, you could say the same to someone joining the army or going to law school.
I have done my best to consider and plan for the eventualities that could cause me to regret my decisions - further, in fact, than many people I know went in considering far larger decisions like having children.
I do not think that I will regret this; if I did I would not have done it. Erik Sprague "the Lizardman"
Visit Eriks homepage:
http://undermattan.blog.com
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