Jim Spagg

Background

Spagg, Jim was born on July 29, 1939 in Cleveland. Son of Carl and Lucille Spagnola.

Career

In the early 1990s, Spagg attracted local and national media attention with Jim Spagg"s Sex Show, a call-in cable television program that contained uncensored nudity. Spagg, a nudist, produced and directed the program and frequently appeared without clothing. The show was mostly improvised, and often consisted of little more than Spagg dancing nude while playing a guitar and singing.

The show sometimes included nude guests, and often contained footage filmed at Rooster Rock State Park, a clothing-optional public beach near Portland.

Several episodes focused on Spagg"s petty feuds with his neighbor Editor DeKota. Spagg"s premises were

Nudity is not dirty.

And

People are too busy and too serious. Spagg denied that his program was lewd, claiming that "I am an artist and I"m expressing myself through video."

Spagg also swore throughout and showed himself defecating.

In May 2003, after nearly 11 years on the air, Jim Spagg"s Sex Show was removed by Portland Cable Access after Spagg defecated live on the show.

He was suspended for a year, the official reason given was broadcasting copyrighted material, violating the Public-access channel"s broadcast standards. The copyrighted material in question was a series of clips filmed by PCA itself with on the street testimony about PCA. "He simply took property and used it as his own, against our rules and federal law," says Carl Kucharski, PCA"s executive director The Portland area public often found Spagg"s Public-access show while flipping through cable television channels.

His show elicited complaints from viewers, particularly those with children, who were upset that his program ran during the day.

Despite public outcry to remove his program from Portland Cable Access, it was not possible due to freedom of speech protection for public-access programming. He was also featured on the national television news show A Current Affair.

Jim Spagg died of leukemia on May 8, 2004 at the age of 64 in Portland. At the time he was running for mayor of the city.

He received several hundred votes.

Achievements

• Jim Spagg has been listed as a notable artist by Marquis Who's Who.

Views

Spagg frequently defended his program as art, and appeared on KATU"s Town Hall program where he defended his right to appear nude on television as freedom of speech.

Membership

Founder Humanity School of Understanding.

Interests

• Entertaining, dance, singing, acting, song and poetry writing.

Connections

Father:

Carl Spagnola

Mother:

Lucille Spagnola