NBC Washington reported on Friday that failed Reagan-assassin, John Hinkley Jr., is interested in starting a band:
A psychiatrist treating the man who shot President Ronald Reagan in 1981 says he wants to start a band and should be allowed to publish his music anonymously.
Dr. Giorgi-Guarnieri testified Friday during court hearings that will ultimately determine whether and under which conditions John Hinckley Jr. will be allowed to live full time outside a mental hospital.
Giorgi-Guarnieri says Hinckley should be allowed to start the band, but not perform publicly.
Hinckley’s lawyer and treatment team say he’s ready to live full time at his 89-year-old mother’s home in Virginia under certain conditions.
Hinckley has been allowed freedom in stages. He spends 17 days a month at his mother’s Williamsburg home. One of his interests is music, and he sings and plays the guitar. He also participates in music therapy.
John Hinckley, Jr., best known as the man who tried to kill President Ronald Reagan in 1981, in a J.D. Salinger and Travis Bickle-inspired attempt to win the affections of a teen-aged Jodie Foster, was found “not guilty by reason of insanity” and has since remained under the care of psychiatrists at St. Elizabeth’s Hospital.
Hinckley, who never got that big hit he was looking for, now has a chance to put a band together and give it another shot.
The attempt on Reagan’s life was a boon for punk bands looking for song topics in the ‘80s. If Hinckley’s band plans on doing any covers, he might consider looking for some inspiration from those he, himself, inspired.
These are the top five John Hinckley-inspired punk songs:
Ism - “John Hinckley Jr. (What Has Jodie Done to You?):
Suicidal Tendencies - “I Shot the Devil”:
JFA - “Jodie Foster’s Army”:
Capitol Punishment - “Jody is My Bloody Love” (sic):
Crucifucks - “Hinckley Had a Vision”:
And of course, we’d be remiss if we didn’t mention DEVO‘s “I Desire.” We’ve written about this one at Dangerous Minds before. In 1982, DEVO obtained permission from Hinckley to use one of his poems as lyrics to a song on their Oh, No! It’s DEVO
album, much to the chagrin of Warner Brothers, who had to pay royalties to Hinckley.
DEVO - I Desire:
Psychiatrist: John Hinckley Jr., Man Who Shot Reagan, Wants to Start a Band (NBC Washington)
Previously on Dangerous Minds:
The song co-written by DEVO and John Hinckley Jr., Ronald Reagan’s failed assassin