I hadn’t seen nor heard about former MTV VJ Jesse Camp for years (and even when I did know about him, in the mid-late nineties, it was only because I occasionally passed a television in disgust on my way to my CaseLogic to pick out my favorite punk cassette).
But now suddenly, like within the past two months, I see him everywhere–hanging out at a Sunday barbecue where Crooked Cowboy is playing, shoving a camera into the faces of me and my friends as we leave a Dethklok show at the Wiltern, and now, even talking about being fucked up with James St. James at Homo-a-Go-Go. And apparently I’m not alone in taking notice. Are we doomed to spend the next couple years watching Jesse worm his way into new forms of media?
Truth be told, his reemergence makes me so sad. I actually kind of like this guy. It’s not his fault that at the young age of 18, he made a desperate and successful (though possibly fraudulent) bid to garner fame and hopefully fortune from reality television that devolved into personal humiliation and degradation at the hands of big corporate fucks who ate him up and spat him out, hairdo and all. Looking back on my life, I’ve made far more self-destructive decisions at an older age, and even now am probably succeeding less at life than this man. And that’s very, very sad. Jesse, I think I need a hug.
Didn’t he hit it off big with Tori Amos? embarrassing myself on MTV(and he still got paid!) is totally worth becoming friends with Tori Amos.
Did he win the contest to be a VJ or something? I forgot.
Yeah, he won the contest–and it was discovered later that one dude had voted 3,000 times in a row, putting him over the top. Coincidence?
This was back in the day when the internet was a potential playground for fraud, but Nigeria hadn’t quite figured it out yet.
What I always hated about that contest was that Dave Holmes was clearly the better candidate, and life has proven that true as Dave has worked consistently since then. I don’t doubt that Jesse Camp has had his problems as a result of winning that contest– I am glad that he’s rebounding.
I always figured Dave Holmes didn’t have the MTV image and that’s why they didn’t let him win.
I ran into Jesse last week. Swear to The Gods.
For me, Jesse never ever went away. After his VJ flop, I kept on running into him all over St. Mark’s Place, where he was hanging out and making music with junkies. He bought me his own album at a record shop, which was a sweet gesture, but the music proved entirely unlistenable. Then, here in LA, no mater which way I turned, there he was – at bars, shows, lofts, festivals. High on something or other, he once insisted on giving me a DJ Pubes t-shirt for free, although I politely refused, but it proved entirely wearable. As much as I’ve wanted to mock the guy over the years, he’s always been friendly to me, and let’s face it, has given me more gifts than most of my exes. He’s kinda like my own personal Junkietown ambassador. I suppose there are worse fates than being LA’s nightlife mascot.
yea, i live in sacramento and he randomly showed up at a house party in midtown. it was fucking wierd, he had a video camera and kept shoving it in peoples faces. haha but he was a funny and tall guy, i dont quite remember what we talked about but none the less hes a nice guy and i hope he has stoped doing drugs.
i saw this guy last night at a bar by my house. i recognized him by his voice and cringed thinking, “oh god it’s that guy from those horrible three shifts at that telephone job” It was basically telemarketing, and i kept wondering what’s this guys deal? We even had a smoke break where we spoke and exchanged names, still didn’t put it together until last night when a friend became excited at his presence, so yeah. It is sad, he’s a telemarketer, he may call you, you may hang up on him.