Johnny Slash

[Sophie Treadmill]

I was just googling to see what happened to the actor that played Johnny Slash, Merritt Butrick. He died of AIDS-related complications on St. Patrick's Day in 1989.

I thought he was really funny. I figured he was doing theatre or something like that, I had no idea he'd passed away. :(

It was on wikipedia and I read it at a few other places, to confirm since wiki isn't the most reliable source.

[gidgetgrape]

I found out Merritt had died when Square Pegs was on TV Land. A friend told me when I mentioned how much I liked the show. He was terrific. :(

[Sophie Treadmill]

Yes he was, so sad.

I just watched the Devo ep on youtube and enjoyed Jami Gertz and Merritt the most. Even though MTV had only been on the air for about a year or so, you could really see the its influence on this show. It wasn't as funny as I'd remembered, the timing and the pacing were rather awkward, but it was fun to watch for the sake of nostalgia.

Love your username, by the way!

[gidgetgrape]

Love your username, by the way!

Thanks! :wave:

I remember hearing or reading that the DEVO episode was an exciting event because at the time seeing musical groups on TV was rare. Most people didn't have MTV back then.

[Sophie Treadmill]

Yep! It really was a huge deal. My hometown actually got MTV in August 1981, when it debuted. Too bad we moved from that town two weeks before.

I remember my grandpa showing us the channel when we came back for visits! I can still see him standing in front of the TV (no remotes!), changing the channel and saying "you won't believe this, girls, this channel shows music 24 hours a day, 7 days a week." It seemed like such a foreign concept then, but I was intrigued.

The town we moved to? Cable services weren't even offered. I don't think they added MTV to the lineup until 1992.

[gidgetgrape]

It seemed like such a foreign concept then, but I was intrigued.


In a way, it's still a foreign concept because MTV shows more TV shows than music videos now. It's a totally different head.

[Sophie Treadmill]

Funny and sad, but true.

[Shine]

Merritt Butrick also played Admiral Kirk's son David in Star Trek II-The Wrath of Khan in 1982 and Star Trek III-The Search For Spock in 1984. Also in 1982, he co-starred in Wiz Kids with Scott Baio and Willie Aames. He also guest starred in an episode of Star Trek-The Next Generation called "Symbiosis" during the spring of 1988.

[Sophie Treadmill]

Thanks for that info!

I knew he had had something to do with Star Trek, but since I've never watched a single ep of any of their shows, I didn't know which it was.

I had no idea he was in Wiz Kids and I think I forgot that show ever existed.

I love it when my memory is jogged by something I haven't thought of in years. And that's getting more difficult as the nostalgia wave continues to roll. Quick, someone contact VH1, I think they missed something in their I Love the 80's series! Hee!

[Shine]

Thanks for that info!

I knew he had had something to do with Star Trek, but since I've never watched a single ep of any of their shows, I didn't know which it was.

I had no idea he was in Wiz Kids and I think I forgot that show ever existed.

I love it when my memory is jogged by something I haven't thought of in years. And that's getting more difficult as the nostalgia wave continues to roll. Quick, someone contact VH1, I think they missed something in their I Love the 80's series! Hee!

Oh, he wasn't in the show Wiz Kids, but the movie. I didn't even know that there was a show.

[Sophie Treadmill]

Haha! And that's just how bad my memory is...:D It was a movie!

[Shine]

Here are two pictures of Merritt as Dr. David Marcus in Star Trek II : The Wrath of Khan (1982):

[Sophie Treadmill]

Thanks for posting that. Such a shame he went so soon.

[Shine]

Thanks for posting that. Such a shame he went so soon.

You're welcome. :) I think that he could have been a really sucsessful character actor. The characters of David Marcus and Johnny Slash were so totally different, it really showed how much range and talent that Merritt had. He was also only 30 years old when he passed away. Much too young an age to die.

[Sophie Treadmill]

Awww...thirty is far too young.

Even though I haven't seen him in anything else, I have to say I'm inclined to agree with you, and I think there's no higher accolade for an actor than to be known as a character actor (see: David Strathairn, one of my favorite character actors).

He really seemed to give some heart and nuance to Johnny Slash. I don't think lesser actors could have pulled that off or made those choices given the material he had to work with. I really enjoyed what he brought to the show.

ETA: Love the Muffy Tepperman avatar. I swear, this site, by far has the best avatars I've seen on the net.

[Schmoopie]

I really liked Merritt as Johnny; definitely one of my favorite characters! Like others have said, it's really sad that he's gone.:( I think he was kinda cute! :)

Thanks for posting the picture of him from Star Trek. I was wondering what kind of involvement he had in it, because IMDB didn't elaborate.

Andrea

[Chocolate Moose]

right, i liked him too .....

[Ypper Skipper]

Yep, "Johnny Slash" rocked, with his ever present Walkman (the ipod of my childhood). Merritt Butrick R.I.P.

[AB]

I didn't know he had passed away. R.I.P.

[Shine]

I really liked Merritt as Johnny; definitely one of my favorite characters! Like others have said, it's really sad that he's gone.:( I think he was kinda cute! :)

Thanks for posting the picture of him from Star Trek. I was wondering what kind of involvement he had in it, because IMDB didn't elaborate.

Andrea

You're very welcome. :)

[Shine]

I didn't know he had passed away. R.I.P.

Sadly he's been gone for 20 years now. :(