So, I'm prone to making references to stuff I remember seeing on this show called Request Video ages and ages ago and, the truth is, if you didn't grow up in Southern California and you aren't in your late-20s or early-30s, you probably have no idea what the heck Request Video was.
Simply put, Request Video was the best video program ever. It aired every weekday for several years with numerous hosts, including Rodney Bingenheimer, Jim "The Poorman" Trenton and Gia Desantis. Out of these three, Desantis became best known for the connection to Request Video, either because she had the longest stint or because Bingenheimer and The Poorman were already very well known for their spots on KROQ (Bingenheimer is the host of Rodney on the Roq while The Poorman was the original host of Loveline and also had an evening drive rock slot at the station).
Watching Request Video was a ritual experience. Every day after school, Gia was there onscreen via an Anaheim tv studio in her clothes provided by the pre-Hot Topic punk outfitters Retail Slut (RIP) to introduce the latest videos and viewer requests. Sometimes, she was joined by Belissa Cohen, who was the best gossip columnist the LA Weekly ever had. The show was far better than MTV because it was ours. We watched it knowing that we had access to something that people outside of Southern California did not. We could catch the brand new Skinny Puppy video next to a Bauhaus classic, mixed in with the hottest British bands and local favorites like Human Drama and the Nymphs. Bands consistently visited the studio while in town, performing to a small audience and answering phone-in questions. Over the years I saw the likes of Ride, Skinny Puppy, Morrissey, Siouxsie and the Banshees and The Cramps (see below) on the station.
When Request Video went off the air (late-1992 or early-1993, although I can't find confirmation of the exact date), a dark cloud settled over greater Los Angeles. Local television, on the whole, was beginning to disappear from our tv sets, with the formerly independent stations gathered up by new networks. KDOC 56 has remained independent to this day, but now the station's focus is on re-runs of The Rockford Files and Ducks games. Meanwhile, KROQ Reunion notes that Desantis, who DJed at the station in the early-1990s, left radio and moved to New Mexico.
Below is a You Tube video I found of The Cramps' appearance on Request Video. So far, it's the only Request Video footage I have been able to locate online. Maybe one day I will actually be able to find my own recordings of some of the live performances and interviews and will be able to add them to the site.