![]() ![]() The character was used as the basis for a feature film in 1988, with an all-star cast ranging from Neil Patrick Harris, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Ned Beatty, Shelley Winters, and (a very young) Thora Birch, to musicians like Little Richard, Chubby Checker, and Wooley himself. The enduring popularity of the song led to the nicknaming of the highly effective Minnesota Vikings defensive line of the 1970s, whose team colors include purple. In the Fall of 1958, the track was released as a single and retitled "Bo Meets The Monster" (Checker 907). In September 1958, Bo Diddley recorded a song titled "Purple People". The purple people eater reappeared in "The Purple People Eater Meets the Witch Doctor", sung by Joe South, also released in 1958 it was also released as sung by The Big Bopper on the B-side of at least one version of the "Chantilly Lace" single. The song invokes phrases from several other hit songs from that era: "Short Shorts", by The Royal Teens, and " Tequila", by The Champs, both from earlier in 1958 and " Tutti Frutti" from 1955. (The Chipmunks themselves eventually covered "Purple People Eater"). The voice of the purple people eater is a sped up recording, giving it a voice similar to, but not quite as high-pitched or as fast, as Ross Bagdasarian's " Witch Doctor", another hit from earlier in 1958 and the "Chipmunk Song" which was released late in 1958. (The exact color of the creature is therefore open to debate, but most artwork assumes that it, too, is purple.) However, it is also stated that the creature eats purple people, so one can conclude that it is a one-eyed, one-horned, flying creature that eats purple people. One eternal question about the song is caused by an ambiguity in the English language: is the eponymous creature a one-eyed, one-horned flying purple creature that eats people, a creature that eats one-eyed, one-horned, flying purple people, or somewhere in between? The lyrics clarify matters somewhat: the creature is described as having one eye and one horn, and it comes out of the sky (presumably by flying). The rather silly lyrics tell how a strange monster (described as a "one-eyed, one-horned flying purple people eater") descends to earth because it wants to be in a rock'n'roll band. "The Purple People Eater" is a bouncy, happy song whose style is very much of its time and genre, reflecting both the simple early rock and roll that was hugely popular and the public fascination with flying saucers and aliens. The song has remained popular for over fifty years, and sold one hundred million copies. "The Purple People Eater" was a novelty song, written and performed by Sheb Wooley (1921-2003), that reached #1 in the Billboard pop charts in 1958. " The Purple People Eater" / "I Can't Believe You're Mine" Purple people eaters are also present in the Purple Void from Strange Adventures In Infinite Space, where they are known as an inept predator of sapient beings."I Found Me an Angel" / "So Close to Heaven".This creature is also featured in the second season of Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency.Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency, S2E4 "The House Within the House", series (2018)."The Purple People Eater", song by Sheb Wooley (1958) (First appearance).This species apparently enjoys tequila and wearing short shorts. They're unwilling to pursue prey they regard as "tough", suggesting that they might not be very strong physically. They're capable of flying as well as climbing trees, and they speak with high-pitched voices. Individuals of this species possess a singular eye and a singular horn on their heads, from which they can produce rock'n'roll music suggesting that the horn is more akin to a musical instrument. Contrary to what its name might suggest, this species isn't necessarily purple in coloration, but actually feeds on "purple people".
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