Leif Garrett

Leif Garrett (born Leif Per Nervik, also known as “Bandana Man”; November 8, 1961) is a dude who got famous because of different things. He began as a child actor in the early to mid 70’s, then in the mid to late 70s became famous as a teen idol in music before trap music was a thing. He was all over the news, many times, for his drug abuse and legal troubles. He was also a songwriter, despite what many believe.

Early life

Garrett was born in Hollywood, California, (where famous peeps are born, of course) to Rik Nervik and actress Carolyn Stellar and started his entertainment career at age five. (like a famous person, of course) In true madlad fashion, he also graduated from high school at the age of 15.

Career

Acting career

Garrett and his sister Dawn Lyn worked a variety of acting jobs. They co-starred in the horror movie Devil Times Five as juvenile mental patients who almost innocently go on a murder spree at an isolated ski resort. Dawn and Leif also guest-starred in an episode of Gunsmoke as well as “Wonder Woman” (the TV series).
Garrett's more notable performances include the breakthrough role of Jimmy Henderson in Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice (1969); the protagonist's son Mike Pusser from the Walking Tall movies (1973, 1975, and 1977) and the recurring role of Zack Russell on the ABC TV series Family. He also played the role of Leonard Unger, the son of Felix Unger (Tony Randall), on the ABC series The Odd Couple, a part that had been previously played by Willie Aames.
In late 1975, Garrett appeared in the role of Endy Karras in a 12-week CBS drama series Three for the Road, with Alex Rocco as his father, Peter Karras, and Vincent Van Patten as his older brother, John Karras. The story line is that of a father and two sons who are grief-stricken over the death of their wife and mother, and sell their house, buy a recreational vehicle, and roam throughout the United States. Garrett's appearance in the program triggered a response from teenage girls and led to his first appearances in teenage magazines, such as Tiger Beat. Garrett also played alongside Lee Van Cleef in two Spaghetti Westerns shot mainly in Israel: Kid Vengeance and God's Gun. He played the title role in the television film Peter Lundy and the Medicine Hat Stallion. He starred in the film Skateboard, and in an episode of Wonder Woman, and in Family.
In the early 1980s, Garrett returned to acting, appearing as Bob Sheldon in The Outsiders. In 1985, he starred in Thunder Alley as the lead singer of a pop band that is torn apart by drugs, and in Shaker Run as a mechanic. Other notable Garrett movies from the decade include Delta Fever and the horror film Cheerleader Camp. He played a deranged murderer who was in love with his (not-real-life) sister in Party Line.

Music career

In late 1976, Garrett signed a five-album recording contract with Atlantic Records. In early 1977, he released a single called "Come Back When You Grow Up”, and recorded his first album, Leif Garrett. The album was released in July 1977, and his first four singles charted modestly on the US Billboard Hot 100. All of these hits were covers of late 1950s and early 1960s hits such as "Runaround Sue" and "The Wanderer". In mid-1978, he signed with Scotti Brothers Records and recorded his second album, Feel the Need. Its first single, "I Was Made for Dancin'", reached number 10 on the US Hot 100 and number 4 on the UK Singles Chart early in 1979. It became his greatest hit in the US and the UK. Subsequent singles failed to crack the Top 20 in either country, but he continued to record, releasing the albums Same Goes For You (1979), Can't Explain (1980) and My Movie of You (1981) in quick succession. In May 1979, he hosted a TV special, Leif, with guest stars Brooke Shields, Marie Osmond, Bob Hope and Flip Wilson.
By the early 80’s, he focused less on music, and turned to acting for the rest of the decade, giving us gems such as 1988’s “Party Line”. He later claimed the producers would not allow him to make music aimed at an adult audience when he reached his early twenties.

1990–2005

In the mid-1990s, Garrett returned to acting and singing, appearing in the 1995 low-budget horror film Dominion, touring with the Melvins and recording vocals for their cover of "Smells Like Teen Spirit" on The Crybaby (2000). In 1998, a greatest hits compilation, The Leif Garrett Collection, was released. Garrett, however, has stated: "My former record label was bought out. The label was started by me … meaning my music started it, funded it. And then it was bought out by some company that released the Greatest Hits Collection. Not only have I not seen any royalties from that, but they wanted me to promote it — the compensation being a couple of CDs."
In the late 1990s, Garrett hosted the series 8-Track Flashback on the cable music channel VH-1, replacing fellow teen idol David Cassidy. VH-1 went on to feature Garrett in a 1999 episode of its Behind the Music series.
In 1999 he formed the band Godspeed with Christopher Wade Damerst and Michael Scott (the Distortions, Deadtime Stories). They recorded a three-song EP on Garrett's own label, Tongue and Groove Records, and debuted on The Rosie O'Donnell Show, but broke up after only a few performances. O'Donnell would go on to ban him from appearing on her program.
Garrett's stage work includes playing the title role in “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” and, in late 2000, appearing in the National Theatre of the Deaf's production of A Child's Christmas in Wales. Also in 2000, he provided vocals to the Melvins cover of Nirvana's hit "Smells like Teen Spirit", from the album The Crybaby. He also appeared in summer stock at The Barn Theatre's production of Old Timer in 2001. In the same year, he voiced himself in the animated television series Family Guy episode "The Thin White Line".
In 2003, Garrett appeared as himself in the David Spade film Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star. He also co-wrote and sang "Former Child Star" for the film's soundtrack and was one of the singers of "Child Stars on Your Television", which played over the ending credits. He appeared with Aaron Carter in the 2005 film Popstar.

2006–present

In September 2006, Garrett appeared on the celebrity edition of Fear Factor. He won the grand prize of $50,000. On New Year's Eve 2006, Garrett first appeared in Las Vegas with retro act Original Idols Live!, hosted by Barry Williams. The show also featured the Bay City Rollers, Bo Donaldson and the Heywoods, and the Cowsills, with selected appearances by Merrill Osmond, Tony DeFranco, and Danny Bonaduce.
In August 2007, Country Music Television cast Garrett in the short-lived Ty Murray's Celebrity Bull Riding Challenge, among nine celebrities appearing on the show. However, he quit after one episode, citing soreness and lack of desire to continue. In November 2007, Garrett released the album Three Sides of..., which constituted songs he recorded with his then-current band F8 and his ‘90s band Godspeed as well as some new songs.
In 2008, the producers of TruTV's The Smoking Gun Presents: World's Dumbest... added Garrett to their cast, which features comedic commentary from celebrities like Garrett who have had brushes with the law. Garrett has frequently spoofed his troubled past and participates in a wide variety of sketches and skits written specially for him by the show's producers. In a 2010 episode, Garrett reenacted his recent arrest with two actors, including Todd Bridges, another show regular, portraying police officers.
Garrett toured South Korea in May 2010, with shows in Seoul and Busan. This marked the 30th anniversary of Garrett's first performance in Korea in June 1980. He embarked on another tour of the country in 2013.
Garrett was a cast member in the fourth season of Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew, which documented Garrett's struggle with addiction to heroin. The season premiered on December 1, 2010. Garrett's sister, Dawn Lyn, and mother, Carolyn Stellar, who was battling Stage 4 lung cancer, both appeared in Episode 7, which was filmed during Family Day, when the recovering addicts were visited by their loved ones to discuss how their addiction affected their family relationship.
In the early 2010s, Garrett began collaborating with punk rock artist and songwriter Craig Else. Garrett released two singles on the Internet, sharing Else's credits, "Everything”, released in 2010, and "Help You, Make You”, released in 2012. The two also recorded a cover of Neil Young's "Old Man".
He published an autobiography entitled Idol Truth in 2019.

Personal life

Beginning in 1979, Garrett dated English actress Nicollette Sheridan; they split six years later, in 1985. Two decades later, Garrett credited Sheridan for helping him at the start of his career. Garrett also dated celebrities such as his former Family co-star Kristy McNichol, Tatum O'Neal, and Justine Bateman. In the 1990s, Garrett was also in a long-term relationship with actress Elaine Bilstad, who died in 1999 of a heart problem.
In October 2001, Garrett was in a personal bankruptcy proceeding in a federal court in Los Angeles. Court papers stated his only regular income was a $1,000 monthly gift from his mother. His only listed possessions were his clothes, some household goods and about $350 in cash. Garrett ran up a $76,198 debt in unpaid credit card bills over a four-year period.

Legal Trouble Fun Time Hour, Part 1

Garrett admitted that he started using drugs (namely smoking weed) when he was 14. On November 3, 1979, five days before his 18th birthday, he crashed a Porsche 914 after a midnight party while he was driving to buy more cocaine. His blood alcohol level was three times over today's legal limit, and he was high on quaaludes as well. The accident left his passenger and friend, Roland Winkler, a paralyzed. Garrett had only met Winkler about a month earlier. Neither Garrett nor Winkler were wearing a seatbelt. Garrett was later tried as a juvenile on drunk-driving charges; his driver's license was suspended for a year and he was placed on a year's probation. Winkler sued in January 1980, claiming Garrett was at fault in the accident. In December 1984, Los Angeles Superior Court ordered Garrett's insurers, Transamerica Insurance Co., to pay $3.9 million to Winkler. Jurors assessed total damages in the civil negligence case at $4,215,500, but subtracted 8% of that amount, or $337,240, on the grounds that Winkler contributed to his own injuries by agreeing to ride in a car with a driver who he knew was drunk. Both Garrett and Winkler admitted in court that they were drunk and had taken depressant drugs; the court heard they had each taken equal amounts of alcohol and drugs that night. The panel ordered Garrett to pay $15,000 in punitive damages, which was not diminished by Winkler's partial responsibility. Winkler's attorney, Edward Steinbrecher, attributed the relatively small punitive damage award to Garrett's testimony that his net worth was only $50,000 to $100,000 at the time. In 1987 Winkler settled for $6 million with the Premier Insurance Co., which had insured the firm leasing the Porsche to Garrett's mother. Garrett and Winkler were reunited in 1999 for an episode of Behind the Music, where Garrett was relieved to learn that Winkler had no ill feelings towards him and even said that Garrett's actions following the accident had actually saved his life. The two remained in contact until Winkler's death in 2017.

Legal Trouble Fun Time Hour, Part 2

Garrett was arrested for possession of cocaine in 1997. On June 29, 1999, Los Angeles police arrested Garrett in the MacArthur Park area after he allegedly tried to buy heroin and cocaine from undercover officers. In March 2001, a Los Angeles judge issued a warrant for his arrest when he failed to attend court for a progress report required by his 1999 conviction. Two days later, the judge lifted the warrant and dropped the 1999 charges after Garrett submitted evidence that he had completed a rehab program. He was arrested for possession of cocaine again in 2004. He pleaded guilty in March 2005 to attempted possession of cocaine-based narcotics and was placed on probation. On January 14, 2006, when Garrett was arrested on a Los Angeles Metro Rail platform for not having a ticket, police found heroin in his possession. (This incident was recreated in a “World’s Dumbest…“ episode.) Because of the outstanding warrant for violating probation in a cocaine-related arrest, he was held without bail. He agreed to join a strict drug-diversion program, and his release from jail was ordered. He dropped out of the rehabilitation program and was taken into custody again on March 30 after a Superior Court commissioner determined he failed several drug tests while staying in a live-in drug diversion program. Garrett acknowledged he needed more help. On May 11, after failing to complete court-ordered drug rehabilitation, he was sentenced to 90 days in jail and three years' probation. He was given credit for the jail time he had already served since March 30. On February 1, 2010, Garrett was arrested once again for possession of narcotics. After denying having any drugs in his possession, he finally admitted to police that he had black tar heroin in his shoe. He posted $10,000 bail and was charged with a felony count of heroin possession. On October 18, 2010, Garrett pleaded no contest to heroin possession in Los Angeles and entered a court-ordered rehabilitation program.

Discography

Albums

Year	Album	US Pop	AUS	Record label
1977	Leif Garrett	37	2	Atlantic Records
1978	Feel the Need	34	8	Scotti Brothers Records
1979	Same Goes for You	129	—
1980	Can't Explain	—	—
1981	My Movie of You	185	—
1998	The Leif Garrett Collection	—	—	Rock 'n Roll Records
2003	F8	—	—
2007	Three Sides of...	—	—	Cleopatra Records

Singles

Year	Title	Peak chart positions						Record Label	B-side	Album
		Billboard Hot 100 (US)	Adult Contemporary	Kent Music Report (AUS)	UK Singles Chart (UK)	Oricon Singles Chart (JP)	Bundesverband Musikindustrie (GER)
1977	"Come Back When You Grow Up"	—	—	—	—	—	—	20th Century Fox Records	"Young World"
	"Surfin' USA"	20	—	2	—	—	6	Atlantic Records	"Special Kind of Girl"	Leif Garrett
	"Runaround Sue"	13	48	8	—	—	19		"I Wanna Share a Dream with You"
1978	"Put Your Head on My Shoulder"	58	—	24	—	—	—		"Kari"
	"The Wanderer"	49	—	—	—	—	—		"Love on the Run"
	"I Was Made for Dancin'"	10	38	2	4	12	10	Scotti Brothers Records	"Living Without Your Love"	Feel the Need
1979	"Sheila"	—	—	63	—	—	—		"Fun, Fun, Fun"
	"Feel the Need"	57	—	97	38	72	43		"New York City Nights"
	"When I Think of You"	78	11	—	—	—	—		"New York City Nights"
	"Memorize Your Number"	60	—	—	—	—	—		"Moonlight Dancin'"	Same Goes for You
1980	"I Was Looking for Someone to Love"	78	—	—	—	—	—		"Little Things You Do"
	"You Had to Go and Change on Me"	—	—	—	—	—	—		"Roweena"	Can't Explain
	"New York City Nights"	—	—	—	—	56	—		"I Was Made For Dancin'"
1981	"Uptown Girl"	—	—	—	—	—	74		"Just Like a Brother"	My Movie of You
	"Runaway Rita"	84	—	—	—	—	—		"Just Like a Brother"

Other recording appearances

Garrett has also sung on releases by the Melvins (The Crybaby), the Crush Ups ("Betty Ford for X-Mas") and Liberty n' Justice ("Sight Unseen" on Soundtrack of a Soul), among others.

Filmography

• Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice (1969)
• Walking Tall (1973)
• Peopletoys (aka Devil Times Five) (1974)
• Macon County Line (1974)
• Walking Tall Part 2 (1975)
• God's Gun (1976)
• Paper Tigers (1977)
• Kid Vengeance (1977)
• Walking Tall: Final Chapter (1977)
• Peter Lundy and the Medicine Hat Stallion (1977)
• Skateboard (1978)
• Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1978)
• Longshot (1981)
• The Outsiders (1983)
• Shaker Run (1985)
• Thunder Alley (1985)
• Delta Fever (1987)
• Cheerleader Camp (1987)
• Party Line (1988)
• The Banker (1989)
• The Spirit of '76 (1990)
• Dominion (1995)
• The Whispering (1996)
• The Next Tenant (1998)
• I Woke Up Early the Day I Died (1998)
• The Art of a Bullet (1999)
• Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star (2003)
• Popstar (2005)
• Fish Mich (2009)

Television work

• Nanny and the Professor ("The Human Element") (1970)
• Black Noon (1971)
• Cannon ("Death Is a Double-Cross") (1971)
• Family Affair ("Heroes Are Born") (1971)
• Ghost Story (Circle of Fear) (1973)
• Strange Homecoming (1974)
• The Odd Couple ("The Frog") (1974)
• The Last Survivors (1975)
• Three for the Road (1975)
• Flood! (1976)
• Peter Lundy and the Medicine Hat Stallion (1977)
• The Hanna-Barbera Happy Hour (1978)
• Family (1978)
• Wonder Woman ("My Teenage Idol is Missing") (1978 season 3 episode 1)
• CHiPs (two-part episode "Roller Disco") (1979)
• Superboy ("Bringing Down The House") (1988)
• VH1's 8-Track Flashback (1995–1996)
• Family Guy ("The Thin White Line") (2001)
• The Weakest Link (2001)
• American Black Beauty (2005)
• Celebrity Fear Factor (2005)
• Ty Murray's Celebrity Bull Riding Challenge (2007)
• truTV Presents: World's Dumbest... (2008–2013)
• Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew (2010)