Goths React To Goth Talk Show Clips 

I actually talked to Alan Jr from the Ricki Lake show years ago, but he explained the reason his grades were bad (which is mentioned on the show) was because his dad made him switch schools in the middle of the semester. Also him and his father never really got a long and brought him on the show for the sole purpose to make fun of him. Talk shows in the 90’s were pretty trashy 😂

I love the part where an audience member says " so your kids not doing drugs , you just don't like how he looks " . So good .

I was actually a goth on A show on Jenny Jones “Don’t Judge me by my outrageous appearance”. The show wanted me to say I drank blood but it was not true. I lurked out in my Goth attire at the coolest Goth boutique in the 90s called Medusa’s Circle. I got picked up for the show at the crack of Dawn by the shows sent limo. I hissed at the sun lol as I waited in my fully dressed outfit compliments of the store I managed-top hat and all. If you can find it-it’s a great 90s episode. I tried reaching out to Jenny Jones herself but not sure why it’s not out there! I say do more shows like that! So fun! The prior Governor commented on my outfit and was really nice. But so many booed me as I walked out lol! Good times

alan jr is a security guard at my work now. we all love hearing his stories of his goth days 😭

These parents are all like “I’m so embarrassed by my child!” My dad actively posts about how I’m a goth and tells me that he remembers hanging out with goths in high school.

Btw, yes Hot Topic, at least ours, was awesome back in the day. It’s nothing like how it is now. I have no idea wth happened. Also, Ricki Lake was usually much nicer than other talk show hosts especially when it came to being judgmental on outward appearance. She was judged harshly all the time cause of her weight back in the day. So she was more understanding.

Ricki Lake was a little more open minded than a lot of other talk show hosts back in the day. She was also one of the lead actors in John Waters' movie Hairspray.

"You're not gonna be working for me this summer" I would be *so happy* if I was Alan Jr and didn't have to work with his dad that summer

being Goth has nothing to do with his bad grades like you said. I was failing in school because I was bullied for being a metal head glam rocker. And also because highschool was very boring and i wanted to do music and art. Alot of Goth people are very intelligent, creative and very articulate. There is more to them then just their looks.

My dear friend was on this show, Gianna. She passed away sadly, almost 20 years ago. At that time, daring to be different was not a fashion statement as much as a willingness to fly in the face of convention. She was a few years younger than me. Our parents and society in general thought we were actually satanic or criminal, or both. It was a different time and our parents really did hate us. like, for real.

Like i said in every goth channels i'm sub: it makes me really happy to know that our culture keeps alive and strong in other countries, unfortunately here in Rio de Janeiro, goth it's almost forgotten... not even stores for clothes and everything else, but like i said: i'm glad that other places keep it strong, love ur videos and ur looks guys! Greetings from Brazil! :D

Ok so: 1) Lynn, your whole look with the makeup and hair is so awesome! 💜🖤 2) From what I can remember of Ricki Lake (I'm a week shy of 37, and it was on around my preteens I believe) she was more open minded definitely than Maury and Jerry Springer. 3) Ah, back in the early 2000's, and even 2007/08 when I worked there, Hot Topic was sooo much better imo! But things change with time and pop culture, etc. I miss it though!

just want to say your channel is refreshing and makes me smile, the fact that there isnt many goth channels anymore. you guys also seem to be genuine to the scene.

Dude, I remember when this aired! My goth friends and I crushed hard on Alan. lol There was a lack of goth guys in our school and Alan was our ideal.

Ricki Lake WAS an actress at one point, she was one of John Waters favorite Actresses, and she starred in his most famous movies 'Hairspray'. She vanished till she re-surfaced as a chat show host in a market that was GLUTTED with chat shows, it went under the radar for the most part

Alan Jr.s got his lunchbox and he's armed real well.

I dressed in alternative/goth clothing (still do) when I was a teenager. My parents were super-religious, and my mom was the worst one. She would constantly ask me if I was a "Satan worshipper," while my dad would defend me, stating that Christian goths exist. Whenever I would roam the mall and go to Hot Topic, my mom would refuse to go into the store and would hand me money to pay for what I wanted instead.

Watching clips like these on the internet, when I first got into the goth subculture, gave me further confidence in expressing myself, so I am grateful for those shows having existed, even though that impact indeed often times was surely not what they aimed for.

I actually was Facebook friends with Alan Jr. He said that his relationship with his dad never improved. 😔 I felt for the guy. Not sure what he's up to these days, but hopefully he's getting along okay. Love the channel btw. New subscriber. 🖤

Riki lake was definitely the nicest talk show host. And, yes, Hot Topic use to be that awesome.

Back in the US in the 80's metalheads would start fights with punks and anybody who looked 'different'. Much different than today.

Whoa, total throwback! Rikki Lake always tried to keep things civil and would stick up for Alternative and Goth folks. On the other hand, Jenny Jones was terrible (which was another popular Talk Show in the US circa the 90s). The audience on Jenny Jones was SAVAGE. They'd boo and call you names. People were allowed to ask questions and Jenny Jones would allow the audience to just humiliate them. In the end they'd get a "normal" makeover. Yes, 90s Hot Topic was awesome. They used to have a whole rack of Alternative and Goth magazines and a rack of compilation CDs from record labels like Out of Line, Cleopatra, Metropolis, Dancing Ferret, and etc. And Mallgoth got started in America somewhere around 1994/1995. I love that era because those were my teen years. :)

I love how Irish people say Goth ^_^ So cute!

I have been goth for several years now. My parents accept it because they are happy that I am not out drinking or doing drugs. I started out as emo in middle school and when I dyed my hair black for the first time, which my mom helped with, the school actually called my mother and said that "I may be experiencing emotional problems since I dyed my hair black." My mom told them that she helped me dye it and they suddenly dropped the subject. This happened sometime in 2014-2015. My mom and I still laugh at how absurd it was that they thought I was super depressed all because I dyed my brown hair black.

It definitely is a projection of masculinity. Edit: The conservative host lady was surprisingly decent with them.

You can see how his demeanor really changed when Ricki genuinely asked him questions.

When I was growing up if I had dressed like this, my parents would have taken me to the church to exorcise the devil out of me :( I grew up in a very strict Christian home and if someone dressed alternative, they were automatically labeled as a devil worshipper. We actually had people in our town who thought the alternatives were out there killing animals and sacrificing people to the devil. If someone dresses in all white, no one thinks anything of it; or all blue, etc. The funny thing is that if you dress in all white in an Asian country, it isn't thought well of, and people use white as a sign of mourning. It's just the weird idea that someone came up with that dressing in all black, etc. is evil. But it isn't just for alternative/gothic people, it's anyone who doesn't dress like everyone else. I actually watched a video the other day about a little girl who loves all pink. At first this video seemed like it was going to be very sweet and that she had a loving family. As it progressed the parents showed that they were not supporting her at all. They took her to a pink restaurant and told her she couldn't have any food that wasn't pink; they told her she couldn't have her dog anymore because it wasn't pink. They took her to an all pink house, and told her she couldn't have any of her toys anymore because they weren't all pink. The worst thing of all is that even though they all dressed in pink for her "pink day", they kept complaining that they wished she would give up this obsession; They got very upset if anyone said something about them being dressed in all pink; and they were totally mortified about it. They said how embarrassed they were. Most of the comments I read were of people who thought what the parents were doing was great, but I was upset and felt like they were not supporting her. They made her feel bad for loving pink and showed her shame for the color by their reactions. It will be a wonder if she ever looks at pink again. If she was going to grow out of it on her own, she would have; but the way her parents acted probably escalated it by years. Who gets upset about their daughter liking pink? Really? So anyone can be targeted and made fun of for being different; even for wearing pink :(

You guys are so funny and cute. I loved these 90s shows back in the day. I remember watching them. Hot topic was amazing when it opened. I was a teen when it first did. I got awesome vinyl clothing, fishnet and elegant goth dresses. I still have the stuff after all these years.

Best line from Motley Crues Vince Neil "just because we wear lipstick doesn't mean we wont kick youe arse" :)

For sure I think it’s a masculinity thing, but I think it’s more than just makeup. Like, as weird as it is, it’s not considered “masculine” to dress up and care about your appearance, or to express yourself and your feelings in any way. Honestly, I don’t think we, as a community, talk about this issue enough.

You guys are the most adorable couple ever

The one thing I ALWAYS think about is what these guests are up to now. This WAS 20 some years ago. I mean, I was a total goth teen. I've softened in my older age, but not completely. I paint my nails, I wear jewelry. I'd like to see how Alan Jr. is doing today.

My parents are the same way. They have always blamed how I dressed on everything and would say "we should have forced you to be girly." They've thrown my things out so many times that I had to jump into the dumpster to get it back. I am 32 now and they still make the comments.

Yes, Hot Topic was once the store to go to for all your goth needs. I miss those times.

Alan Jrs got his lunchbox and he's armed real well

Poor Alan Jr didnt even know he was going on a talk show, his dad lied to him about the trip. I watched the original episode when i was a kid home sick from school, then went on to have my own goth kid. Shes 15 and this year I suddenly remembered Alan and looked for his episode. I found that...and his youtube channel. He has a video about the whole situation and his dads illegal enterprises during that time. Alan Jr is is a gym bro is recovery from addiction but still goth and i totally wish him the best. Glad my little goth will never get tricked into family humiliated her on TV.

Love the video guys and I think you look cool and gorgeous and don't let dickhead people bring you down in life because I love the way you express yourself

Ricki Lake was the kindest one! I’ve been saying for years that I wish her show and Tyra’s wretched (but hilarious) one would go on streaming somewhere! There’s one Tyra where they have have witches and they have gothy witches that are the “dark” witches 😅 and a guy called Konstantinos that was on several vampire talk show episodes 🤣

Hot Topic was great pre 2004. It was ok when they started making their own clothes post 2004 and pre 2010. A lot of it was that they sourced clothes mostly from Tripp NYC and Lip Service.

Older goth/punk from USA here... Ricki Lake was ALWAYS open minded. Her first movie was Hairspray where she was Divine's daughter, and the movie was directed by John Waters. For those who may not know, Divine was one of the very first openly gay, cross dressing movie stars. She wasn't trying to pass as fem, she was over the top! And John Waters was and always will be one of the most creatively weird writers and directors of off beat movies. So, Ricki Lake was a teenager on set for two movies with these wonderfully creative, and non-comforming people. I suggest watching some of those movies btw.

I really enjoyed this Video, hope everything goes well with Lynn and you, take the time you need to recover

Omg I love how OTT these are ahaha quite funny and entertaining honestly 💀

Yes, Hot Topic was like that back in the 90's. Ricki Lake was in a couple of John Waters movies. I feel this is probably the reason why she accepted the alternative lifestyle.

_For those who might know or don't or maybe curious..._ _...He has or had an old RU-vid Channel: "Alan Jr"!_

Here's some trivia for you and some background on why Ricki Lake is so awesome. Her debut film was in Cry Baby, directed by John Waters and she became a close friend of his and appeared in several of his movies after this. I think as a result she became hugely sympathetic to both freaky subcultures in general as well as queer culture, which has a parallel and often intersecting history with goth subculture.

I grew up homeschooled (read: I'm a PBS kid), I defiantly remember seeing a rerun of this episode and thinking "why are they so mean about Clothes??" I'm also researching Alternative Lifestyles in Media and Pop Culture, I know the UK has a lot of examples, but would love even more worldly examples.

I'm a 57 year old goth and my parents have never had an issue with the way I look, I take my mum to clubs with me too!

My husband and I met at a goth club in 2005 when I was 19. He is now the step dad to my 13 year old who with gothic parents wants to be goth. There is nothing wrong with being goth and he knows it. To bad his school forces ugly uniforms but in high school he gets to wear what he wants

Back in the 50s the long haired dad woulda been called a freak and that knowledge is lost on him ;)

If you have time, it would be great to get your reaction to the classic SNL Goth Talk skits.

Old dude time! Yes, Hot Topic was insanely good at first! 100% goth and punk shit! I'm sure they still are ok but back then it was great! And before that, late 80s and early 90s it was a lot more DIY and thrift shop things. Back when you had The Damned, Bauhaus, Jet Black Berries, punk and goth had more similarities and I miss it so much.

Ricki Lake is a gem. She's played in Hairspray and Cry Baby, which are John Waters movies. She dresses more conventional but she's always been more tolerant.

it made me so happy to know you listen to black veil brides. i grew up with them during my teen years 🖤

This is my first time seeing y'all twos videos and I really like your content you just earned a new subscriber

Ah no, not the posters! I remember that… the birth giver throwing a complete heppy skep, tearing all the posters down from my walls, snapping records, dragging all the tape out of cassettes, cutting the arms and legs off my clothes… It never made me stop “dressing like Halloween” though - just consolidated my teenage rage 😅

Ricki Lake was always on the side of whatever "alternative" guests she had...always making it a point of how dumb the opposition was.

True thing on the sexism thing. Even inside the alternative community. I once was talking to a guy online at the Dutch equivalent of vampire freaks about music and bands. He was super elitist or something and talked about certain bands. In his opinion if someone listened to those bands they were posers, losers and even "gay" and wouldn't be friends with them. I said "well I listen to some of those bands". And he straight up replied : "well but you're a girl so that doesn't count and I'll still hang out with you".

That's kinda the beauty of Ricki Lake. I use to watch her a lot when I was younger, mostly watching with my grandma. And a lot of Ricki Lake's stuff seemed to focus on self love and doing what makes you happy. I don't think I've ever seen her judge anyone, and she was very open minded about things.

I'm an old metal rock guy and I like goths ❤ Hot Topic was actually pretty good. They had metal band shirts. For goths it had to be a paradise.

Ricki Lake use to work on John Waters films and she was herself a misfit kid too. Plus the John Waters movies were always about celebrating being an outcast.

I am so old I remember watching these from back in the day when I was a teen. Ricki Lake was more polite and supportive as opposed to other shows.

I feel the dad of the 15 year old is actually being abusive to his son by taking him on a public tv show and having a go at him. Not just the appearance but about his grades etc. This is private to them. It shouldn’t be public. I am somewhat gothically inclined and I am a successful lawyer. So being goth doesn’t equal getting bad grades. Dad is basically being an a******e to his son and not being a good dad.

The folk that look the "scariest", your punks, your rockers, your goths, your metalheads and all the rest are more often than not the nicest people you'll meet. We're just nice folk that dress like evil ones

I'm excited for your videos about mall goth. Thank you for this video, the two of you are totally awesome

Oh the lunch box! I forgot all about the lunch boxes ❤ Yes, Rikki Lake was more compassionate and not as sensational as Jerry Springer. Phil Donahue and Oprah were the gold standards and then many tried to follow. Jerry Springer and Geraldo were the extreme sensationalists. Love seeing the young kids (and adults) of today do their goth thing and wearing Siouxsie shirts🖤😍. Great show you two! I think it's important to remember, this was the first wave of Goths (as we now know Goths) that the people in the US had ever seen. I think, if we're honest, goes a bit beyond long hair 🦇🥀🌝 And we thrift shopped, used a lot of safety pins and ripped our own clothes back then (a lot of pantyhose and fish net stockings were also involved). Hot Topic came a bit later and we were all SHOCKED you could buy stuff like that in stores.

Oh dude!! Love that Siouxsie shirt! I have a similar one lol

I remember watching this at the time (I live in England). I was raised on loads of music including post punk/goth rock/70s punk but only went full on goth in appearance at 12. I got into Manson soon after. No its not goth but plenty of the eldergoths I knew at the time were fans too so! I didn't know many ppl my age who were alternative at all. My mum was a strict Christian but let me look/listen to/read/watch what I wanted. She rebelled through me 😂 she stood up to my school who punished me for just being different. They accused me of "promoting black witchcraft" & an RE teacher compared me to Hitler (I'm a Heathen therefore a Nazi?!) so she threatened to sue for religious persecution...they suddenly said it was all "a big mistake" 😂 unfortunately I, along with the few others at local schools who wore black, was put on a "watchlist" after Columbine. We didn't do ANYTHING but the schools suddenly admitted to us being severely bullied because it served their agenda. The only time my mum begged me to "look normal" was when the bullying got worse than ever. I pointed out that I'd been the main target of it since I was 4, so it didn't matter what "reason" they chose. Unfortunately, from 14, I was attacked violently by gangs. This is something that hasn't changed. It will never stop me being myself though. Alan Jr has a RU-vid channel. He hasn't posted for a while & didn't seem to be in a great place on the last video. I really hope he's doing OK. Although most of these talk shows were exploitative of alternative kids, & some of the kids over the top antics made the rest of us look worse, it was kind of comforting to see other kids my age that looked like me then.

i missed you guys 🖤, this was an amazing video!

Ricky was a freak icon, part of John Waters pool of actors along with people like the legendary Divine. She was not your typical talk show host, she remains a strong queer ally to this day.

Alan Jr actually has a RU-vid channel (though it hasn't been updated for awhile now) but I subscribed when I found it and looks like it wasn't just a phase as his jock dad hoped. Some of us are just born different and fitting into a little closed off box of what our society deems as normal just is not a possibility. And I'm damn glad I never have.

On a positive note Alan Jr is actually a pretty cool dude.

When the father says "look at his grades! He's failing school since he wore this!" Shows that he doesn't realize as a parent that the problem rooted from him lol sometimes parents should take accountability.

you two are like the coolest people ive watched in a really long time. much love :)

Also huge fan of your channels its been alot of fun going through the videos ive misseed you guys are such a wholesome couple and i absutely love the way your room is degined! As for the video i remember when this episode aired i was kid and my mom loved to watch this and jerry springer alot. I could not understand why alans father was such a dickhead like this guy represents every thing i hate man so im glad rikki took up for alan and im glad aln never gave up his love for the goth culture.

glad you mentioned being an alt guy and the different problems that come with it. Wearing even just black nail polish will get me in trouble if I get the wrong train line home

They found the perfect target to outrage with mockery: a dad who hates to not be in control lol. It was all about control for that dad, the look was secondary to it all. He could've taken a rhasta style and still pissed him off.

I noticed that long haired dad and goth kid were from New Hampshire. I grew up there and have been dressing extremely goth since age 12. It is a super conservative state, and I got bullied, beat up, harassment of all kinds, raped by a gang of jocks, etc. It was hell. I left as soon as I was 18 and moved to San Francisco, where suddenly I could be myself. I met others who liked the same things. By the way, Ricky Lake has always been cool. Very open minded.

I used to work at hot topic in the late 90s and it was great. You can sometimes still find old pieces on eBay and Poshmark if you look hard. Also Ricki Lake was the little girl in the original Hairspray film, she's extremely open minded and very funny to this day tbh.

Your Siouxsie t shirt,, I was actually at that tour _gig ,in los Angeles in 1986. Love and Rockets Opened for them. Hollywood Palladium

I want to bring the positive to the front on second read . My dad fortunately has always been supportive of me. I have pressed him on the topic but, meeting his old friends once every few years, he was a jock growing up, but the kind who generally had friends in every group, tried everything once, was friends with a "bully" (boooo) but those he still knows say he would be the one to use his influence to bring his jock friends down from it. He is definitely not perfect, but.... : He didnt like my cloths all the time and made comments but ultimately never told me to change my cloths or forced me into anything (clothing, sexuality, values, career etc.). He didnt always get it - not just with goth/alt scenes, but anything in my life. Still, he would give his input, ask me what I thought and let me explain, then let me decide and not hold it against me if I ultimately decided to do my own thing anyways no matter if he finally understood or not. My mother was polar opposite. I wasnt aloud to wear black at all when I was young living with her because its "Of the devil" (wish I were joking), called me names or a dreamer for my passions though at that time I was "the good child". Generally , without going into it, not great. So I can see my dad saw her behaviour and with me did his best to support the best in me no matter where that best came from. To the grades- my grades started slipping when I wasnt being "stimulated", wasnt interested, or it was repeat (I switched schools/provinces so curriculum overlap). Just didnt care to put effort on things that I had already done or didnt care about. I went from being a top student to average but had nothing to do with my capabilities or the subcultures I was into - I didnt even get full into alt groups until about a year after my dad and I had a talk about my grades. When I went to university my studious friends started dropping grades due to transition whereas I stayed in the mid-avg level without stressing. It will probably happen eventually to most no matter what music/clothing you wear. To corr. vs causation- I did eventually go into alt. groups (I had previously liked the music but was always straight-laced externally even with good grades. When it happened, the clothing was probably more of an outwards representation of the ways I had always felt or felt more because of the moving around/external ongoing issues (again related to grades and repeat materials). So you're absolutely correct. It was one way to observe things but its not as cut and dry or a blame target as people would probably like.

Alan Jr. Was iconic. I wonder how he's doing now.

Glad to see you're back. Hope everything goes well for you and yours 🖤

Actually there is an old episode of Oprah (I think) with metalheads who happen to be quite eloquent and make good points, who do make a good impression on the audience

You guys are totally right about the whole alternative guy thing. I feel like societal norms have conditioned people to be slightly more accepting (if not fetishizing) of alternative women, because women are "supposed" to wear makeup, and be more into fashion. However, I feel because of these norms, when men are alternative, they get more outright hostility. Lots of people don't like seeing men wear makeup, or have a distinct style (caring enough about fashion). IMO, that could be a factor why: 1) there aren't as much VISUALLY alternative (ignoring music taste) men, and 2) Alternative women have way more representation in fashion brands (such as killstar, etc)

fun fact, Ricky Lake acted in a few John Waters movies before she was a talkshow host. she was actually the lead role in the original Hairspray.

My dad was Christian strict when it came to music and style. When divorce happened as a teen my mom let us had our freedom. She was a goth back in highschool. I'm happy to have her. Also I was really into black veil brides as well. They were my first band to see live.

I actually watched a lot of these shows when they came out and my parents were goth Back then you could not even get into Disneyland dressed like that. My parents and I weee almost denied entry because of the way they were dressed.

The first time my dad saw me in nail polish, he decided I was gay. For the next 4 years of my life, my name was "faxxot" or "fxg boy". I don't like even typing words like that, but that's what it was. We don't talk anymore.

honestly if anyone told me i looked like i came off another planet i'd take the freaking compliment and go

I read on some other video that the dad went on the show with his so as a joke and that he was actually really supportive

Love your look!! I was gothic back in the 90’s .

New sub. I am a Goth from Cork, but I live in the states now. So glad to see our country on youtube as Goth!

I like the alchemy that seems to exist between you and your way to express yourselves. You got me interested in gothic movement.

I'd love to have a drink with you 2. I live in North County Dublin and I feel like I'm the only lad in my town in their 20s who openly listens to metal, punk, hard rock, doom, grunge, sludge and who dresses alternatively. Wish I had mates like you guys growing up. Also, the lad you reacted to in the video (Alan Junior) has a RU-vid channel. I used to watch his videos a lot back in the day, he's a really intelligent guy. He hasn't uploaded in 5 years but as far as I can remember in his last video he said he's doing fine and he's just done with uploading videos, he doesn't like doing it anymore. I subscribed, anyway. Looking forward to more videos!!

1:34 The craziest thing is that Alan is 39 years old! WTF. I'm 50 and look 20 years younger than he does. Holy shit.

My family is Christian and my dad is even a preacher but once he wasn't actively traveling with the family for his ministry they didn't care what I wore. The only time they said anything was when my mom realized I was gauging my ears. She cared but she didn't tell me I couldn't do it she was just concerned it was something permanent I would regret...that was like 15 years ago and I still have my gauges.

My mom thought I was crazy when I wore my Trip-pants with my slipknot shirt. I just wish people would have an open-mind, and just let us be.

As guy I remember make up always crossed the line for my parents. I wore long black coats and red and black hair in high-school and stuff. I put make up on in the school bathroom and removed it befor I got home. But if I has anything left my mom would notice and for some reason that crossed the line. Even when I did latter as a young adult in college but still living at home it drove her crazy. To this day when I have makeup she gets uncomfortable.

More reacts 🥰 this is so fun, maybe more of tv adverts from around the world 🖤

old hot topic was wicked yall would have loved it