We heard rumblings in 2006 about a Congressional candidate in northern Indiana who called a press conference to shred what he said was an original first issue of Playboy. Ouch! Turns out he's a lawyer and former prosecutor named Tony Zirkle, running for Congress as a Republican near South Bend. We have posted a photo taken in his office at the "event" but must warn you it is not easy to look at. The point of the shredding was something about how men should "focus their attention on their wives" because that might strengthen their marriages and allow their "creativity and untapped talents" to be released, which Zirkle said would ultimately help boost the economy.
So, Zirkle is back in the news -- and it involves another disturbing photo (after the break) that takes this amusing (except for the shredding) story into the realm of the despicable. Zirkle, who is again running for Congress (do you just sign up somewhere?), decided to accept an invitation to speak to a group about his ongoing anti-pornography campaign (about 10 years ago he helped prosecute a number of South Bend adult bookstore owners). Trouble is, the group was the American National Socialist Workers Party, a.k.a. Nazis! The Nazis snapped the photo of his keynote address and posted it on their website, compelling a local Republican leader to note to the South Bend Tribune that Nazism, fascism and socialism are "polar opposites" of the party platform. Also, that Zirkle has been disinvited from any future Republican functions.
If there is any positive to be taken from this episode, at least Zirkle was not dressed in drag while speaking to the Nazis. That would have really complicated things.
(This past Monday, at his law office, Zirkle shredded a September 1969 copy of Penthouse, which has much less cringe value.)
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Comments on this entry:
How can we be sure this wasn't a reissue of the first magazine cover? I wouldn't put it past him doing that, just for shock value.
At the very least, it's free publicity for the magazine!
Just a thought.
Joe Sauceda
If this shredding took place in 2006, as the article indicates, then were they any reprints of V.1 #1 available at that time? I don't believe there were, but I really don't know for certain. It could have been a genuine issue that he shredded. It would have been about a $3K publicity stunt, but it likely attracted more attention than a $3K ad would have.
Of course, once the photo of Zirkle's addressing the Nazi gathering gets circulated widely, he might as well stuff his whole political future into the shredder.
Indiana Nazis! And some people think Illinois Nazis are bad!
As I recall, the German Nazis also made a great show of destroying "degenerate" art. His shredder-enabled vandalism may have inspired our home-grown thugs to invite him.
To keep the Zirkle unbroken, check out Sadly, No!, at
http://www.sadlyno.com/archives/9364.html
and
http://www.sadlyno.com/archives/9354.html