An avant garde film by Frank Zappa made for the Dilexi Foundation on KQED!

Burnt Weeny Sandwich

April 30, 1969
The Dilexi Series
KQED TV, San Francisco, CA
18 min. B&W and color

Includes (footage in order of appearance):

• 00:07 London Underground
• 00:51 JCB, Gail eating a banana, Don Preston/Uncle Meat, some girls (B&W)
• 01:44 The Omens Footage/The Bug (c. 1958-62)
• 04:00 Mothers live with the GTO’s (& Ray Collins)
• 05:11 Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band at homne with a mannequin
• 07:37 MOI Footage c. 1968-69
• 08:13 FZ whipping a GTO onstage (& Ray Collins), prob. Whisky à Go-Go, July 23, 1968
• 09:07 Some TV show shooting with FZ playing guitar
• 09:21 Unknown couple at home (?)
• 09:42 Young Don Van Vliet
• 09:43 FZ/Herb Cohen/MOI slide show
• 09:55 Mothers live with Ray Collins and Doll leg (Garrick Theatre)
• 10:02 Berlin 1968 Riot
• 12:00 Mayfair Studios, NYC, 1967 (with Billy Mundi)
• 13:51 MOI Footage c. 1968-69
• 14:11 Berlin Hotel, 1968
• 14:20 Calvin, Ray & FZ at the kitchen
• 15:04 Dom DeWild attacked by the other MOI
• 15:17 Dom DeWild at Royal Festival Hall, 1968
• 15:27 Vienna Woods Footage, 1968

Music:

• 00:21 Uncle Meat: Main Title Theme (1:26-1:55) from Uncle Meat
• 00:49 Unidentified percussion piece
• 01:32 Theme From Burnt Weeny Sandwich from Burnt Weeny Sandwich
• 06:04 A Pound For A Brown (On The Bus) from Uncle Meat
• 07:34 Snork
• 07:39 Dog Breath, In The Year Of The Plague from Uncle Meat
• 11:38 Unidentified percussion, keyboards, electronics & snorks piece
• 12:01 Prelude To King Kong from Uncle Meat
• 15:39 God Bless America from Uncle Meat
• 16:18 The Dog Breath Variations from Uncle Meat

The credits on screen:

INTERCONTINENTAL ABSURDITIES
PREVENTS:

A FILM BY:
FRANK ZAPPA

BURNT
WEENY
SANDWICH

A BUNCH OF LITTLE PICTURES OF
THE MOTHERS OF INVENTION
GIRLS TOGETHER OUTRAGEOUSLY
WITH SPECIAL GUEST STAR
CAPTAIN BEEFHEART
& HIS MAGIC BAND

PHOTOGRAPHED BY:
FRANK ZAPPA
ED SEEMAN
RAY FAVATA
CAL SCHENKEL
BRUCE CLARK
HERMAN JAUK
LAURIE LEWIS

SPECIAL OPTICAL EFFECTS:
BURTON C. GERSHFIELD

PRODUCTION ASSISTANTS:
PETER MAYS
&
DAVE DAWDY

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER
HERB COHEN

MUSIC
COMPOSED
BY:
FRANK ZAPPA

MOSTLY
FROM THE
BIZARRE
REPRISE
ALBUM
UNCLE MEAT

PERFORMED BY
THE
MOTHERS
OF INVENTION

[7:33]

MEANWHILE IN ANOTHER PART OF THE MOVIE . . .

[18:03]

MASKING TAPE

Aired on KQED TV in 1969, the Dilexi Series represents a pioneering effort to present works created by artists specifically for broadcast. The 12-part weekly series was conceived and commissioned by the Dilexi Foundation, an off-shoot of the influential San Francisco art gallery founded by James Newman. Newman, who operated the Dilexi Gallery from 1958 until 1970, saw this innovative series as an opportunity to extend the influence of the contemporary arts far beyond the closeted environment of the commercial gallery.

Formal agreement was reached with KQED in 1968 with the station’s own John Coney designated as series producer. No restrictions, regarding length, form or content, were imposed upon the works, except for Newman’s stipulation that they be aired weekly within the same time-slot. Upon their completion, the 12 works were broadcast during the spring and summer of 1969.

Of the 12 artists invited to participate in the Dilexi Series, ten of them completed new works, and two, Andy Warhol and Frank Zappa, submitted extant works. The tapes and films are far-reaching in their approaches to the medium and the circumstance of the broadcast series. Some of the artists chose to intervene in the relationship of broadcaster and audience by broaching the subject of communications. […]

Burnt Weeny Sandwich is another rarity. Created by Frank Zappa, the film, in one form or another, found its way into a larger work, Uncle Meat. Something of a high-speed home movie, Burnt Weeny Sandwich features the original Mothers of Invention, along with Captain Beefheart. This is one of the works that exists only within the Dilexi Series.

Once broadcast, the Dilexi Series was stored on the original 2″ videotape masters, a now archaic video format. Some masters were transferred to a contemporary format in 1982 and presented at the S.F. Video Festival. Through the generosity of KQED, the last of the Dilexi Series was just transferred to an exhibition format. This marks the first time in 22 years that all the Dilexi tapes are available. […]

BURNT WEENY SANDWICH
by Frank Zappa
broadcast: 4/30/69

Antics of the Mothers of Invention are further accelerated by heavily processed film footage. Zappa is seen performing music from the “Uncle Meat” LP. This work was completed about 10 years before MTV went on the air.

Music by Zappa, “mostly from Uncle Meat.” Photographed by Zappa and others. Special Optical Effects by Burton C. Gershfield. Produced by Herb Cohen. With the Mothers of Invention, Captain Beefheart.

18:00 B&W and Color 16mm

color, mono, fullscreen, 18 minutes. also includes THE MOTHERS live at the BEAT CLUB in 1968. DVD-R comes packaged as shown in color DVD case, wrapped in plastic!