Ted Nugent
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Miami Vice Character
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Miami Vice Performer
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Born
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December 13, 1948, Detroit, Michigan
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Active
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1958-present
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Spouse/Children
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Sandra Jezowski (1970-76, divorced, died 1982, three children)
Shemane Deziel (1989-present, two children) Two sons and one daughter from previous relationships |
Theodore Anthony Nugent (born December 13, 1948) is an American hard rock guitarist and vocalist, who made his screen acting debut in the episode "Definitely Miami" of Miami Vice as Charlie Basset. Basset was running a con game with his wife Callie (played by Arielle Dombasle) to kill drug buyers, take their money, and bury them (and their cars) in mile-high sand. His song "Angry Young Man" also appeared in that episode,
Later that season, Nugent's song "Little Miss Dangerous" appeared in the episode of the same name.
Career
Nugent was born in Detroit, Michigan, which gave rise to his nickname The Motor City Madman. He moved to Palatine, Illinois when he was a teenager and attended high school there. In 1965 he formed his first band, The Amboy Dukes, becoming the house band at The Cellar, a teenage club outside of Chicago, where they were in residency until the club closed. The group made the Billboard Top 40 in 1968 with "Journey To The Center of the Mind", reaching #16. They released four more albums (two with Frank Zappa's record label) before dropping the name in 1975 (later the band would be inducted into the Michigan Rock & Roll Legends Hall of Fame).
Nugent then became a solo act. He released three albums during this period, Ted Nugent, Free-For-All, and Cat Scratch Fever, which featured his songs "Hey, Baby", "Stranglehold", "Dog Eat Dog", and "Cat Scratch Fever" (the only one that reached the Billboard Top 40, hitting #30 in 1977). After three more albums in the 1980s (including Little Miss Dangerous, on which his two Vice songs appear), he formed the supergroup Damn Yankees with former Styx guitarist Tommy Shaw, bassist Jack Blades (formerly of Night Ranger), and Michael Cartellone (current Lynyrd Skynyrd drummer). They had success in the late 1980s with their eponymous debut album, and their Top 10 single "High Enough". It was during this time that Nugent began wearing his now-trademark WhackMaster hat.
He returned to solo performances in 1995 and has recorded four more albums, and tours regularly.
Television Appearances
Nugent has appeared as himself on many TV news shows and documentaries, as well as the shows That 70's Show, The Simpsons (with Harry Shearer), and Penn & Teller, Bullshit! (with Penn Jillette & Teller), and the movie Private Parts. As an actor, he has appeared in the movies Tapeheads, Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child, and Beer For My Horses (with Willie Nelson). Nugent also appeared in several reality shows, including Spirit of the Wild, where Nugent took people on his various hunts, and Surviving Nugent, where he took "city slickers" (including Tia Tequila) to his ranch in Texas to perform backwoods tasks such as skinning a boar or building an outhouse. During the second installment, he injured himself with a chainsaw, which required 44 stitches and a leg brace. His most recent reality show was Wanted, Ted or Alive, where contestants had to kill and clean their own food to survive, and competed for a chance to hunt with "Uncle" Ted.
Personal life
Nugent is a fervent believer in unrestricted gun ownership, hunter's rights, and abstinence from drug/alcohol use. He is a spokesman for MADD, DARE, Big Brothers/Big Sisters, and the National Archery Field Association. He founded Ted Nugent Kamp for Kids, a camp for inner-city children teaching them hands-on about hunting, conservation, and archery, tied in with a strong anti-drug message. He is a member of the NRA, and frequently speaks about the Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms. Nugent also is a guest blogger for the Washington Times online news site.
Nugent has been married twice, first to Sandra Jezowski from 1970 until their divorce in 1976. They had three children; Jezowski later died in a car accident in 1982. After the divorce, Nugent had a relationship with Pele Massa, a 17-year-old Hawaiian girl, that lasted a decade. Nugent married his current wife, Shemaine Deziel in 1989, and they have two children. Nugent also has a son named Christian Taylor (born 1995), whom he has never met, but who was the subject of a court battle in 2005 when Christian's mother sued for unpaid child support. Nugent also had two other children, a boy (Ted) and a girl, from a relationship prior to his marriage to Jezowski. They were given up for adoption to separate families and did not know about their real father until 2010.
in something out of the ordinary, he is a great friend of Rage Against The Machine lead singer Tom Morello (who's left-winged)