WHO IS WEBB WILDER?
In 1981, John McMurry, Robert Field and Steve Mims collaborated to create a twelve minute short 16mm film, WEBB WILDER, PRIVATE EYE. A film class final project for Mims at the University of Southern Mississippi, the short sprang from an idea hatched by Field and McMurry. The resulting black and white short became a surprise hit in film festivals and on television, including the ARTS and ENTERTAINMENT NETWORK, a three-year stint on the USA Network's NIGHTFLIGHT and winning the Grand Prize at the University of Texas Student Union Film Festival. It struck a nerve and minted instant fans of the offbeat, ERASER HEAD meets ANDY GRIFFITH hillbilly detective, quickly becoming an underground cult classic. Wayne Bledsoe of the KNOXVILLE NEWS-SENTINEL wrote: "It became a staple on the USA Network's late night program 'Night Flight' for a good reason. It's a scream."

While the film aired the USA Network's Night Flight program (beginning in 1984), R. S. "Bobby" Field and Webb Wilder (John McMurry) moved to Nashville, Tennessee to pursue their music. Field wrote for fellow Mississippian Dan Tyler's Intuit Music Group, while McMurry formed his own band. Once the Webb film began playing on the Night Flight program (a pre-cursor to MTV), people began to recognize McMurry from WEBB WILDER on the street. Field and McMurry decided to form an original band, Webb Wilder & the Beatnecks, with McMurry adopting the Wilder character as a persona 24/7 as well as his nom de plume. Field wrote most of the songs. Emerging in Nashville clubs in the winter of 1985, they became a 'buzz' band, part of a Nashville rock and roll scene which included ground breakers like Jason & the Scorchers, Tim Kreckel & the Sluggers, the Georgia Satellites, etc. After recording their self-released album It Came From Nashville in 1986, they were signed to Island Records, and over the course of the last twenty years have recorded over seven album projects for other major and independent labels. These albums include It Came From Nashville, Hybrid Vigor, DooDad (which included the AOR hit Tough It Out), Town & Country, Acres of Suede, About Time, Scattered-Smothered-and Covered (a 'best of' of their independent label releases) and the upcoming, already award winning Tough It Out live DVD and CD. All these releases were produced and for the most part composed by Field.

In 1991 a second film, Horror Hayride, was produced by the original Webb Wilder movie team (with Steve Mims again directing). This was done for Zoo/BMG Records with funds originally intended for the typical, short music video. The resulting film went on to play in film festivals and garner a SILVER HUGO award from the Chicago International Film Festival.

Zoo/Praxis released a video compilation of WEBB WILDER: THE SAUCER'S REIGN, WEBB WILDER'S HORROR HAYRIDE and AUNT HALLIE nationally on videocassette in 1992. It earned high praise from across the country and helped make Webb an underground pop icon.

SCATTERGUN marks a reunion of McMurry, Field and Mims and was orchestrated by another Mississippian, Thomas A. Blanton. Blanton is a geologist and environmentalist from Hattiesburg who holds a divinity degree from Harvard. The quartet organized this filmmaking endevour as PRIVATEER, LLC.

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Connect with other Webb Wilder fans and get up to date information about tour dates at www.webbwilder.com