#276: Wayne Sturdivant: The Artist Formerly Known as Percepto

       Upon beginning a massive Phineas and Ferb re-watch with the sis, it's dawned on me that Dr. Doofenshmirtz is a villian that suburban HGTV-addicts like my mother can really rally behind. There's so much talk of beachfront property and resale value in his schemes that sailed over my head as a youngster. Just some food-for-thought. Anywho, time for another '60s-era ex-crimefighter in the vain of my last character. Ladies and gents, I give you Wayne Sturdivant: the artist formerly known as Percepto! The superhero and the rock star are pretty parallel professions. Bold, bombastic public personas, legions of devoted followers, and a break-neck lifestyle that either leaves you a bygone novelty or cements you as a giant amongst men. So, once your golden age is behind you and your shrapnel-skewered ticker yearns for something fresh, making the leap from crimefighting fame to the annals of rock history would be easy-peasy, yes? In theory. Not every philanthropic Einstein in a tin can or wisecracking mutate has the chops to nail the transition--although one particular hero was essentially born for it. Back in the '60s, when every crusader and their mother (may she rest in peace) was hurling hokey one-liners at their adversaries, Wayne Sturdivant, AKA "Percepto" hummed his way through combat. The young hero's heightened senses would drastically enrich the psychedelic symphonies he listened to, allowing him to enjoy the trippy tunes of the times on an even trippier level. So, he traded his goggles for a Gibson and set out to share that. Busting onto the unsuspecting airwaves with a warped barrage of sound he dubbed "onomatopoeia pop," the super-powered soloist baffled listeners with an uncanny recreation of the concert inside his cranium--one that would warrant a tip of Brian Wilson's toy fire helmet. (I realize this post was kind of a nosedive into the pit of pop culture references. Comment below if I should include an index.)