Screaming Byrin – Screaming Lord Byron
https://wiki.wizard101central.com/wiki/NPC:Screaming_Byrin
https://david-bowie.fandom.com/wiki/Screaming_Lord_Byron
He spends his time preaching to the Alphoi about a danger far worse than the Shadow – their own gluttony. He is convinced that Gobblers are the Alphoi past and unless they change their ways, the Alphoi future as well.
Screaming Byrin is trying to convince his fellow Alphoi about the dangers of cake. Cake is full of chocolatey goodness, cake sings a siren song that no Alphoi can ignore. He asks for Your Wizard’s assistance in removing all the cake and other decadent treats in the Leisure Dome. Byrin wants you to take the cake and treats to his vault in the sewers.
Screaming Lord Byron is a character both created and played by David Bowie for the short film, Jazzin’ For Blue Jean, released in 1984 to promote the Tonight single of the same name, ‘Blue Jean’.
In the film, Bowie plays both a clumsy, awkward would-be romantic, and Screaming Lord Byron himself. Byron appears to have several guises. He appears in the beginning of the film as any standard, Bowie musician during a live performance broadcasted. Then he’s shown being pumped full of drugs (one of the film’s many tongue-in-cheek self laughs to Bowie) and being relatively regal as his make-up is applied.
When the protagonist – played by Bowie, also – breaks through the roof to Byron’s dressing room, Byron is shown as being extremely fearful, even paranoid; perhaps a nod to the effects of drug use. Nevertheless, when he appears onstage for the ‘Blue Jean’ video (which is cut directly from the Jazzin’ For Blue Jean film), he is in his element; dressed in an Eastern-style dress with turban, loose-fitting, vibrant robes and iconic contouring make-up.
Screaming Lord Byron only featured in the Jazzin’ For Blue Jean film, and was not portrayed by Bowie anywhere else, on or offstage.
The name of Screaming Lord Byron stems from real-life musician, Screaming Lord Sutch (who in turn was inspired by Screamin’ Jay Hawkins – both were famed for their theatrics onstage, similar to Bowie) and Lord Byron; an early 19th century poet of the romantic movement, famed for his scandals and relationships. The combination of both paint a good picture of Bowie; or more how he was no doubt interpreted by the media of the time.
The current list of all the (known) Empyrea references can be found here.
Although I am well versed in Pop Culture references but I do not claim to have caught them all. Let me know your favorites in the comments and if I’ve missed one you caught, let me know so I can add it to the list.
Text for this article is excerpted from the linked wiki pages
Screaming Byrin image is from Wizard101, and copyright of KingsIsle Entertainment.
Screaming Lord Byron image is borrowed from the David Bowie Fandom Wiki it is copyright Sony Home Video and EMI
Image usage qualifies as fair use under US copyright law.
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