Pink Floyd (fictional character)
Encyclopedia
Floyd Pinkerton, more commonly known as Pink Floyd, is the fictional central character of Pink Floyd's album/rock opera
The Wall
and the accompanying film Pink Floyd The Wall
(1982), in which he is portrayed by Bob Geldof
. He is also mentioned in The Final Cut
. He is depicted as a schizophrenic
(or at least a schizoid
) rock star suffering from a mental breakdown.
). Pink had great difficulty in growing up without a father. This was presented as the first 'brick' in Pink's symbolical wall of self-inflicted isolation; he coped with traumatic events by becoming more and more secluded from the rest of the world and from his loved ones. Other 'bricks' from his childhood were the memory of his overprotective mother and his experiences at school with a cynical teacher.
Years later, Pink had become a successful rock star but the traumas from his childhood were still actively undermining his mental health. Furthermore, Pink's relationship with his wife had also gotten out of hand. Pink acted in an almost unemotional and asexual manner towards her and seemed to associate her with his mother. Whenever he calls her on the telephone, she doesn't answer. It is implied she is having an affair.
At the same time, Pink acted aggressively towards a groupie
, trashed his hotel room before locking himself inside of it. He retreated into neurotic behaviour
and shaved off his body hair. He was eventually found by his manager and a team of medical personnel in a near catatonic state
. Although Pink is obviously unable to perform in this condition, a doctor had given him drugs in order to "get you [Pink] going through the show." After the drugs kicked in, Pink believed himself to be a fascist dictator who ruled over his audience while performing, probably a hallucination.
After a while, Pink discovers that he doesn't want to be a dictator and that his dictatorship was only a delusion, and Pink finds himself cowering in a bathroom cell of the concert hall and reading poems from his "little black book" (which turn out to be lyrics for later the Pink Floyd album The Final Cut
and Roger Waters' first solo album, The Pros and Cons of Hitchhiking). He then asks himself whether or not he has "been guilty all this time". He puts himself on trial in his mind and plays out the parts of the judge, the prosecutor, the witnesses and himself. Eventually, he is found guilty and sentenced to be "exposed before his peers." The symbolical wall then comes crashing down.
As The Wall ends at that point, it is not revealed what actually happens to Pink afterwards. The song "The Final Cut
" implies that Pink later attempts suicide
by almost slitting his throat, but "never had the nerve", and also that he had children (possibly meaning that he made up with his wife and they made their marriage work and he left his childhood trauma behind him, it's also possible he could have had children during the events of "The Wall", although they never appear, and are never mentioned in the album or film). "The Final Cut" may not serve as a reliable way of determining Pink's later life, as it's possible "The Final Cut" may simply be summarizing the events that occurred in "The Wall".
.
He primarily modeled the character of Pink after Syd Barrett
, one of Pink Floyd's founding members, but he also added other elements to the character such as Pink's childhood, which is similar to Waters' own past. Both Pink and Waters lost their father in WWII and had to go to a boarding school. But some other personality traits are, according to Waters, based on other people in the music industry. In the DVD commentary for Pink Floyd The Wall, Waters names Keith Moon
as an inspiration for Pink's trashing of the hotel room in "One of My Turns
."
". At the end of the song "In the Flesh", the crowd is heard chanting "Pink Floyd" into the beginning of "Run Like Hell".
David Buchanan, a writer for Consequence of Sound
, theorizes that the character of Floyd Pinkerton, in becoming a proverbial rock star, utilizes taunts from classmates -- who dubbed him "Pinky" -- to cull "Pink Floyd" as his celebrity moniker. As this practice is common in the entertainment industry, one can deduce that "Pink Floyd" is not just a persona later elaborated upon during "Comfortably Numb
" and "In The Flesh", but Floyd's pseudonym
in the business.
Rock opera
A rock opera is a work of rock music that presents a storyline told over multiple parts, songs or sections in the manner of opera. A rock opera differs from a conventional rock album, which usually includes songs that are not unified by a common theme or narrative. More recent developments include...
The Wall
The Wall
The Wall is the eleventh studio album by English progressive rock group Pink Floyd. Released as a double album on 30 November 1979, it was subsequently performed live with elaborate theatrical effects, and adapted into a feature film, Pink Floyd—The Wall.As with the band's previous three...
and the accompanying film Pink Floyd The Wall
Pink Floyd The Wall (film)
Pink Floyd—The Wall is a 1982 British live-action/animated musical film directed by Alan Parker based on the 1979 Pink Floyd album The Wall. The screenplay was written by Pink Floyd vocalist and bassist Roger Waters. The film is highly metaphorical and is rich in symbolic imagery and sound...
(1982), in which he is portrayed by Bob Geldof
Bob Geldof
Robert Frederick Zenon "Bob" Geldof, KBE is an Irish singer, songwriter, author, occasional actor and political activist. He rose to prominence as the lead singer of the Irish rock band The Boomtown Rats in the late 1970s and early 1980s alongside the punk rock movement. The band had hits with his...
. He is also mentioned in The Final Cut
The Final Cut (album)
The Final Cut is the twelfth studio album by English progressive rock group Pink Floyd. It was released in March 1983 by Harvest Records in the United Kingdom, and several weeks later by Columbia Records in the United States. A concept album, The Final Cut is the last of the band's releases to...
. He is depicted as a schizophrenic
Schizophrenia
Schizophrenia is a mental disorder characterized by a disintegration of thought processes and of emotional responsiveness. It most commonly manifests itself as auditory hallucinations, paranoid or bizarre delusions, or disorganized speech and thinking, and it is accompanied by significant social...
(or at least a schizoid
Schizoid personality disorder
Schizoid personality disorder is a personality disorder characterized by a lack of interest in social relationships, a tendency towards a solitary lifestyle, secretiveness, emotional coldness, and sometimes apathy, with a simultaneous rich, elaborate, and exclusively internal fantasy world...
) rock star suffering from a mental breakdown.
Character Background
Pink was born at the end of the Second World War, shortly before his father was killed when his bunker was bombed by a German Stuka dive bomber (during the battle of AnzioOperation Shingle
Operation Shingle , during the Italian Campaign of World War II, was an Allied amphibious landing against Axis forces in the area of Anzio and Nettuno, Italy. The operation was commanded by Major General John P. Lucas and was intended to outflank German forces of the Winter Line and enable an...
). Pink had great difficulty in growing up without a father. This was presented as the first 'brick' in Pink's symbolical wall of self-inflicted isolation; he coped with traumatic events by becoming more and more secluded from the rest of the world and from his loved ones. Other 'bricks' from his childhood were the memory of his overprotective mother and his experiences at school with a cynical teacher.
Years later, Pink had become a successful rock star but the traumas from his childhood were still actively undermining his mental health. Furthermore, Pink's relationship with his wife had also gotten out of hand. Pink acted in an almost unemotional and asexual manner towards her and seemed to associate her with his mother. Whenever he calls her on the telephone, she doesn't answer. It is implied she is having an affair.
At the same time, Pink acted aggressively towards a groupie
Groupie
A groupie is a person who seeks emotional and sexual intimacy with a musician or other celebrity. "Groupie" is derived from group in reference to a musical group, but the word is also used in a more general sense, especially in casual conversation....
, trashed his hotel room before locking himself inside of it. He retreated into neurotic behaviour
Neurosis
Neurosis is a class of functional mental disorders involving distress but neither delusions nor hallucinations, whereby behavior is not outside socially acceptable norms. It is also known as psychoneurosis or neurotic disorder, and thus those suffering from it are said to be neurotic...
and shaved off his body hair. He was eventually found by his manager and a team of medical personnel in a near catatonic state
Catatonia
Catatonia is a state of neurogenic motor immobility, and behavioral abnormality manifested by stupor. It was first described in 1874: Die Katatonie oder das Spannungsirresein ....
. Although Pink is obviously unable to perform in this condition, a doctor had given him drugs in order to "get you [Pink] going through the show." After the drugs kicked in, Pink believed himself to be a fascist dictator who ruled over his audience while performing, probably a hallucination.
After a while, Pink discovers that he doesn't want to be a dictator and that his dictatorship was only a delusion, and Pink finds himself cowering in a bathroom cell of the concert hall and reading poems from his "little black book" (which turn out to be lyrics for later the Pink Floyd album The Final Cut
The Final Cut (album)
The Final Cut is the twelfth studio album by English progressive rock group Pink Floyd. It was released in March 1983 by Harvest Records in the United Kingdom, and several weeks later by Columbia Records in the United States. A concept album, The Final Cut is the last of the band's releases to...
and Roger Waters' first solo album, The Pros and Cons of Hitchhiking). He then asks himself whether or not he has "been guilty all this time". He puts himself on trial in his mind and plays out the parts of the judge, the prosecutor, the witnesses and himself. Eventually, he is found guilty and sentenced to be "exposed before his peers." The symbolical wall then comes crashing down.
As The Wall ends at that point, it is not revealed what actually happens to Pink afterwards. The song "The Final Cut
The Final Cut (song)
"The Final Cut" is the title track from Pink Floyd's 1983 album The Final Cut. The video depicts Roger Waters singing to a psychologist and utilizes old film footage of 1930s and 1940s life intertwined...
" implies that Pink later attempts suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
by almost slitting his throat, but "never had the nerve", and also that he had children (possibly meaning that he made up with his wife and they made their marriage work and he left his childhood trauma behind him, it's also possible he could have had children during the events of "The Wall", although they never appear, and are never mentioned in the album or film). "The Final Cut" may not serve as a reliable way of determining Pink's later life, as it's possible "The Final Cut" may simply be summarizing the events that occurred in "The Wall".
Inspiration
The concept for the album and film was inspired by Waters' personal feelings of alienation. "The wall" represents the walls that people put up to separate themselves from society. The character of Pink Floyd is, like most of The Walls story and characters, created by bassist Roger WatersRoger Waters
George Roger Waters is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. He was a founding member of the progressive rock band Pink Floyd, serving as bassist and co-lead vocalist. Following the departure of bandmate Syd Barrett in 1968, Waters became the band's lyricist, principal songwriter...
.
He primarily modeled the character of Pink after Syd Barrett
Syd Barrett
Syd Barrett , born Roger Keith Barrett, was an English singer-songwriter, guitarist, and painter, best remembered as a founding member of the band Pink Floyd. He was the lead vocalist, guitarist and primary songwriter during the band's psychedelic years, providing major musical and stylistic...
, one of Pink Floyd's founding members, but he also added other elements to the character such as Pink's childhood, which is similar to Waters' own past. Both Pink and Waters lost their father in WWII and had to go to a boarding school. But some other personality traits are, according to Waters, based on other people in the music industry. In the DVD commentary for Pink Floyd The Wall, Waters names Keith Moon
Keith Moon
Keith John Moon was an English musician, best known for being the drummer of the English rock group The Who. He gained acclaim for his exuberant and innovative drumming style, and notoriety for his eccentric and often self-destructive behaviour, earning him the nickname "Moon the Loon". Moon...
as an inspiration for Pink's trashing of the hotel room in "One of My Turns
One of My Turns
"One of My Turns" is a song by Pink Floyd. It appears on The Wall album in 1979, and was released as a B-side on the single of "Another Brick in the Wall ".-Composition:...
."
Name
It is uncertain whether Pink is indeed his first name. His last name is Pinkerton, as shown in the film, when the young boy finds the official post-war scroll, notifying the family about the death of his father in battle. His school friends call him 'Pinky' in the train tunnel scene, referencing his last name. He is called "Mr. Floyd" by a telephone operator at the end of "Young LustYoung Lust (song)
"Young Lust" is a song by Pink Floyd. It appeared on The Wall album in 1979.-Composition:"Young Lust" is approximately 3 minutes, 25 seconds in length...
". At the end of the song "In the Flesh", the crowd is heard chanting "Pink Floyd" into the beginning of "Run Like Hell".
David Buchanan, a writer for Consequence of Sound
Consequence of Sound
Consequence of Sound, also known often as CoS, is a Chicago-based music website featuring news, album and concert reviews, and editorials. In addition, the website also features the Festival Outlook micro-site, which serves as an on-line database for music festival news and rumors...
, theorizes that the character of Floyd Pinkerton, in becoming a proverbial rock star, utilizes taunts from classmates -- who dubbed him "Pinky" -- to cull "Pink Floyd" as his celebrity moniker. As this practice is common in the entertainment industry, one can deduce that "Pink Floyd" is not just a persona later elaborated upon during "Comfortably Numb
Comfortably Numb
"Comfortably Numb" is a song by the English rock band Pink Floyd, which first appears on the 1979 double album, The Wall. It was also released as a single in the same year with "Hey You" as the B-side. It is one of only three songs on the album for which writing credits are shared between Roger...
" and "In The Flesh", but Floyd's pseudonym
Pseudonym
A pseudonym is a name that a person assumes for a particular purpose and that differs from his or her original orthonym...
in the business.