Mark McGrath Reminisces About the Dark Side of the Viper Room

Vice TV struck gold with Darkish Facet of the Ring, its gritty docuseries on professional wrestling, and it has now change into a franchise with Darkish Facet of the 90s hosted by Sugar Ray’s Mark McGrath. The second episode was on the notorious membership The Viper Room, which was owned by Johnny Depp and have become an escape for the Hollywood elite and rock stars. It wound up being private subject material for McGrath, who met and proposed to his spouse within the membership.

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“[The episode on the Viper Room] couldn’t have been extra private,” McGrath admitted to ComingSoon. “In all of the paparazzi footage that you just’re going to see and there’s a ton of, you’ll be able to see my elbow and outfit. You already know what I imply? Like for those who waited two extra seconds on the edit, you’d see me pop in. All my mates are in there. I bear in mind Adam Duritz bartending there. I met my girlfriend there, who’s now my spouse, such as you talked about. In reality, I went again to The Viper Room and requested her to suggest there. So The Viper Room has so many connections for me. It was earlier than Sugar Ray fame. It was making an attempt to sneak in and begging the doorman to get in. Then that was the primary place I went once we bought just a little followers as a result of having the ability to stroll into the room as a legit “success story” was fairly a thrill. I’ve spent many an evening there. Some I don’t bear in mind, some I do bear in mind, but it surely felt like I used to be kinda going via my very own 90s yearbook sarcastically, after I was narrating that episode specifically. That one actually, actually bought to me.”

Regardless of speaking about individuals he personally is aware of, McGrath doesn’t discover it awkward due to the professionalism behind Darkish Facet of the 90s.

“There’s zero tabloid vitality to the Darkish Facet episodes,” McGrath defined. “They’re so effectively researched. I imply, Robin Antin, who’s an excellent pal of mine, began the Pussycat Dolls at The Viper Room. She’s an enormous a part of the episode of The Viper Room. My greatest pal was going out along with her on the time when she was placing the costumes collectively for The Viper Room. I bear in mind Adam Duritz bartending, like I discussed earlier. Randall Slavin, who did like all the long-lasting images that you just see nonetheless right this moment that got here from The Viper Room, he’s an enormous half and he’s so eloquent in the best way he kinda tells his story. So it’s simply such a robust take a look at The Viper Room. Not solely that, you would see the paparazzi beginning to develop from The Viper Room. From the vitality, as a result of it was a protected place for celebrities to go, however due to that, there’s numerous what grew to become the paparazzi hanging exterior. So I feel it’s the primary time you actually have footage of a membership, however individuals going out and in and all types of states. So it was fascinating.”

New episodes of Darkish Facet of the 90s premiere each Thursday at 10 p.m. on Vice TV.