Gail Zappa’s Brother Leaps Into Family Frenzy
The pixels were barely dry on my Inquisitr article about Frank Zappa’s guitars when I received word from a family insider that Frank’s erstwhile brother-in-law, John “Jay” Sloatman, aka “Dunt” Sloatman, is threatening to sue Frank’s daughter, Moon Zappa, her uncle Bobby Zappa, “and others” for $20 million in damages. Gail Zappa’s brother teased his Facebook readers with a tantalizing “you won’t believe why” but does not reveal how, exactly, he was “damaged” by Moon, Bobby, or anyone else.
As we go to press, there are dozens of comments on John K. Sloatman III’s August 14, 2016 Facebook post. So far, most seem to evince shock and/or dismay that anyone in the Zappa clan would stoop to sue another family member. “Clare,” who admins a popular Frank Zappa discussion group on Facebook, said it’s a shame that “when all is said and done, what the entire Zappa family will be remembered most for in the annals of time is a hyperactive penchant for lawsuits.”
Sloatman replied that Dweezil Zappa and his sister, Moon, “have a lot to answer for.” Clare, who is a voice of reason in the simmering comments thread, went on to explain that due to utmost respect for the Zappa family, she protects Gail Zappa from defamation within her own discussion group. She also noted that ever since Gail bequeathed control of the Zappa Family Trust to a “loutish Ahmet,” said lout has been lording it over his “harder working, more talented brother.” Clare added that recent events within the Zappa family camp have been “an eye opener” that seem to support the unsavory public perception of Gail Zappa.
One comment by “Diane” asked if the original post was some kind of joke, adding that “they (the targets of the purported lawsuit) don’t have much money.” Sloatman’s response?
“Moon and Dweezil each received $2.5 million on my sister Gail Zappa’s death. The truth will come out. What Moon Zappa did 1 week before Gail’s death will astound you. It’s the reason I’m suing her. Moon Zappa asked me to sue her. So she’s getting her wish.”
“Blak Napkins” suggested that Sloatman write a book in lieu of filing a lawsuit against Moon and Bobby Zappa.
“You might want to reconsider and just write a book about it. Then we can all get to see your side of things instead of trashing everything and everyone through high courts.”
Who the &^%$ is John K. “Dunt” Sloatman?
Gail Zappa’s brother, who uses a U.S. Marine Corps patch as his profile pic and Frank Zappa’s image as his Facebook cover photo, describes himself in the same Facebook post outlined above. The following is what he said.
“Just so you know a little background. After proudly serving in Vietnam in the US Marine Corps and cuurently (sic) 100% disable (sic) veteran, I was FZ’s security, roadie, and road manager. I lived with FZ & GZ several times. I spent a lot of time with the kids. Pallbearer to FZ’s father. Carried Moon home from hospital when she was born. Dweezil’s and Moon’s little league coach. Nicked (sic) named Dunt by Moon Zappa. More to come.”
How about more right now?
On the evening of September 30, 1974, Lynyrd Skynyrd was billed second to Blue Öyster Cult at the Commonwealth Convention Center in Louisville. As Skynyrd frontman, Ronnie Van Zant, was belting out the lyrics to the ubiquitous “Free Bird,” something went wrong with the house sound. Some blamed the audio issues on Van Zant who was drunkenly swinging his mic around. Others, including members of Lynyrd Skynyrd’s sound crew, accused the Blue Öyster Cult crew of deliberately tampering with the sound during Van Zant’s performance.
Jay “Dunt” Sloatman, was in charge of BÖC’s Tycobrahe sound system, which all the bands were using that night. According to a roadie for the opening act, Sloatman left his position at the front-of-house mixing board and approached the stage with the intention of fixing Van Zant’s failing microphone. The roadie explained that Sloatman was “met at the top of the stairs by a Skynyrd roadie who tried to stop him from coming onstage. Dunt laid him out with one punch, then got jumped on by all the Skynyrd roadies – while he was trying to get another mic going for Ronnie.”
After managing to fend off numerous Skynyrd road crew members, Sloatman switched off most of the venue’s amplification and made his way back to the sound board as the infuriated southern rock band threatened to “whip everyone’s ass in the building.” Further incident was avoided when Van Zant and other band members were whisked into a limousine and driven away, according to Ultimate Classic Rock magazine.
All we know (so far) about the man who would sue Moon Unit Zappa is that he is an ex-Marine, he was Gail Sloatman Zappa’s brother, and he took on a whole horde of Lynyrd Skynyrd roadies for what may have been a very good reason. If he is not looking to cash in on the Zappa name (which is not his and never was), why does he use the countenance of Frank Zappa to promote his own Facebook page? This is what he really looks like.
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=751750414865822&set=a.358352917538909.88360.100000926108943&type=3&theater
To stay apprised of this possibly-pending lawsuit and other Zappa news, stay tuned to the Inquisitr.
As Jay Sloatman noted, there is surely “more to come.”
— Moon Zappa (@MoonZappa) August 12, 2016
[Photo by Tzahiv/Getty Images]
