Philip "Taylor" Kramer, bassist
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica]The mysterious disappearance of one-time Iron Butterfly bassist[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] Philip "Taylor" Kramer, 42, has come to a tragic conclusion with[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] the May 29, 1999, discovery by hikers of his 1993 Ford Aerostar[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] van at the bottom of a Malibu, Calif., ravine. Skeletal remains[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] found inside and near the vehicle were confirmed through dental[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] records to be those of Kramer.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] Kramer's Feb. 12, 1995, disappearance has been the subject of[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] numerous TV shows due both to his connection withIron [/FONT][FONT=Arial,Helvetica]Butterfly[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] and his involvement with government projects, lending X-Files???like[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] conspiracy overtones to his vanishing. Unfortunately, most reports[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] have given the mistaken impression that he was with Iron Butterfly[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] during the band's "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" days when in fact he[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] was only with the band during a mid-70s re-formation. Most[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] glaring (and high profile) of these shows is a segment on VH-1's[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] Where Are They Now? which, while purporting to be on the band[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] as a whole, devoted more than three and a half minutes out of the[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] five-minute segment to the Kramer mystery, never once mentioning[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] that Lee Dorman was the main Butterfly bassist during their classic[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] years. This was done in spite of Dorman being both interviewed[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] and shown performing on stage during the VH-1 show.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] Kramer played in a number of bands in Ohio (including Max, with[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] future Dead Boy Stiv Bators) before moving to L.A. in the early[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] '70s. After working a number of odd jobs and even living on the[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] streets, he was asked to join an Iron Butterfly reunion by original[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] drummer and friend Ron Bushy, whom he'd been working with as[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] a prop builder at Warner Brothers Studios. Along with guitarist[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] Erik Braunn and keyboardist Howard Reitzes, they recorded[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] Scorching Beauty for MCA in 1974, followed by Sun And Steel[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] (with Bill DeMartines replacing Reitzes). Neither album was[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] particularly good, and while the band toured based on the strength[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] of the name (with Kramer singing "IAGDV"), the band folded in[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] 1977. Kramer and Bushy formed a post-Butterfly group called[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] Gold and recorded an unreleased album during '78-'79. After that[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] stint Kramer quit the music business altogether.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] Kramer immersed himself in schooling, studying engineering and[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] getting a job building radar equipment. He graduated from night[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] school with straight A's and got a job at Northrup, working on the[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] design of the MX missile. At the time of his disappearance, he had[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] reportedly discovered a mathematical formula that would allow[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] matter to travel faster than the speed of light. His involvement in[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] projects of this nature have led to theories that he was abducted or[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] murdered.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] What is known is that on Feb. 12, 1995, having spent an hour[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] waiting at Los Angeles International Airport for a business contact[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] who never arrived, he called both his wife and Ron Bushy from his[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] cell phone in his car, leaving Bushy a cryptic message about seeing[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] him "...on the other side." According to newspaper reports,[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] Kramer also called 911 just before noon that day and said he was[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] going to commit suicide. Despite this, family members believe he[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] could have been the victim of foul play.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] Officials said that determining whether Kramer's death was a[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] suicide, murder or accident could take months. [/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica]The mysterious disappearance of one-time Iron Butterfly bassist[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] Philip "Taylor" Kramer, 42, has come to a tragic conclusion with[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] the May 29, 1999, discovery by hikers of his 1993 Ford Aerostar[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] van at the bottom of a Malibu, Calif., ravine. Skeletal remains[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] found inside and near the vehicle were confirmed through dental[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] records to be those of Kramer.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] Kramer's Feb. 12, 1995, disappearance has been the subject of[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] numerous TV shows due both to his connection withIron [/FONT][FONT=Arial,Helvetica]Butterfly[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] and his involvement with government projects, lending X-Files???like[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] conspiracy overtones to his vanishing. Unfortunately, most reports[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] have given the mistaken impression that he was with Iron Butterfly[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] during the band's "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" days when in fact he[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] was only with the band during a mid-70s re-formation. Most[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] glaring (and high profile) of these shows is a segment on VH-1's[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] Where Are They Now? which, while purporting to be on the band[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] as a whole, devoted more than three and a half minutes out of the[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] five-minute segment to the Kramer mystery, never once mentioning[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] that Lee Dorman was the main Butterfly bassist during their classic[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] years. This was done in spite of Dorman being both interviewed[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] and shown performing on stage during the VH-1 show.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] Kramer played in a number of bands in Ohio (including Max, with[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] future Dead Boy Stiv Bators) before moving to L.A. in the early[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] '70s. After working a number of odd jobs and even living on the[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] streets, he was asked to join an Iron Butterfly reunion by original[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] drummer and friend Ron Bushy, whom he'd been working with as[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] a prop builder at Warner Brothers Studios. Along with guitarist[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] Erik Braunn and keyboardist Howard Reitzes, they recorded[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] Scorching Beauty for MCA in 1974, followed by Sun And Steel[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] (with Bill DeMartines replacing Reitzes). Neither album was[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] particularly good, and while the band toured based on the strength[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] of the name (with Kramer singing "IAGDV"), the band folded in[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] 1977. Kramer and Bushy formed a post-Butterfly group called[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] Gold and recorded an unreleased album during '78-'79. After that[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] stint Kramer quit the music business altogether.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] Kramer immersed himself in schooling, studying engineering and[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] getting a job building radar equipment. He graduated from night[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] school with straight A's and got a job at Northrup, working on the[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] design of the MX missile. At the time of his disappearance, he had[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] reportedly discovered a mathematical formula that would allow[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] matter to travel faster than the speed of light. His involvement in[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] projects of this nature have led to theories that he was abducted or[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] murdered.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] What is known is that on Feb. 12, 1995, having spent an hour[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] waiting at Los Angeles International Airport for a business contact[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] who never arrived, he called both his wife and Ron Bushy from his[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] cell phone in his car, leaving Bushy a cryptic message about seeing[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] him "...on the other side." According to newspaper reports,[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] Kramer also called 911 just before noon that day and said he was[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] going to commit suicide. Despite this, family members believe he[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] could have been the victim of foul play.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] Officials said that determining whether Kramer's death was a[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] suicide, murder or accident could take months. [/FONT]







