Person Biography:
Eldon Wayne Hoke, better known as El Duce, was a talented musician, born on March 24, 1958, in Seattle, Washington. He was the son of Mr. and Mrs. Walter Hoke and had a younger brother, Steven, and two sisters, Christina and Annetta. El Duce attended Roosevelt High School in Seattle, where he developed his unique personality, which would later become iconic in the punk music scene.
As a drummer and lead singer, El Duce co-founded the Mentors, a punk rock group known for their outrageous and controversial music, in 1977. He featured on several albums with the group and also released solo albums. El Duce's music was characterized by his rough, gravelly voice, wicked sense of humor, and friendly demeanor.
El Duce's notoriety extended beyond his music, as he was a frequent guest on talk shows, including "Hot Seat with Wally George" and "The Jerry Springer Show." His antics on these shows often led to his removal by security personnel.
Outside of music, El Duce worked as an extra in films, music videos, and TV shows. He also claimed to have been offered $50,000 by Courtney Love to kill Kurt Cobain, which he confirmed through a polygraph test.
El Duce's final live performance was at Al's Bar in downtown Los Angeles on April 18, 1997. Tragically, he died the next day, at the age of 39, after being hit by a freight train while intoxicated in Riverside, California.
