C was my first language, I had HTML under my belt, but that's not really saying much.

I think that C was a great first language for me, because although I haven't touched it since I learned it, when I installed Linux a week ago for the first time, I understood the CLI a lot better than I ever would have if I hadn't learned C. I think that although C sucks to learn, if you can get down the basics of it, you'll understand the basics of how Linux runs.
Then I started learning Python, and yes, Python rocks... but I got too busy with school and work to keep rolling with it.

My vote is to start off with C, sucks/hard to learn, but will help you understand how to work with your Linux OS.