Disgusted with Britain’s ‘cruel’ aristocracy, Michael Zilkha left to champion a generation of party-starting punk-funk bands. As he returns as a book publisher, he remembers that wild scene
John Peel once said that Ze Records was “the best independent label in the world”. The Face magazine called it the “world’s most fashionable”. Between 1978 and 1984, the New York record company’s incredible roster included Kid Creole and the Coconuts, Lydia Lunch, Was (Not Was), Lizzy Mercier Descloux, James Chance and Suicide, who were mostly rather extreme characters.
“It felt more like a repertory company than a record label,” says the co-founder Michael Zilkha. “We’d have these crazy showcases, with everyone except Lydia, who was outside picketing because she felt I hadn’t given her enough tour support.”
‘I wanted to start again in an immigrant city’ … Michael Zilkha in 1981. Photograph: Michael Putland/Getty Images
Four decades on, Ze is back, but as a book publisher. The idea was triggered in January 2017, when Zilkha was visited by an old friend, Glenn O’Brien, who had cancer. O’Brien was a staunch Ze champion when he edited Andy Warhol’s Interview magazine in the late 70s, and in 2000 worked with Zilkha on Downtown 81, a film featuring the artist Jean-Michel Basquiat and several Ze acts.
“Glenn was down here having treatment,” says Zilkha, 68, on a video call from Houston, Texas. “We were sitting in my garden and he said: ‘Michael. Do you think I’m a good writer?’ I told him he was a great writer – I loved his writings on Basquiat, Patti Smith and Trump. But he’d never been a part of the literary establishment, so I knew what he was asking.”
O’Brien died a few weeks later, by which time Zilkha had promised his friend that he would publish a volume of his writing. In 2019, Intelligence for Dummies: Essays and Other Collected Writings became the first Ze book. “I told him that he would be properly recognised and I’d get it reviewed in the New York Review of Books, which it was.” Now, Zilkha is launching Ze’s backlist in the UK alongside two books: the former Life magazine photographer Bud Lee’s powerful 1967 Newark riots monograph The War is Here; and Adele Bertei’s Twist: An American Girl. This extraordinary memoir details her troubled path to forming the first gay all-girl band, the Bloods, and playing in early Ze signing James Chance and the Contortions.
https://www.theguardian.com/music/2023/mar/16/contort-yourself-the-mutant-disco-mayhem-of-new-yorks-ze-records?CMP=share_btn_fb&fbclid=IwAR3TBN7U2sl2t1MJhlwa8pBrzImbtVJHC3-EeTCYRt1TNqhyodhGBnubAXU

With songs about jellybeans and feline transformations, the Osaka band brought joy and fun to a serious punk-rock scene. After decades of cult hits, frontwoman Naoko Yamano explains why she wants to end up the world’s oldest rock star
Daniel Robson
Fri 3 Dec 2021
Very few rock bands make it to 40 years. And for Shonen Knife, this landmark seems all the more unlikely – there haven’t been many all-women rock bands from Japan who turned their obsession with junk food, cute animals and Ramones into an international career.
Their breakthrough came with 1992’s Let’s Knife, released in Britain by Creation Records shortly after a career-changing tour with Nirvana. It was a punk album like no other, featuring lyrical observations on the envy frontwoman Naoko Yamano felt for exotic American girls with blond hair and blue eyes, alongside pontification on life’s more frivolous joys: eating jellybeans, riding a bicycle, fishing for black bass, and – rather less relatably – becoming a cat and growing whiskers.
“I was too embarrassed to write songs about love,” says Naoko, 60, as we sit in the Tokyo office of Shonen Knife’s Japanese record label to reflect on the past 40 years. “Instead, I wanted to write about the topics that were important to me, like sweets and delicious food, or cute animals. I’m not really a very deep thinker, so I just want to write music that will make people feel happy.”
Shonen Knife formed in 1981 when Naoko and her schoolfriend Michie Nakatani cemented their love for the Beatles, the Jam and Ramones into something of their own. With Naoko on guitar and Nakatani on bass, they enlisted Naoko’s younger sister, Atsuko, on drums.
The trio entered a tiny room at the Rock Inn rehearsal studio in Osaka for the first time on 29 December 1981. “It felt good to hear the guitar and bass coming through the amplifiers, and the loud drum sound,” recalls Naoko of that first rehearsal, where they played covers of songs by British punk and pop bands such as Delta 5, Buzzcocks and Mo-dettes. Then, in March 1982, they played their first gig at a small Osaka venue, where young Atsuko became so overpowered by nerves that she broke out in a rash.
Among the seven or eight songs they played that night was Parallel Woman, the first song Naoko ever wrote. Later released on their 1983 album Burning Farm, Parallel Woman set the template for Shonen Knife’s approach to songwriting, with detailed observational lyrics about Naoko’s experience of working in a factory while dreaming of revealing her true identity as a rock’n’roll superheroine – the mundane writ fantastic. In a punk scene where bands snarled lyrics about class war, drugs, sex and violence, Naoko and Nakatani wrote songs that were overwhelmingly positive, innocent and fun, making their music all the more disarming.
​https://amp.theguardian.com/music/2021/dec/03/40-years-of-japanese-rockers-shonen-knife-nirvana-looked-wild-i-was-so-scared

Best known for his comedy, Richard Pryor performed a moving blues standard on TV in the 1960s.
James Gaunt
While these days Richard Pryor is known for his many outrageous comedy antics, he was a lot less controversial in the early 1960s and often appeared on TV variety shows.
During 1966 Richard worked as a writer and regular performer on The Kraft Summer Music Hall, a music and comedy variety show which ran as a spinoff from the long running Kraft Music Hall. Of the eleven summer episodes, Richard appeared in five.
On August 8 1966, the show featured standup comedy routines by Richard and ends with him joining the cast to sing a medley about rivers. The episode isn’t available online, but Vulture previously wrote about it in detail, noting, “Based on his enthusiasm I can’t tell if he was forced to do it or if he requested it. Either way, hearing Richard Pryor sing was the last thing I expected from the Kraft Music Hour.”
Although it was unexpected, he did perform at least one other song, and that has thankfully been shared on YouTube.
In the episode from August 1, host John Davidson introduces him as follows:
There’s a funny thing about show business. Many times singers want to be actors or serious actors just dying to be comics, you know to say a funny line. And sometimes comedians want to sing. Now take Richard Pryor for example. He’s been a guest many times on the show and he’s always a clown, right? We all know him for being a clown. But we found out that Richard's secret desire is to be a singer, is to sing. Well there’s no secret anymore because here is another one of the many talents of Richard Pryor.
Following a burst of applause, Richard appears on stage clicking his fingers along to a double bass and sings Nobody Wants You When You’re Down and Out.
Nobody Wants You When You’re Down and Out was written in 1923 by pianist Jimmie Cox and made famous by Bessie Smith after she released her own rendition in 1929.
Later Nina Simone took it to the charts in 1960, and Richard Pryor may have learnt the song from her as he opened for Nina in the early 60s as he started his comedy career.
In his autobiography Pryor Convictions, and Other Life Sentences, Richard wrote about possibly his first appearance on stage at the start of the 60s. After telling a club owner he could sing and play piano, Richard was hired. The problem was he barely knew four chords, as he wrote:
“For my nightclub debut, I sat at the piano and improvised using the three or four chords I knew. I sang whatever words popped into my head. I saw that people didn’t know whether I was putting them on or weird…Afterward, I tried to look cool, but…I still had sweating pouring off me.”
Rather than fire him, the club’s owner gave Richard a job filling the intermission time between sets. It became his first paid job as a comedian.
According to Scott Saul’s Becoming Richard Pryor, the next time Richard was on stage singing was his performance for the The Kraft Summer Music Hall in 1966. Then one year later, he changed his comedy act into something less family friendly.
Filled with swearing which shocked his audiences and drew many complaints, the infamy around his act meant he has remained one of America’s most well known comics decades after many of his contemporaries had called it quits.
Now that he was best known as a comic, any later musical appearances on TV were mostly played for laughs. Such as in 1974 when Richard played drums with Sly Stone, and when he sang There’s No Business Like Show Business on his own TV special in 1977.
The lone recording of Richard Pryor really singing appears to be from that one episode of The Kraft Summer Music Hall in 1966. It’s a beautiful and moving performance, and it’s unfortunate he didn’t record any more.
https://medium.com/the-riff/when-richard-pryor-sang-the-blues-7882cf699a3

The Residents, 1972
 
The Residents’ first fan club, W.E.I.R.D. (We Endorse Immediate Residents Deification), was founded in 1978, and one of its charter members was Life in Hell and Simpsons creator Matt Groening. As a member of the Residents’ second fan club, UWEB, I am bound by the most solemn oaths never to discuss any of the secret handshakes, passwords, ciphers, rituals, buttons, bumper stickers or T-shirts of the inner sanctum, but I can point seekers to this exoteric document: Groening’s “The True Story of the Residents.” This phantasmagoric bio of the group, first published in 1979’s The Official W.E.I.R.D. Book of the Residents and reprinted in 1993’s Uncle Willie’s Highly Opinionated Guide to the Residents, gives a wild yet relatively concise account of the band’s founding myth.
https://dangerousminds.net/comments/simpsons_creator_matt_groening_tells_the_story_of_the_residents_1979

Jonas Grinevičius and  Ilona Baliūnaitė 
Halloween’s still more than half a year away in the distant, mysterious, and far-off realm of Late 2021 (I wonder what that’s going to be like?), but some internet users are already thinking about what costumes they’ll be wearing and gathering intel early. And it’s all because of one little Twitter post that went viral.
Twitter user Alina Pleskova found a book all alone, abandoned, and lonely on the curb and decided to rescue it, bringing it back home with her. She couldn’t help but share the photos from Jane Asher’s ‘Fancy Dress’ book that has dozens of brilliant, wild, and hilariously bizarre costumes for kids and adults alike.
Check out the photos below! And, I don’t want to sound too cheesy but, ready your cheeks for smiling way, way too much. Remember to upvote your fave pics, too! And be sure to drop us a few comments telling us how you feel about the most outrageously awesome costumes featured here.

​https://www.boredpanda.com/funny-vintage-costumes-book-jane-ashers/?ssp_iabi=1683875035283&utm_source=pinterest&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=organic

Willi Ninja did far more than “strike a pose”. Before Madonna was Voguing for the masses on MTV in 1990, the niche dance form was being created by black and latino drag queens during the ballroom era of 1960’s Harlem, New York. It was Willi Ninja, an ambitious young dancer, who pioneered Voguing, and used it to create a safe-haven for members of the LGBT and Black community as it moved from the underground dance scene to mainstream media. 
In the late seventies, you could find Willi, born William Roscoe Leake, in Washington Square Park, mastering and teaching his art. His unusual influences for dance included hieroglyphics, olympic gymnastics, and Asian culture, mixed with the greats, like Fred Astaire.
He was a fixture on the Harlem’s gender-bending ball culture, which drew inspiration from the glamorous world of haute couture and the fabulous supermodels of the 80s, as seen in Vogue magazine– hence the name.
he dance was also a means a pacifying the often-agitated community, and became a way for rival dancers to battle out their differences peacefully on the dance floors.
Houses were formed within the subculture in the late seventies, which served as surrogate families form black and latino youth. Ninja, became “the mother” of the House of Ninja, empowering his community encouraging nonconformity. Unprecedented numbers of black and latino men were finding themselves on the streets in the midst of the 1980s AIDs epidemic, if they were not already disowned by their families for being gay or transgender. Voguing houses offered the support that the city didn’t. 
In 1991, a documentary told the subculture’s story in Paris in Burning, directed by Jennie Livingston who had met Ninja in Washington Park Square while he was Voguing in his early days.
The documentary captured the subculture’s golden age in New York City started a conversation on race, class, gender, and sexuality in America that hadn’t been brought to the table before. 
After travelling the world, dancing for Janet Jackson, modelling for Jean-Paul Gaultier and Thierry Mugler in Europe and teaching Voguing in Japan, all the while supporting his community, particularly during the AIDs epidemic in the 1980s, Willi Ninja had earned his title as the Godfather of Voguing. But in 2006, his life was cut short when he suffered an AIDS-related heart failure in New York City at age 45.
​
https://www.messynessychic.com/2018/09/21/the-godfather-of-voguing/?ssp_iabi=1683874789904

Erica Schwiegershausen
Photo: Courtesy of Private Birthday Party
In 2006, artist Robert Heishman was poking around a Kansas City salvage yard, looking for material for an undergraduate documentary class, when he stumbled upon a slide carousel labeled “Jack’s Slides: Chicago and Kansas City.”
“The first image I looked at was this picture of a man in a kimono that was incredibly colorful — it was just a stunning image to behold,” Heishman told the Cut. “There were family photos, and then I hit this line of images that were all people dressed in drag, predominantly standing in front of this beautiful mosaic outside a bar.” Intrigued, Heishman purchased the slides — for $2. “I didn’t really know what I was purchasing, but I wanted to have time to sit with them a little longer,” he explains.
Two years later, Heishman’s longtime friend Michael Boles was helping a friend move into a new house in Kansas City — which, as he describes it, was right around the corner from the drag clubs that were vibrant in the ‘50s and ‘60s. He came across a shoebox of slides that turned out to be quite similar to the ones Heishman had found at the scrapyard. “When we got them together and paired them up, it was kind of amazing,” Boles reflects. “Some of them are even from the same parties.” The resulting collection — titled “Private Birthday Party,” after the signs that used to appear on club doors when drag balls were taking place — includes over 200 images and provides a vivid glimpse of Kansas City’s early drag-ball culture. Heishman and Boles have since brought on Emily Henson to help with background research; together, the three believe they’re close to identifying the photographer.
The Cut spoke with Heishman, Boles, and Henson about the history of the drag scene in Kansas City and what stood out to them about these photographs.
When you were first comparing the two sets of photographs, was it obvious that they were taken by the same photographer?
Heishman: Yeah — as we started comparing the photographs, it began to strike us as being the same hand.
Boles: Robert’s collection is definitely from an earlier time. Those photos start in 1958; the ones I found start in 1964.
Henson: But throughout both parts of the collection, there are images taken against the mosaic wall, and they’re all shot in the sort of same way, over the years. There are photographs of people dancing together, laughing, posing for the camera, and then a handful that feel a little different — you can tell that the photographer is just photographing events as they’re happening.
​

​https://www.thecut.com/2014/04/rare-photos-from-the-60s-kansas-city-drag-scene.html?ssp_iabi=1683874173575

Tish and Snooky Bellomo have always been cool.
BY SARAH LASKOW NOVEMBER 4, 2016
In 1977, Tish and Snooky Bellomo opened a store at 33 St. Marks Place, in New York’s East Village. It was called Manic Panic, and as far as anyone knows, it was the first punk store in America. The Bellomo sisters were singers themselves, but they’d always had enviable style, too. At their tiny store, they sold stilettos, sunglasses, gloves with a bit of glam to them, the vintage clothes that they loved—or tore up until they did, and the product they’d become famous for, hair dye.
Almost 40 years later, to visit Tish and Snooky, you have to head to Long Island City, in Queens, where Manic Panic has been headquartered since 1999, in a warehouse-like building sitting along Newtown Creek. “We’ve always been underground,” says Snooky—a sort of “secret society.”
The headquarters still has that vibe: inside the 14,000 square foot space where boxes upon boxes of extra bright and bold hair dye are stacked, there’s a tiny, hidden boutique, about the same size as the original store, full of hair dyes, rainbow-colored hair extensions and eyelashes, lipstick in pink, orange, purple, blue, and green, and the rest of their iconic line.
Manic Panic is going through a bit of renaissance right now, as pop stars from Rihanna to Katy Perry decide to dye their hair bright blues, red, pinks, greens, and more. Tish and Snooky talked to Atlas Obscura about the place where the company got its start—the store on St. Marks Place.
How did you first even get into music and decide you want to be singers?
Tish: That was easy. We just decided it, and we were.
Snooky: Yeah, we were sisters, we would always sing and dance and put on little shows for our mother, make her watch our shows.
Tish: And for the neighbors and stuff.
Snooky: Oh, yeah, we put on puppet shows.
Tish: We did puppet shows, and then during intermission, we would sell Kool-Aid.
Snooky: We made all the money on the concession stand.
Tish: Yeah, the show was free. But the concession was separate. We’d make Kool-Aid, and we’d sell it. We’d make it in all different colors, very similar to Manic Panic colors. More below....


https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/manic-panic-isnt-just-a-hair-dye-brand-it-was-the-first-punk-store-in-america?ssp_iabi=1683670280193

​About 
"Schmigadoon!" streams on Apple TV+. It stars Cecily Strong and Keegan-Michael Key as a couple who try to repair their relationship by taking a hike in the woods. They get lost, cross over a bridge and suddenly find themselves in a small town called Schmigadoon, which looks like a stage or movie set from the early 20th century. The women are wearing prairie dresses with long petticoats, and the men are dressed like they're in a barbershop quartet. It turns out that in this town, life is a musical. People sing their feelings and dance, too.
This is initially charming for the Cecily Strong character, but Keegan-Michael Key's character hates musicals. Soon they realize they're trapped in a musical. And like it or not, their conversations will be interrupted by people breaking out into song. In this scene, they've just entered Schmigadoon and are totally disoriented. When the townspeople break out into song, see if you know which musical inspired this particular number.
​www.vintageannalsarchive.com/deep-dive---schmigadoon-season-1-and-2.html

For all our love of Nickelodeon and Disney Channel Original Movies, we all know that infomercials were the true stars of '90s TV. Billy Mays in a blue button-up and the phrase "But wait! There's more" are two things forever burned into our memories -- and we have infomercials and the strange products they were trying to sell us to thank
But for all the UroClubs and TiddyBears, infomercials gifted us with some truly ageless products -- and sadly, many are off the market for good. Here are the 13 infomercial products we saw in the '90s that we really, really should have bought when we had the chance.


https://cafemom.com/news/198143-13_fly_infomercial_products_from?ssp_iabi=1683596901575

The last time TSY posted the epic Photography of Pulsating Paula the interwebs superhighway stream was so strong it blew the plastic housing clear off my Commodore 64. I’ve since upgraded to a refurbished Apple III and am ready to roll. With Daytona Bike Week fresh on everyone’s mind, let’s go back to a time before many of you were born– the 1980s. Not the strongest era in terms of aesthetic, but these are bikers. And luckily for them they’re largely immune to vapid societal fashion trends and fancy pants grooming. What you get is straight-up lettin’ it all hang out, livin’ the life Daytona. You don’t like it, stick it.
https://selvedgeyard.com/2015/03/10/the-photography-of-pulsating-paula-part-ii-1980s-daytona-beach-bike-week/?ssp_iabi=1683596506518

By Sandee LaMotte, CNN
(CNN) The voice on the phone in 1966 was gruff and abrupt: "Do you want the Chevy, the Cadillac or the Rolls Royce?"
A Chevy abortion would cost about $200, cash in hand, the voice explained. A Cadillac was around $500, and the Rolls Royce was $1,000.
"You can't afford more than the Chevy? Fine," the voice growled. "Go to this address at this time. Don't be late and don't forget the cash." The voice disappeared.
Dorie Barron told CNN she recalls staring blankly at the phone in her hand, startled by the sudden empty tone. Then it hit her: She had just arranged an illegal abortion with the Chicago Mafia.
'All of a sudden they were gone'
The motel Barron was sent to was in an unfamiliar part of Chicago, a scary "middle of nowhere," she said. She was told to go to a specific room, sit on the bed and wait. Suddenly three men and a woman came in the door.
"I was petrified. They spoke all of three sentences to me the entire time: 'Where's the money?' 'Lie back and do as I tell you.' And finally 'Get in the bathroom,'" when the abortion was over, Barron said. "Then all of a sudden they were gone."
Bleeding profusely, Barron managed to find a cab to take her home. When the bleeding didn't stop, her bed-ridden mother made her go to the hospital.
At 24, Barron was taking care of her ailing mother and her 2-year-old daughter when she discovered she was pregnant. Her boyfriend, who had no job and lived with his parents, "freaked," said Barron, who appears in a recent HBO documentary. The boyfriend suggested she get an abortion. She had never considered that option.
"But what was I to do? My mom was taking care of my daughter from her bed while I worked — they would read and play games until I got home," Barron said."How was either of us going to cope with a baby?
"Looking back, I realize I was taking my life in my hands," said Barron, now an 81-year-old grandmother. "To this day it gives me chills. If I had died, what in God's green earth would have happened to my mom and daughter?"
​Few rights for women
Women in the 1960s endured restrictions relatively unknown to women today. The so-called "fairer sex" could not serve on juries and often could not get an Ivy League education. Women earned about half as much as a man doing the same job and were seldom promoted.
Women could not get a credit card unless they were married — and then only if their husband co-signed. The same applied to birth control — only the married need apply. More experienced women shared a workaround with the uninitiated: "Go to Woolworth, buy a cheap wedding-type ring and wear it to your doctor's appointment. And don't forget to smile."
Marital rape wasn't legally considered rape. And, of course, women had no legal right to terminate a pregnancy until four states — Alaska, Hawaii, New York and Washington — legalized abortion in 1970, three years before Roe v. Wade became the law of the land.
https://amp.cnn.com/cnn/2023/04/23/health/abortion-lessons-jane-wellness/index.html

Partying with Grace Jones
She pulls up to the bumper with a drag queen and a child star.
On May 19, 1978, Jamaican-born model and singer Grace Jones turned 30.On June 7, she released her second studio album, Fame. Five days later, she celebrated with a combination birthday/album release extravaganza at LaFarfelle Disco in New York.She was joined by Divine, a frequent John Waters collaborator and People magazine’s "Drag Queen of the Century.”Numerous other celebrities and artists were in attendance, including Andy Warhol and Elton John, Julie Budd, Jerry Hall, Nona Hendryx and 16-year-old Jimmy Baio, cousin of Scott Baio. The fun and debauchery were captured on film by notorious paparazzo Ron Galella, who was famous in his own way for relentlessly pursuing celebrities and getting his teeth knocked out by Marlon Brando.
In the ‘70s and ‘80s we all had our fun, and now and then we went really too far. But, ultimately, it required a certain amount of clear thinking, a lot of hard work and good make-up to be accepted as a freak. - Grace Jones
I go feminine, I go masculine. I am both, actually. I think the male side is a bit stronger in me, and I have to tone it down sometimes. I'm not like a normal woman, that's for sure. - Grace Jones
https://mashable.com/archive/grace-jones-birthday#JblWB0K7ikq8

September 27, 2019 Written by James Keeline
The last week in September is considered to be Banned Book Week.  In 2019 this is Sept. 22-28.
While you will see lists of many books that have been “challenged” or “censored” over the years, most of the time our juvenile series books are not listed. Yet, the librarians who wanted to impress fellow librarians, were active in removing these books from public library shelves and preventing young people from accessing them.
Often this was done on the complaint that the books were poorly written, improbable, or they didn’t have enough space and funds for other books.
Librarians Judge Series Books
We are told that we should not judge a book by its cover but what can be said of the notion of judging an entire genre based on a few examples?
Like anything else, there are good and bad and they should be evaluated on their individual merits and flaws rather than tossing them all out just because they happen to be issued in a series with stories about the same group of characters.
This problem goes back to the 1890s and is still a factor today in some circles. Edward Stratemeyer encountered this and pushed back where he could. More detail on this was part of one of my PCA presentations
In some ways, the library ban on series books did not reduce the demand but instead it caused more families to buy the books that the libraries would not stock.
I’ve said many times before that one of the reasons that I collect books is that I cannot rely on libraries getting or keeping books that interest me.
Anthony Comstock and Traps for the Young
The warnings about literature for children were made by people like Anthony Comstock in his book Traps for the Young (1883).  Dime novels, nickel libraries, and story papers were just some of the popular media he warned about.
​https://stratemeyer.org/2019/09/27/banned-book-week/

An inveterate street photographer, Patrick D. Pagnano ventured out daily with his camera after moving to New York from Chicago in 1974, Pagnano developed a practice rooted in a kind of stream of consciousness, following what he describes as "visual clues" to guide him to his subjects. He immerses himself in the subject, shooting individuals in either the same space or type of event over time, a reflection of his belief in the importance of the existing environment and its role in affecting the people within.
 
Patrick Pagnano (b. 1947, Chicago, IL) holds a BA from Columbia College. photographs have been included in exhibitions at venues such as the Brooklyn Museum; New York Public Library, NY; and Mois de la Photo à Montreal, Montreal, Canada, amongst others. His work is in the permanent collections of the Museum of Modern Art, the Museum of the City of New York, The New York Public Library, all NY; the Brooklyn Museum; the Art Institute of Chicago; and the Helmut Gernsheim Collection, Switzerland. He published a book, Shot on the Street, featuring 60 color images of his work, in 2002.  He sadly passed away in 2018


http://www.pagnanoandpagnano.com/index.html

In an excerpt from his new book, To Anyone Who Ever Asks: The Life, Music, and Mystery of Connie Converse, journalist and musician Howard Fishman examines the singer-songwriter's talent and mysterious lif
BY HOWARD FISHMAN
APRIL 28, 2023
Connie Converse singing at Gene Deitch’s home in 1954 COURTESY OF KIM DEITCH
IN 2010, I was at a friend’s party when a song came up on the house speakers — one that sounded both entirely new to me and as familiar as my own skin. A woman was singing in a plaintive tone about “a place they call Lonesome.”
I couldn’t place the song. It had the openhearted, melodic feel of an old Carter Family recording, but there was also some gentle guitar fingerpicking that reminded me of Elizabeth Cotten, and harmonic movement that seemed to echo the songs of Hoagy Carmichael. The traditional elements seemed so finely stitched together, with such a sophisticated sensibility, that the whole sounded absolutely original — modern, even. The song swallowed me. The room disappeared.
Eventually, I sought out the host, and asked what we were listening to. “Oh,” he said. “This is Connie Converse. She made these recordings in her kitchen in the 1950s, but she never found an audience for her music, and then one day she drove away and was never heard from again.” 

In 2009, her 1950s recordings resurfaced on an independently produced album called How Sad, How Lovely. It ignited a slow burn that has now become a brush fire. How Sad, How Lovely has been streamed more than 16 million times on the Spotify platform alone, and her songs have been covered by the likes of Big Thief and Laurie Anderson. “I have dozens of fans all over the world,” Converse quipped, her humour a mask for her disappointment that no one seemed to want what she had to offer. If only she knew.
I HAVE SPENT THE LAST 13 YEARS chasing Converse’s ghost, trying to nail down details from her shadowy story with the hope of gaining more attention for her extraordinary work. 
She was born Elizabeth Eaton Converse in 1924, in New Hampshire, the second of three children. Their father had been a minister and was head of the local temperance society. Their mother had been an accomplished pianist. Only religious and classical music were allowed in the house when they were growing up. Dancing, alcohol, card playing, and mention of the word sex were forbidden.
​
https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/connie-converse-disappearance-mystery-1234717643/?fbclid=IwAR0AGDqAR9wel-4IL0dG0CfO72asmD2gFkgB0na7ed9IY7ahPO2DAAHd0Lk

We all know the dangers of smoking cigarettes these days, and we don’t condone it. However, the 1950s were a different time, where the advertising and cultural pressure to smoke was intense. Smoking was seen as the epitome of cool and sophistication, and people were largely unaware of any negative consequences.
This article, from a 1959 issue of Caper Magazine, shows a few examples of what psychoanalyst Dr. William Neutra hypothesized after observing the ways people chose to smoke. According to his psychoanalysis, the body language of the method an individual uses to hold the cigarette shines a light onto their character traits, exposing their personality type, moods, and insecurities. If you are a smoker, perhaps you recognize some of these yourself?
Scroll down below to check the character analysis as vintage magazines saw it for yourself and let us know what you think in the comments!
(h/t: Vintage Everyday)
A psychoanalyst in the 1950’s believed that the method an individual uses to hold a cigarette shines a light onto their inner selves, exposing their character type, moods and insecurities
​https://www.boredpanda.com/cigarette-psychology-1959-caper-magazine-dr-william-neutra/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=organic

by Rian Dundon
Riddim on the rise
your only frame of reference for reggae and Jamaican culture is Bob Marley or Snoop Lion rolling papers, prepare to learn something.
The artist who brought us Redemption Song was only one stop in a long progression of musical genres and styles. Originating from ska and rocksteady in the 1960s, reggae gave birth to more progressive, populist genres like dub, dancehall, and ragga through the 1970s and 1980s.
Emerging parallel to hip hop in America and electronic dance music in Europe, Jamaican dancehall was made possible by the introduction of digital audio production technologies in the early 1980s. By the time King Jammy and Wayne Smith dropped the fully computerized Under Mi Sleng Teng in 1985, it was game over for instrumental roots reggae in Kingston. The era of samplers and Casio keyboards had arrived, along with the streetwise lyrical stylings of musicians like Yellowman and Eek-A-Mouse.
https://timeline.com/one-photographers-amazing-firsthand-look-at-the-1980s-jamaican-dancehall-scene-fb887a8a3d5e?gi=138f386c7e33

The Tribe That Inspired Frida Kalho
That unapologetic unibrow, the halo-crown of jet-black centre-parted flower-adorned plaits, rouged cheekbones and russet lips frame a fearless stare. Her Mexican torzal necklaces, silver filigree earrings and onyx beads you and I could only hope to collect over a lifetime of scouring obscure artisanal markets. No prizes for guessing who she is. But let’s drag ourselves away momentarily from the artist and icon that is Frida Kahlo and turn our attention to the extraordinary Zapotec tribe that was instrumental in her making.
Let’s go way back to the Aztecs, Mayans and Zapotecs of South America who built vast cities of pyramids and palaces, rich with elaborate architectural and decorative pattern work. Stretching across what is now Mexico, this was a world apart from western knowledge until the fateful arrival of the Spanish conquistadors at the end of the 15th century. ‘Mesoamerica’, the twisting ribbon of land between North and South America, was a diverse and thriving cultural hub at the time of the arrival of Christopher Columbus. The central part (what is now Mexico) was fertile and lush, supporting the Aztecs to the west, the Mayans on the Yucatan Peninsula to the north and the Zapotecs to the south. They constituted a loose confederation of city states whose power and influence upon each other had come and gone, waxed and waned over the centuries. The ruins they left are encrusted with decorative religious and cultural carvings: icons, hieroglyphs and complex decorative geometrical patterns. Described as ‘pre-Colombian’ (a rather colonialist reference) these societies were agricultural, militaristic and advocated a definitive calendar that predicted the end of the world.
In the 1930s, Frida Kahlo came to see the Zapotecs and Aztecs as wholesome and earthy cultures, living in harmony with nature. The Zapotecs traded and worked shells, sponges, gold, amber, salt, feathers, furs cotton, spices, honey, cocoa and other naturally occurring materials that were readily available from their immediate environment. They were the most productive goldsmiths in the region, a complex and organised trading society expressing itself through distinctive art and decoration, from clothing to architecture. The stylings of these ancient artefacts survived the test of time and were transferred to other mediums such as textiles and fashion design – the boxy blouses with their distinctive bordered panels Frida so adored, being a good example of this.
​

​https://www.messynessychic.com/2021/11/17/the-tribe-that-inspired-frida-kalho/?utm_source=drip&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Weekend+Conversation+Starters&utm_content=Weekend+Conversation+Starters

​https://electricliterature.com/heres-a-bunch-of-science-fiction-books-with-cats-on-the-cover/

She partied with Warhol and fronted a band called The Electric Chairs who were too shocking even for punk. As her extraordinary tell-all memoir is republished, Jayne County relives one of music’s most astonishing sagas
Jayne County is explaining the term “wrecking”, which was a popular pastime among the more confrontational drag queens of Atlanta, Georgia, in the 60s. “Just deliberately trying to freak out the regular people, the solids as we called them,” she laughs. “Shaking people out of their normality, just trying to see what nerves we could push. They need their nerves twisted once in a while.
“We used to do things like go into department stores and ride up and down the elevators just screaming, you know, holding up women’s clothes and saying, ‘Look at this! He’s going to adore me in this!’ One of our big wrecks was going into the men’s room at the Greyhound bus station, a bunch of us queens, maybe four or five. The men were at the urinals with their you-know-whats out and we’d start screaming, ‘Ooh, look how big it is! Look at that one! Oh my God, I think I had that one last night! How is your wife in bed, darling? I’d be a lot better!’ The guys would be rushing to get their zippers up, so uncomfortable with us in there.”
Clad in a dress made of condoms, she sang You Gotta Get Laid to Stay Healthy (and I'm the Healthiest Girl in Town)
Perhaps understandably, wrecking was not an activity without its risks in the deep south of the 60s. “It’s a wonder we didn’t get killed, a wonder we didn’t get in more trouble than we did,” she says, speaking by phone from Atlanta. “We did get shot at. They would actually come by in their trucks and shoot at us for the fun. You could hear the bullets flying past your head – shhhhhhw! Oh yeah, they wanted to kill us. But I think, because people were so shocked, they usually didn’t have time to think about hurting us. They were just too busy being shocked. By the time they got over it, we were gone and they’d be wondering what the fuck happened.”
It was all a long time ago, when Jayne County was still Wayne County, formerly Wayne Rogers, the son of working-class parents, who took to wearing makeup at school and graduated wearing lipstick. “I can’t really hide what I am very well,” she says. County’s story subsequently took her from Atlanta to New York; from the Stonewall riot to the transgressive demimonde that gathered around Andy Warhol’s Factory; from glam rock to punk, where Wayne eventually became Jayne, the world’s first transgender rock’n’roller. It’s one of the most extraordinary sagas in rock history: you read her recently republished autobiography Man Enough to Be a Woman with your mouth hanging open, not least because, throughout it all, County never really stopped wrecking. No matter where she fetches up, she somehow manages to end up shocking not just the solids, but the other people intent on shocking the solids.
It took some effort to emerge as the outrageous one in Warhol’s late-60s circle, but County managed it. New York’s absurdist fringe theatre company the Theatre of the Ridiculous had already staged plays featuring necrophiles and a character based on John Wayne who apparently “gave birth to a baby out of his asshole while doing poppers” – but even they balked at staging County’s play, which came with the thought-provoking title Wanker: Fascist Rhapsody. The glam scene was big on decadence and ambiguous sexuality, but it clearly wasn’t prepared for County singing You Gotta Get Laid to Stay Healthy (And I’m the Healthiest Girl in Town) while clad in a dress made of condoms.
Punk dealt in wilful offence, but at least some punks seemed to draw the line at County’s band the Electric Chairs and their signature song (If You Don’t Want to Fuck Me) Fuck Off. During a performance at CBGBs music club, one of County’s fellow musicians began shouting homophobic insults at her, an action he presumably regretted when County broke his shoulder with a microphone stand in response. Record companies, she sighs, “had no idea what to do with me at all. It was just too beyond their understanding.”

https://amp.theguardian.com/music/2021/may/18/shot-outrageous-life-jayne-county-first-trans-rocknroller-electric-chairs-memoir

Madalena Schwartz
​Budapest, 1921 – Sao Paulo, 1993
In 1934, after her mother passed away, Schwartz traveled with her father to Argentina. 26 years later, married with two children, she moved and settled with her family in São Paulo, Brazil, where she lived until her death. She started late with photography; she was almost fifty. She was a member of the Foto Cine Club Bandeirante and the so-called Paulista School, along with other photographers such as Marcel Giró, José Yalenti and Gaspar Gasparian. Schwartz began a series of portraits of personalities from the world of theater and television, such as singer Ney Matogrosso, and others less famous, known in the city’s nightclubs. She also portrayed Brazilian artists, musicians and intellectuals, such as Sérgio Buarque de Holanda and his son Chico Buarque, Clarice Lispector, Jorge Amado and Carlos Drummond de Andrade.
https://www.malba.org.ar/en/evento/madalena-schwartz-las-metamorfosis/

​Edited with text by David Jacob Kramer. Text by David Jacob Kramer, Rembert Browne, Melania Gazzotti. Oral histories by John Sinclair, Ishmael Reed, Marjorie Heins, Mariann Wizard-Vasquez, Abe Peck.A glorious design herbarium of marijuana ads from the great underground magazines of the 1960s and '70sThe youth uprising now simply known as the Sixties was fed by one of the greatest booms in publishing history. The Underground Press Syndicate (UPS) began as a loose confederation of five papers in 1966, and within a few years swelled to over 500 across the world, including Kaleidoscope, International Times and the East Village Other. They "spread like weed,” said the UPS director, weed dealer and eventual founder of High Times Tom Forcade. The metaphor was apt: the UPS spurred the legalization movement, and weed became its totem—and a helpful means for government agencies to crack down on the UPS, since weed permeated UPS pages, with gaps in text crammed with weed-inspired “spot illustrations.”
Heads Together collects these drawings, shining a light on lesser-known names in the stoner-art canon, and many who weren’t names at all since no signature was attached. It also compiles guides for growing weed from the period that were treated like contraband by the CIA. Activist-oriented, psychedelic rolling papers are showcased too. As pot now fast-tracks toward legalization in the US and beyond, its once-incendiary status is brought into odd relief. Pot’s contemporary corporate profiteers do not reflect those who fought for legalization, or the Black and Latino populations strategically criminalized for pot well before hippies were targeted and long after. The art in this book speaks to a time when pot was smoked with optimism, as something capable of activating transformation in the face of corrupt and powerful forces.
​https://www.artbook.com/9783907236543.html

​One night in 1971, J.D. Souther stopped by a small club on Melrose Avenue at the urging of David Geffen. “I was just complaining about how stupid most pop artists are and how most songwriting doesn’t really get much beneath the surface,” Souther, who co-wrote several of the Eagles’ biggest hits, recalls with a laugh. “And he said, ‘Go see this girl I just signed, Judee Sill.’” 
Souther found a seat in the crowd, and placed his eyes on a 27-year-old musician with long honey-blond hair and round wire-rim eyeglasses holding an acoustic guitar. Someone in the audience yelled out a request for Judy Collins’ “Both Sides Now.” “First of all, Judy Collins didn’t write the song, get that straight,” she curtly replied. “Second of all, if you want to hear her sing it, what are you doing here?” Souther was blown away: “I thought, ‘Wow, I must know this woman.’”  
For a brief moment in the early Seventies, Judee Sill was one of L.A.’s most promising artists. She was one of the first musicians signed to Asylum Records, a label David Geffen started with Elliot Roberts that became famous for its roster of the Eagles, Linda Ronstadt, Jackson Browne, and others. Sill was produced by Graham Nash, and her songs were covered by the Turtles, the Hollies, and Cass Elliot. But unlike her labelmates, she never found fame and success. When the decade of the singer-songwriter ended, she ended with it, dying on November 23rd, 1979, of a drug overdose. 

Sill remained obscure for years, a cult favorite for those who discovered her rare, out-of-print records or bought Japanese CDs on the internet. But that all changed at the turn of this century, when a posthumous release and a few reissues made her music accessible again. She’s had ripples of recognition over the years — Lin-Manuel Miranda has gone on record as being a Sill fan, while Greta Gerwig sang Sill’s “There’s a Rugged Road” in Noah Baumbach’s Greenberg — but a full resurgence could be on its way thanks to Soldier of the Heart: The Judee Sill Story, an upcoming documentary that’s been eight years in the making
Whether it’s the religious imagery in her lyrics or her ornate, Bach-influenced orchestral arrangements, there’s a mystical force that draws listeners to Sill; rarely are her fans casual. It’s easy to fall down an online rabbit hole while reading about her fascinating and tumultuous life. She robbed liquor stores and gas stations as a drug-addled teenager. She learned to play the organ in reform school, and even spent time in prison, where she fantasized about becoming a songwriter. She was openly bisexual at a time when even Freddie Mercury was firmly in the closet. She was injured in car accidents, one purportedly involving White Christmas actor Danny Kaye. She died alone in her apartment, one day after Thanksgiving. All of this was a stark contrast to her delicate, enchanting music — or maybe the songs were her refuge from the chaos of her life.

Souther waited for Sill after her set that night, and she drove to his home, following him on his Triumph motorcycle. “It was like watching two dogs meet in the park and just go, ‘OK, we’ll go for a walk together,’” he remembers. “A perfect beginning to what turned into a really electric and very strange relationship.”
Judith Lynne Sill was born on October 7th, 1944, in Studio City, Los Angeles. Her father, Milford, was a sound technician for Paramount Pictures. When Sill was a child, he relocated the family to Oakland, where he owned a bar. Sill spent her early years at Bud’s, where she learned to play the piano and sing. “It was so seedy in the bar,” she told Rolling Stone’s Grover Lewis in 1972, in what turned out to be her definitive interview. “People were always fightin’ and pukin’, there was illegal gamblin’, and my parents drank a lot, too.”
Still, these were happy times for the family — photographs show Sill and her brother, Dennis, smiling, having birthday parties, and riding bicycles. But all that changed with the first of many family tragedies, when Milford died of heart failure in 1952. Her mother, Oneta, moved the family back to Los Angeles, where she worked on the Betty Boop cartoon series. 


https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/judee-sill-songwriter-profile-1130869/amp/

Season 1 free here. 
https://tubitv.com/series/4270/the-original-ladies-of-wrestling

SYNOPSIS An unsettled writer with a fantastic mustache, ROGER SHARPE, finds solace and confidence in one thing he has mastered: pinball. When a police raid destroys the only machines he can find in 1970s New York City, he learns the game is illegal. Roger reluctantly joins forces with the Music and Amusement Association to overturn the ban while falling in love with ELLEN, an artist and single mother. Roger’s path to save pinball ultimately rescues him. He and Ellen overcome their pasts and take a shot at love. Roger learns what it means to take a chance—and that commitment is the most rewarding gamble of all. Based on a true story.
In select theaters and on-demand March 17, 2023.
https://pinballfilm.com/

"If I don’t run a few people off, I haven’t done my job," says the motormouthed songwriter, whose unlikely career is recounted in the documentary The Mojo Manifesto: The Life and Times of Mojo Nixon
IT’S WELL AFTER midnight somewhere off the coast of Florida, and Mojo Nixon is leading a cruise ship full of lubricated and rowdy country-music fans in a bawdy singalong of a song titled “Tie My Pecker to My Leg.”
We won’t get into the lyrics here, but the verses touch on everything from barnyard sex to fornicating at a county fair. “This guy just heard the song for the first time,” Nixon, 65, and dressed in his customary Hawaiian shirt and uneven denim cutoffs, says, pointing to a man in the front row. “He’s grinning ear to ear!”
If there’s a safe space for Nixon and his unfiltered brand of worldly-redneck commentary and rambunctious cowpunk songs, it’s probably in international waters, free from any laws that may impede his ability to spout off. “It’s a real divider. If you can’t handle ‘Tie My Pecker to My Leg,’ you’re not gonna like the rest of the show,” Nixon says a few weeks later, back on dry land at his home in Cincinnati. “But if I don’t run a few people off, I haven’t done my job.”Nixon, a shouting singer, button-pushing songwriter, unrepentant shit-stirrer and, since 2004, on-air personality for Sirius XM’s Outlaw Country channel — which is what finds him aboard the 2023 Outlaw Country Cruise — has been making a career out of both entertaining and appalling audiences since the early 1980s. That’s when he and washboard whiz Skid Roper formed a duo and began releasing songs like “Jesus at McDonald’s,” “Stuffin’ Martha’s Muffin,” and “Burn Down the Malls.”
His 1987 video for “Elvis Is Everywhere,” low on budget but big on go-karts and sideburns, made the 30-year-old Nixon a staple of the MTV era. Soon, he was performingthe frenetic tribute to Elvis Presley’s die-hard fans on Arsenio Hall’s talk show, casting Winona Ryder in his music videos, and filming a series of promos for MTV in which he sang just-shy-of-dirty harmonica ditties and smashed television sets on a beach.
But around 1989, he and Roper (the Silent Bob to Nixon’s loquacious Jay) went their separate ways and Nixon set out on a solo career. That’s where The Mojo Manifesto: The Life and Times of Mojo Nixon, a new documentary now available to stream, picks up. Directed by Matt Eskey, the film opens with Nixon, riding high on a wave of what would today be called “viral” fame, entering a Memphis studio with producer Jim Dickinson to make his 1990 solo debut, Otis.
“That’s when things got really crazy. I wanted to have a band and I wanted to compete with the Replacements and the Blasters and Los Lobos,” Nixon tells Rolling Stone. With what he estimates to be a $100,000 budget, he hired Dickinson to produce, formed a “cowpunk supergroup” with friends like Country Dick Montana of the Beat Farmers and John Doe of X, and, to piss off the accountants, bought a go-kart with record-label money. “We wanted to have ‘go-kart’ in the budget. Some accountant with a green visor has to see it and go, ‘What the hell is this?’”
The go-kart tale, recounted in the movie by Nixon’s manager of 37 years, the chrome-domed “Bullethead,” is one of the highlights of The Mojo Manifesto, a long-in-the-works documentary that premiered last year at South by Southwest. At just 88 minutes, it somehow covers all the Mojo bases: his upbringing in Danville, Virginia, where he was born Neill Kirby McMillan Jr.; his “Road to Damascus” transformation into the Mojo Nixon character; his devotion to what he calls “raw, primitive rock & roll”; and his unexpected rise to, well, really just a cult hero. That’s as far as Nixon got.
https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/mojo-nixon-manifesto-documentary-elvis-is-everywhere-1234699029/

Known as the mother of the miniskirt, clad in her signature play clothes and boots, with huge painted eyes, fake freckles and a bob, she epitomized London’s Swinging Sixties.
Mary Quant, the British designer who revolutionized fashion and epitomized the style of the Swinging Sixties, a playful, youthful ethos that sprang from the streets, not a Paris atelier, died on Thursday at her home in Surrey, in southern England. Known as the mother of the miniskirt, she was 93.
Her family announced the death in a statement.
England was emerging from its postwar privations when, in 1955, Ms. Quant and her aristocratic boyfriend, Alexander Plunket Greene, opened a boutique called Bazaar on London’s King’s Road, in the heart of Chelsea. Ms. Quant filled it with the outfits that she and her bohemian friends were wearing, “a bouillabaisse of clothes and accessories,” as she wrote in an autobiography, “Quant by Quant” (1966) — short flared skirts and pinafores, knee socks and tights, funky jewelry and berets in all colors.
Young women at the time were turning their backs on the corseted shapes of their mothers, with their nipped waists and ship’s-prow chests — the shape of Dior, which had dominated since 1947. They disdained the uniform of the establishment — the signifiers of class and age telegraphed by the lacquered helmets of hair, the twin sets and heels, and the matchy-matchy accessories — the model for which was typically in her 30s, not a young gamine like Ms. Quant.
When she couldn’t find the pieces she wanted, Ms. Quant made them herself, buying fabric at retail from the luxury department store Harrods and stitching them in her bed-sit, where her Siamese cats had a habit of eating the Butterick patterns she worked from.
Profits were elusive in those early years, but the boutique was a hit from the get-go, with young women stripping the place bare on a near-daily basis, sometimes grabbing new clothing from Ms. Quant’s arms as she headed into the store. She and Mr. Plunket Greene ran it like the coffee bars they frequented: as a hangout and a party at all hours, with a background of jazz.
And they made their window displays a performance, too, with mannequins designed by a friend to look like the young women who were shopping there — “the birds,” in Ms. Quant’s words, using the parlance of the times — figures with sharp cheekbones, mod haircuts and coltish legs, sometimes turned upside down or sprayed white, some with bald heads and round sunglasses, clad in striped bathing suits and strumming guitars.
Amateurs at accounting, along with everything else, the couple stashed their bills in piles, paying from the top down. Vendors were often paid twice, or not at all, depending on their place in the pile.
A decade later, Mary Quant was a global brand, with licenses all over the world — she was named an officer of the Order of the British Empire in 1966 for her contribution to British exports — and sales that would soon reach $20 million. When she toured the United States with a new collection, she was greeted like a fifth Beatle; at one point she required police protection. Newspapers eagerly printed her aperçus and declarations: “Quant Expects Higher Hem,” The Associated Press declared in the winter of 1966, adding that Ms. Quant had “predicted today that the miniskirt was here to stay.”
There was a Mary Quant line at J.C. Penney and boutiques in New York department stores. There was Mary Quant makeup — for women and men — packaged in paint boxes, eyelashes you could buy by the yard, and lingerie, tights, shoes, outerwear and furs. By the 1970s, there were bedsheets, stationery, paint, housewares and a Mary Quant doll, Daisy, named for Ms. Quant’s signature daisy logo.
“The celebrity designer is an accepted part of the modern fashion system today, but Mary was rare in the ’60s as a brand ambassador for her own clothes and brand,” Jenny Lister, a co-curator of a 2019 retrospective of Ms. Quant’s work at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London, told The New York Times. “She didn’t just sell quirky British cool, she actually was quirky British cool, and the ultimate Chelsea girl.”
“I grew up not wanting to grow up,” Ms. Quant once said. “Growing up seemed terrible. To me, it was awful. Children were free and sane, and grown-ups were hideous.”
Barbara Mary Quant was born on Feb. 11, 1930, in Blackheath, southeast London. Her parents, John and Mildred (Jones) Quant, were Welsh teachers who came from mining families and were determined that their two children, Mary and Tony, should follow conventional career paths.
But Mary wanted to study fashion. When she received a scholarship to the arts-focused Goldsmiths College (now Goldsmiths, University of London), her parents made a compromise: She could attend if she took her degree in art education (she studied illustration). There, she met Mr. Plunket Greene, a well-born eccentric (the philosopher Bertrand Russell was a cousin, as was the Duke of Bedford) who wore his mother’s gold shantung silk pajamas to class on the rare occasions he attended and played jazz on the trumpet — a character straight out of an Evelyn Waugh novel (Waugh was a family friend).


https://www.nytimes.com/2023/04/13/fashion/mary-quant-dead.html

I’m going to cut right to the chase here and tell you about Jesse Haemmerle—aka Johnny H/John Haemmerle and his connection to Elvis, as it’s too weird to wait for. You may know Elvis’ mother Gladys Garon was set to deliver twins at home in Tupelo, Mississippi when tragically Elvis’ brother Jessie arrived stillborn just before Elvis was born. The loss of his twin weighed heavily on Elvis psychologically for his entire life. Gladys has said she and her husband Vernon gave Presley the middle name of Aaron (an adaptation of the family’s last name of Garon), so he would always feel as though his brother was there with him. Even before his own death, it was said Elvis would have meandering conversations with his deceased brother while traipsing around Graceland. Meanwhile, in New Jersey, a kid named John Haemmerle would learn he had been adopted from a family in Tupelo, and his actual date of birth was January 8th, 1935, just like Elvis. 
Okay. 
Elvis-association aside, John Haemmerle was a pretty interesting cat on his own. He served in the Air Force and worked as a police officer for several years. Haemmerle dedicated a large portion of his life to bodybuilding and became good enough to participate in the Mr. America competition in 1968. He was also a member of the impressive sounding organization, the Federation of Arm Wrestlers and built the first opposing grips arm wrestling table in 1969. He scored some television roles and an uncredited bit part in the 1973 film Serpico, but was most successful musically and put out a number of singles under different names including Johnny H in the 50s and 60s, which you could classify as Doo-Wop. He was also known for the creation of his unique space rocket-inspired hollow body V acoustic guitar (pictured at the top of this post). 
In getting back to Haemmerle’s (maybe) Elvis connection, there are many accounts which have been shared over the decades—here are a few.
​Sometime in 1964, Haemmerle claims to have met Elvis and somehow got to lay the story on him he was his brother Jesse apparently speaking to the big E for “hours.”  In an interview with truth-champion The Sun, Haemmerle recounted strange Elvis-related experiences such as seeing an image of Elvis materialize on his cellar wall, and a session with well-known psychic Ann Fisher which conjured up memories of his days in Tupelo prior to his adoption. Haemmerle’s Myspace page contains other ramblings about his psychic visions, including one concerning a recurring dream where he traded clothing with his “twin brother” as he died. Haemmerle also had regular dreams about his custom hollow body V getting ripped off—which it did. Luckily, according to his son, he made two just in case his nightmare came to fruition. At some point along the way, Haemmerle changed his name to Jesse Garon Presley. In 1990 an article published on September 19th in New York newspaper The Reporter cited Jesse for winning a first-place award (as well as several others) at the National Creative Arts Festival in Albany in rhythm/blues/religious category for his interpretation of Elvis’ 1970 hit, “Kentucky Rain.”Now, I’m sure you (maybe) might be thinking “whatever happened to Jesse Haemmerle?” I have a bit of an unexpected twist for you. According to Haemmerle’s 2003 obituary, he was, in fact, adopted and raised by Oscar and Felicia Albarea Haemmerle in the New York/New Jersey area. He is referred to by name in the obit as Jesse G. Presley noting his place of birth as DUN DUN DUN! Tupelo, Mississippi. This all reads like an old episode of In Search Of with Leonard Nimoy, and since the all-knowing Nimoy isn’t around to help me figure this one out, I’m going to wait on passing any judgment regarding the truth behind this very strange story. 
Here are some images of Haemmerle during his bodybuilding days as well as his musical ones. Also included below are some of the musical stylings of the mysterious Johnny H. 

https://dangerousminds.net/comments/the_story_of_johnny_h._the_musician_bodybuilder_actor_and_his_bizarre_conne

“Father Yod just gave me a thought for you. He wants me to tell you, ‘Camelot.’”
On a Zoom call in March from her home in Oahu, Hawaii, Isis Aquarian recounted her time in the Los Angeles spiritual commune the Source Family, which she — through telepathic messages from the group’s leader — likened to the romantic symbol of the Arthurian world.
In the 1970s, dressed in stylish, flowing gowns, caftans, robes and headscarves, she all but resembled Guinevere. “It was pure Camelot for all of us. For those who experienced it, it was something else,” she added. For Isis, the Family was tantamount to utopia.
Known for its pioneering in California lifestyle staples like health food, yoga, psychedelic rock and hippie fashion, the group’s leader, Father Yod, née Jim Baker, “left the body” in 1975, after a hang gliding accident in Hawaii, where the Family relocated in 1974. But Isis, now 80, said their union — she was one of Yod’s 14 spiritual wives — never ended. “He’s still the big guy to me, still my man,” she said. “When you live in both dimensions, the veil is very thin.”
To an outsider, Isis’ casual references to telepathy and interdimensional existence may sound delusional. But for members of the Source Family, a group that some call a cult, it’s a way of life honed over decades of study and ritualism based in Western esotericism. Their beliefs amalgamated principles developed by Kundalini yoga progenitor Yogi Bhajan; the astrological concept of the Age of Aquarius; the teachings of Manly P. Hall, founder of the Philosophical Research Society in Los Feliz; the freemasons and others. Father Yod bestowed each member with a first name; they changed their middle and last names to the Aquarian. Like many religious and spiritual groups, the Source Family placed their faith in things invisible to nonbelievers.
Most recently, in November, Isis, curator Charlie Kitchings and filmmaker and publisher Jodi Wille, who has previously worked with Isis on a book and a feature documentary, released “Family: The Source Family Scrapbook” in conjunction with the independent record label Sacred Bones. The book includes previously unpublished photographs and ephemera from Isis’ archive and detailed captions that contextualize the images. Isis also moved her archive, around 50 boxes of materials, to the American Religions Collection at the UC Santa Barbara library. In conjunction with the book’s release, a series of Source Family events took place in Santa Barbara, Los Feliz, Malibu and Culver City in late March.
And now, Hollywood is getting involved.
At a private dinner in Malibu on March 25 sponsored by the media company Atlas Obscura, guests including actors Patricia Arquette and Mark Ruffalo, music producer Rick Rubin, actor and producer Ben Sinclair, original Source Family members and other curious parties were invited on “a journey into the cult roots of health food.” The menu, inspired by dishes at the original Source restaurant, featured seven courses including “psychedelic toast,” “multidimensional soup” and a re-creation of the restaurant’s “aware salad,” served by staff engaged in Source Family cosplay, dressed in flowing white frocks and wigs. Isis and fellow Source Family members Venus, Zerathustra and Galaxy Aquarian blessed the meal with a ritual they performed in the Family. “As above, so below, and around, we go, YaHoWah,” they chanted with corresponding hand gestures, as if guiding energy around the 40-person table decorated with poppies, dill flowers, wheat and cut papaya, a flower child’s rendering of a medieval banquet.

​https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/music/story/2023-04-12/source-family-cult-l-a-father-yod-mark-ruffalo-rick-rubin-vegetarian-restaurant?fbclid=IwAR3VKzl4SBApva3FfW_FSuwCfbSCmDfAVxPGPMBIcpxplGQp8uamVggHpmQ

An Artist Reversed The Gender Roles In Sexist Vintage Ads To Point Out How Absurd They Really Are
"Show him it's a woman's world."
Eli Rezkallah is a 31-year-old visual artist/photographer who recently created a photo series entitled, "In a Parallel Universe" that reimagines sexist ads from the mid-20th century with the gender roles reversed.
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https://www.buzzfeed.com/crystalro/this-artist-re-created-sexist-vintage-ads-with-the-roles

1967 Cookbook Features Recipes by the Rolling Stones, Simon & Garfunkel, Barbra Streisand & More
Am I alone in thinking that the “dozens of nutty, turned-on, easy-to-prepare recipes” in 1967’s Singers and Swingers in the Kitchen bear more than passing resemblance to the festively photographed dishes in Betty Crocker’s 1965 New Boys and Girls Cook Book?
Could Sonny and Cher, Simon and Garfunkel, and Herman’s Hermits – to name a few of the “top scenemakers” Singers and Swingers author Roberta Ashley designates as the “grooviest gourmets happening” – really shared a common palate with Betty and her child-chefs?
It’s hard to imagine 1967’s rock stars” eating this stuff, let alone making it. The Rolling Stones’ “Hot Dogs on the Rocks” sounds more suited to Mick Jagger’s hot pot at the London School of Economics than the back of a “Ruby Tuesday” era tour bus. I don’t recall Keith Richards mentioning them in Life.
(Though take away the recipe’s three middle words, and you’re left with the title of a certain multi-platinum double hits album. Coincidence?)
Moving on to Singers and Swingers’ salad course, Monkee Peter Tork’s “Mad Mandarin Salad” (click here for ingredients) sounds like it would taste quite similar to the New Boys and Girls Cook Book’s “Rocket Salad”, above. Canned fruit features prominently in both, but “Rocket Salad” is way more phallic, and thus more rock n’ roll.
“Barbra Streisand’s Instant Coffee Ice Cream” sounds sophisticated, mayhaps because coffee, like alcohol, has no place in the Betty Crocker New Boys and Girls’ realm. It seems like it would uphold the Singers and Swingers’ mandate by being “easy-to-prepare”. Dare I say “easy enough for a child to prepare”? So my own mother told the Indianapolis Star sometime in the late 60’s. The evidence is below. Just like Barbra’s, my mother’s recipe required marshmallows and a blender.
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https://www.openculture.com/2014/02/1967-cookbook-features-recipes-by-the-rolling-stones.html

'May I have the pleasure of seeing you home?' The 'flirtation cards' 19th-century men used to woo ladies (but they had to be returned if she wasn't interested)
Long before mobile phones came along - allowing single men and women to flirt behind the comfort of a glowing screen - shy love-seekers had to resort to other tactics.
In the case of late 19th-century America, it was the 'escort card' - not to be confused with the explicit sort you might imagine today - but rather a comical printed card men would hand to women they found attractive.
Collector Alan Mays has unearthed a treasure trove of these vintage ice-breakers, which bear phrases such as: 'May I be permitted the blissful pleasure of escorting you home this evening?'
According to The Encyclopedia of Ephemera, there were two types of cards used in the 1870s and 1880s.
One was referred to as the 'calling card' and would be used by gentleman to formally introduce themselves to new acquaintances - much like the modern business card.
The second, as seen in Mr Mays' collection, was a novelty variety reserved for more casual encounters, namely men seeking the company of women, known as an 'escort card'.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-3052889/amp/The-flirtation-cards-19th-century-men-used-woo-ladies.html

Easter Was Better in the 70s
Black and white photos of the annual New York City parade by acclaimed photographer Meryl Meisler.
On Easter Sunday 1977, while humming the words to a classic Irving Berlin song, I pretended to be Judy Garland:
In your Easter bonnet, with all the frills upon it,
You'll be the grandest lady in the Easter Parade.
I'll be all in clover and when they look you over,
I'll be the proudest fellow in the Easter Parade.
On the avenue, Fifth Avenue, the photographers will snap us,
And you'll find that you're in the rotogravure.
Oh, I could write a sonnet about your Easter bonnet,
And of the girl I'm taking to the Easter Parade.
There I was, in front of St. Patrick's Cathedral's in New York, attending—and photographing—my first Easter parade. Even though I wasn't brought up as Christian (I'm Jewish), I've always been interested in how other people celebrate their holidays. Adults and children (and even some pets) showed up wearing their best hats and bonnets. Many were walking in and out of the cathedral, while others looked like they had been partying since Mardi Gras.
I took their pictures, and now it's 40 years later. Looking back, it's easy to see that things change—that styles come and go, that traditions take new forms. But we're still one community, one people, one planet.
Meryl Meisler is an artist based in New York City. She is author of the internationally acclaimed photo books A Tale of Two Cities: Disco Era Bushwickand Purgatory & Paradise: SASSY 70s Suburbia & the City. Meisler is working on her third book in a trilogy about the 1970s.

https://www.vice.com/en/article/bme8kv/the-big-hats-and-classy-clothes-of-a-70s-nyc-easter-parade?fbclid=IwAR1LFWJHJonOJ9leTJdyqhCoXw8hAo8GnQkqUWXgsnpj1X5NA8GGwu0DTF8

In 1974, a group of London art students founded the feminist print collective See Red Women’s Workshop. They taught themselves plumbing and carpentry skills while transforming a derelict building with no electricity into a fully functional screen-printing studio and meeting space. For the next 16 years, the more than 40 women organized consciousness-raising sessions, designed graphic posters railing against the division of labor, and educated youth groups about sexual and reproductive health.
The book See Red Women’s Workshop, published February 28 by Four Corner Books, traces the collective’s evolution in archival photographs of the printing process. The collection features correspondence letters with bookstore distributors, meeting memos, and preliminary sketches of poster designs.
Some prints are calendars riddled with blunt one-liners about workplace barriers (example: “Over 40, promotion given to younger man, go back to 29.”) or expectations at home (“Housework in the evening, exhausted.”) In 1979, one year after a coalition of black and Asian women put out the newsletter FOWAAD! to highlight how the women’s liberation movement often ignored issues affecting women of color, a See Red member created a poster that read, “Black Women Will Not Be Intimidated.”
In other illustrations from See Red’s early years, disgruntled women are shown scrubbing dishes and ironing clothes with subversive or irreverent text. One print with the slogan “Sisters! Question every aspect of our lives” shows women vacuuming, grocery shopping, and applying lipstick. While much of the group’s early work focused on attitudes toward marriage and domestic chores, later campaigns targeted equal pay, reproductive freedom, gay rights, and more racial inclusivity. Other campaigns targeted the closure of a women’s hospital in South London; the imprisonment of women in Armagh, Ireland; and the use of public money in funding Queen Elizabeth’s Silver jubilee celebration.
Printing was a male-dominated profession in the U.K. in the 1970s. See Red members graduated from art schools where less than a third of the students were female, and the instructors were all men. “The male students took up all the studio space,” one member explains in the book, and “there was little respect for our ideas: the assumption often was that we were probably only doing art as a hobby.”
The National Front, a far-right political group, frequently attacked See Red’s workshop space — pouring ink over the presses, cutting phone wires, posting neo-Nazi stickers on doors, urinating on their mail, and in one instance throwing bricks through a window.
In addition to external conflicts, there were also significant fissions within the group. As member Sue Field Read explains, “There were quite a few downs, mistakes and mis-printings, high emotions and disagreements — but then I suppose this happens whenever there is a group of people working very hard, with little financial support, with the serious aim of spreading important ideas in an uncaring selfish world.”
In 1982, See Red was awarded a government grant that allowed them to pay some members regular wages. This led to a series of irreparable divisions, as some members advocated that the paid positions should be filled by black, working class, and gay women, while others wanted the original collective members to assume paid positions. Buoyed by donations, calendar sales, and various commissioned print projects, See Red remained active until 1990.
Click through to see how the group deconstructed social expectations and fought for wage equality.
​
https://www.thecut.com/2017/02/see-striking-posters-from-feminist-see-red-womens-workshop.html

An essential part of learning history is questioning it, asking what has become part of our cultural memory and what might have been left out. When it comes to the history of punk music, there are few bands who have been as overlooked as Pure Hell.
The band’s story began in West Philadelphia in 1974, when four teenagers – lead vocalist Kenny ‘Stinker’ Gordon, bassist Lenny ‘Steel’ Boles, guitarist Preston ‘Chip Wreck’ Morris and drummer Michael ‘Spider’ Sanders, set out to follow in the footsteps of their musical idols. A shared obsession with the sounds of Iggy, Bowie, Cooper, and Hendrix inspired them to create music that was louder, faster and more provocative than even those artists’ most experimental records. Pure Hell’s unique sound led them to New York, where they became characters in a seminal subculture recognised today as punk. As musicians of colour, their contribution to a predominately white underground scene is all the more significant. “We were the first black punk band in the world,” says Boles. “We were the ones who paid the dues for it, we broke the doors down. We were genuinely the first. And we still get no credit for it.”
The title of the ‘first black punk band’ has, in recent years, been informally given to Detroit-based Death, whose music was mostly unheralded at the time but has since been rediscovered and praised for its progressive ideas. But while Death were creating proto-punk music in isolation in the early 1970s, Pure Hell was completely entrenched in the New York City underground scene, living and performing alongside the legends of American punk. Arriving the same month that Patti Smith and Television began their two-month residencies at CBGB and leaving just after Nancy Spungen’s murder, Pure Hell’s active years in the city aligned perfectly with the birth and death of a dynamic chapter of music history. “I don’t want to be remembered just because we were black,” says Kenny Gordon. “I want to be remembered for being a part of the first tier of punk in the 70s.”
Being just 155km from Greenwich Village, Philadelphia was somewhat of a pipeline of New York subculture – Gordon remembers his teenage years at the movie theatre watching John Waters films like Polyester and Pink Flamingos, and hanging out at Artemis, a spot frequented by Philly scenesters like Nancy Spungen and Neon Leon. “I heard (The Rolling Stones’) ‘Satisfaction’ and knew it was the kind of music I wanted to play,” recalls bassist Lenny Boles. “I was too poor to afford instruments, so if someone had one, I would befriend them.” 
The quad quickly gained notoriety on their home turf. “Growing up in West Philadelphia, which was all black, we were some of the craziest guys you could have possibly seen walking the streets back then,” says Gordon. “We dressed in drag and wore wigs, basically daring people to bother us. People in the neighbourhood would say, ‘Don’t go into houses with those guys, you may not come out!’”
Pure Hell swan dove into the New York underground scene in 1975, in pursuit of the people, places, and sounds they’d read about for years in the pages of Rock Scene and Cream magazine. The band moved into the Chelsea Hotel, the temporary home of a long list of influential characters, including Bob Dylan, Leonard Cohen, Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison, Edie Sedgwick, Patti Smith, and Robert Mapplethorpe. Their first gig in the city was hosted at Frenzy’s thrift, a storefront on St. Marks place, where guitarist Preston Morris “rather memorably caught the amplifier on fire due to a combination of maximum volume and faulty wires”, says Gordon. Drummer Michael Sanders’ friendship with Neon Leon led the band to the New York Dolls, who were acting as mentors for younger artists like Debbie Harry and Richard Hell at the time. Pure Hell was soon invited to perform for the Dolls in their loft.
https://www.dazeddigital.com/music/article/40942/1/pure-hell-first-black-american-punk-band-history
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https://www.instagram.com/longlostpersonals/

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https://www.instagram.com/richwexlerphotographer/
http://richwexlerphotographer.com

’m going to cut right to the chase here and tell you about Jesse Haemmerle—aka Johnny H/John Haemmerle and his connection to Elvis, as it’s too weird to wait for. You may know Elvis’ mother Gladys Garon was set to deliver twins at home in Tupelo, Mississippi when tragically Elvis’ brother Jessie arrived stillborn just before Elvis was born. The loss of his twin weighed heavily on Elvis psychologically for his entire life. Gladys has said she and her husband Vernon gave Presley the middle name of Aaron (an adaptation of the family’s last name of Garon), so he would always feel as though his brother was there with him. Even before his own death, it was said Elvis would have meandering conversations with his deceased brother while traipsing around Graceland. Meanwhile, in New Jersey, a kid named John Haemmerle would learn he had been adopted from a family in Tupelo, and his actual date of birth was January 8th, 1935, just like Elvis.
Okay.
Elvis-association aside, John Haemmerle was a pretty interesting cat on his own. He served in the Air Force and worked as a police officer for several years. Haemmerle dedicated a large portion of his life to bodybuilding and became good enough to participate in the Mr. America competition in 1968. He was also a member of the impressive sounding organization, the Federation of Arm Wrestlers and built the first opposing grips arm wrestling table in 1969. He scored some television roles and an uncredited bit part in the 1973 film Serpico, but was most successful musically and put out a number of singles under different names including Johnny H in the 50s and 60s, which you could classify as Doo-Wop. He was also known for the creation of his unique space rocket-inspired hollow body V acoustic guitar (pictured at the top of this post).
In getting back to Haemmerle’s (maybe) Elvis connection, there are many accounts which have been shared over the decades—here are a few. 
Sometime in 1964, Haemmerle claims to have met Elvis and somehow got to lay the story on him he was his brother Jesse apparently speaking to the big E for “hours.”  In an interview with truth-champion The Sun, Haemmerle recounted strange Elvis-related experiences such as seeing an image of Elvis materialize on his cellar wall, and a session with well-known psychic Ann Fisher which conjured up memories of his days in Tupelo prior to his adoption. Haemmerle’s Myspace page contains other ramblings about his psychic visions, including one concerning a recurring dream where he traded clothing with his “twin brother” as he died. Haemmerle also had regular dreams about his custom hollow body V getting ripped off—which it did. Luckily, according to his son, he made two just in case his nightmare came to fruition. At some point along the way, Haemmerle changed his name to Jesse Garon Presley. In 1990 an article published on September 19th in New York newspaper The Reporter cited Jesse for winning a first-place award (as well as several others) at the National Creative Arts Festival in Albany in rhythm/blues/religious category for his interpretation of Elvis’ 1970 hit, “Kentucky Rain.”
Now, I’m sure you (maybe) might be thinking “whatever happened to Jesse Haemmerle?” I have a bit of an unexpected twist for you. According to Haemmerle’s 2003 obituary, he was, in fact, adopted and raised by Oscar and Felicia Albarea Haemmerle in the New York/New Jersey area. He is referred to by name in the obit as Jesse G. Presley noting his place of birth as DUN DUN DUN! Tupelo, Mississippi. This all reads like an old episode of In Search Of with Leonard Nimoy, and since the all-knowing Nimoy isn’t around to help me figure this one out, I’m going to wait on passing any judgment regarding the truth behind this very strange story.
Here are some images of Haemmerle during his bodybuilding days as well as his musical ones. Also included below are some of the musical stylings of the mysterious Johnny H. 
​​https://dangerousminds.net/comments/the_story_of_johnny_h._the_musician_bodybuilder_actor_and_his_bizarre_conne
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Ep 27: Amos Poe (Punk and No-Wave Filmmaker) 
Amos Poe is one of the leading figures of the No Wave Cinema movement (75-85) that grew out of the bustling East Village music and art scene. The No Wave paralleled the punk music explosion and included Jim Jarmusch, Abel Ferrara, Eric Mitchell, James Nares, Beth and Scott B, Vivienne Dick, Sara Driver, John Lurie, Richard Kern, Nick Zedd, Bette Gordon, Melvie Arslanian, Charlie Ahearn, among others - they embraced B-movie genres, the avant-garde, & the French New Wave to create a fresh, vibrant American art cinema.
Over 40 years of creating for the screen, Poe has directed, written for and collaborated with a host of impressive figures of the film, music and art worlds, namely Iggy Pop, Blondie, Patti Smith, Television, Richard Hell and the Heartbreakers, The Ramones, Talking Heads, and Wayne County, as well as Debbie Harry, Vincent Spano, Run DMC, Anthrax, Steve Earle, Burt Lancaster, Macaulay Culkin, Bill Pullman, Richard Edson, Gina Gershon, and Phillip Seymour Hoffman. We talk about his start in shooting the early NYC punk scene, his films, his influences, and more.  This was a huge honor.

You can find out more about him at his website.  
http://www.amospoe.com/cv.html


HELP AMOS! HE HAS A RARE FORM OF CANCER
Filmmaker Amos Poe was recently diagnosed with a rare, aggressive cancer that has left him too weak to continue working. Following a recent barrage of testing, a treatment plan is finally coming together. His family and friends are hoping for the best while knowing the road to recovery will be a long and grueling one.
The costs of care and testing leading up to treatment have been astronomical, even with insurance. The treatment itself and the aftercare will be nearly insurmountable without all of our help.

https://www.gofundme.com/f/amos-poe-is-our-friend-and-now-he-needs-all-of-ushttps://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/vintage-annals-archive-outsider-podcast/id1645791721?i=1000606672015
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Chronicles of an Affair with his Secretary, Found in an Abandoned Suitcase
The briefcase was found three decades after the affair took place, abandoned in a German apartment and later sold at auction. The contents of the suitcase, an extraordinary collection of materials that chronicled the adulterous relationship between a businessman and his secretary in the late 1960s and 70s.
Exposed to our own voyeurism, a recent exhibition in New York invited the curious to discover an archive consisting of hundreds of photographs of the same woman, identified only as “Margret S,” posing in hotel rooms and enjoying secret getaways.
Her illusive lover and man behind the camera, is married Cologne businessman and construction company owner, Günter K. He is 39 when the affair begins in May 1969, and Margret is 24, also married.
We know this because Günter meticulously documented the affair like a compulsive accountant. Not only did he endlessly photograph Margret, but he took detailed notes of the affair, written with a typewriter and inscribed with dates like they were official records.
He kept receipts from hotels, restaurants, casinos, spas and shopping sprees, as well as travel documents, theatre tickets and even held on to empty contraception packets and had samples of Margret’s hair.
“The couple go on ‘business trips’ in Günter’s Opel Kapitän,” observes curator Veir Loers in his introduction to the original exhibition of ‘Margret’ in Austria. “Then the trysts begin to take place in an attic flat in Günter’s store building … Margret prepares roulades and redfish filets with cucumber salad. They drink Cappy (orange juice) with a green shot (Escorial, strong liquor) and watch “colourful television.” Margret dresses for him in the clothes he has bought her.”
Indeed, his notes reveal that his wife Leni is aware of the affair but chooses to endure the humiliation. In one of the first long notes, typed on a page from a calendar, Günther describes a confrontation between Margret and his wife:
[Roughly translated from German]
Monday 7.9.1970: At lunch Leni (Günthers wife) says to Margret: Madame, you are a lesser character, you are disrupting a good marriage.
Tuesday 8.9.1970: Around 10 a clock Margret says to me: You let this insult from your wife against me pass? No more sex, you can jump on your own wife. Whatever you do, you are not allowed to jump on me anymore.
Later, my wife has to apologize to her at lunch on 8.9.1970.
That afternoon they go upstairs again to make love and the note ends with:
Devil salad is eaten. Everything is okay again. 
The affair takes place at the dawn of the sexual revolution and yet old conventions prevail. One only hopes he didn’t type up his reports in the living room accompanied by his wife. Or would it even make a difference?
“He, the perfect lover, in truth is a macho man who wants to have everything under control”, concludes curator Veit Loers, who was first to exhibit the archives. “She [Margret] enjoys his attention, his generosity, is happy to let herself be manipulated, is jealous, becomes pregnant despite the pills, and has an illegal abortion − for the third time in her young life.
As the voyeur, we find ourselves in an even more conflicted space as the obsessive nature of the relationship becomes increasingly obvious.
During one of their “business trips”, Günther makes a list of all the times they made love….
Wednesday 12 Aug. 1970: 17 18.15  1x
Beginning of her period (tampon) Initiation party anyways.
Tuesday 18 Aug. 1970: 15.15 -15. 20.
Yellow chair in front of the aquarium (sitting) 1x
Wednesday 2 Sept. 1970: 17. 05-18.00 1x
With beautiful music, resting afterwards
As the affair progresses, his descriptions get longer, become more bold and explicit.
From the earlier black & white photos to later ones, we also observe Günther’s apparent transformation of his secretary from a shy, simple, mousy-haired girl to a modern, sophisticated woman with a fiery red high-maintenance beehive do.
She loses the glasses and starts smoking. He buys her pink satin dresses, jewellery and lingerie and photographs it all.
The relationship appears to come to an end just before Christmas in 1970 when reports and photographs of Margret begin to break off. According to Günther’s notes, she tells him that “after Christmas the f***ing will be over and you will not dance at two weddings anymore.”
He gets involved with other women at the request of Margret who wants him to go on dates with other women, presumably to quell suspicion from her own husband.
There is Giesela, who Günther describes as “sexually starving”, and Ursula, a “big and skinny” 21 year-old who “looks really good. White boots, green dress, black hair.” Günther reveals Margret’s subsequent panicked jealousy, begging him not to fall in love with Ursula. He also mentions that despite him still being involved with Ursula, Margret fights with her husband and asks for a divorce.
His last note is a long description of him and Margret making love. The story is left unfinished, fragmented, there can be no real happy ending.
And the questions linger. What makes a man document his affair so meticulously? Did he want to preserve the relationship to relive it later? Was this industrial businessman searching for a creative platform to express his love? Or merely the confirmation of his control over the situation, as he mastered the art of adultery?
The book ‘Margret: Chronik einer Affare – Mai 1969 bis Dezember 1970’, published in German in 2012 is now out-of-print. The White Columns Gallery exhibition in New York was the first presentation of ‘Margret’ in a non-German speaking context.
https://www.messynessychic.com/2015/03/25/chronicles-of-an-affair-with-his-secretary-found-in-an-abandoned-suitcase/
​

The Incredible Posters of Tadanori Yokoo
Yokoo Tadanori (also known as Tadanori Yokoo) is possibly the greatest major influence on contemporary poster design. But does the current generation of designers even know who he is? Here’s a primer: In the mid-60s, Yokoo rose to prominence through works such as Koshi-maki Osen and La Marie Vison. These works doubtless influenced the psychedelic style in the U.S. at the time. His posters are even more important in Japan because, rather than following foreign styles, they define a Modern Japanese graphic design aesthetic.
Now, thanks to Christopher Mount, who “mounted” an exhibition of the Russian poster masters, The Stenberg Brothers, in New York in 1997 at MoMA, there’s a major exhibition titled “The Complete Posters of Tadanori Yokoo” that opened on July 13th at the The National Museum of Art, Osaka. Mount wrote the main essay for the catalog, which includes more than 800 images, being published by Kokusho.
“This may be the last time this kind of extensive exhibition will be put together of his work,” Mount tells me. He adds: “He has the cultural status and following of a rock star or movie star in Japan. Yokoo is considered one of the great postwar cultural figures right along side Kurasawa, Mishima, Ono, Kusama, Ando or Miyake. I was surprised once when I met him for lunch at MoMA many years ago and a group of teenage Japanese tourists swarmed him for pictures and autographs. Everybody in Japan knows who he is. We don’t have graphic designers like that here in the U.S. My hope is that he can receive more of his proper due here in the U.S. and the West in the coming years.”
Yokoo’s creative life eventually expanded to include a wide range of fields such as painting and literature, but as he continued to produce design throughout his career, the poster remained at the core of his artistic output. “His work has a level of experimentation and personal expression impossible in most Westerners’ understanding of what graphic design can be,” Mount explains. “His work is a kind of contemporary and unrestricted version of the Ukiyo-ei. Thus, Yokoo is able to exceed in terms of creativity anything we expect posters to be.”
Is there a chance that a Yokoo exhibit will come to the U.S.? Mount has spoken with museums on the West Coast and hopes to have interest on the East Coast. “An exhibition of this sort could be particularly appealing with the recent popularity of artists such as Murakami and Nara, and the current fascination with Anime, Manga and popular Japanese culture. Yokoo is the progenitor and otherwise had such a strong influence on so much of this,” he notes.

​https://www.printmag.com/daily-heller/the-incredible-posters-of-tadanori-yokoo/

And an article on their animated work. 
https://dangerousminds.net/comments/pop_goes_japan_tadanori_yokoos_amazing_60s_animations

Random Vintage Images
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Vintage Big Hairdo's 
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Sexist Computer Ads from 70's
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New York Rocker, a paper dedicated to music, was published from 1976 to 1982 (54 issues). These are the covers. Founded by Alan Betrock (1950-2000) and edited by Andy Schwartz, this hymned chronicler of punk and post-punk scenes in New York and beyond featured upcoming and already-there bands, photographs by Laura Levine and Ebet Roberts, and art direction from Elizabeth van Itallie.
“The Rocker was way ahead of the game as far as knowing who was up and coming,” recalled Levine in 2001. “I was their chief photographer and photo editor. We were a very tight-knit group who went to see gigs together, threw parties, and pulled all-nighters pasting up the issues for press.”
The covers below are tremendous.
https://flashbak.com/new-york-rocker-the-covers-1976-1982-361672/

Vintage Creepy Dolls 
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Vintage Annals Archive Own - Rich Wexler (me)  had the pleasure of being on one of my favorite podcasts MIDNIGHT MASS,  speaking about HAROLD AND MAUDE!

*For Patreon Members there are three deep dive related to Harold and Maude. One on the film, one on Bud Cort, and one on  Ruth Gordon. Check out the episode below, and I highly recommend following the MIDNIGHT MASS podcast!   

If you want to sing out…sing out! This week, Peaches and Michael explore unconventional connection in celebration of 1971’s HAROLD AND MAUDE! In addition to discussing the film’s remarkable use of music, our hosts delve into Harold’s place as one of cinema’s first proto-goths. Joining the conversation is cult filmmaker Chris LaMartina, who digs into the continued impact this classic has had on his life and outlook. Then, Vintage Annals Archive’s own Richard Wexler stops by to offer up some of the more nuanced bits of the movie’s storied history. From modified hearses to Cat Stevens verses, this episode has it all! Go!
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/midnight-mass/id1571382053?i=1000605298072

More inappropriate comic panels 
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HIGHLY RECOMMENDED  
From Academy Award-winning filmmaker Laura Poitras (HBO and Participant’s “Citizenfour”) All the Beauty and the Bloodshed is an epic, emotional and interconnected story about internationally renowned artist and activist Nan Goldin. The story is told through her slideshows, intimate interviews, ground-breaking photography, and rare footage of her personal fight to hold the Sackler family accountable for the opioid overdose crisis.
Credits: Executive Producers are Participant’s Jeff Skoll and Diane Weyermann; Clare Carter; Alex Kwartler; and Hayley Theisen. Producers are Howard Gertler, John Lyons, Goldin, Yoni Golijov and Poitras
​https://youtu.be/YD5pYQiT1D4

The podcast that gives Gen-X music maniacs a chance to smell like teen spirit again by connecting with a brotherhood obsessed with rating the entire discography of every single artist and band that ever mattered. With 3 new episodes a week, you’ll gain a comprehensive knowledge of an act’s history and output in the time it takes to listen to a single LP! 
 Don't miss your favorite artists reduced to music geeks as they rate their favorite artists’ records. 
 Ready to be flooded with music recommendations and connect to a brotherhood of friends? Then scroll up and click ‘FOLLOW’

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/discograffiti/id1592182331

I also highly recommend joining their PATREON
https://www.patreon.com/Discograffiti
Hosted by Dave Gebroe, Discograffiti is the music podcast that delivers the objective truth about the entire discography of every single artist and band that’s ever existed! 

If you’re on our Patreon page, then chances are you already know how the show works: Every Sunday, our mothership show features a different act, to whom I listen to and exhaustively research. From the ultra-obscure to the toppermost of the poppermost, Discograffiti covers it all. Every last release is given a star rating from zero to five, and at the end of every episode we come face to face with the true shape of an artist’s overall arc. 
Simply put...it’s a music lover’s dream come true. 

We’ve already featured such guests as: 
John Landis
Anthony Fantano 
Bart Bealmear from Dangerous Minds 
Lou Barlow from Dinosaur Jr
Monkees manager Andrew Sandoval
Spiral Stairs & Bob Nastanovich from Pavement
Replacements biographer Bob Mehr
Comedian Jim Florentine
Bob Forrest
Kevin Whelan from The Wrens
L’Rain
Jonathan Rado from Foxygen
The Sleep With Me Podcast
Marvin Gaye biographer David Ritz 

Our Patreon feed, then, is the last word in deep-dive music obsession. This is it. You wanted the best, and you got it! The most insane, all-in music universe that’s ever been, here are the multiple tiers available through which to gain entry to the psychedelically mind-melting music funhouse of Discograffiti’s Patreon:
Private First Class ($5/month) - You simply realize the value of the show and appreciate the insane amount of work that goes into each episode. Thank you so much for listening. And for giving. In addition, you'll be emailed a Discograffiti Soldier of Sound backstage pass, as well as a link to join us in our 24-hour Patreon hangout community on Discord.  Ditch your current deadbeat friends and hang with the kool kids over at  Discograffiti Central.
Lieutenant ($10/month) - Access to the Wild Card Episode, which means TONS of extra content, all of which is weekly and goes up every Thursday.  You'll get any one of the following: Rock Cousteau (our buried treasure show), Queasy Listening (shitty music diss show), Battle Royale! (music debates with S.O.S. members), our Very Special Episodes (thematic extravaganzas like Rock Operas, Live Albums, Abandoned Projects, Bootlegs, etc), Soldiers of Sound Call-In Episodes, long-form guest interviews, bonus content from mothership episodes, and really any additional content that doesn’t quite fit the format but is equally indispensable.
Major ($20/month) - Discograffiti’s Private Press with Paul Major.   This is our flagship bonus show, and it’s
comin’ atcha weekly—every Tuesday.  The ultimate value for your music dollar--period, end of story. The greatest private press record collector of all time—and leader of the thunderously awesome band Endless Boogie—introduces you to a brand new incredible record you’ve almost definitely never heard of every single week, along with personal stories that rocket his recommendations into another category entirely.  Not to be missed.  Feel free to sample it and see for yourself.  
Colonel ($40/month) - Access to participate in our special Call-In Episodes!
Brigadier General ($100/month) - You get to actually help choose the bands the show covers…and the special guests that cover them with us!
Major General ($1,000) - Live, in-person record shopping assistance!

‘Three funky cats, all brothers, having just as much fun on stage as their audience,’ as the sleeve notes to their second album read. ‘What kind of sound do the Kaplans have? Three parts of harmony coming together with a new contemporary sound as well as a healthy golden Oldie Show. Interwoven voices along with guitar, congo drums and bass blend together in a crisp fresh sound of today that doesn't forget the best of yesterday.’

Playing around the Illinois, Iowa, Michigan and Wisconsin area, the Kaplan Brothers released their first album, The Universal Sounds Of The Kaplan Brothers, on their own Kap Records imprint in 1969. At that point the Chicago-based duo consisted of brothers Richard (aka Dick, guitar and lead vocals) and Ed (percussion and flute), backed on their recording by guitarist Scott Klynas and bassist Jeff Czech. Very hairy, very Jewish (their first two albums both feature covers of Hava Nagila), very oddball, the Kaplan sound mixes spaghetti western whistles with South American congas and a splash of Greenwich Village folk. 

For a while the two brothers performed on stage by Larry Andies (bass and backing vocals), before teaming up with younger brother John and issuing a second album, the much more pedestrian lounge folk collection The Kaplan Brothers which features three Beatles covers amongst its tracks. It’s a record that, according to Dick Kaplan himself ‘Hasn't gotten any better over the years’. 
For their third – and last – album the boys shot off in an altogether different direction: quite literally. In early 1974 they relocated to California and, a year later, issued their magnum opus Nightbird, a mellotron-drenched slice of kitsch like nothing else you have ever heard in your life. Timothy Ready, on his blog The Progressive Rock Hall of Imfamy, described it rather well when he called it ‘Yom Kippur and Purim combined, in one mega-dose of cheese’.

Nightbird is a classic of wrongness, a prog-rock nightmare which is so gloriously perverse it somehow works. A song suite of sorts, Nightbird even includes a hideous (and hysterical) cover of the King Crimson classic Epitaph and an overwrought reworking of the Jose Feliciano song Rain. Small wonder that the Acid Archives called Nightbird ‘The ultimate lounge-rock extravaganza. A self-proclaimed 'electric symphony' that mixes Ennio Morricone with King Crimson as recorded by a Holiday Inn/bar mitzvah band from outer space. Crooner vocals soar on top of overly-elaborate keyboard arrangements as the music abruptly throws you from one intense mood into another in true psychedelic fashion.’ Although uncredited on the record, the title track Night Bird was written by Larry Andies. According to Kaplan Brothers’ fan James Webster (writing on Bad Cat Records in 2011), Larry ‘was also the composer of most of their original music’.

You need to hear this record. In fact for a couple of quid you can own a CD reissue of it. Search eBay for a copy of the (less than 100% legit) Erebus Records release from around 2009: I found my copy for 99p plus postage! You won’t regret it. But for now, here’s a couple of tracks to whet your appetite, the aforementioned Epitaph and the nutso album closer He, a rewrite (of sorts) of the folk classic He Was A Friend of Mine.  As a bonus, I’ve also added a track from each of the Brothers’ earlier albums: Running Scaredfrom The Universal Sounds Of The Kaplan Brothers and, from their second album The Kaplan Brothers, their batshit crazy interpretation of Eleanor Rigby.
https://worldsworstrecords.blogspot.com/2016/05/meet-kaplans.html?m=1

25 Vintage Photos of Badass Women Riding Their choppers 
A chopper is a type of custom motorcycle which emerged in California in the late 1950s. The chopper is perhaps the most extreme of all custom styles, often using radically modified steering angles and lengthened forks for a stretched-out appearance. They can be built from an original motorcycle which is modified (“chopped”) or built from scratch
Some of the characteristic features of choppers are long front ends with extended forks often coupled with an increased rake angle, hardtail frames (frames without rear suspension), very tall “ape hanger” or very short “drag” handlebars, lengthened or stretched frames, and larger than stock front wheels. The “sissy bar”, a set of tubes that connect the rear fender with the frame, and which are often extended several feet high, is a signature feature on many choppers.
Perhaps the best known choppers are the two customized Harley-Davidsons, the “Captain America” and “Bil
https://www.vintag.es/2020/02/70s-chopper-girls.html?m=1

The United States in the early 20th century wasn’t a hub of sex positivity or education, but there were exceptions. People still loved sex and reading sexy things, even if it wasn’t acceptable in mainstream publications. Enter the Tijuana Bible, an early relative of underground comics. These bibles were silly, and dirty, and fun. They featured obscene parodies of celebrities or well-known cartoon characters (including mice).


WHAT ARE TIJUANA BIBLES?
Tijuana bibles were also called eight-pagers, Tillie-and-Mac books, blue-bibles, and two-by-fours. In short, they were eight-page dirty comic books, about the size of your wallet. They were created during the 1930s–50s, but they were most popular during the depression era. Millions of them were printed during the 1930s. It is estimated that between 700 and 1000 unique books were created. In the 1940s, the war ground the industry to a halt and it never recovered.
Most of the artists remain unknown because their publication was illegal. Dr. Donald Gilmore, one of the fathers of the study of the bibles, posited that 12 artists produced the bulk of these bibles. A few authors have been credited with making the bibles. Wesley Morse, creator of Bazooka Joe, had a hand in making some eight-pagers.
Tijuana bibles gained their name because of the myth that they were smuggled from Mexico. This was never proven to be true. The book covers claimed that they were printed all over the world. The actuality is that they never left America. 

The comics were humorous and absolutely filthy. Some of the popular characters included in this are recognizable today. “Blondie”, “Dick Tracy”, and “Popeye” were all featured in these comics. Sometimes they would even feature political characters or celebrities.


THE POPULARITY OF THE BIBLES
The bibles were a form of escapism during the depression era. People delighted in the Tijuana bibles’ illicit content, but also in the hush-hush quality of buying something illegal.
They were also incredibly cheap. Tijuana bibles cost 25¢ each, and nobody really knows exactly who published them to this day. It is suspected to come from a group of printers that also circulated pornographic playing cards and film reels. Another theory is that they were printed by bootleggers. Bootleggers had access to printers for bottle labels, and they were often found in speakeasies.
Their popularity ended up sparking some conversations about copyright. Certainly, that was part of the appeal. Tabloids of the day capitalized on the controversy, with titles such as “Victimized By Smut!” Celebrities such as Rita Hayworth and Bob Hope appeared in these comics, and people went wild for them.
As well as serving as entertainment, this was a time in history when sex education was nonexistent. Another likely theory is that the bibles were partially instructional. Most of the stories and situations were silly, but the sex acts were very real. It was entirely plausible that these pamphlets served as a type of marital aid. It’s easy to imagine a husband saying to a wife “Think we can do this?” while Olive Oyl seduces Popeye.
Little else is known about these mysterious little comics. Almost nothing is known about how they came to be. Luckily, many of the comics survived to today for us to enjoy.


TIJUANA BIBLES TODAY
The human urge to draw and write porn persists even today. A close cousin of the Tijuana bible is dōjinshi. Dōjinshi are Japanese fan comics of copyrighted works. While only a small percentage of them are outright filthy, the ones that are remain notorious. Dōjinshi are also illegal, like the Tijuana bibles. They violate Japanese copyright laws, which is, of course, part of the fun and appeal. That said, they drum up business for the entire manga industry.
Dōjinshi only stands for one small aspect of modern fan works, pornographic or otherwise. Anyone who uses Twitter knows that people are going to draw silly porn no matter what, be it Tony the Tiger or Popeye. Curiously enough, fan fiction and fanart is still considered unlawful to this day, despite its rampant popularity.
The rarity of the Tijuana bibles was part of what made them so influential. They are a predecessor to the underground comics movement and zines. Their style even influenced Playboy magazine.
While the bibles fell out of favour with the start of the Second World War, today they remain a popular collector’s item. Some universities have collections for educational purposes. It’s possible to find compilations of ridiculous dirty comics featuring Dagwood and Donald Duck. You know…if you want.
https://bookriot.com/a-history-of-tijuana-bibles/amp/

Reminder JAMEL SHABAZZ and Karim Brown  Podcast Out Now!
At a time when they are trying to erase black history education in this country, I have the honor of sharing a podcast episode of one of the greatest living photographers of the past 100 years, Jamel Shabazz. We will be focusing on his new book (among others things) "Albums" which if you haven’t gotten it, please do. It’s $50 and well worth it. No matter what they do in terms of trying to erase black stories and black history, they’ll never be able to erase the work and important archive of Jamel Shabazz! His book "Albums" is literally a Black History Textbook in a huge sense. This book features selections from over a dozen albums, many previously unseen, and includes his earliest photographs as well as images taken inside Rikers Island, all accompanied by essays that situate Shabazz’s work within the broader history of photography. Last thing I’ll say is that Jamel is honestly one of the most compassionate, spiritual, intelligent, authentic, kind, and passionate human beings I have ever met. Please get this book and all his past books. I want to thank Daniel Power and Sophie Nunnally for helping arrange this interview through Powerhouse Books who had put out Jamel’s books. Please support them if you buy his books, and in general. They put out such amazing and diverse books.  
Please also get Leonard Freed’s “Black and White in America 1963-1965” at $28 dollars as a re-issue. Leonard's book and work has ben the main influence of Jamel's work and career. 
I also want to thank Karim Brown for being part of this episode. His work was being shown in the African American History museum in Philadelphia where Jamel did a lecture called “Love is The Message” a couple of months ago, and I got to see his amazing work. He is a younger photographer, and as a tribute to Jamel, who mentors and supports so many younger photographers, I wanted to include the amazing work, insight, and work. Karim's work has also been greatly influenced by Jamel, they both work in the same spirit of documenting their communities, and creating a historical archive for future generations to enjoy. Karim is also a teacher and archivist, and we talk with him about that, and his connection to Jamel! Lastly I have to say that getting to talk to Jamel has definitely been one of the highlights of my life, so I offer this as a gift to others to experiece it. Hope you enjoy it! 
We start with Karim's (30 min.) then into Jamel's. Please listen to both episodes if you can. 
Jamel Shabazz 
https://www.instagram.com/jamelshabazz
About Jamel Shabazz
https://aperture.org/editorial/why-jamel-shabazz-is-new-yorks-most-vital-street-photographer
“Jamel Shabazz Albums” Book $49.23 (available everywhere) 
https://steidl.de/Books/Albums-0120242856.html
“A Time Before Crack” $39.95 (please buy from the publisher)
https://powerhousebooks.com/books/35128/
“Back in The Days” $39.95  (please buy from the publisher)
https://powerhousebooks.com/books/back-in-the-days/
Website 
https://powerhousebooks.com
Karim Brown 
Karim Brown is a documentary photographer living and working in North Philadelphia. 
Keeping the Black Philadelphia community and its people at the forefront of his mind, Karim uses  photography to intimately engage with Black ways of knowing and doing that he has been immersed in his entire life​

Vintage Buttons

Ep 25: Jamel Shabazz (Photographer) featuring Karim Brown
At a time when they are trying to erase black history education in this country, I have the honor of sharing a podcast episode of one of the greatest living photographers of the past 100 years, Jamel Shabazz. We will be focusing on his new book (among others things) "Albums" which if you haven’t gotten it, please do. It’s $50 and well worth it. No matter what they do in terms of trying to erase black stories and black history, they’ll never be able to erase the work and important archive of Jamel Shabazz! His book "Albums" is literally a Black History Textbook in a huge sense. This book features selections from over a dozen albums, many previously unseen, and includes his earliest photographs as well as images taken inside Rikers Island, all accompanied by essays that situate Shabazz’s work within the broader history of photography. Last thing I’ll say is that Jamel is honestly one of the most compassionate, spiritual, intelligent, authentic, kind, and passionate human beings I have ever met. Please get this book and all his past books. I want to thank Daniel Power and Sophie Nunnally for helping arrange this interview through Powerhouse Books who had put out Jamel’s books. Please support them if you buy his books, and in general. They put out such amazing and diverse books.  
Please also get Leonard Freed’s “Black and White in America 1963-1965” at $28 dollars as a re-issue. Leonard's book and work has ben the main influence of Jamel's work and career. 
I also want to thank Karim Brown for being part of this episode. His work was being shown in the African American History museum in Philadelphia where Jamel did a lecture called “Love is The Message” a couple of months ago, and I got to see his amazing work. He is a younger photographer, and as a tribute to Jamel, who mentors and supports so many younger photographers, I wanted to include the amazing work, insight, and work. Karim's work has also been greatly influenced by Jamel, they both work in the same spirit of documenting their communities, and creating a historical archive for future generations to enjoy. Karim is also a teacher and archivist, and we talk with him about that, and his connection to Jamel! Lastly I have to say that getting to talk to Jamel has definitely been one of the highlights of my life, so I offer this as a gift to others to experiece it. Hope you enjoy it! 
We start with Karim's (30 min.) then into Jamel's. Please listen to both episodes if you can. 

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/vintage-annals-archive-outsider-podcast/id1645791721?i=1000604898067
​

Images from these articles 

Incredibly Stylish Mugshots From The 1920s
These mugshot portraits - we'd call them pictures but their style demands more - are part of 2500 "special photographs" taken by New South Wales Police Department photographers between 1910 and 1930
. These people frequented the cells of the Central Police Station, Sydney, Australia.
Their posture, styling and the tableau suggest an interesting modelling assignment. But their crimes, such as they were, ran the gamut from petty to heinous. We’ve included a few of their crimes to remind us that what we are looking are felons who have done people harm.
https://flashbak.com/incredibly-stylish-mugshots-from-the-1920s-421164/

​The Beauty of Misbehavior: 26 Vintage Mugshots of Bad Girls From Between the 1940s and 1960sFrom murderers, thieves and hookers, these are the faces of the many who were captured on camera at the lowest points of their lives. And while many people would say mugshots of the past hold a certain curiosity, one man confesses what started as an initial fascination turned into an obsession.
Mark Michaelson has collected more than 10,000 photographs of men and women of all races and ages, taken after their run-ins with the law. The New York-based art director and graphic designer said he has always been drawn to ‘Wanted’ posters, but noted when he came across his first mugshot, “it was love at first sight,” according to Collectors Weekly.
https://www.vintag.es/2012/06/vintage-bad-girl-mugshots.html?m=1
​

Shedding a light on the psyche of war: Zippo lighters from U.S. troops fighting in Vietnam give a unique insight into life under fire
Some show the fear of death and regret of leaving loved ones behind to fight on foreign soil, others hint at the hatred for both the enemy and the government that put them in harm's way... others still show a remarkable sense of humour.
A unique collection of 282 Zippo lighters from the Vietnam War era were recently put up as a single lot at Cowan's Auctions in Cincinnati, Ohio.
The lot was the culmination of years of painstaking research by American artist Bradford Edwards, who picked up many of the distinctive lighters on site in the former war zone during the Nineties.
While Zippos had been a valuable companion to U.S. servicemen since World War II, it became popular in the notorious and long-running Vietnam conflict to have the lighters engraved with personal messages - sometimes for loved ones they left behind, and sometimes for the individual who might find their body. 

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2171404/amp/Zippo-lighters-U-S-troops-fighting-Vietnam-unique-insight-war-life.html

Book Link $30
https://www.penguinbookshop.com/book/9780953783960

Vintage T-Shirts 
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Fun With Newspaper Clippings 
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Rare Photos of '70s Black Beauty Pageants Celebrate Women Defying Beauty Standards


When Raphael Albert was photographing West London in the '60s and '70s, racist, anti-immigrant tensions ran high. Albert, from the Caribbean island of Granada himself, gravitated toward the West Indian community thriving at the time amidst discrimination, and used his lens to capture celebrations of black communities.
One assignment he had as a freelance photographer was to cover a local Miss Jamaica pageant for the West Indian World. That sparked three decades of photographing London's black beauty pageants and eventually led to him organizing them himself. Now, his work is being displayed in an Autograph ABP exhibit called "Miss Black and Beautiful," launching today.
"Not only did the pageants offer the opportunity to create a distinct space for Afro-Caribbean self-articulation—a wager against invisibility, if you will—they also responded to contemporaneous mainstream fashion and lifestyle platforms where black women were largely absent, or at best, marginal," Mussai, who has been working on Albert's archive since 2011, told Artsy.
​She continued, "It is absolutely crucial to see these pageants as 'of their time'—it was about 'owning' the idea of beauty, about occupying a space that has historically negated black women an existence within its terrains."
https://www.elle.com/culture/news/a37666/rare-black-beauty-pageants-london-photos/

​‘Sometimes pictures happen as you’re leaving a shoot,’ Mark says. She had been photographing a family for a story on violent children and was about to leave when the girl pulled out a cigarette and began to smoke it. ‘The mother was there, and didn’t mind.’ – Mark
Swamped as we are with a flood of images, films and products from the United States, it would seem that the American legend has been affecting us for a long time.
Each of us carries within them, however laughably or shamefully, their very own American dream.
An omen of the insidious fascination that America exercises upon us can be found in the Declaration of Independence: “…that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness”.
The New World against the Old. Happiness as a right. One that everyone here seems to demand. Mary Ellen Mark has been crisscrossing the United States for more than 30 years, and everywhere we sense the same quest, be it latent or manifest, for legitimate happiness–at any price it would seem. Often, in her images, while the quest is palpable, actually acceding to the “American way of life” is something else entirely. The photographer transcribes little Tiny’s comments, “I want to be rich, very rich… to live on a ranch with lots of horses, my favorite animal… I’ll have at least three yachts… diamonds and jewelry, and lots of stuff like that”. Eighteen years later: five children by as many fathers, welfare… and she hasn’t stopped hoping. She still has the right to search, to repeat the offense, to make another attempt.
While Mary Ellen Mark’s photographs don’t probe the imposture of the American dream, they do expose it by unveiling the other side of the picture.
The American dream borders on the pathetic here. Poverty and distress mingle with the glitter. Like this little black girl, a carnival mermaid, whose illusions seem to be hopelessly confined to a flea-bitten bathroom, between a broomstick and a roll of toilet paper.
The abandoned, the prostitutes, the alienated, the gigolos, the bodybuilders are strewn throughout photographs that paint a fascinating composite portrait of a limping, disenchanted America. An obese woman in a ball-gown with a miniature dog licking her nose. Family photos proudly displayed in slum apartments. A provocative, overly made-up little girl in a bikini, smoking, while her feet dangle in a pool…
This American odyssey is more of a human adventure than an expedition.
When Mary Ellen Mark’s gaze rests upon someone, it obviously carries the respect that she manifests towards those who cross her path. Her images make no concessions, yet it is most certainly in their very crudeness that their delicacy lies. Pitiless (for all that, she never succumbs to gratuitous cynicism), this photographer is not without compassion. The time that she dedicated to little Tiny, to the prostitutes in Bombay, as to most of her subjects, betrays the profound humanity that animates her. Mary Ellen Mark is, without a doubt, a woman of images. As she herself says, it is because she is a woman that she can achieve this consent, this abandonment of self, this abdication of modesty, that would, incontestably, be refused to a man’s gaze. It is, too, through her capacity to blend in, integrate into and be accepted by the different milieus that she shoots. Neither moralist, nor partial, she knows how to create an effect without being overly sentimental.

https://dreamsromanceexcess.wordpress.com/2011/12/06/mary-ellen-mark-american-odyssey/

Ladies and Robots
​

PHANTOM OF THE PARADISE AND THE MAKING OF A TRUE ORIGINAL by Rosie Knight
Brian De Palma’s misunderstood cult musical, Phantom of the Paradise, has long been relegated to the rep cinemas and high school film clubs of the world. But at this year’s Fantasia Fest the Phantom was center stage at a 45 year celebration of the marvelous movie that counts directors Guillermo del Toro and Edgar Wright amongst its ever-growing fanbase. During the Montreal-based festival, we sat down with the composer and star of Phantom, Paul Williams, and chatted on the phone with producer Ed Pressman as well as the makers of a new documentary about the Phantom fandom. Together, we revisited the history of how the strange, surreal, and unique film came to be and how its legacy has transcended the original lackluster response almost five decades later.
Phantom of the Paradise is unlike any other film. Sprawling and strange, the epic musical masterpiece is uncannily prescient, predicting the nostalgia craze, glam rock, and multiple other musical trends. The project came about after Phantom of the Opera became one of two options that Pressman and De Palma picked up after the lauded director became disillusioned with big studio movies. “I first met Brian De Palma in New York. He’d done a film called Greetings, a low budget independent film with some political undertones, and we became friends and he went on to start directing for the studios. He did a film for Warner’s called Get to Know Your Rabbit and he was very unhappy with the experience and called me from Toronto, I think. There was a producer taking options on Phantom and Sisters, and Brian said, ‘Get me out of here. You can get the rights so we can make it the way I want to.’ So we did that,” Pressman told us.
Though the producer preferred the strange vision De Palma had for the unexpected mashup of classic literary tales Phantom of the Opera, Faust, and Dorian Gray, the pair settled on adapting Sisters first, with a cast made up of De Palma’s housemates. “We had a decision to make about which film we wanted to do first. From the beginning, Phantomwas the most exciting out of the two projects in my mind but Sisters was more practical. At the time, Brian was living in a house in Malibu that was owned by Waldo Salt who wrote Midnight Cowboy. He’d left it to his daughter Jennifer and she invited Brian and Margot Kidder and Paul Schrader, a whole bunch of people. So the easiest thing was to keep it close to this group. So Margot Kidder would play one role and Jennifer the other lead, and it was a simpler form to make. It turned out that Sisters did really well, especially in the drive-ins.”

After the success of their first collaboration, Pressman and De Palma began their passion project, Phantom of the Filmore. The reimagining centers on a young singer-songwriter, Winslow Leach, who’s overheard by a maniacal music producer known as Swan who steals the young man’s music. De Palma brought in composer Paul Williams to write the many songs in the film. “I was a staff writer at A&M Records, writing for The Carpenters, Three Dog Night, and a lot of great but kind of middle of the road music, you know, certainly not the Music of the Spheres,” Williams explained. “They opened a film department to try and get more of the music coming out of A&M Records into movies, and a guy there knew that Brian was doing Phantom of the Paradise, which at the time was called Phantom of the Filmore. I don’t know why Brian responded to my music because it was so different. I was known for writing what I call co-dependent anthems but for some reason, he really responded. So I came to it first as a composer and lyricist.”
That might surprise fans of the film who know Williams best as the evil, Faustian producer who steals Winslow’s songs and later tries to trap him into becoming the voice and mind behind his new music venue, the titular Paradise. “The first song, Brian wanted Sha Na Na to perform and I said, ‘You know what, I’ve got this band I’ve been working with, these guys have been with me for years, they’re my road band. I’d like these guys to be the band.’ I think this may have been the beginning of when he started going, ‘Ah, there’s Swan.’ They eventually became the Juicy Fruits in the film and the bands that they evolve into throughout.”

De Palma originally suggested that Williams play the Phantom and hero of the story himself, Winslow Leech, but the songwriter wasn’t sold on the idea. “I told him, ‘I could not, are you kidding??? I’m too little.’ And he said, ‘But you could be this creepy guy up in the rafters throwing things at people,'” Williams laughed. “For me, the idea of trying to perform with one eye through a mask…Bill Finley did things with that, there was just this essence to the character, something in the reading of Winslow that was so beautifully innocent, so touching. He was an amazing actor and it worked out because I got to play Swan!”

Filming Phantom was off the cuff and collaborative, a process that saw input from those around cast and crew, as Williams recalls. “The first thing we shot was the contract scene. Yeah, my manager actually came up with a line that’s in the contract that I love. The concept for where the line came from is: if God signed a contract to create the universe, what would the contract say? ‘All articles which are excluded shall be deemed included.’ You know, it’s perfect. So that wound up in there.”
Like most low budget films, the making of Phantom of the Paradise was incredibly intense. For the songwriter, there was no time to congratulate himself on his first acting gig. “There wasn’t a lot of time to really celebrate. I remember shooting all day and there was one scene that we had to reshoot the scene when I pull the knife from Winslow’s chest on the roof. We shot all day, and then I went directly from the set to the studio, recorded vocals until almost dawn, and then went right back to the set. They took my makeup off, put new makeup on, and then I shot the scene. I was so tired, I couldn’t understand me. And we were all like, ‘Oh, my God, that’s terrible.’ So we ended up reshooting it in New York.”
For Pressman, Phantom was the kind of film he had always dreamed of making. “It was unique and original, closer to a kind of Cocteau fantasy that I’m drawn too. Sisters was more of a conventional thriller; I mean, Brian turned it into more than that, but on the page, Phantom was just far more expansive. The idea of Paul Williams doing the score was just this far more ambitious and exciting project.” Though the creative team was passionate, they were unsure of how the film would be received once they’d finished making it. “I don’t think we had an idea of the impact it would have. I think we were really happy with the film and we were happy that Fox picked it up when it finished, which was unusual in those days. They were doing less independent films and studios were not in the business of picking up other movies. They paid–today it would sound like peanuts–but I think they paid $2 million for the rights, and that was a big deal then.”

Though the ambitious and audacious film was nominated for an Academy Award for Original Song Score and Adaptation, and a Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score: Motion Picture, it was a financial flop that failed to make money in almost every market except for Winnipeg, Manitoba. It’s not totally surprising as the film was ahead of its time in almost every sense. From showcasing an overtly queer character in the form of Paradise star Beef to a story centered on male toxicity and the abusive nature of the record industry the film pushed boundaries and didn’t seem to be playing to any kind of mainstream audience.

The disappointing box office of the film would seed the passionate fandom that elevated Phantom of the Paradise from B-movie flop to every cult filmmaker’s favorite cult film. That’s not just a turn of phrase; two of the film’s biggest advocates have spent years trying to spotlight the underappreciated gem. Edgar Wright has spoken often about his love for the rock opera and even included it in his recent mini film festival at London’s Genesis Cinema. Guillermo del Toro loved the film so much that he bought a 35mm print and donated it to Los Angeles’ very own New Beverly Cinema so he could share his love with other cult cinema fans. He’s also currently collaborating with Paul Williams on the upcomingPan’s Labyrinth musical.

Documentarians Sean Stanley and Malcolm Ingram recently debuted a documentary about the strange phenomenon of the Phantom’s popularity in Winnipeg. Made up of talking-head interviews with the fandom known affectionately as “Peggers,” the doc showcases the love and dedication of the hardcore fans who have kept the film in the spotlight for over four decades. The creative team first discovered the strange success story in an article. “I came across an article written by Doug Carlson, who was one of the original guys who brought Phantom to Winnipeg. He basically went through the experience and he was so affected that he just wanted to write about it. That was like sending a beacon out because one day I found it and was like, ‘Phantom is huge in Winnipeg, what?'” Ingram laughed.

It was a story that would engage both the creators and with a little push from Ingram’s friend Kevin Smith who told him “that’s fucking genius,” the Phantom of Winnipeg was born. It helped that Stanley was already a huge fan of the rock opera. “I discovered Phantom in Toronto. There used to be this channel that showed late, great movies and city TV. And they would show movies on Friday at 11 o’clock. It would be like Black Christmas, stuff like that, and one of the movies they showed was Phantom. And the first time I saw it, it just fucked me up.”

Though Winnipeg was the film’s biggest (and only) box office success on release, the film also became hugely popular in Paris. That slow-burn success has taught Williams a lot, as well as introducing him to some unexpected fans. “I think the eye-opener for me is that if Phantom had been even a mild success, it would probably be gone by now. The big lesson is don’t discard something as a failure. Give the universe a chance. Give people a chance to communicate with each other. What’s remarkable is these people that love this film, this isolated little community. But the same thing happened in Paris as well where it ran forever. The guys from Daft Punk met at a screening of Phantom, so I wound up with writing the lyrics to ‘Beyond’ and ‘Touch’ and singing on ‘Touch’ on the ‘Random Access Memories’ album because these guys saw Phantom 20 times together.”

One of the things that stands out years later is the searing satire of the film. It’s a harsh analog for the brutal side of fame that eerily predicted the rise of reality tv in all of its extremes. Williams is passionate about the message of the movie which he feels is more relevant than ever in 2019. In an age of reality TV and stars who will do anything for fame, there’s a couple of moments from Phantom that particularly resonate. “In the original script, Beef died in the shower. But then we put it on stage and made it a part of a theatrical bit where the kids watched. That’s the heart of the movie to me; it’s the fact that these kids have seen so much theatrical violence that when they see the real thing they can’t recognize it. And that connects to my favorite line in the movie which is when Swan says, ‘Assassination live on coast to coast TV. That’s entertainment.’ That’s the dark heart and message of the movie to me.”

As for the future of the groundbreaking film, Williams thinks it belongs on the stage, with someone like Lady Gaga at the heart of the story, bringing a new and updated vision of the parable to a whole new generation. He even teased that he’s written new songs for the potential production. Pressman revealed that a remake had been on the cards with del Toro attached but had never gotten off the ground. Still, the producer is hopeful about the potential of the Phantom returning once again in the near future, especially as the film’s legend and mythos continue to grow.
credit - https://nerdist.com/article/phantom-of-the-paradise-oral-history-paul-williams/

Link Below. 
https://www.vintageannalsarchive.com/deep-dive---phantom-of-the-paradise.html
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A remarkable photo exhibit captures ‘a joyful moment’ of Black-Jewish unity in Miami Beach

On fabled Miami Beach, land of sunshine and escape, Blacks and Jews share a shameful history of discrimination and exclusion.
Into the 1970s, Blacks were prohibited by racist “sundown” laws from swimming or spending the night on the Beach, or to be there without a work ID. Jews could not buy or rent property on most of the Beach until after World War II, and early hotels advertised with signs like “Gentiles only” or “Always a view, Never a Jew.”
Now a Miami photo exhibit, “Shared Spaces,” captures the two groups together during a brief, liberating – if still fraught – moment in the late ’70s which has implications that still reverberate in the present.

“There’s a sense of empowerment,” said Carl Juste, a Haitian-American photojournalist and community art organizer presenting Shared Spaces at his Iris PhotoCollective ArtSpace in the Little Haiti neighborhood. “Empowerment in the relationships and in the participants on both sides, demonstrated in the space that was being occupied. Space in terms of how both communities were somewhat exiled, in terms of struggle and in terms of Miami’s history.
“That’s the magic of this collection,” he said. “We have to look at them and imagine better possibilities.”
The photos are by Andy Sweet, a young Jewish photographer whose pictures of the elderly Jews who filled a then-dilapidated South Beach have become locally famous in recent years. Sweet’s work has been featured in exhibits, a book, and a documentary, “The Last Resort,” that played major festivals and earned critical accolades.

This, however, is the first time Sweet’s pictures of Blacks and Jews, at the time a largely aging, white community, have been displayed.
Like Sweet’s other photos, they were taken in the late ’70s, as Blacks were finally allowed into the once-forbidden paradise. It was also the final moment for South Beach as home to an eccentric, vibrant Jewish community of former factory workers and Holocaust survivors, before they were decimated by age and the area’s transformation into a glamorous internation. More of the article below. Also I added a link to Andy Sweet's Legacy Project.  

https://forward.com/news/470899/a-remarkable-exhibit-captures-a-joyful-moment-for-jews-and-blacks-in-miami/?amp=1

Website 
https://andy-sweet.format.com/#1

Choose Your Own Adventure Parody Covers

New Podcast Episode!
 Ep: 24 Stuart S. Shapiro/Night Flight (& Night Flight Plus)
Stuart S. Shapiro is a producer, writer, director, and Internet entrepreneur. Shapiro began his career as an independent film distributor in 1974 by starting International Harmony which distributed cult classics TunnelVision, Neil Young's Rust Never Sleeps, Bob Marley's Reggae Sunsplash, The Sex Pistols' DOA, and Tarzoon: Shame of the Jungle.
As a producer, Shapiro's credits include Mondo New York and Comedy's Dirtiest Dozen, which helped launch the careers of Tim Allen, Chris Rock, and Otto & George. Other credits include USA networks TV series Night Flight, a youth–targeted variety show he created which ran from 1981 to 1996. Shapiro also produced the 72-hour live webcast of Woodstock '99, notable for being one of the largest of its kind at the time.
Night Flight Plus is a video-on-demand service offering original episodes of the 1980s USA Network TV show Night Flight. In addition to archived episodes of the show, the service features films in the music documentary, concert, horror and cult genres.  $3.33 a month/39.99 a year
https://www.nightflightplus.com
Identifi Yourself: A Journey in F**K You Creative Content
Paperback $13.70
Identifi Yourself is a humorous and poetic journey to empower and inspire the reader to find their creative strengths.
https://www.amazon.com/IDENTIFi-YOURSELF-JOURNEY-CREATIVE-COURAGE/dp/1947637886
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https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/vaapod​

Please check out and support Nathaniel Russel's  Work
http://nathanielrussell.com/fake-fliers-1

Vintage Lounge Act Images Found Here 
https://www.polarityrecords.com/lounge-acts.html

Vintage Ads Found Below...
https://www.polarityrecords.com/bennetts-images-galleries.html

New Episode out!
I had seen John over the years on TV and film and always enjoyed his work. I used to be a one on one worker with kids and teens with disabilities which drew me to to his work on “Speechless” which I found comically and authentically true to life. I enjoyed all of the actors but John’s performance felt very true to himself. I identify as an intuitive (like a poorer lazier more Jewish Rick Rubin) and can always get a sense of actors being true to them selves in certain roles. I met John through the Vintage Instagram that this podcast is named after and asked him to interview him.
In order to prepare I listened to his memoir via Audible “No Job For A Man” and was blown away by his humor, insight, passion, authenticity, pop culture knowledge, his love and knowledge of Broadway Musicals, and his love and knowledge of Punk Music. This was exciting for me because most men of my generation can’t hold any conversations covering both Punk, and Broadway, yet alone can also bring Ronnie James Dio and Iron Maiden into that conversation and still make sense of it. I am also a year apart from John and just saw some interesting parallels in my own life. Let’s just say I was really moved by the memoir.
To summarize I’d say it’s really hard not to like John Ross Bowie. He is just a humble, intelligent, and passionate person. He has spent much of his life pursuing this own loves and dreams. He has written two books. The other being a Deep Focus (name of the series) on the film “Heathers”. He has also written and produced a play “Four Chords and a Gun” which is an intense black comedy about The Ramones during a Drama filled 1979 recording session that led to the album “End of The Century” produced by Phil Spector.
This episode falls more into the category of a great conversation that explores topics such as why no-one gets to hate on the musical Annie, Documentary Now and the Co-op episode, his show “Speechless” and why that show was one his best acting experiences, his punk band “Egghead”, and lastly the Philadelphia Band “The Dead Milkmen“ of which John is such a super fan. That knowledge lead me to invite him as a co-host to interview the band with me. I ironically I had already planned to interview them right after his interview so it just made sense. That episode will come out in about three weeks and John killed it! Please enjoy getting to know John Ross Bowie. You will be glad you did. I want to personally thank John as he went above and beyond to help create this special episode.
Please check out John’s acting work, Music (Egghead can be found on many music services) and definitely get a copy of “No Job For A Man” which is a stellar memoir. It’s available at most book sellers.
https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/No-Job-for-a-Man/John-Ross-Bowie/9781639362462
​​https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/vaapod

Sexual Innuendo in Vintage Comic Panels 

Tabloid Covers 
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CASTRATION SQUAD: THE UNSUNG HEROINES OF ALICE BAG AND DINAH CANCER’S EARLY DEATHROCK BAND


Back in the Canterbury Apartments days of Los Angeles’ punk scene Alice Bag, of the Bags, met neighbor Shannon Wilhelm whom she eventually ended up living with. After the end of the Bags—and more or less the end of the seedy Canterbury Apartments—Alice Bag was recruited to play bass for a new band called Castration Squad.
This early deathrock band was made up of Shannon Wilhelm (vocals), Mary Bat-Thing (vocals), Tiffany Kennedy (keyboards), Alice Bag (bass), Tracy Lea (guitar) and Elissa Bello (drums). The fairly unknown band was comprised of some quite legendary female rockers. All female bands were still quite a novelty at this time so it’s noteworthy that not only this was a proto deathrock band but also that there were six women in it. Mary Bat-Thing was known as “Dinah Cancer” as part of 45 Grave; Elissa Bello joined after a brief stint in the Go-Go’s and Tracy Lea was in Redd Kross. Lesbian folksinger Phranc (who’d been in Nervous Gender) also played with the group
If you want to talk about badass “squad goals” for Halloween…. you and your gal pals should consider dressing up as Castration Squad. These ladies, led by the late, ever so stylish Shannon Wilhelm all donned uniquely goth outfits adorned with crosses and religious medals. You could even play “Wild Thing” on the jukebox and change all the words to “Bat Thing”!
 In all seriousness, Castration Squad was an extremely original group during their era. As Alice Bag said in her book, Violence Girl:
“Castration Squad anticipated the styles of death punk, goth and riot grrrl.”
Mary Bat Thing and Shannon’s deadpan vocal performances created a spooky aura that paired well with Bag’s gothy bass lines. This live performance of “A Date with Jack” really captures their overall vibe well. While they never released an album, their song “The X Girlfriend” is on the Killed By Death #13 compilation and “A Date with Jack” was released on Alice Bag’s Alice Bag: Violence Girl compilation in 2011.

https://dangerousminds.net/comments/castration_squad_alice_bag_and_dinah_cancers_early_deathrock_band?utm_source=Dangerous+Minds+newsletter&utm_campaign=79fb9151a6-RSS_EMAIL_CAMPAIGN&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_ecada8d328-79fb9151a6-65871573
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How punk and reggae fought back against racism in the 70s
Syd Shelton’s photographs capture the Rock Against Racism movement that confronted racism in 70s and 80s Britain.

When Syd Shelton returned to London in 1977 after fours years living in Australia, he was shocked at how much things had changed. "The recession had really hit and the Callaghan government had attacked living standards for working people - very similar to what's happening right now," he explains. "Whenever that happens, there's always a rise of something like the National Front." Syd was desperate to fight against the hatred and was lucky to meet one of campaign group Rock Against Racism's founders, Red Saunders. Before long he was their unofficial photographer and designer for their newspaper/zine Temporary Hoarding. With an exhibition of his work from that period opening up at Rivington Place next month, we caught up with Syd to hear about some of Britain's most tribal and transformative times.

So what were the main messages of RAR?
Putting black and white bands on stage together was a political statement in itself. We didn't go on stage shouting "smash the National Front" and all that sloganeering, but we did want to extend the argument and talk about Zimbabwe, South Africa and apartheid, Northern Ireland, sexism and homophobia. We wanted to go, "Look, the National Front is not just against black people, they're against all of this as well."
Why does the exhibition just cover 1977-1981?
Like Jerry Dammers said, two tone took over the baton, so in a way we'd succeeded because bands were multi-racial. And the chemistry was starting to fall apart a little bit. We were all exhausted. We'd been doing this for five years. Of course, the fight against racism never goes away, as you can see with the anti-refugee situation at the moment. We're not born racist - we learn it and it takes a lot of looking at the Daily Mail to get that in your head. You have to argue against it.
https://i-d.vice.com/en/article/ywv3mb/how-punk-and-reggae-fought-back-against-racism-in-the-70s

NYC Cab Driver Spends 30 Years Photographing His Passengers


In 1980, aspiring photographer Ryan Weideman landed in New York City from California, looking to make a name for himself. But he soon found himself focused on more practical matters, like paying the rent. Thanks to his neighbor, who was a cab driver, he found himself riding along in the taxi one night, and by the next day, he'd found both a way to pay the bills and the perfect outlet for his creativity.
Over thirty years, Weideman would continue working as a cab driver part-time, photographing his clients to view the changing city in a new way. “After the first week of driving a taxi I could see the photographic potential,” shared Weideman. “So many interesting and unusual combinations of people getting into my cab. Photographing seemed like the only thing to do. The backseat image was constantly in a state of flux, thronged with interesting looking people that were exciting and inspired, creating their own unique atmosphere.”


Not wanting to waste time turning around to capture the action, Weideman found himself both as subject and photographer. Acting as a visual narrator in the scenes, his appearance speaks for the viewer who is also looking in, observing the lives of strangers. From 5 pm to 5 am on weekends, the interior of his cab became is his studio. Weideman studied the backseat scene intently, just waiting for the right time to pop the flash.
Sometimes he asked permission, sometimes the flash “accidentally” went off. Notable passengers include Allen Ginsberg—famed Beat Generation poet. The photo now belongs to the Brooklyn Museum. Other passengers simply made an impression. Weideman sharpened his skills to understand who was interesting—or not—over the years. And occasionally, he would spot a face on the street he remembered photographing.


He recalls seeing a voluptuous woman walking down the street who reminded him of Ruby Duby Do. Running to catch up with her, he asked if she remembered being photographed in the back of a taxi, and to his delight, she did. “I told her to meet me on the corner of 9th and 43rd the next day and I would share my pictures of her. She was thrilled, and so was I. When I gave her some pictures, she thanked me, and as we parted.  I watched her show the photos to the passersby as she walked away.”

https://mymodernmet.com/ryan-weideman-nyc-taxi-photographer/?fbclid=IwAR37DqKV0x7GkPbkyXcbKGEiaDkrLbYEHGCwC5L1pHs8IVwsl4u70Je8IbM
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Some fun vintage tabloid covers. 

Sexual Innuendo in Vintage Comics 
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