Operation Screenshot (Films of the Eighties) W.T. Morgan's X: THE UNHEARD MUSIC (1986)

 

For more on one of America's greatest bands please visit X's official site. 

A Moon in the Gutter Q&A With Author Jill C. Nelson

I am extremely pleased this morning to present this new Q&A I recently had the great fortune to conduct with author Jill C. Nelson, whose new book Golden Goddesses: 25 Legendary Women of Classic Erotic Cinema, 1968-1985 was just published. I first discovered Jill's amazing work a few years back when I read the excellent work she co-authored with Jennifer Sugar, John Holmes: A Life Measured in Inches, one of the most fascinating books I have read in recent memory. Jill's new book is just as incredible (I will have a look at it here in the upcoming weeks) and I am honored that she agreed to take some time out of her busy schedule to participate in this interview. So give us a read, drop a comment and then order both of her books...here we go!

Hi Jill! Thanks so much for stopping by Moon in the Gutter to participate in my ongoing Q&A series. I am huge fan of the book you co-authored with Jennifer Sugar, JOHN HOLMES: A LIFE MEASURED IN INCHES and absolutely love your new work GOLDEN GODDESSES. To start off can you tell us where you are from originally and a bit about your background?
Hi Jeremy. Thank you so much for inviting me to participate in your ongoing series, I appreciate having the opportunity to discuss both books. It’s great that you enjoyed Inches and I’m happy to know you are enjoying Goddesses. 
I grew up in Burlington, Ontario, in Canada. Burlington is situated on one of Canada’s picturesque Great Lakes, Lake Ontario. It’s a friendly community, and I definitely appreciate it far more now that I’m approaching my mid-fifties than I probably did as a teenager.
     My father was from a town called Hamilton (about six miles west of Burlington). While I was growing up, and for a period of ten years, he was a Big Band leader (Gav Morton) at a former downtown nightclub called The Brant Inn. He played saxophone and clarinet, and arranged all of the band’s musical compositions. He also taught musical theory and arranging as a sideline. In his youth, he played with all the great Canadian Big Bands such as Mart Kenney and Bert Niosi, and travelled across country performing in dance halls and clubs. He actually quit high school at age sixteen to run off and join a band much to his parents’ dismay. This was in 1932. During his later years, and after leaving the music business behind, he opened up a Men’s wear store here in Burlington.
     My mother is French-Canadian originally from a pretty, little town called North Hatley, in the Eastern Townships of Quebec. She met my dad when he was on the road playing with the Mart Kenney Orchestra in Sherbrooke. She asked him for his autograph and six weeks later, they were married. My mother has also done some vocal work over the years. I would have to say that both of my parents and my two older brothers have had a great influence on my life in the area of the arts – music, art, and writing.
     Upon graduating high school and for a period of about four years, I travelled a fair bit to the west and east coasts of Canada, and to the west coast of the United States. I consider Southern California as my second home because I’ve visited there many times. I absolutely love the mild, dry climate, and I also have relatives and friends living there which is another reason I return often.
     After leading somewhat of a nomadic lifestyle, I married my husband in 1978 (we have two grown children), and attended college here in Southern Ontario. I graduated in 1981 as a Hearing Instrument Specialist. In 1986, I opened my own Hearing Care clinic in Hamilton, Ontario. A couple of years later, my best girlfriend joined me and we operated the clinic together until we sold it in the spring 2008, the same year that A Life Measured in Inches was published. I have stayed on in the clinic working three days a week which has enabled me to establish an ideal balance between researching/writing the two books, family and working. I feel I have the best of all worlds.

I know that the oral history on John Holmes that you co-wrote was your first published work. I’m curious about some of your early influences that got you first interested in both journalism and film.
    
       My eldest brother, who died in a horseback riding accident in 1992, was a writer and a painter, apart from his day job. I spent a good deal of time with him when I was a young girl and teenager and he definitely influenced my tastes in literature, art, film and music. Actually, I’ve come to realize in recent years that he was my mentor. I’ve always been an avid reader and as a high school English student, I enjoyed dissecting novels, writing essays and discussing the meaning of books and films. I was told by teachers that I had an ability to effectively reflect the heart of a story in my writing and I very much reveled in the challenge of character analysis, breakdown, and attempting to understand the message that an author or a filmmaker was striving to convey. Some of my favorite authors growing up and during my younger years (and even today) were John Irving, J.D. Salinger, Ernest Hemmingway, Jack Kerouac, and Anne Marie McDonald to name only a handful. I admired the work of filmmakers such as Alan Parker, Oliver Stone, Francis Ford Coppola and Michael Cimino. Simultaneously, I have always been fascinated by pop culture and pop culture anti-heroes. Apart from my own personal interest, I have no formal education in the areas of writing, journalism, or a background in film. I wish I could say that I have, but it’s not so.

Before we get to GOLDEN GODDESSES I wanted to chat a bit about your wonderful work on Holmes, as it is easily one of the most fascinating biographies in recent memory. Can you tell us a bit about what all went into co-authoring the book and just how challenging was it writing about a man who constantly blurred the line between reality and fiction in his own life?

     I think a lot of people are now aware that in 2005, the book’s originator and my co-author (Jennifer Sugar) and I “met” on a message board for the film Wonderland. In a nutshell, the film is the story surrounding the robbery of nightclub owner Ed Nash that John had helped to orchestrate, which led to the homicides of four people involved in the Wonderland gang. The gang had resided in Laurel Canyon in Los Angeles in the summer of 1981. After Jennifer and I met on the board, we began emailing one another back and forth and she told me she was working on a biography about John Holmes. At the time, Jennifer was in her early twenties and completing a degree in math and I was kind of flabbergasted that she had decided to take on a book of this magnitude, particularly without a background in writing. After gauging my interest in the story, and upon realizing just how much material there was to draw from and the sheer amount of work involved, about a year later she invited me to be her collaborator. It was interesting and exciting working with Jennifer because I think given the twenty-five year span in our ages and living in different counties, not to mention the fact we both had next to nil knowledge about the adult film industry or a background in writing, we each brought something unique and fresh to the project. Like me, Jennifer also enjoyed writing for personal interest, and together, we believed we could present the John Holmes story in a new light while decidedly staying away from stereotypes about John or sensationalized viewpoints. We shared a desire to tell his entire life story in a concise and fair manner by utilizing our own interview material, in conjunction with augmented material and resources. We discovered that John was indeed a chameleon and he definitely fabricated outlandish tales to heighten his marketability and likeability, but also, he was a very smart and rather crafty man who let people know in subtle ways -- and not so subtle ways -- that he was joking about many of the embellishments for which he is known. If you’ve watched the 1981 documentary, “Exhausted,” made by director Julia St. Vincent, you can see the sparkle in his eyes when he’s answering her questions. John would have been a tremendous salesman had he entered into another line of work. Because there were many contradictions from person to person, and from story to story, Jennifer and I decided that the only way to accurately tell John’s story was to allow everyone who had known him to have their say. That’s what we did which is why the book is an oral history.

Holmes was obviously an extremely complicated man with many demons but I admired so much how you and Sugar managed to capture his human side. After spending so many years researching his life and watching his work how did you finally end up feeling about John Holmes as a man and a cultural icon?

     We are proud that we were able to provide a true and well-rounded picture of John by using his own words and the words of the people who had liked, loved, known or worked with him. I’ve often said because John is dead, it almost gives people carte blanche to say or write whatever they choose to say or write about him because he is no longer here to concur or refute their words, which isn’t really fair but it’s life. That’s not to say that John didn’t participate in some heinous things or that he didn’t conduct himself in a despicable fashion during certain periods of his life, but it became evident while talking with people that there were two distinct individuals: John Holmes - before his descent into cocaine and freebase, and John Holmes - after his descent into chemical addiction. Anyone who has experienced or who is educated about cocaine’s affects on the brain after incessant and prolonged use, or who understands the long-term effects of addiction to drugs and/or alcohol might be better equipped to comprehend some of John’s motives and actions. It certainly doesn’t excuse his behavior, but it does help one to gain better insight.
     A part of me feels sad about John because like many other tragic cultural icons, I think he became a victim of his own lack of self-control and demise. I honestly believe that if he’d had a more nurturing upbringing or a better support system, he might have chosen differently for his life’s vocation. In hindsight, the 60s, 70s, and 80s decades were a much different time, so it’s hard to compare apples and oranges in that respect. As much as he enjoyed the lifestyle and the money during his early-mid years in the adult industry, from talking to various people, I do think he felt unfulfilled and underappreciated after a while. I am glad for him though that in the last years leading up to his death, he was able to enjoy a ready-made family with his widow Laurie and her son. There is a rather nice photograph in the second edition of “Inches” that shows Laurie’s son in his Halloween costume when he was a little boy and John had meticulously applied his clown makeup. John did enjoy being a family man and pursuing outdoor hobbies like hiking and fishing. He was also talented in the areas of woodworking and other facets of art. I think that deep down everyone wants to be able to live a normal life and to appreciate the little things that are really the most important things in life. Regarding his legacy in the adult industry, I think his record stands for itself: John’s worst films outsold the best films of the most popular female performers of the day. Apart from that, I do believe for whatever reason, John had the “it” factor.

Finally, after publishing the Holmes book you and Sugar got a great deal of justified acclaim. Was there anything said or written about your work that meant perhaps the most to you (whether it came from a reader, critic or someone that knew Holmes)?

     I think that Jennifer would agree that some of the most gratifying feedback we received about the book came from people who had been a part of John’s life. After finishing the book in one sitting, John’s godson, Sean Amerson, wrote to us and commended us for painting John in a fair light. Although we’d interviewed Sean for the biography, he had been concerned that we were going to trash John and so he was pleasantly surprised upon his discovery that we had shown the good, the bad, and the ugly – all sides. John had been Sean’s savior growing up so he was most appreciative of our efforts. Likewise, Laurie Holmes thanked us for taking the time to do our own research about John’s life and career in detail rather than relying on the existing information out there, so that we were able to present the whole of his life in a comprehensive and balanced book. You can’t buy that kind of praise, so we felt we truly succeeded in our objective to produce a succinct and definitive book.
     From a critical standpoint, I think the essay that Australian writer and film critic, Robert Cettl, wrote about “Inches” for his website Wider Screenings is a very nice feather in our caps. He had been quite anxious to review the book but we certainly did not count on the wonderful and extremely thorough piece he composed. We both felt that Cettl’s serious approach to the biography definitely did our work justice.

Excellent, now onto GOLDEN GODDESSES. Tell us about this upcoming book and how the idea for it came about.

    

About a year after Inches was published, I started considering the women we had interviewed and it seemed to me that it would be interesting to explore their lives and careers further. It just really felt right and like a natural next step for me to take as a writer. One of my concerns also was that their history be documented before some of the ladies passed away. Marilyn Chambers, who we had interviewed for Inches, had already passed in the spring of 2009 and I knew that some of the others like Georgina Spelvin and Gloria Leonard were quickly approaching or were already in their seventies. The nice thing is that we’d already established a connection with several of the females so I knew I wouldn’t be starting completely from scratch. By this time, Jennifer had graduated from school, started working full time and got married so Goddesses became my own project although she did write the foreword for my book which is great.
     Golden Goddesses highlights twenty-five female personalities from the classic or “golden age” of adult films that began their careers sometime between the years 1968-1985. The book begins at the onset of hardcore and ends at the start of the video-age. Most of the women featured were/are performers but I’ve also put the spotlight on directors, screenwriters and costumers. A couple of the ladies had worked in different capacities in the industry so it was interesting to reveal the different hats they wore. Each chapter tells of their childhood years, their careers in adult, and concludes with the present day. The book also incorporates film reviews throughout that are written by me, and a treasure trove of amazing and beautiful photographs. I should add there is a section at the end of the book titled “Honorable Mentions” featuring fifteen additional women who were integral to the golden era. I’ve written a synopsis on each one in conjunction with a photo, so all in all, the book celebrates forty women of the classic adult film era. I’m very excited about this project and I hope that readers will enjoy it as much as I have writing and weaving everything together.

I’m amazed by all of the wonderful actors you managed to interview for this book. How long did it take you to assemble and conduct all these interviews and edit them for publication?

     Overall, it took me approximately three years to assemble, conduct the interviews, and edit them for publication. Using the same premise we’d used for “Inches,” I have to admit, I tried not to edit too much of the actual interview material mostly because I knew this might be the first, only, or final time some of the females would have this kind of opportunity to  enjoy the limelight on this scale. I wanted to be sure that each interviewee was able to share whatever happened to be on her mind without fear that an important point or thought might be edited out. At the same time, I used a set list of questions – the same ones for everyone and then some that were curtailed specifically to an individual’s life or career. All of the interviews were conducted over the telephone, by skype, or by email except for one in-person interview with Seka which I did in Montreal in the fall of 2009. She was my first. Although I didn’t get to speak face-to-face with the majority of my interview subjects during the recordings, I did make a point after the fact of spending time with many of the women in person so that I could write an anecdote at the end of each chapter. I really wanted that personal touch.

Of all the ladies you interviewed were there any that were particularly difficult to track down and were there any that you really wanted to include that you weren’t able to?

     For the most part, I was able to track down everyone without too much difficulty that made it into the book. Again, I had already made some contacts via “Inches” but once it got out that I was doing a book of this type, word of mouth enabled me to set interview dates with several of the others. For example, after I interviewed Seka, she told some of her friends about the book. Suddenly, I started receiving emails from Seka’s network of friends and contemporaries affirming their interest. Considering that I am not a professional writer, I was very fortunate. I have to attribute some of that good fortune though to the critical success of Inches.
     Most definitely, there were specific people I had hoped to interview for the book but for several reasons they either declined, or they were not available, or there were other circumstances making it so that they weren’t able to participate. Vanessa del Rio is one I had hoped to interview but it just wasn’t in the stars. Mai Lin is another because we’d had several telephone conversations and she was very keen to talk, but in the end, it didn’t work out. As you are probably aware or can imagine with respect to adult performers, there are often negative situations and connotations at play that can conversely affect or compromise an individual’s desire to speak about their history in sex films apart from the reality that some of them are quite happy to leave their pasts behind. I completely understand and respect that. It is that same stigma however, which made working on a book of this nature so intriguing and compelling.

I know from following the book’s blog that GOLDEN GODDESSES is going to be as moving as it is informative. Was there anyone in particular you sat down with whose personal journey touched you the most?

     That’s a very good question. I can say unequivocally that Rhonda Jo Petty’s story touched me a great deal on a lot of levels. Rhonda is a recovering alcoholic and drug addict who suffered extreme abuse at the hands of her father as a young girl and teenager. I remember while I was transcribing her interview I had tears rolling down my cheeks and even while proofing her chapter her story had the same impact on me. Like so many of the others, Rhonda has overcome a number of obstacles in her life, but her candid description of her volatile relationship with her father really moved me when I started to develop her chapter. I admire her for working through her feelings today so that she can find forgiveness for her father. To be fair, I have known Rhonda for five years now and throughout two books, so I know her better than I do some of the other women. Still, she is very down to earth and unpretentious to a fault. In truth, not only is Rhonda’s story moving, but I believe that each chapter has elements that will hopefully resonate with readers and remind them that these ladies are vulnerable yet strong human beings. Sure, they might not have won a Nobel Peace Prize or discovered a cure for cancer but in their own way, they have left a footprint in the history books as pioneers and feminists for bucking the system and staying true to their hearts.

Wonderful.  With Golden Goddesses now released, is there anything else you would like to say about it for potential readers?

     I’ve seen the first pass and I have to say, BearManor Media has done an outstanding job with the layout and configuration.  I am planning an official launch of “Goddesses” in either November or December in Los Angeles with some of the ladies planning to attend, so there will be more news on that event once we have things finalized.
     One advantage regarding Golden Goddesses which with a little luck will become a collectible for vintage film fans is that because the book consists of twenty-five key personalities not to mention legendary women, there should be someone or something for everyone’s tastes. The book is presented in a chronological format but it doesn’t have to be read that way. My hope is that readers will embrace the women and their stories and gain a greater understanding of their lives and loves.

With the epic GOLDEN GODDESSES complete are you going to take a little breather or are you already planning another book?

     I am planning on taking a long breather now that the book is finished. It’s been a busy six years working on two books back-to-back so I’d really like to rest up a little and spend the next couple of years promoting Golden Goddesses and ensuring that it receives the TLC every new book release requires. I do enjoy the promo process so I’m looking forward to that. I have a couple of ideas in mind for future projects, but for now, I’m going to sit back and savor the satisfaction of having completed my first solo writing project while spending time with family and friends.
     I really appreciate the invitation to participate in this Q&A for your blog, Jeremy, and I’ll look forward to staying in touch once the book becomes available. Thank you.
    
I wish you all the best of luck with GOLDEN GODDESSES and all of your future work. I look forward to continue reading and writing on the book and really appreciate you stopping by and giving us a little preview. Thanks again and all the best Jill!

***For more information on Jill and her work, please visit the links I have highlighted above.  Also Jill has informed me that there is going to be a big gala launch for Golden Goddesses at the California's Hustler Hollywood store at 8920 West Sunset Blvd. on Thursday November 29 at 7:30pm. 16 Goddesses have confirmed their attendance so people need to RSVP asap @ (310) 860-9009 to guarantee a space. Also, Jill and at least eight Goddesses will be at Larry Edmunds Bookshop for a screening and slideshow on the following night also at 7:30pm. The address for that venue is 6644 Hollywood Blvd. RSVP @ (323)463-3273.***

John Carpenter's Halloween: It's a Kentucky Thing

While it may be set in the fictional town of Haddonfield, Illinois (not to mention actually shot in California), John Carpenter's Halloween is to a lot of fans very much a Kentucky film.

I was only five years old when Halloween first hit theaters in October of 1978, so I was too young to see the film in its first run. I ended up seeing it for the first time around the age of ten courtesy of a TV broadcast and it had a huge impact on me. Never before had I felt so much glorious terror and it made horror my favorite genre, a fact that continues to this day. I have watched Halloween at least once every year since, making it one of the films I have seen the most, and those initial viewings still haunt my dreams and memories like no other.

It wasn't just the thrills the film supplied that had such a huge impact on me but it was the regional references that struck an emotional chord. Locations mentioned like Smiths Grove, Hardin County and Russellville were instantly recognizable to me, as they are to any native Kentuckian, and I was thrilled to find out that my Mom had actually attended school (they had one college class together) with John Carpenter in the late sixties. Halloween became not only one of my favorite films just before my teenage years, but also my favorite Kentucky film...and Carpenter became the living embodiment of someone who had got out but hadn't forgotten his roots.

The Kentucky references are scattered all over Carpenter films, especially The Fog, and they appear numerous times in the Carpenter scripted Halloween II. In fact there are two particular moments in the first Halloween sequel that really hit me location wise as one names an area I lived at as a child, and another pinpoints the street and corner where I lived at between 2006 and 2008. The obvious impact the state had on Carpenter (something he made clear last year when I saw him in person) is extremely resonate and quite haunting for someone like myself who knows this area so well and loves these films so much.

As a child and now I often daydream at school about Carpenter's film and the characters who occupied it, especially Laurie Strode. I would often wish to step back into the past and run into the very people who inspired these iconic characters, who know doubt Carpenter knew back in his days as a young man walking down the streets I walk down now everyday.

For those interested in some of the Kentucky locations mentioned in several of John Carpenter's films, please visit this Bowling Green, Kentucky site that offers up a 'driving' tour you can take.

-Jeremy Richey, 2008-

Influences: Heather Drain

When thinking on any great artist I admire I always contemplate who possibly influenced them.  It's the reason I always flip to the index of an autobiography to search for possible clues to other artists who might have made an impression at some point, and it's the reason I always ask about influences in my Q&A series here.  I recently had the idea to start a new series where I ask a few of my favorite fellow artists, photographers, filmmakers and writers to stop by Moon in the Gutter and discuss the people who have had the most powerful influence over their work and lives.  I was thrilled when one of my favorite writers, the magnificent Heather Drain, agreed to kick-start the series.  Heather, whose fabulous work has graced the pages of Video Watchdog, Ultra Violent among many other fine publications, has graciously submitted this wonderful essay on some of her great influences to kick-start this new series and I am so, so grateful.  Thanks so much to Heather for this striking piece and, after reading, please visit her blog Mondo Heather for more examples of  her truly terrific writing. 

List-o-Mania by Heather Drain

Lists, especially where art is concerned, are a source of fun, interest and occasionally ire for me. Like a moth to the flame, I will gravitate towards a list, even when I know more than likely it's going to launch me into a two hour diatribe. But a great list can be a thing of beauty. It can make you feel like you have found some sort of kindred spirit or even turn you on to something new that could blow your mind. And worst case scenario, you can get a great piss and vinegar rant out of the deal. 

 

So when Jeremy asked me to create a list dedicated to the art and artists who have moved and influenced me, it was an offer I could not refuse. Putting together a creature like this is no easy task. Trying to itemize everything is a bit like someone trying to pick their favorite kids. Sure, they might have an idea of who goes where but then have a nagging tendril of guilt tugging at their sleeve about it. So in lieu of your usual numerical list, I will be listing a sampler of the artists who have made an indelible impression on my fevered little psyche. Undoubtedly, the minute after this gets posted, I will be slapping my forehead because I forgot something. If I listed everything creative that has moved me , this would be less of an article and more of a novel of Biblical proportions. Now, without further ado, here is my mondo-list of cultural influence!

One of the very first people that come to mind is Klaus Kinski, the legendary and, in some circles, (usually those made up of his ex-directors and ex-girlfriends), infamous actor. Of all things, it was his book “Kinski Uncut” that made me a convert, after picking it up in the late 90's, right as I was on the cusp of graduating high school. The book itself is like a violent passion play of words, all documenting the obsessions of this great and troubled artist. One of the most captivating qualities about Kinski is that he goes out of his way to detail his id-centered flaws more than his virtues. Kinski was once quoted as saying, “One should judge a man mainly from his depravities. Virtues can be faked. Depravities are real,” which I adore because it is true and if you love it too, then you must pick this book up. It's long out-of-print, but the “Kinski Uncut” edition can be had for a somewhat decent price. If you're wanting the original English language edition, “All I Need is Love,” that was yanked off the shelves since the publisher got cold feet due to litigious reasons since Kinski talks about a number of known people. Realistically, not unlike former adult film star Jerry Butler's own obsessed autobiography,“Raw Talent,” no one comes off more damaged than our narrator. That sort of testicular fortitude always and eternally sends me.

 

But it's not just Kinski the writer and man that I adore. He was one of the best actors to have ever emerged on the silver screen. Once you see him, you will never ever forget him. His ability to completely crawl into a role and make it his own never fades with time. Whether he needed to shriek and be wild or be quiet and subdued, he could pull it all off. For proof, just check out any of his work with the great and equally inimitable director, Werner Herzog, especially “Aguirre, the Wrath of God,” “Nosferatu” and “Woyzeck.” Other Kinski greats include two of his Jess Franco films, “Count Dracula” and “Venus in Furs,” David Scmoeller's underrated thriller, “Crawlspace,” “Fruits of Passion” and Klaus's sole directorial effort, “Paganini.”

 

Speaking of sister Europe, the UK band Bauhaus has been moving me ever since my goth friend Mike lent me, back around the 11^th grade, the first volume of their singles compilation. To simply label them goth is a mere understatement, since to this day, there is really no one that did or does sound quite like them. All the right influences are there, ranging from David Bowie (hence their blazing cover of “Ziggy Stardust”) and T-Rex to the Surrealist and DaDa art movements, with a dash of Eno. In fact, their song “Antonin Artaud,” named after one of my other godheads, is all sonic teeth. It's gristle and beauty and shadows and filigree, which is everything Bauhaus was to a tee. Recommended: All of it, but especially the albums “The Sky's Gone Out” and “Burning From the Inside.” Masterpieces.

 

Being both a monster kid and European art film lover at heart, it was only natural that it would be love at first sight and sound with the works of Jean Rollin. I was blessed to have an early review gig where I was sent “Lips of Blood,” a film that to this day is firmly cemented as a work that I cherish completely. Rollin was a pure artist, featuring a body of work that is as visually lush as it is moving. He gave horror an emotional gravitas that is so special and often under-used, with a few exceptions. The man's a master, pure and simple. Recommended: “Shiver of the Vampires,” “Lips of Blood,” “Living Dead Girl” and more.

 

Kenneth Anger is another filmmaker whose work has seared its way into my vena cava. From his debut film, the violent and poetically sexual “Fireworks” (made when he was barely 20 years old) to his vibrant, magick filled masterpieces, with “Invocation of My Demon Brother” being the granddaddy, Anger is a cinematic game changer. If you want a true taste of art that is at times lush, harsh, colorful, dark and occasionally witchy, then you would be hard pressed to find someone better than Kenneth Anger. Recommended: All of it.

 

Writing wise, there have been eleventy prose writers whose works have left little heart shaped scar marks in my brain. Flannery O'Connor, Mikhail Bulgakov, Lermantov, Katherine Dunne, Poe, Shelley, Stoker, Caitlin R. Kiernan and way too many more to mention. However, there are two fiction writers in particular that have changed the writing landscape for me. The first is Poppy Z. Brite, whose debut novel “Lost Souls,” found me in my smallish hometown's public library years ago. Brite's florid, often lush prose and intrinsic understanding of his characters wooed me from the start. To this day, his numerous books and short stories are works that I revisit time and time again. Recommended: All of it but especially “Exquisite Corpse,” “Drawing Blood” and “Lost Souls.”

 

The other big fiction writer for me is a biggie, but one that didn't emerge fully into my view until later in life. It was a chance move, with me picking up my husband's copy of Charles Bukowski's short story collection, “The Most Beautiful Girl In Town” but once I started reading it, I could not put it down. It was the beginning of a love affair that continues to this day. I adore Bukowski's writing so much. Most people focus on all the really obvious stuff. You know, the hard boozing, the poontang factor, etc. What strikes me about Bukowski's work is the immense heart and honest worldview that he has. Many a foolhardy wannabe writer has romanticized the man's hard living, but forget that nonsense. Bukowski's work is the real deal and has the mix of truth, beauty, rawness and poetry that hits me every single time. It was that short story collection that got me through a grueling emergency room wait while someone very beloved to me was going through something potentially very scary and and life threatening. I am forever indebted to Bukowski for this. Recommended: “Ham on Rye,” “The Most Beautiful Girl in Town,” “Tales of Ordinary Madness,” “Women” et al.

 

A different type of writer who has influenced me is Jeffrey Lee Pierce, best known for his terminally underrated group, The Gun Club.

Pierce's music, both with the band and his solo work, is the stuff that the American dream (and nightmare) is made of. It's like the spirit of an old Southern bluesman got channeled through a west coast punk kid. Not unlike Bukowski, Pierce's work is raw, beautiful, at times heartbreaking and always compelling. Recommended: Everything but especially, especially The Gun Club's “Las Vegas Story.”

 

The Cramps saved my teenage life. Never has a band's sound so perfectly defined a good chunk of my sensibilities. Hearing their “Date With Elvis” album in particular was like finding a long lost family member. They are the sleazy primordial ooze of rock and roll and I will eternally love them for it. Lux Interior is my co-pilot. Recommended: Everything but especially “Date With Elvis” and the live album, “Rockinandreelinginauklandnewzealand.”

 

With music being one of my biggest muses, there are two bands, both seemingly different and yet similar in how they have never compromised and continue to make great and vital music. The first band in question is Devo, musical pioneers from the land where the rubber meets the road, Akron, Ohio. (Sidenote-it's amazing how many great bands and horror hosts have come out of that state. There must be some bizarre magic in the waters of Ohio.) It's easy to focus on the visual aspects of the band, whether it is their famous energy dome hats or the man-baby face of Booji Boy. The visuals are indeed great, often finding that ether where humor, pop culture and something a little more sinister intertwine. But the music is the thing and Devo has often delivered, with their music being something for everyone. There's bits of irreverent humor, dance-ability, guitar crunch and caustic warning about our own culture's de-evolution. It's real, kids. Recommended: “Duty Now for the Future,” “New Traditionalists,” “Devo Live,” “Something for Everybody.”

 

Following up Devo is another band that moves me forever and that is the best UK punk band ever, The Damned. Unlike a lot of their peers, The Damned have not only stayed together since the beginning, for the most part, and have continually evolved musically. From the three chord punk of their first album, “Damned Damned Damned” to the Seeds-flavored psychedelic garage rock of their 2008 album, “So, Who's Paranoid?,” they are a superb band whose work never ever grows old for me. I'm always in the mood for The Damned and you should be too! Recommended: All of it, but especially “Machine Gun Etiquette,” “Phantasmagoria,” “The Black Album,” “So, Who's Paranoid?”

 

Dipping briefly into the pinkies-out world of art for a minute, the works of Dali and Warhol continually send me into fits of visual and mental excitement. My love for surrealism and it's cousin, DaDa, runs deep but Dali's work in particular is so crystalline in its execution, color and vision. Plus, like Warhol, the man himself was living art. Taking the creative impulse one step further is forever exciting and often needed to keep things from getting too moldy and stagnant. With Warhol, his ability to use a visual form to comment on pop culture in a seemingly objective way is unparalleled. Even better was his pioneering role in underground cinema and like a white-haired catalyst, attracting a colorful array of brilliant, eccentric and occasionally mad people all around him. (I love Ondine!)

Recommended-These are masters, so get thee to a library and museum stat.

 

When I first started researching and getting into the sexploitation films of the 1960's, one of the things that compelled me was how a number of them blurred the lines between art house imagery and the lurid come hither of sleaze cinema. One filmmaker who fully transcended this line and made some of the most original movies ever, is my hero, Michael Findlay. Along with his wife, cinematographer extraordinaire and later on, a director in her own right, Roberta Findlay, Michael's blend of dreamlike imagery, a sense of often highly damaged sexuality and a bizarre literary sensibility is unlike anything you will ever see. It was “The Ultimate Degenerate” that first hooked me, but it was “Curse of Her Flesh” that sealed the deal. I've always instinctively had a burr about schools of film criticism that preach that movies that deal with pulp-like topics are automatically not worth covering or respecting. That right there is bollocks and guys like Michael Findlay are the proof in the pudding. If they think these films are disturbing, just look at your local news. Art is the mirror that we do not always want to look into. Recommended: The entire Flesh Trilogy (The Touch of Her Flesh/Curse of Her Flesh/Kiss of her Flesh), “The Ultimate Degenerate,” “A Thousand Pleasures,” “Take Me Naked,” “Janie.”

 

Another filmmaker whose work so beautifully blended the grindhouse with the arthouse is Radley Metzger. Actually, scratch that, because Radley Metzger is a pure bred artist, straight up. His cinematic eye is often sumptuous, but usually underscored with something more. Sometimes it's a sense of melancholy, wry humor or just an observant eye on the warm and sometimes dysfunctional dynamics that are a part of human relationships. Radley Metzger is a gem in the world of cinema. Recommended: “Camille 2000,” the absolutely superb “The Lickerish Quartet,” “Naked Came the Stranger,” “Private Afternoons of Pamela Mann.”

 

Last but certainly not least is the man, Lester Bangs. Lester is what I personally aspire to be as a non-fiction writer. The man's fire, hyper-intelligence, intense humanity and uncompromising approach, which at one point ended up getting him fired from Rolling Stone, is inspiring to say the least. Even better, here was a critic who would admit when he was wrong, which he famously did with the MC5, a band he initially panned but then went on to champion. So many critics go into this field for the wrong reasons, whether it is to live to tear down everything they see or just fellate their own egos. Forget that. Love is the number one reason to write. Your ego should be number 13. Being a writer is one of the most unglamorous paths and one often littered with rejection, so you better be in it because you love it and you have no choice and that is one of the many reasons why I love Lester Bangs. The man should still be here but we can at least glory in his works and try to process the inspiration through our own individual filters.

 

So there you have it! The veritable sampler of the artists whose works inspire, influence and move me to the extent that they are practically intertwined with my DNA. Undoubtedly, I am already thinking of 10 others that should be on here, but I will spare you my Russian-sized novel of influence and hope that this list got your own creative rivers flowing. Art saves.

 

© Heather Drain 2012

A Life Less Ordinary: Remembering Sylvia Kristel

"I continue to live off my name, a first name-my only role-Emmanuelle. In this use of me there is a mistake, an abuse, a total and violent conflict with who I am. I may smile, may act carefree and consenting, may continue speaking up for sexual freedom and asserting that in Nordic countries nudity is considered normal. But none of this erotic universe is in the least bit natural to me. I draw on inspiration, on my imagination, on other people's desire, but not on my own experience. I continue being cast against type, telling myself that I have no choice."

-Sylvia Kristel, Undressing Emmanuelle: A Memoir-

The news of Sylvia Kristel's passing came to me this morning as I was sitting in my living room, drinking my early-morning black coffee, and feeling the cool Autumn air blowing in through an open window.  Even though the news was expected, due to Sylvia's tragic health issues, I was still filled with an unbelievable sense of sadness and loss...and regret...regret that I hadn't done more to celebrate one of my favorite actors and film icons.  Even with my tribute site and all my posts on her great, relatively unseen, films I feel like I could have done more to pay tribute to one of modern cinema's great undervalued poets. 

Sylvia Kristel was indeed a poet..a remarkable actress and performer who projected more with her body and movement than most of our 'great' actors could ever hope to.  Sylvia was also a prisoner to her most famous role and this morning as the news is being reported all over the world it is the name 'Emmanuelle' that keeps being mentioned.  I suppose it is fair that almost all of the focus is on the character that Sylvia Kristel played for the first time in 1974, as it is one of the most famous characters in film history, but the career and life of such a fascinating woman was so much more than just this one character. 

 
While her life was filled with much tragedy and her film career eventually collapsed in on itself due to an ill-advised bid to Hollywood, Sylvia Kristel will ultimately be remembered as one of the great icons and figures of the seventies.  I have harbored the hope as well that eventually the remarkable string of films she made in Europe between 1974 and 1978 will someday get their due.  For a brief period, Kristel became the great muse to several of modern cinema's greatest auteurs and it is the work she did in films like La Marge, Une Femme Fidele, Alice or the Last Escapade and Rene the Cane that stand as her greatest legacy. 

Shy, reserved and haunted by a powerful loneliness all of her life, Sylvia Kristel came alive on the screen...her stillness, the way she used her body, the penetrating gaze of her stare broke through all of the self doubt and isolation she felt in her daily life.  It was this daring confidence she managed to project on the screen that made Kristel such an important figure in the sexual revolution and that persona that came through in the first two Emmanuelle films, as well as Just Jaeckin's supremely undervalued adaptation of Lady Chatterley's Lover, remains so incredibly resonate.  Kristel was a spearhead to the modern pro-sex feminist movement and her life and career are deserving of so much more attention and study than they have ever been granted. 

As the news of Sylvia's passing spread this morning I was contacted by several kind friends on Facebook offering some words of comfort, as I have never made my great admiration for this woman a secret.  One friend asked me if I had ever met her and I had to sadly answer no, although I have been told that she was aware of my tribute site and I have long suspected that she read, and possibly commented, on my review of her book. 

A great actress, an accomplished painter, an acclaimed author, an award-winning filmmaker and a great cultural icon, Sylvia Kristel was a really special artist and, by all accounts, a kind and generous human being.  I absolutely adored this woman and will continue to feel, to my core, that I knew her even though our paths never crossed.

-Jeremy Richey, 2012-

Help 'KickStart' These Projects

I wanted to take a moment and share some links for a few very valuable projects that are seeking support over at Kickstarter. These are really fantastic projects worthy of any help you can give, even if it is just spreading the word.

Susan Stahman and Howard Berger's much anticipated film A Life in the Death of Joe Meek is in its final hours over at Kickstarter so if you haven't already thrown them some support please do so now.  

There are four days left for the I Am Divine Kickstarter page, Jeffrey Schwarz's sure to be fantastic film on the legendary Divine. I can't wait to see this film!
 
Finally there is the Kickstarter page set up for maverick American Filmmaker Shaun Costello's memoir Risky Behavior. I am greatly anticipating reading this sure to be fascinating book and I hope Shaun gets all the donations he needs. ...

'Better Watch the Arts'

It was the ‘zinger’ that everyone was talking about today. Mitt Romney’s clearly scripted putdown to moderator Jim Lehrer, “I’m sorry Jim. I’m gonna stop the subsidy to PBS. I’m gonna stop other things. I like PBS, I like Big Bird, I actually like you too…but I am not going to keep spending money on things [we have] to borrow money from China to pay for.” served as a clear reminder that the majority of  the modern Republican Party, and New Conservative Movement, not only doesn't value the arts but finds it, and our artists, totally insignificant.   

If elected Mitt Romney will do everything he can do to gut our government supported art programs. He’s promised to stop funding for PBS, NPR, The National Endowment for the Arts and others while limiting what we can watch in the privacy of our own homes. I am sure there are artists out there who support the likes of Romney…my only question would be why?

Romney’s correlation of Big Bird with PBS, an important organization with such an inspiring and rich legacy, shows his utter disdain for the arts, artists and creative expression. Romney, and many of his constituents, simply doesn’t understand how necessary the arts are to our country’s past, present and future. The idea of giving relatively minor funding to organizations that can ultimately change lives, and offer spiritual healing, when they could be putting more and more cash into an already bloated defense budget, a useless drug war and into their own already stuffed pockets is totally foreign to them.

I don’t usually bring politics into the mix here at Moon in the Gutter but I am angry. I’m angry that so many people are blindly supporting a man looking to shut the lights out on groups that have helped given a voice to so many of our greatest artists…voices that might otherwise had never been heard. I’m angry that so many people are blindly supporting a man who wants to monitor what we can and can’t watch (and would want to take the livelihood away from many of our most daring artists and provocateurs). I’m angry that so many people around me want to live in this white fantasy world that never existed….Mitt Romney’s idea of America isn’t my country and his position on everything from defunding valuable arts programs to upholding ridiculously antiquated anti-obscenity laws are just two of the reasons I feel like a stranger in a strange land these days. After all, Mitt Romney is all but guaranteed to win my state.

President Obama really dropped the ball in last night’s debate and it was disheartening watching him let Romney’s version of the facts run riot. I can only hope the upcoming debates find the President in a more prepared and fighting mood, as I now getting more and more nervous about the outcome of the upcoming election. I’m sure I might lose some readers with this post but frankly I am more concerned about the rights of African Americans, Homosexuals and women that are going to be set back by decades, if Mitt Romney wins, and I am worried about the great works of art, and artists, we won’t discover when he shuts the doors on so many of our most valuable government funded organizations.

So if you are an artist on the fence about voting please don’t be…take a moment on November 6th and cast a vote against Mitt Romney. History has taught us time and time again that we need to particularly beware of political movements and voices that target the arts and the freedom of creative expression. Now more than ever we need to, as John Cale so eloquently put it in his tribute to Rene Magritte, ‘watch the arts’ and watch out for them.

-Jeremy Richey, 2012- 

October is a Velvet Underground Dream Month

Hopefully everyone reading has heard about the massive six-disc box set reissue of the Velvet Underground's monumental first album, The Velvet Underground and Nico, which is arriving just before Halloween at the end of the month.  Here are the jaw-dropping specs for those who haven't already seen them:

Disc 1 - The Velvet Underground & Nico (stereo version newly remastered, plus alternate versions)
Disc 2 - The Velvet Underground & Nico (mono version newly remastered, plus singles)
Disc 3 - Nico: Chelsea Girl (newly remastered)
Disc 4 - Scepter Studios Sessions (previously released as a bootleg) and the Factory Rehearsals (January 3, 1966, previously unreleased)
Disc 5 - Live At Valleydale Ballroom, Columbus, Ohio, November 4, 1966 (previously unreleased)
Disc 6 - Live At Valleydale Ballroom, Columbus, Ohio, November 4, 1966 (previously unreleased)

While many of us have much of this material in bootleg form, finally having an official release of all this material in one place is really, really special.

There is also a box coming from Sundazed at the end of October entitled The Verve/MGM Albums and man does it look beautiful.  Here's a description from the press release for this vinyl collection:

"With tremendous pride, Sundazed presents The Velvet Underground: The MGM/Verve Albums. This beautiful, deluxe boxed set gathers the rare mono versions of the band s first three studio albums along with the superior mono version of Nico s Chelsea Girl and a definitive edition of the band s unfinished fourth album! Sourced from the original Verve/MGM analog reels and mastered by Bob Irwin, this collection is an essential purchase for the discerning vinyl devotee. For all tomorrow s parties, this is your soundtrack.
The ultimate collection of underground rock s big bang!
Includes the rare mono versions of the VU s first three albums, the superior mono version of Nico s Chelsea Girl (featuring Reed, Cale & Morrison) and a definitive edition of the band s unfinished fourth album!
Housed in a beautiful deluxe box with all original LP artwork along with two bonus poster inserts!
Introduction by Rolling Stone senior editor/MOJO contributor David Fricke.
Sourced from the original Verve/MGM analog reels and mastered by Bob Irwin."

As if these boxes weren't enough to have VU fans celebrating everywhere we also have a brand new studio album from John Cale entitled Shifty Adventures in Nookie Wood.  While physical copies don't land until next week the full album is already streaming at Spotify and it is, not surprisingly, another wonderful and captivating work from the great Cale.  Here's the first video from the album:


Last but not least is the upcoming double-disc special edition of Nico's mesmerizing The End, one of the most haunting and brilliant albums of the seventies.  The original album, featuring everyone from Cale to Eno to Manzanera, is remastered and is joined by an bonus disc of previously unreleased material, including some sure to be mindblowing John Peel material.  Here is the full track listing for that second disc:

 1."Secret Side" (John Peel Session February 20, 1971)
 2."We've Got The Gold" (John Peel Session - 3rd December 3, 1974)
 3."Janitor of Lunacy" (John Peel Session - 3rd December 3, 1974)
 4."You Forget to Answer" (John Peel Session - 3rd December 3, 1974)
 5."The End" (John Peel Session - December 3, 1974)
 6."Secret Side" (Old Grey Whistle Test - February 7, 1975)
 7."Valley of the Kings" (Old Grey Whistle Test - February 7, 1975)
 8."Das Lied Der Deutschen June 1, 1974"
 9."The End" -(from June 1, 1974)

First-Time Viewings (August and September, 2011)

• Chambre Jaune (Short) ***
• Cold Comfort Farm *****
• Dawn of an Evil Millennium **
• Doin' Time in Times Square (Short) ****
• Doldrums (Short) ****
• Elizabeth: The Virgin Queen **1/2
• Elles ****
• Fat Girl ****1/2
• Frame 113 ***
• Headshot ****
• Hubert Selby Jr: It/ll Be Better Tomorrow ****1/2
• In Absentia (Short) ****
• In the City of Sylvia ****1/2
• Krautrock: The Rebirth of Germany *****
• Kubrick's Odyssey ***1/2
• Light is Calling (Short) ****
• Looking for Lenny ****
• Muhammad and Larry *****
• Naked Massacre ***
• Oppai Chanbara: Striptease Samurai Squad **1/2
• Outer Space (Short) *****
• Quarantine 2: Terminal *1/2
• REC ****
• Removed (Short) ***
• Rezervoir Doggs (2011) ***
• Sodom and Gomorrah, New York 10036 (Short) ****
• Stripped Naked ***
• Submarine **1/2
• The Caller ***
• The Change Up ***
• The Dead Outside ***
• The Ossuary (Short) ***
• The Snowtown Murders **1/2
• The Stuff ****
• Thirst (1979) ****
• Tucker & Dale vs Evil ****1/2
• Vito *****
• Water Wrackets (Short) **1/2
• Wrangler: Anatomy of an Icon *****