Japanese clothing line Interbreed announced on their blog the release of a Tommy Boy Records floor mat. My Google translate ain’t workin’ too well today, so I’m not certain how to order this or how much Interbreed is charging for it. If you’re interested, go to this link and maybe you can figure it out?
Via The World’s Best Ever
Sydney-based fashion designers Anna Plunkett and Luke Sales—whose label is called Romance Was Born—showcased their spring / summer 2012/13 collection yesterday at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Australia.
There’s some debate on the Internet whether or not these designs are Jack Kirby inspired. Maybe the backdrop behind the models?
More after the jump…
Alan Govenar and Bruce Lane’s Stoney Knows How is a short and sweet look at one of the tattoo world’s great characters.
Stoney St. Clair started developing his craft at the age of 16. He learned the art of tattooing from some of the best skin pounders in the business, including Ted and Bob Liberty, Frisco Bill Moore and a stint with Charlie Wagner on New York City’s Bowery.
Stoney tattooed while using a wheelchair, which he called his “struggle-buggy.” It didn’t keep him from doing what he had to do, which was “to pursue my profession with intelligence and skill, wishing not to offend anyone, but instead, with my love of mankind, to do what good I can before I die.” Stoney passed away in 1980.
Director Bruce Lane describes his film:
Stoney Knows How is a visit with a master of the Oldest Art In The World - Tattooing. Disabled by arthritis since the age of four, confined to a wheelchair, his growth stunted, Stoney St. Clair joined the circus at 15 as a sword-swallower. A year later, he took up tattooing, and traveled with circuses and carnivals for 50 years. As we watch him at work, we see the determination which led Stoney to use his crippled hands in an art where mistakes are permanent, and we realize Stoney has overcome his handicap to heal himself and others with the magic of symbols. The film ends with a visit by New Age tattoo master Don Ed Hardy to Stoney, who gives him a souvenir tattoo.”
Here’s Stoney Knows How in its entirety. Cinematography by none other than Les Blank.
...to win Season 4 of RuPaul’s Drag Race.
I’ve said it before and I will say it again, RuPaul’s Drag Race is THE best reality show on TV right now. No, wait, let me rephrase that: RuPaul’s Drag Race is THE best reality show in the history of TV. Yes, I’m fucking serious.
It feels a bit like coming out all over again, to admit an obsession with a show so frivolous and outrageously camp as RDR. But I’m not ashamed, no siree. I couldn’t give two hoots what any of the detractors say, Drag Race is fun, funny, glamorous, touching and educational. It delivers on so many levels that it puts the bigger, mainstream reality shows to shame, a fact acknowledged by Pamela Anderson, who has stated that the talent on Drag Race easily outclasses that on American Idol.
And I’m not even a reality TV fan. I hate it! You know how these competition shows seem like such a fucking lie cos all the contestants are MOR dweebs hand-picked for their inanity, and the judges spew out bullshit platitudes when the truth is they have no clue how to control the market forces of the entertainment industry? That has always bugged me, as has the premise that somehow a mystical team of background operatives can bestow superstar status on an individual of their choosing. Well, Drag Race is different. Very different. First off, it’s a show about competing drag queens. Case closed. But in case you’d like me to explain further, don’t worry, I fully intend to…
Right away, out the window goes that hypocritical, bullshit false humility that stinks up reality TV. Being a show-off is always frowned upon on these shows, and a confident extrovert is generally framed as being “arrogant.” It’s a fundamental mythos of the entire reality genre (you know the score, the loveable loser who would still be lingering in a factory or waiting tables if it wasn’t for the grace of Simon Cowell to descend from his throne and bestow fame upon them.) Realistically the judges and producers need someone who is easy to manipulate and control, but they also need someone who is comfortable in front of an audience and a few cameras yet who knows their place and won’t outshine the real stars, the judges themselves.
Drag Race contestants are not random losers plucked from the braying horde to be made famous, these girls have been picked to compete because they are FABULOUS, and they are not scared of showing it off! RuPaul herself actively encourages showing-off, with a peacock-parade at the end of each show, and a lip sync competition between relegated queens to see who stays on. These are goddam drag queens after all, and showing off is in their bones, their genes, their very make-up. Seriously, who’s ever heard of a shy drag queen!?
RuPaul doesn’t promise these performers the world on a plate. No, she offers them a slot performing on a cruise liner. That and princely sum of $100,000. The queens are expected to bring their own talents to the table and to show us how hard they can work them, rather than having to bow to the judges nit-picking advice and barely-hidden agendas.
But it’s not even that that’s got me hooked. It’s Sharon Needles herself.
Here’s the other major lie of reality TV, one that is getting thinner and more see-through as the years go by, and turning off more and more fans of the genre. The lie that they actually produce stars. Seriously, in the ten years now that reality TV has dominated the airwaves, it has yet to produce one genuine superstar. One performer or personality that you can tell will still be around and claiming the spotlight once the promotional budget has run out or the new series has started. Well, step forward Sharon Needles.
Needles (real name is Aaron Coady) is a 31-year-old performer based in steely-grey Pittsburgh, a punk-rock goth queen who exudes wit and warmth and always looks simply phenomenal. Aaron describes Sharon as being “beautiful, spooky and stupid” and she quickly went from being Drag Race‘s rank outsider to head of the leader board, winning a record four challenges with a style that is equal parts Donatella Versace and Lux Interior (Sharon quotes Amanda LaPore and GG Allin as her drag idols.) She is television gold. Seriously, this is the first time I have ever watched anything like this and actually thought “Wow - this person really does deserve to be superstar.” It’s a slightly strange sensation, and is exactly what has made this season of RuPaul’s Drag Race so captivating.
Needles is not a queen without controversy, either. Within the world of drag Sharon is seen as a freak because she does not conform to “fishy” standards (looking convincingly sexy as a female) and even though she looks fantastic she has had to struggle to prove her worth to the other Drag Race contestants, not to mention to audiences and venues in her native Pittsburgh. But Sharon’s outsider/underdog status has actually worked in her favor. In the insular, catty scene of drag and female impersonation, it’s easy to lose sight of the fact that to the straight world grown men dressing as girls is always going to be seen as freaky, no matter how fishy they are. Sharon’s open embracing of her own beautiful freakishness has endeared her to audiences both gay and straight alike.
Sharon’s outsider status has also brought to the fore stories of Aaron’s childhood bullying and social exclusion, from not only the straight world but also the gay scene itself. Aaron is an eloquent speaker against discrimination and bullying of all kinds, and Sharon’s warm acceptance of all of nature’s little oddities is a refreshing change from mainstream gay society’s focus on the shallow beauty of the image. In an era of institutionalised discrimination against homosexuals, where the battle for our basic human rights is still very much happening, Sharon Needles is the unlikely hero that we need. That we ALL need, regardless of gender, orientation, color or any of that. If you’ve ever felt even a little bit at odds with society and its relentless conformity, Sharon Needles is the fierce bitch for you.
A genuine one-off with charisma, uniqueness, nerve and talent to burn, Sharon Needles is a true star. In fact, she’s exactly the kind of contestant you don’t see on reality TV shows because they are just too good! And that’s why we here at Dangerous Minds would like to throw our full support behind her in the race to become America’s Next Drag Superstar.
VOTE NEEDLES 2012.
This video is a compendium of Sharon Needle’s best moments in the earlier stages of Drag Race, mixed with performance footage from the streets and bars of Pittsburgh:
RuPaul’s Drag Race airs on Logo TV, and the winner of Season 4 is announced on Monday.
It’s been some time since I’ve checked out the Moustair website, you know, “Where men meets moustaches meets hair meets moustaches.”
Anyway, they’ve added a lot of new “Moustairs” since I last visited, and the one pictured above—titled “Senior Man Moustair”—is my favorite.
Skatedater, one of the best skateboarding films ever made, has finally popped up in a decent color version after years of bouncing around the ‘net in terrible looking transfers.
Skaterdater is a short film that was released in 1965. It was Produced by Marshal Backlar, and written and directed by Noel Black and was the winner of the Palme d’Or for Best Short Film at the 1966 Cannes Film Festival. It was also nominated for an Academy Award in the Best Short Subject category. First prizes in international film festivals including Moscow and Venice.
The film tells a story with no dialogue. The surf rock-esque soundtrack was composed by Mike Curb and Nick Venet with Davie Allan and the Arrows playing “Skaterdater Rock” .
It was the first film on skateboarding. It was distributed theatrically, both domestically and internationally, by United Artists. It was reviewed extensively, including “Time Magazine”.The skateboarders were members of the neighborhood Imperial Skateboard Club from Torrance, California. Their names are Gary Hill, Gregg Carrol, Mike Mel, Bill McKaig, Gary Jennings, Bruce McKaig and Rick Anderson. Most of the action shots were taken in Torrance, Redondo Beach, Palos Verdes Estates. The final shot was Averill Park in San Pedro.” Wikipedia.
These young dudes have some classy moves and an almost Zen-like grace. I lived in Southern California for awhile as a kid and this brings back some memories.
If you dig the soundtrack, you can stream all the tracks here.
Thanks Jimbo
Legendary post-punk performer James Chance (aka James White, aka James Black, best known for the classic “Contort Yourself”) features on a fetching new tie print by Vivienne Westwood.
If you are a fan of late 70s No-Wave skronk AND snazzy ties, then this is may be of interest (here’s looking at you Richard!) However, to purchase this tie you’re going to have to hunt for it, as it is not featured on the Westwood website’s “Men’s Accessories: Ties” page.
And while we are on the subject, here’s a clip of the re-formed Contortions playing live in Poland in 2008:
Via Michel Esteban.
As I have continually slimmed down my record collection over the years, the works of certain artists who I knew would never, ever come out on CD tend to be the things that I keep. Translation: I have a weirdly lopsided record collection that veers sharply—there is no “in between” to speak of, to be clear here—from several dozen live PiL bootlegs to the collected works of one Jeannie C. Riley. I have other records, various and assorted things, mostly autographed records and one off collectibles, but the only two sizable chunks anymore are the PiL bootlegs and my Jeannie C. Riley albums, which are all in pristine, perfect condition.
Jeannie C. Riley? Doesn’t ring a bell? Remember “Harper Valley PTA”?
Of course you do. Jeannie C. Riley was HOT, HOT, HOT—a late 60s/early 70s mini-skirted corn pone minx of the Nancy Sinatra variety—but Nashville-style. She had been working as a secretary in Nashville when country music impresario Shelby Singleton heard her demo and signed her to his label, Plantation Records. Riley’s single “Harper Valley PTA” became a worldwide smash hit in 1968, winning her a Grammy for the Best Female Country Vocal Performance and ultimately becoming one of the best-known country music songs of all time. It was, like many of her songs, written by Nashville great Tom T. Hall.
In her super-short mini-dresses and knee-high leather boots, Jeannie C. Riley was a staple performer on shows like Hee Haw, The Johnny Cash Show, Bob Hope holiday specials and things like that when I was a kid. I thought she was just mega-sexy and over the years I collected each and every one of her long-playing efforts, each record that sounded just like the ones that had come before it, and the ones that would come after, too. Each trying desperately hard to come up with another hit song, a second “Harper Valley P.T.A.” but never quite succeeding.
But that doesn’t mean she didn’t get close! Several times in fact. The finest songwriters and musicians in Nashville were put to the task of trying to catch lightening in a bottle twice for the lovely Mrs. Riley. Over and over and over and over and over again she—and they—tried. They threw a certain kind of thing against the wall again and again and again.
You could say that Singleton, Hall and Riley took “formulaic” to a new level with the Harper Valley P.T.A. album OR you could choose to see it like she was the first country music artist to record a concept album….
I’m actually being semi-serious here. “Widow Jones”, “Sippin’ Shirley Thompson,” “Mr. Harper” and other characters from the original hit have their own songs on the long-player. There are tales of naive and foolish girls (“The Cotton Patch,” “Box Of Memories”), teen pregnancies (“The Girl Most Likely”) and small town hypocrisy (”Satan Place” and the title track). What more could you ask for? Even if it wasn’t intended to actually be a “country opera,” that is in fact how it comes off, so fuck it. Who are we to judge such a musical masterpiece?
Admittedly, being a “fanatic” for Jeannie C. Riley is something that’s pretty difficult to justify, but if you will bear with me here and sample the multi-media links both above and below, you’ll either become a fan yourself, or at least you will be highly amused, I’m reasonably sure. Even if she never really made another hit song quite as memorable as “Harper Valley P.T.A.” some of the results that were achieved are pretty great as you can see for yourself.
An amazing clip of gorgeous Jeannie C. Riley doing her biggest hit:
After the jump, a ton of Jeannie C. Riley for your listening and viewing pleasure…
READ ON▸
A fabulously gory pillow by Keetra Dean Dixon, inspired by:
...those suspenseful moments when a sleeping loved one is a little too still for a little too long. Using an irreverent combination of comfort & fear the pillows parallel sleep & death. Project goal: taking ownership of morbidly intrusive thoughts through humor & play.
The pillows are 16 inch by 16 inch, and are made of silk, velvet and batting.
“The Great Slumber” or “Blood Puddle PIllow” is, as my dear friend Woody Mcmillan says, a “Must. Have.”
With thanks to Woody Mcmillan via From Keetra
Here’s a lovely “Goatse” tunnel to spruce up your earlobes. It’s “The worst ear plug the internet has to offer.”
And if you don’t know what a “Goatse” is, you’re going to have to Google that shit on your own ‘cause I ain’t linking to it. Be forewarned though, you’re going to want to rinse your eyes with bleach and ammonia after looking.