John Waters wants to give you a ride in his car. Come on, he says, hop in the front and I’ll give you the tour.

Well, what have you got lose? It’s raining out, the car’s warm, John’s got smokes, and what’s that he’s saying?

“The only thing I want to be is a negative role model for a whole new generation of bored youth.”

You know all about being bored, and you never did get those cha-cha heels for Christmas, did you?

But remember what your mother said about getting into cars with strangers?

Screw mom! I know John. He’s got fun in his eyes. He’s got a pencil-thin mustache. He’s the Pope of Trash, and he’s gotta car with which he’s gonna show me all the hot spots of “Charm City.”

In this clip Waters takes a news crew around Baltimore (“Charm City”!) to promote his scratch ‘n’ sniff feature film Polyester in 1981, with a visit to Edith Massey and a few blessings from Divine.

Today, Waters is still working as hard but he no longer smokes, and watches what he eats. All the hard work has brought him three apartments across America-one in ‘Charm City,’ another in San Francisco and a pad in New York’s West Village. He spends his spare time hanging out in bars, reading books, going to film festivals, and collecting what he terms, “angry art.” (One recent purchase was a “deadly” canvas covered in mold.)

So now you know. And next time John stops to offer you a lift, hop in the car!
 

Bonus: John Waters introduces ‘Shock Value’—Rated “R” for Repulsive.
 

Double Bonus: Even John has to watch what his diet, Mr. Waters on low calorie food, ‘Angry Art’ and books.
 
Previously on Dangerous Minds.
Growing Up John Waters