Time O
ut magazine has released its rankings of the 50 greatest New York musicians of all time, and guess what, the Velvet Underground is #1! Surely this confirms our claim to be the greatest rock and roll Hotel of all time! (Nico, was a hotel resident.) Also on the list are the Ramones — who surely should be ranked higher than #11 — Patti Smith (who lived here with Robert Mapplethorpe), and Madonna (who famously shot her sex book in room 820). Ornette Coleman who entertained at the Shirley Clarke plaque ceremony is on the list. Check out the list for other Chelseaites.
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The sinister doorway undertaker got to our poor portal while we were out of town. Other residents
have been surprised to come home and find their previously cherry doors buried beneath a heavy coat of dreary, depressing black paint. Lately, however, some of the hotel’s residents have begun to fight back against this virulent Black Plague.Here we see that artist Arthur Weinstein has taken a courageous stand against the encroachment of conformity. Fight the power, Arthur. Resist doorway oppression!
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Monday, March 12, 7:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.
Don’t know if it’s true or not, but they’re advertising free barbecue all day long over at Madison Square Park. 9 a.m. – Kingsford(r) Breakfast of Champions. Sample a signature charcoal-grilled breakfast item. 5 p.m. – Sample regional BBQ recipes that have been cooking all day, while learning tips and techniques from the pitmaster himself. (via NewYorkology)
Madison Square Park, 23rd at 5th Ave., and Broadway, NY NY
Monday, March 12, 8:30
Patti Smith will be officially inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame during a ceremony at New York’s Waldorf-Astoria Hotel. For the first time ever, the ceremony will be broadcast live by VH1 Classic and streamed live by AOL at http://spinner.aol.com/rockhall.Thursday
, March 15, 10:30 p.m.
Susanne Bartsch and Kenny Kenny say goodbye to Tuesday and hello to Thursday with Kino 41. Kino 41 starlets: Amanda Leopore, Lady Fag, Moondust, Furey and Andre J. Cine Sounds & Show: TBD . Life is Like a Movie. Stop by every Thursday for your close up.
135 West 41st, NY NYFriday, March 16, 6:00 – 9:00 p.m.
Rene Ricard’s art will be on display at Gallery Sensei until March 29. The opening reception is tonight.
Gallery SENSEI 34 EAST 1ST STREET (BETWEEN 1ST/2ND AV).Sunday, March 18, 12:00
The Algonquin Round Table Walking Tour returns. Visit more than 20 places associated with the
Vicious Circle, their old speakeasies, offices, apartments, and more. The 2-hour walk celebrates Dorothy Parker, Robert Benchley, George S Kaufman, Harpo Marx, Edna Ferber, Franklin P. Adams, Heywood Broun, Harold Ross, Robert Sherwood, Marc Connelly and the rest of the Vicious Circle. Of course, Dorothy was friends with several Chelsea writers. The walks are led by Kevin C. Fitzpatrick, author of A Journey into Dorothy Parker’s New York (Roaring Forties Press). It is recommended walkers wear comfortable shoes as the walk encompasses approximately 30 blocks.
Meet in the Algonquin Hotel lobby, 59 West 44th St., NY NY -
French Philosopher Jean Baudrillard died earlier this week. Rita Barros, who photographed Baudrillard and his
wife, for her book, 15 Years: Chelsea Hotel, recalls her excitement at meeting Baudrillard in his Paris studio and preparing dinner for him here at the Chelsea. We’re happy to learn that he didn’t like "The Matrix," feeling that the film makers had misunderstood his ideas. We just thought it was boring.When I got to Paris on assignment to photograph Jean Baudrillard I was quite excited. I could finally discuss or at least ask him some questions that he had raised with books like Simulacra and Simulations. It was a warm afternoon and I vividly remember his small studio, books piled all over the place. He opened the door with a wide smile and announced that he was ready for the real image of himself. Time was short and the conversation got postponed to a later date.
Years later he called to say he was staying at the Chelsea so I made dinner for him, his wife and João Pedro a Portuguese common friend. He was very disappointed with the treatment of his ideas in the film “The Matrix” and wanted nothing to do with the whole hysteria.
The next trip to New York I got to photograph him in the hotel. He loved to stay here, better than a fancy place without a soul. “This hotel is a vanishing point of New York” he told me.
And now Baudrillard has vanished but his photo remains, a sign of the real for the real itself…..
Rita Barros
“It is no longer a question of imitation, nor of reduplication, nor even of parody. It is rather a question of substituting signs of the real for the real itself” Jean Baudrillard
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On the anniversary of his death, here’s a rockin’ tribute of sorts, by indie band, My Penis, to everybody’s favorite drunken poet, Charles Bukowski.Bukowski, as we’ve mentioned before, wasn’t that impressed by his stay at the Chelsea. He didn’t think it was much, but he figured maybe that was its charm. This from the man who checked into the hotel in just his socks because he got so drunk that he left his shoes on the plane.
Here, Bukowski reads his poem, "The Genuis of the Crowd"
Speaking of Bukowski, here’s a shameless plug for a friend’s book. Bohemian New Orleans: The Story of the Outsider and Loujon Press, written by Jeff Weddle and due out in the Summer, traces the development of Loujon which was one of the first presses to print Bukowski’s work. Copies of some of the letters that Bukowski sent to Lou and Jon from 1964 – 1972 are available online and make for interesting reading.
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Check out this podcast that Ed recently recorded for TothWorld. Ed reads his short story "The End of Sonny’s Bar," a hair-raising tale of underage drinking and serious ass-whoopin’ with a pool cue that was published in the Spring 06 issue of Limestone: A Journal of Art and Literature. First, Paul Toth reads a few letters from Arthur Rimbaud and promotes his forthcoming book–but don’t worry, Ed is up next. Paul is actively seeking writers and musicians to contribute to his podcasts. So, if you fit the bill send him an e-mail.
On a somewhat more sober note:
Pick up this week’s issue of The Villager or Chelsea Now for Ed’s coverage of the Andy Warhol
"Wake" at the Cynthia von Buhler Gallery. Cynthia von Buhler and Anton Perich are shown in the photo at left. I actually had a nice chat with Anton at a party here at the hotel Saturday night. He described how his bar-code-like image that was in the exhibit was created by a machine that he made in 1972.Click through for the photo gallery from the event.
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We’ve mentioned before that the best benefit of having this blog, even though it’s a lot of work, is the
nice people we’ve met, both within the walls of the Chelsea Hotel and throughout the neighborhood.Barry Hoggard and James Wagner, who live on the other side of 23rd Street, were brave enough to invite us over site unseen for drinks before the holidays. We knew of their blogs, but we had never met them before. They graciously gave us a tour of their impressive art collection. And, like us, they dislike the changes that these corporate businesses are bringing to the character of the neighborhood and have resolved to do something about it. To this effect, James has some news to announce!
The giant, spinning, flood-lit pink cupcake perched above the curb on the top of an advertising canopy on West 23 Street has to be removed within 30 days. The city’s Department of Transportation [DOT], which has the authority in these things as the safety guardian of our streets and sidewalks, has found that the owners’ original permit for a conventional framed canopy expired in 2003 and that the mechanical structure appended to the awning the restaurant had built after 2003, is itself in violation of city statute.
In addition, James and Barry, have some awesome coverage of the Armory Show on their blogs. Their favorite piece involved a toilet stall, a urinal and some “Lisa” soap. I don’t what that says about James and Barry, but we’ll politely withhold comment. After all, we’re big fans of the Lisa brand ourselves. The official soap of the Chelsea Hotel. It just sounds so much better than Dove or Ivory. Why shouldn’t a soap have a nice feminine name? We also have a dog named Lisa on our hall. And, even a girl. We live on the floor of the Lisa.
Jade Townsend Lisa Soap installation.
Hotel Chelsea "Lisa Soap" installation.
(Photo by Robert Boyd of Barry Hoggard and James Wagner at Schroeder Romero, in front of a Kathe Burkhart (April 2003))
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Watch it now before it disappears! Here’s an eight minute clip from the 1981 Chelsea Hotel documentary which aired on BBC4 Saturday night. As far as we can tell, the only person in the clip who is still alive is Joe Bidewell, who we once saw play at CBGB. Joe accompanys Nico on guitar as she sings "Chelsea Girls." Joe will be playing at Brown’s Diner in Nashville, Tennessee this Saturday, March 10 at 8:30.
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Wednesday, March 7, 12:00 – 8:00 p.m.
"She’s Like a Rainbow: Colors in Fashion," the current exhibit at the Fashion Institute of Technology includes three designs by Charles James. (Thanks to Judith Childs for the tip.)
Fashion Institute of Technology, 27th St at 7th Ave., NY NYThursday, March 8, 10:00p.m.
Charles Bukowski Praise Night #3. Bring your favorite Bukowski poem to share and commemorate the writer’s death. In his book, Women, Bukowski mentions his stay at the Chelsea. Featured readers
will include downtown favorites: Steve Cannon, Gary Glasner, Bob Holman, David Huberman, Tsaurah Litzky, Big Mike, Thad Rutkowski, Moonshine Shorey, Danny Shot, Marjorie Tesser, Mike Topp, Deanna Zandt, Matthew Cummings, short open and More!
Bowery Poetry Club, 308 The Bowery. Probably free.Thursday
, March 8, 10:30 p.m.
Susanne Bartsch and Kenny Kenny say goodbye to Tuesday and hello to Thursday with Kino 41. Kino 41 starlets: Amanda Leopore, Lady Fag, Moondust, Furey and Andre J. Cine Sounds: Alexander Technique, Show: Velvet Code. Life is Like a Movie. Stop by every Thursday for your close up.
135 West 41st, NY NYThursday, March 8, 8:00 pm.
Singer/songwriter Libby Johnson takes to the stage to show off her considerable talents.
The Living Room, 154 Ludlow St., NY NYFriday, March 9, 11:00 – 6:00 p.m.
If you survive Thursday, check out Devendra Banhart’s work in "A Cloudy Day’s Epiphany". The Banhart video below was filmed at Coney Island and the Chelsea Hotel. What’s happening to Coney Island these days totally sucks. By the way, the rock video was shot by a Hotel Chelsea resident.
DINTER FINE ART, 547 West 27th Street, Third Floor, NY NYSaturday, March 10, 7:30 p.m.
Howard Fishman’s take on Bob Dylan and The Band’s The Basement Tapes is a quirky avante guarde trip through the Invisible Republic. Definitely worth checking out. ($15.00)
Joe’s Pub, 425 Lafayette St., NY NY -
A number of Nelson Sullivan’s videos of Christina, a artist/punk/transvestite and a celebrity of sorts in the Downtown NYC scene of the 1980s, have been added to youtube.com. "Christina at the Chelsea" hasn’t made it on to youtube yet, but you can still view it online.
