The 1981 Chelsea Hotel documentary by Nigel Finch will air today on BBC4. Too bad that the clip of Jobraith playing his piano on the roof, which was featured in Finch’s documentary, has been removed from youtube.com.
-
Because photographer Keith Green found the hotel to be a peaceful retreat in 1988, he vowed to return. And return he did—to photograph Dee Dee Ramone for his book jacket (Chelsea Horror Hotel) and to witness the tail end of superstar Viva’s eviction:
During the latter part of the 1980s, I worked as a photo assistant for photographer, Jean Kallina who photographed assignments, primarily, for Vogue as well as producing her fine art photographic interiors at Versailles. During the Fall of 1988, she left for a month-long assignment in Europe with Julian Schnabel of whom she was close friends and a collaborative partner on several art projects. Jean sublet her studio loft, on 18th Street and Broadway, during the time she was away. Upon her return from Europe three days earlier than the contracted date, she found herself in a pinch for a place to stay so, Julian arranged for her to spend the three days in his, very large, room at the Chelsea Hotel. Jean took one look at the place, decided she didn’t like it and refused to stay. Julian immediately offered Jean refuge in the incredibly spacious bohemian apartment above his equally spacious studio in Greenwich Village. Since the room at the Chelsea was paid in advance, Jean offered it to me for the entire three-day period. The hotel’s iconic neon sign beamed intensely as it bathed the white stucco walls in hypnotic flashes of red light; providing me a brief, yet peaceful sanctuary from the chaos that frequented the lower east side apartment that I shared with two roommates. I vowed, then, that I would someday return to the Chelsea Hotel with the purpose of encapsulating that bohemian spirit on film.
One other brief anecdote: Immediately after finishing the roll of film for this portrait of Dee Dee, he motioned for me to look over the balcony on to the street and said, "See that U-Haul van down there?" "Yes", I replied. "That’s Viva’s stuff they’re moving…They finally kicked her out".
-
Check out this review of the Chelsea in The Connected Traveler. According to the author, Russ Johnson, the Chelsea is "more Crackhaus than Bauhaus" and it apparently reminds him of a "Soviet era mental ward." Fortunately, in the video interview, our beloved benefactor steps up to the plate to defend our building’s honor, correctly pointing out that the Chelsea is perhaps "The last vestiage of decency." And Sid was a decent guy too, though it’s probably just as well that Stanley didn’t let him move back to the Chelsea after the Nancy fiasco. Hey Stanley, can I get my place repainted to look like the Jackson Pollock room?
-
The Penthouse at the old McBurney Y building is still on the market and has been price-chopped again! (The penthouse used to house the YMCA gymnasium which was home to one of New York’s
longest running fencing programs, among other things. You’ll recall that the private rooftop deck was where the Y used to hold “Membership Appreciation/Dallas Night.”) As you may also recall, the penthouse was put on the market in December for 7.4 million. When we checked in on Feb. 15 the price had been slashed to 7.2 million. And here we are again, just a couple of weeks later, and the developer has come down even further to $6,995,000. How low does he plan to go? Maybe he can rent it out to NYU as a dorm room. Despite recent reports to the contrary, items such as this serve to demonstrate that the housing market is still soft. The apartments in all those new 6th Ave. towers are obviously being warehoused.
By the way, prospective buyers, there is still no doorman in the Y building. And the unsightly Jag ad is still on the side of the building. Hold out for a better deal. – Ed Hamilton
-
When our friend Robert Shaw from Australia checked into the hotel recently, he must have
requested the Street-Furniture Special. (see photo 1) Yes, folks, that chair has only three legs, and when Robert sat in it, the results were predictable. Requests at the front desk for a furniture upgrade were of course ignored, and so we took him down to the basement, confident that there would be no shortage of fine, sturdy chairs from which to choose. In a surreal Chelsea moment, this is what we found. (see photo 2) Perhaps if we had searched more diligently, we might have turned up something a bit more functional, but the elemental spirit that lives in the basement warned us off, and rather than be caught up in the cosmic struggle between good and evil, we fled for the less supernaturally-fraught confines of the upper stories. 
-
Two junkies were walking by the hotel one February evening—a skinny man with a drawn,
skeletal face, and a fat woman with no teeth—both bundled up against the extreme cold, the man pushing a shopping cart loaded with scavenged junk. Suddenly the man let go of his cart and darted up to the side of the building, bringing his face close and squinting to see the print on one of the bronze plaques that hung there. “It used to say ‘Sid Vicious’ on here!” he proclaimed, spitting out the words with disgust.II
Three teenage girls, two of them tiny and thin, and one, a couple of years older, heavier, more punked out with blue hair and multiple ear-piercings, were ambling by the hotel, ill-prepared for the cold in only thin jackets. One of the younger girls glanced over and saw the sign. “Look! It’s the Chelsea Hotel!” she cried out, excitedly. “Oh, the Chelsea Hotel!” the older one exclaimed sarcastically. “The Chel-sea Hotel!” She proceeded to drop to her knees—clad in ripped fishnet stockings—and then to prostrate herself fully, arms outstretched toward the building in an attitude of mock-worship.
Ed Hamilton -
A r
eader e-mailed to remind us that we neglected to mention an important day in rock history last week. February 22, 1978, Sid & Nancy were busted for drugs at the Chelsea Hotel. If we start commemorating all of the drug busts that have gone down at the Chelsea that alone would be a full time job. -
W
ednesday, March 1, 10:00 – 6:00
Everybody is raving about the new Philip Taaffe show so head up to the Gagosian and check it out. You will not be disappointed.
Gagosian Gallery, 980 Madison Ave., NY NYThursday, March 1, 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: Sammy Jo. Showing: VIP. Admission Free All Night. Life is Like a Movie. Stop by every Thursday for your close up.
135 West 41st, NY NYFriday, March 2, 11:00 – 6:00
You must see Birgit Megerle’s show before it closes tomorrow at the Daniel Reich Gallery. In Megerle’s work, planned spaces are inhabited by a
lively human intelligence negotiating progressive machine age structures of monumental thirties style replete with the implied power of gold, luxury and size. Amid grand outdoor family arcades overshadowed by claustrophobic monuments evoking beauty and fear, this lively intelligence unravels facades crossing into the space of imagination leading persistently to the impending flexibility of the question mark.
Daniel Reich Gallery, 537 A, West 23rd St., NY NY
Saturday, March 3
The moon turns red tonight. Expect all sorts of weird happenings as a result.If you have an event for "All Tomorrow’s Parties," send an e-mail to chelblog@yahoo.com
-
Leonard Cohen performs "Famous Blue Raincoat" in Munich, Germany in 1979.
-
Take our advice and ignore the seven art fairs that are going on throughout Chelsea and the city and stay hyperlocal. The Diva Street Art fair has a container at 23rd & 7th Ave and at 8th Ave and 24th St. At 8th Ave and 24th, I watched a video of two Asian women: one of the women held an
otter in her lap, while the other one dangled a Cheetoe before the web-footed creature. Neither of the women moved very much, possibly to avoid spooking the slippery beast, and I kept waiting for the otter to spring for the cheesy treat and mangle the poor womanâs hand. Alas, the otter never did pounce, and after awhile I figured out that it was probably a fake otter, and the woman were in a video loop. The show continues through Saturday, February 24th at various locations in Chelsea, especially in the gallery district. Thanks to Judith Childs for the tip.
