A TANGLE OF PATHOLOGY
An empty taxi cab pulls up to the curb, and out steps Peter Kastenmüller, of the X-Schulen curatorial team. I’ll let you connect the dots with that one.
***
Sorry its taken forever to write faithful readers, but with deadlines for magazine articles,essays due in art catalogues on top of triple digit farenheit summer temperatures, there is only so much a lady can handle.My assistants have forwarded me your hilarious emugs, and I promise to perform fellatio upon all of you for my errant behavior in failing to write this blog in a more regular and timely fashion.
***
Daniel Hendrickson the Scandanavian Muslim and translator to the shtars hosted a Pre-Transgenial Mint Julip Social at his Neu Kölln compound that was filled with joy and elan.Film historian Marc Siegel, NYU scholar Tavia Nyongo with his British pal Thom, and Pierro Bellommo were all on hand gulping down dwinks and snacks.The Transgenial parade and festival acts as a low rent alternative to Berlin’s completely tired Christopher Street Day pride event.
Mr. Hendrickson was also my companion at the Arsenal for their salute to the golden age of Mexican Melodramas from the 1940-60s.Among the gems we watched: Dias de Otono1962 directed by Roberto Gavaldon and Distinto Amanecer 1943 directed by Julio Bracho.
When i was in France i found a copy of the Daryl F. Zanuck produced 20th Century Fox musical of Irving Berlin´s There´s No Business Like Show Business starring a very long on the tooth Ethyl Merman with Dan Dailey before his homo alcoholics bloat fully kicked in.Merman and Daily play a schtichy married vaudeville team whose brood grows up to become apple cheeked Mitzi Gaynor with queer sons Johnny Ray and Donald O´Connor. Mr.Ray naturally becomes a gay priest while Miss O´Connor does the only sensible thing allowed him, he desperately tries romancing Marilyn Monroe who is the real star of the picture and everyone knows it.
Marilyn Monroe the singer was alway underrated. She was a jazz stylist and this comes through in earnest with her rendition of "Once You Get What You Want You Don´t Want It" and the gay chorus boy camp antics of "Heat Wave" and a sultry "Lazy"--- all the production numbers in the film nicely staged by Robert Alton.
***
Didn´t know that writer James Purdy died last year.I loved his novels Malcolm, and the insane I Am Elijah Thrush.Had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Purdy years ago when he lived in the same building as my friend Norman Ghoulsen in Brooklyn.
***
Vaginal Davis’Stassi spies are everywhere, so beware!Heard a nice juicy bit of gossip that features filmmaker and artist Tatiana of the artist collective HANGOVER. HANGOVER and CHEAP were sortof rivals in the mid 2000s.I first met Tatiana back in 2001 in Berlin.She was doing a project in Los Angeles at the Standard Hotel, and I gave her the names and phone numbers of some of my Hollywood pals like pop star Beck.It seems like Miss Tatiana had pitched a similar project to X-Schulen working with Migration youth at the Maxim Gorky Theatre.I am going to follow up on this lead as it may spice up an article I am writing for Art Forum, plus Mickey Boardman of New York´s Paper Magazine wants me to be their Berlin correspondent. I thought I had given up on journalism years ago,but somehow I am being dragged back into the 5th Estate.
***
Went to see Joel Gibb of the Hidden Cameras open up for the Scissor Sisters at PostBahnof the other evening.Joel had some technical difficulties which he overcame with charm and bravado.Jason aka: Jake Shears is so zen before performing.I wish I could be that relaxed.Ana Matronic had the crowd in stitches when she talked about opening up for the god awful Black Eyed Peas in Belgium with an audience that was a little on the “spiessig” side. Miss Matronic and I both share that word as being our favorite in the Deutsch language.
Did some kiss ‘n’ chat backstage with Peaches, Gonzales, REM´s Michael Stipe and posse, Slovakian art director Mario D., Snax and a high percentage of visiting Canucks.
***
Thursday at Arsenal Institüt für Film und Video Kunst it was SRO for their retrospectacle of the career of Judy La Bruce.It was pure genius of Arsenal Empress Stefanie Schulte Strathaus to show the early super 8 works like BOY/GIRL, 1987, The Candy Pauker Home Movies and Sex Bomb 1989 along with Give Piece of Ass a Chance 2007and The Bad Breast 2009.Film Historian suprema Marc Siegel was the moderator for a discussion that featured the great Susanne Sachsse and The Doll.I showed a bit from The Three Faces of Women 1992 which features Judy and I as a drag queen lesbian couple who seek counsel from a sex therapist played by Christine Martin.I made this movie 18 years ago and it’s a wonder that it isn’t dated.The audience was held in awe seeing Judy in drag as Fonda LaBruce wearing Sylvia Heisel. That Judy sure was one fetching heffer.The retrospectacle continues until July 27th. The star studded audience included: Toby of Sissy Magazine, Tobaron Waxman the hot transman from Toronto, The Blue Bros Tim & kJohnny, The director of the Tel Aviv Gay and Lesbian Festival, Daniel Hendrickson, Olga Damnitz & Nanna Heidenreich, Uli Ziemons with Nadja Talmi, Giovanni Frazzetto of the Culture Labor Inst for Cultural Inquiry, prima ballerina Trixie Cordua,John Heys, artist Florian Bielefeld who created a life sized version of Susanne Sachsse´s character from the Raspberry Reich, Gesa Knolle of Arsenal Experimental Distribution, sweet Garret,wonderful Alex Boldt, Prezemek Pyszczek and Travis Lycar of Winnipeg, beautiful FU grad student and CHEAP Gossip studio bar boy Clemens Stoltzenberg with his composer beau, gaysian scholars Hoang Tan Nguyen of Forever Bottom fame and Drege Kang of Emory University in Atlanta, Michael Hofner of GM Films, longtime LaBruce producer Jurgen Bruning with Klaus and Kiki Petersen, artist Christophe Chemin with Tennessee Clafin of Pork, and the most unusual of La Bruce fans Prince Carl Phillip of Sweden, Europas humpiest royal.