Matt Groening: Artist
Bibbe Hansen: Former actress; Andy Warhol star; daughter of Fluxus artist Al Hansen; Beck’s mother
Fayette Hauser: Friend of Tomata du Plenty
Willie Herron: Member of Los Illegals; cofounder, the Vex club
Greg Hetson: Cofounder, Circle Jerks; guitarist, Bad Religion
Kristian Hoffman: Former keyboard player, the Mumps
Gus Hudson: Flipside scribe, producer
Steven Hufsteter: Former lead guitarist; songwriter, the Quick; film composer
Amber Hunt: Former friend of Darby Crash
Barbara James: Former scenester
Joan Jett: Former singer, rhythm guitarist, the Runaways; lead singer/guitarist, Joan Jett and the Blackhearts; actress (Light of Day, The Rocky Horror Picture Show)
Mary Kay: Former bass player, the Dogs
Tony Kinman: Singer/bassist, the Dils, Rank and File
Hellin Killer: Plunger sister; bloodied Sid Vicious in Dallas, 78
Bunky Kirchenheimer: Former promoter
Kari Krome: Songwriter, the Runaways
Harvey Kubernik: Music journalist; publicist; spoken word record producer
Bobby Lambert: Former member, Les Petites Bon-Bons
Tito Larriva: Former lead singer/guitarist, the Plugz, the Cruzados; cofounder, Fatima Records; film composer; actor
Stan Lee: Guitarist, the Dickies; owner of Iggy Pop’s Raw Power jacket
Jenny Lens: Photographer
Robert Lopez: Former guitarist, the Zeros; solo artist (as “El Vez,” the Mexican Elvis)
Jeff McDonald: Singer/guitarist, Redd Kross
Laurie Maddox (aka Lori Lightning): Former groupie
Russell Mael: Lead singer, Sparks
Toby Mamis: Manager, Alice Cooper, the Runaways, Blondie
Ray Manzarek: Former keyboard player, the Doors; producer (X’s Los Angeles, Wild Gift, and Under the Big Black Sun)
Susan Martin: Cofounder, SSB (Some Serious Business), an independent arts promotion company
Kristine McKenna: Journalist; art historian
Mark Mothersbaugh: Lead singer, Devo; film and television composer
Brendan Mullen: Founder, the Masque; drummer, Arthur J. and the Gold Cups, Hal Negro and the Satin Tones; author; disc jockey
Hal Negro: Lead singer, Hal Negro and the Satin Tones
Mike Ness: Lead singer, guitarist, Social Distortion
Joe Nolte: Former lead singer, the Last
Margot Olaverra: Cofounder, former bass player, the Go-Go’s
Steve Olson: Professional skate boarder; original skate punk
Gary Panter: Artist; Slash magazine contributor
Nicole Panter: Former manager, the Germs; author; professor
Mike Patton: Former bassist, the Middle Class
Louie Peréz: Drummer-songwriter, Los Lobos
Raymond Pettibon: Artist
Leonard Phillips: Lead singer, the Dickies
Phast Phreddie (aka Fred Patterson): Cofounder, Back Door Man fanzine; Slash contributor; song plugger
Jeffrey Lee Pierce: Former lead singer, the Gun Club; author, Go Tell the Mountain (deceased 1996)
Tomata du Plenty: Former lead singer, the Screamers (deceased 2000)
John Pochna: Cofounder, the Zero Zero Gallery; founder, the Zero One Gallery
Genesis P. Orridge: Artist; former member, Psychic TV, Throbbing Gristle
Kid Congo Powers (aka Brian Tristan): Former guitarist, Gun Club, the Cramps; solo artist
Steve Priest: Former bass player, the Sweet
Joey Ramone: Former lead singer, the Ramones; actor (Rock ’n’ Roll High School) (deceased 2001)
Stephen Randall: Journalist
Mary Rat: Plunger sister
Stan Ridgway: Former lead singer, Model Citizens, Wall of Voodoo; film composer (Rumblefish); solo artist
Rik L. Rik: Former lead singer, F-Word (deceased 2000)
Paul Roessler: Former keyboard player, the Screamers
Henry Rollins: Former lead singer, Black Flag; lead singer, Rollins Band; spoken word artist; author; actor
Poison Ivy Rorschach: Guitar player, the Cramps
Gorilla Rose: Performance artist (deceased)
Steve Samiof: Founder, Slash magazine
Sky Saxon: Singer/guitarist, the Seeds
Gina Schock: Drummer, Edie and the Eggs, the Go-Go’s
Gene Sculatti: Journalist; coined phrase “Radio Free Hollywood”
Andy Seven: Saxophone player, Arthur J. and the Gold Cups, Trashcan School
Greg Shaw: Founder, Bomp Records, Who Put the Bomp fanzine
Pat Smear (aka George Ruthenberg): Former guitarist, the Germs, Nirvana, Foo Fighters
Penelope Spheeris: Filmmaker (Decline of Western Civilization 1–3, Wayne’s World), real estate mogul
Sabel Starr: Former groupie
Chuck E. Starr: Former disc jockey, Rodney’s English Disco, the Sugar Shack, the Odyssey
Micki Steele (aka Michael Steele): Former bass player, the Runaways; bass player, the Bangles
Shawn Stern: Cofounder, Skinhead Manor; member of Youth Brigade; cofounder, BYO (Better Youth Organization)
Mark Stern: Cofounder, Skinhead Manor; member of Youth Brigade, cofounder, BYO (Better Youth Organization); brother of Shawn Stern
Johnny Stingray: Cofounder, the Controllers
Danny Sugerman: Doors archivist, author
Phil S. Teen (aka Phil Miller): Former booking agent, the Screamers
Top Jimmy: Singer, Top Jimmy and the Rhythm Pigs (deceased 2001)
Kathy Valentine: Bass player, the Go-Go’s
Dave Vanian: Lead singer, the Damned
Joe Vex: Cofounder, the Vex club
Lee Ving: Lead singer, guitarist, Fear; actor
Don Waller: Cofounder, Back Door Man fanzine; journalist
Mike Watt: Former bass player, the Minutemen, fIREHOSE; solo artist
Chuck E. Weiss: Singer/songwriter, Chuck E. Weiss and the Goddamn Liars; inspiration for Ricki Lee Jones hit “Chuck E’s in Love”
Sandy West: Former drummer, the Runaways
Jane Wiedlin: Guitarist, the Go-Go’s; solo artist; actress
Rick Wilder: Former lead singer, the Berlin Brats; lead singer, the Mau Maus
Geza X: Former guitarist, the Deadbeats, Geza X and the Mommymen; producer
Billy Zoom: Guitarist, X, the Billy Zoom Band
about the authors
Marc Spitz is a senior contributing writer at SPIN magazine. He spent his twenties in post-punk Hollywood and now lives in Greenwich Village, New York.
Brendan Mullen founded the Masque, the Hollywood underground club/rehearsal space hailed as the birthplace of the Los Angeles and Orange County punk scenes. He is currently a contributing writer for LA Weekly.
Title page: Hellin Killer, Pleasant Gehman, and Bobby Pyn at the Starwood Club, 1977. Photo Credit: Jenny Lens
Copyright © 2001 by Marc Spitz and Brendan Mullen
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by Three Rivers Press, New York, New York.
Member of the Crown Publishing Group.
Random House, Inc. New York, Toronto, London, Sydney, Auckland
www.randomhouse.com
THREE RIVERS PRESS is a registered trademark and the Three Rivers Press colophon is a trademark of Random House, Inc.
PHOTO RESEARCH BY LISA CORSON
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Spitz, Marc.
We got the neutron bomb : t
he untold story of L.A. Punk / by Marc Spitz and Brendan Mullen.— 1st ed.
1. Punk rock music—California—Los Angeles—History and criticism. 2. Punk rock musicians—Interviews. 3. Punk culture. I. Mullen, Brendan. II. Title.
ML3534 .S656 2001
781.66—dc21 2001049137
eISBN: 978-0-307-56624-9
v3.0