Stiv in Hollywood

If you are a guy in a punk band that hopes to ascend, no trip to Hollywood is complete without a visit to Rodney. Bingenheimer, though really "Rodney" is enough. He's a single-named personality (you know: Cher, Madonna, Prince, Sting... Rodney). Rodney's show on KROQ, Rodney on the ROQ was a haven for guys like Stiv, and for any up and coming indie artist.

Rodney and Stiv always had a good time together, and Rodney loved the in-home photo opportunities as much as Stiv loved creating them. Look at Rodney's wall of fame. I've never seen more memorabilia anywhere. B Girl Cynthia Ross is pictured here as well. Stiv introduced Rodney and Cynthia and soon The B Girls were being played on KROQ, and their Whisky A Go Go show was well-attended, and with celebrity audience members too! Debbie Harry and Nigel Harrison of Blondie were there, and so was a not-yet-in-a-band Jeffrey Lee Pierce. That baby-faced portrait I took of Jeffrey was taken at that show. Rodney was there, of course, and a backstage group photo I took of the B Girls, Debbie, Nigel and Rodney made it to a few magazines and was also included in the biography on Debbie by Cathay Che, entitled "Platinum Blonde."




Of all the people I've photographed, only two of them truly understood the value of the photo opportunity - they were Stiv Bators and Lance Loud. More on Lance tomorrow.