Wednesday, April 1, 2009

Gillian's Found Photo #6

This week's delve into Fang's found photo archive asks the musical question Are You A Boy or Are You A Girl? as the Barbarians once put it. What I like about this photo is that it evokes the sleazy feeling of Hebert Selby Jr's Last Exit To Brooklyn (Grove Press, 1957). The sad, queen in a cheap room somewhere, getting ready for a night out. The gloves are a nice touch, they cover up the tell-all hands. It also reminds me of a funny story. A friend of mine was working, renovating an apartment in the French Quarter in New Orleans for a gay couple who owned a parrot. The couple would be at their jobs all day while my friend was left alone to work while the parrot would say over and over again-- "You're just an all wrong drag queen". The only other phrase it knew was-- "ooh ooh oooh". Anyway, getting back to this week's found photo, I wonder what's in the record collection? Judy Garland no doubt, but what else do you think is in there?

14 comments:

J.D. King said...

"I wonder what's in the record collection? Judy Garland no doubt, but what else do you think is in there?"

I'll bet our mutual friend, Jeff, could tell us. (Hi, Jeffrey!)

"Last Exit to Brooklyn" is one great book. Ditto John Rechy's "City of Night."

Todd McGovern said...

You can barely make out her scruffy little moustache.
As for what's in her record collection, I'd reckon Edith Piaf, Marlene Dietrich and Bruce Springsteen.

Anonymous said...

I'm gonna go out on a limb and say "Lou Reed."
PJL

skylolo99 said...

Jack friggin Jones - Wives and Lovers

The RedBoy said...

Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass - Whipped Cream & Other Delights

Christopher Stigliano said...

What else but Liberace, Johnny Mathis, Johnny Ray, lotsa showtunes, and maybe the Coachmen.

Bob Pomeroy said...

“Last Exit to Brooklyn” & “City of Night” ⎯two of my all time favorites. Both got their drag queens & sleazy underworlds, and both are so undeniably American. Both were Grove Press books, too. Grove, the “Sniff, Swigg, Puff” of literature, 'coz neither of those titles would get published today, you can bet yr ass. Barney Rosset’s the man (the old gent is still around, I think).

I say she's playing BObby Marchan.

The Hound said...

Barney Roset is indeed still alive but was forced out of Grove when he sold it to uber-yuppi Morgan Endricott. Now they publish PJ O'Rourke....although to be fair they also did Please Kill Me...
Selby's The Room is well worth reading, his best to my mind. Rechy's latest-- About My Life and the Kept Woman is also interesting, his best since Numbers.

Jukeboxmafia said...

I'm thinking Supremes, Marvelettes, that type of thing...

J.D. King said...

"What else but Liberace, Johnny Mathis, Johnny Ray, lotsa showtunes, and maybe the Coachmen."

The Coachmen, fer shure.

The Hound said...

"情趣用品,情趣用品,情趣用品,情趣用品,情趣用品,情"

Don't you mean 品,情趣用品,情趣用品,情趣用品?

Devil Dick said...

I'm thinking this:

http://www.tikiroom.com/tikicentral/bb/viewtopic.php?topic=19088&forum=13&19

Lindsay Hutton said...

Wow, a parrot that channelled Joe E. Ross (nearly). Nice one.

Gilian has to do a coffee table book of these found photos! Amazing stuff...

Eva said...

Looks like a Diane Arbus photo, doesn't it?

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