Wednesday, November 2nd, 2011 by TheWebMistress
Here it is! The latest video by The Last Vegas, “The Other Side”, starring action film legend Sybil Danning! Enjoy!
Check out more badass TLV goodness at their official site: TheLastVegas.com
Wednesday, September 28th, 2011 by Chad Cherry
YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.
Hello Lip-Service fiends!!!
I’m gonna saturate your mind, body and soul with filthy rock-n-roll!
First up is ten30eleven.com What is it? If you want to know more, you are gonna have to stick to Lip-Service to find out cretins! TLV and Lip-Service have a “STORM ON THE RISE” just for you, waiting to unleash on … 10/30/11 … (Oooooh, now I get it.) The mystery… The suspense … The torment …
Next, you get the chance to see just how good L.S. clothing can look on a supernatural bastard (such as myself) while playing with the maximum rock&roll band AC/DC. A day in the life of AC/DC and TLV. This is some behind the scenes arena rock shit. WARNING! Must be 18 to watch.
I know, I know.. Yer sayin’ to yourself.. “But we wanted to read something, not watch vids.” (It’s never enuff with you humans!) Ok, Ok! Here’s a some folklore to chill your bones and get ya ready for HALLOWEEN..
“Did you ever think as a hearse goes by
That you may be the next to die?
They wrap you up in a big white sheet
From your head down to your feet.
And the worms crawl in and the worms crawl out,
In your stomach and out your snout,
And your eyes fall out and your teeth decay-
And that is the end of a perfect day.”
Have a nice evening dearies…
-Chad Cherry
ten30eleven.com
TheLastVegas.com
Wednesday, June 22nd, 2011 by Chad Cherry
QUEEN OF THE ACTION FLICKS
Your life is stellar!!! Why? Because, this month, you Lip Service cretins get to look at pictures of supremely talented, half naked HOTNESS! (You dirty bastards!) And you’re gonna learn about one of the sexiest action hero vixens who has ever dawned her powerful presence in the cult films your inquisitive eyeballs and creepy minds could not possibly live without! (And I know I’m not just yappin’ for myself here…)
Of course, I’m speaking of the Austrian actress known for her many roles in B movies, sci-fi, action, and horror films. Boils and Ghouls … Without further ado … I give you the ever-so-stunning…
SYBIL DANNING.
Sybil became an actress after leaving home at the age of 16. Making her film debut in Komm nur, meins Liebstes Vogelein, portraying the legendary German mermaid “Lorelei” covered by only long blonde tresses. The next year she had a role in one of Robert DeNiro’s first movies, Sam’s Songs. She was cast in Blackbeard along with Raquel Welch, playin’ a high-caliber prostitute. The same year, she appeared in Eye of the Labyrinth, a giallo thriller. Then came The Three Musketeers and The Four Musketeers, again with R.Welch… Oh ya!
She moved to Hollywood in ’78, leaving her friends and family in Europe behind to pursue her career with zero contract, zero agent, and zero idea what the future would bring. But the future was gonna be bright for this serious, educated, physically fit, politically aware, intelligent, and beautiful woman. The 5’7″ blue-eyed blonde embodied all the qualities to take over… and then some. After portraying an extraterrestrial Amazon named Saint-Exmin in the ’80 movie, Battle Beyond the Stars, she earned “The Golden Scroll Award Of Merit” from the Academy of Science-Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror films. Then on to a ton of crucial B films.
In ’83 Danning appeared on the cover of the August issue of Playboy magazine. They christened her “Queen of the Action Flicks.” Next she co-starred with Christopher Lee in The Howling II: Your Sister is a Werewolf, playing Stirba, an evil werewolf queen. She then began hittin’ up American TV series. I loved her in The Fall Guy and V. I never missed an episode. She can be seen with rocker Wendy O. Williams (The Plasmatics) in Reform School Girls and, after sketch parody Amazon on the Moon, she founded her own company “Adventuress Production, Inc.” and produced “L.A. Bounty”, which she starred and helped write. She was the hostess of her own collection of 26 action-adventure movies baring the title “Sybil Danning’s Adventure Video” and had her first tailor-made action comic book “Sybil Danning is Black Diamond.” YA!
In the 90s Sybil ran into a setback. While rehearsing a movie stunt, she had an accident in a gymnasium. Forced to rest, she worked with writers on her first screenplay… But the pain worsened. Doctors misdiagnosed her condition and, finally, a surgeon recommended by Jack Nicholson discovered Danning had two severely-herniated discs. She underwent a series of epidurals, followed by traction, and spent over a year recovering.
But, as you all know, you can never keep a good girl down and Sybil rocked it back into public performance. Big time. She returned to the big screen most notably in the movie Grindhouse in a faux trailer titled Werewolf Women of the S.S. This was followed by her appearance in Rob Zombie’s re-make of Halloween. She appeared in the third season of the ‘here!’ series The Lair as Frav von Hess, a sinister vampiress out to kill the vamp whose influence over her son caused her transformation. Oh ya, and she played the succubus in the t.v. series Superboy. Always tough and very sexy dangerous.
Sybil has remained true to her portrayal of strong characters. She’s writing her autobiography and developing new projects she will produce and also appear.
I’ve touched base on one of her flicks in a past Devil Inside article (Werewolves), but came to the realization we need more S.D. in our lives. I thought I would get a more exclusive interview into the mind of a brilliant and talented actress to see what irons she has in the fire. Being the amazing friend she is, she agreed and it goes like this…
C.C. In most of your movies you play a sexy, dynamic, commanding, super-hero industrial strength woman. Strong roles. Do you ever wonder if this intimidates directors and producers?
SD – Gee, you noticed! No, I don’t think I have ever intimidated my directors or producers because they hired me to play such a role in the first place. If a producer decides to produce or a director decides to direct a movie with such a strong female character, they obviously like those kinds of female characters. Chances are they probably have a strong female in their lives or wish they had. Thank God for writers who create those roles. In my case, sometimes they re-write them with the ok of the director and producer or even let me play a role written for a man. It worked for Sigourney Weaver when the producer of ALIEN decided the lead role would be more interesting if played by a woman. Interestingly when interviewed by an L.A. Times journalist and asked if “she now thinks she will be categorized as Sybil Danning playing such roles since this was the first of its kind?” she took it in stride.
Talking about Directors, I loved your interview with my dear friend Penelope Spheeris. She and I met at the Sundance Film Festival. Loving her work I sent her a project on an “Icon and his band” which Penelope loves. Music publishing has been negotiated and cleared. We can’t say more right now but will once ready.
C.C. YeYeah!!! Not many actors get their own comic book such as “Sybil Danning is, Black Diamond.” We need more of this.
SD – Yes, my comic book was very successful which took me to the San Diego ComicCon Convention for the first time. I will be there again next month, on Saturday, July 23 signing the release copies of my cult classic movie BATTLE BEYOND THE STARS on Blu-Ray. My “Sybil Danning is, Black Diamond” was to become a female James Bond movie but when financing fell through, so too the comic book ended. I have another exciting comic book in mind in the near future and will let you know.
C.C. I’m thinking you actually might really be a vampire. You’ve hardly aged. Sybil… Are you a vamp? (Hehehe)
SD – Nice pun CC. You’re right; I have been called a vamp. The vampire part? Who wouldn’t want to be one? They’re beautifully pale, sexy, intelligent, successful and rich, not to mention eternally young and beautiful. I love them and am producing a Vampire movie I will also be in. However, instead of living the night life – I must have my nights rest to keep up my looks and keep up with my fans. Sophia Loren once told me as I was having lunch with her in her Villa in Rome, she always makes sure she has 7-8 hours of sleep a night and that is her beauty secret. I agree. Unfortunately until I’ve found a solution I will focus my vampirism on screen.
Sybil with Sophia Loren
C.C. You have worked with so many great directors and actors, are there any talented folks you’ve yet to work with that you’d jump at the chance too? Whose films are intriguing to you?
SD – To mention a couple, immediately Leonardo DiCaprio (favorites-AVIATOR, TITANIC, BLOOD DIAMOND) and Russell Crowe (favorites- GLADIATOR, A BEAUTIFUL MIND, CINDERELLA MAN,) come to mind. They are extremely passionate performers, very sexy and personify the ultimate strong male figures emotionally as well as psychically. I love cars, clothing and movies with strong male/female “Bogie & Bergman” characters of the 40’s. Director Martin Scorsese I’ve wanted to work with as long as I can remember. I love the ultimate passion he injects in his movies my favorites starting with TAXI DRIVER, GOODFELLAS, RAGING BULL, GANGS OF NEW YORK, Michael Jackson’s bad Video, THE AVIATOR and pretty much everything in-between.
C.C. You took a hiatus from acting for quite sometime. What sparked your interest to come back?
SD – MY FANS! It was my first time at the major Memorabilia Show in New Jersey, Chiller Theatre, October 2005. My fans were lined up with photos, posters, magazines, videos, you name it from my movies, some of which I had forgotten. I signed those and photos I brought and was amazed how many of my fans were there to see me, get my autograph and I listened to how passionate they were about the one or other movie. They asked me when I was going to do another Woman in Prison or Werewolf movie, etc. It was then I realized my fans want to see me again on the big screen. Always thankful to my fans for my success, I realized how loyal they were to me all the years I was absent and I owed them to go back to doing movies. Not easy to ease back into the biz after so long, I took it very serious and did what I could to make a come-back. I did it with Tarantino’s WEREWOLF WOMEN OF THE SS and Rob Zombies re-make of HALLOWEEN which made my fans really happy and me too. It was my turning point. I also thank my most loyal fan and friend to date Jim Blogg who during my years of absence kept his Sybil Danning Fan club: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TheLegendofSybilDanning/ alive and hoping for my return. Jim started, created and is Web Master of my Website www.sybildanning.net. Thank you so much Jim for your dedication and loyalty. Loyalty is of major importance to me and Jim stood with me.
C.C. I’ve been fantasizing about a Chad Cherry perfume. I think you can probably help me out with this. What should I do?
SD – Don’t fantasize, do it! Get your favorite scent, put it in a bottle, and call it “Gets You Off” named after your “Whatever Gets You Off” hot number. The girls will LOVE it and the guys will want it.
C.C. Brilliant! Ok, most people probably don’t like this question, but bein’ who I am and doin’ what I do… I will always ask. What are you listening to music-wise right now?
SD –Right now. I just gave it away above – your dirty rock “Whatever Gets You Off!” I love it! Great lyrics, rock and Video! And by the way I also love your beautiful ballad, “Apologize.” Like Leonardo DiCaprio and Russell Crowe, I love your tough and tender sides! CC, you’re cool, you’re hot!
C.C. I’m going to accept those fantastic, lovely words. (As C.C. blushes like a li’l schoolboy) Can ya tell the kiddies about some of your highly stylized writings and the producing you do for films?
SD – I love writing; though painful when staring at an empty sheet, it’s very satisfying once everything synchronizes and comes together. I took a 4 day Seminar with Screen writing Guru Robert McKee. Barry Manilow was in my class. I’ve written and re-written a few screenplays, nothing I’ve yet produced. I seriously started when I was flat on my back in and out of the hospital ending with surgery. I ruptured 2 discs and tore all tissue while flipping a girl over my back in my gym. Because time is precious, once on my feet again I focused on acting and producing. Though difficult and frustrating especially in this economic period I find producing very creative because it gives you the opportunity to create elements necessary for a successful movie. All I’m currently writing is my Autobiography for which I have a deadline. I’m very fortunate to have Marshall Terrill bestselling Novelist Steve McQueen: Portrait of an American Rebel, Elvis: Still Taking Care of Business and many others, as my Editor in Chief. I’m also very happy to say, two-time Oscar nominee Jeremy Renner will produce and star in a McQueen biopic based on two books by Marshall Terrill: Portrait of an American Rebel and his most recent, The Life and Legacy of a Hollywood Icon.
C.C. Can’t wait. Let us know what’s up and coming in Sybil’s world? What can the fans expect next?
SD – My last movie, VIRUS X released by LionsGate is out and can be found at Blockbuster, Amazon, Netflix and Walmart. Soon it will also be available on my website www.sybildanning.net with other DVDs, Posters, Photos and other Memorabilia. I will be at the exciting NEW COMIKAZE (Comic, Anime, Gaming, Sci-Fi, and Horror) Expo in Los Angeles November 5 & 6, 2011. Get ready all my HOWLING II fans and meet me at High-Noon, Nov 5 because I will be auctioning for the first time ever my most popular leather and brass complete costume by MAD MAX designer Peter Mitchell. I’m producing a “Vampire” movie written by Scott Sanford and will be in it as well. More on that once I have the financing completed. I’m also producing a movie/TV series on “RUGER” a character I own. I wrote the script and have a bible ready for the follow-up TV series. What’s most exciting is that I and my producing partner Les Thomas, a Video Game Analyst, Specialist and Journalist have RUGER in development as a First Person Shooter Cloud Game. I will reveal more to you as we go along. Right now I’m holding her design, etc close to my bullet proof vest. I will give you links to the whirlwind PR we’ve gotten on RUGER at the recent largest Los Angeles Gaming E3Expo in the world. This has already spread throughout Asia and Europe with whom Les is working. One thing I can tell you, for sure there will be MAJOR MADAME MAHEM!
All my fans please go to www.sybildanningsruger.com to stay informed on RUGER…or else!
C.C. Yes! Very amazing. So you and I have been toying around with the idea about a The Last Vegas video for a lil’ while now. I see something very grand in the near future. Do you think the world will be ready for this? (I know they’ll be.)
SD –CC, love your crystal balls! The Italians told me my name in Italian comes from Sibila Gumana, a mystic Fortune Teller, and yes, I too see something very hot and heavy in the very near future. Hell yes, the world is ready because the world is OUR FANS and they are ripe and ready for US!
Thank you and all my Love and Bullets to you CC and all my loyal fans, Sybil.
Please follow me on:
www.sybildanning.net
www.sybildanningsruger.com
www.facebook.com/sybildanning
www.twitter.com/sybildanning
Links to recent RUGER News:
http://www.examiner.com/la-action-adventure-game-in-los-angeles/sybil-danning-pioneering-games-with-cloud-shooter
http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2011/06/09/okay-what-sybil-danning%e2%80%99s-ruger/
http://media-newswire.com/release_1152056.html
Registered videogame journalists can also keep up-to-date with Press Releases on:
www.gamespress.co.uk
I simply love this woman. She’s a super hero, Valkyrie, mermaid, terrorizer, vamp mom, spy, werewolf, sex symbol, writer, producer, and all around ass kicker. Lookin’ good the whole time. She just confirmed her status as out-of-control amazing! Check her out in action. NOW!
CHECK OUT SYBIL! And sign her guestbook!
www.sybildanning.net
As for me.
I’m under your bed right now… Go check.. I dare you.
(And clean yer place up next time I creep in, it’s a pig pen!)
Actually summer time festivals are were I’m at. And I’m everywhere. Let’s ROCK-n-ROLL. YEYEAH!!!! xoxo
Chad Cherry www.thelastvegas.com
FILMOGRAPHY
********************
Quentin Tarantino, Robert Rodriquez’ GRINDHOUSE (2007) ….Gretchen Krupp (WEREWOLF WOMEN OF THE SS Segment)
HALLOWEEN (2007)…….Nurse Wynn
(Rob Zombie’s HALLOWEEN)
Jump (2006)….Anna Gruber
L.A. Bounty (1989) …. Ruger…Writer/Producer
Talking Walls (1987) …. Bathing Beauty
Warrior Queen (1987) …. Berenice
Amazon Women on the Moon (1987) …. Queen Lara
The Phantom Empire (1986) …. Alien Queen
Reform School Girls (1986) …. Sutter
The Tomb (1986) …. Jade
Malibu Express (1985) …. Contessa Luciana
Private Passions (1985) …. Kathrine
Young Lady Chatterley II (1985) …. Judith Grimmer
Howling II: Your Sister Is a Werewolf (1985)….Stirba
Jungle Warriors (1984)…. Angel
Panther Squad (1984) …. Ilona…Producer
They’re Playing with Fire (1984) …. Diane Stevens
Chained Heat (1983) …. Ericka
The Seven Magnificent Gladiators (1983) …. Julia
Hercules (1983) …. Ariadne
Julie Darling (1982) …. Susan
S.A.S. San Salvador (1982) …. Countess Alexandra Vogel
The Salamander (1981) …. Lili Anders
Saturn Awards (1981) (TV)
Separate Ways (1981) …. Mary
How to Beat the High Co$t of Living (1980) …. Charlotte
Man with Bogart’s Face, The (1980) …. Cynthia
Battle Beyond the Stars (1980) …. Saint-Exmin
Nightkill (1980) …. Monika Childs
Day of the Cobra (1980)….Brenda
Cuba Crossing (1980) …. Veronica
Meteor (1979) …. Swiss Girl Skier
The Concorde: Airport ’79 (1979) …. Amy
Cat in the Cage (1978) …. Susan Khan
Crossed Swords (1978) …. Mother Canty
Operation Thunderbolt (1977)….Halima
Albino (1976) …. Saly
God’s Gun (1976)…Jenny
The Four Musketeers (1974) …. Eugenie
The Three Musketeers (1973) …. Eugenie
Red Queen Kills 7 Times (1972)
Loves of a French Pussycat (1972)….Andrea
Bluebeard (1972) …. A Prostitute
Naughty Nymphs (1972)….Elizabeth
The Long Swift Sword of Siegfried (1972)…. Kriemhild
Swedish Love Games (1971)
The Swap (1969)
***************************************************************
TELEVISION APPEARANCES
YEAR……SHOW………….EPISODE……………ROLE
1989____ Superboy______Succubus_____Pamela Dare
1985___Street Hawk___Vegas Run___Linda Martin
1984___The Hitchhiker___Face To Face___Gloria
1984___V: The Final Battle___Visitors Choice___Mary Kruger
1984___The Fall Guy___Prisoner___Karina
1984___Masquerade___Flashpoint___KGB Agent
1983___Simon and Simon___Bon Voyage, Alonso___Marla
1981___Vegas___Set Up___Eva Swenson
1974___Derrick___Zeichen der Gewalt___Irina Hausman
Tuesday, December 21st, 2010 by Chad Cherry
PEACE ON PLANET EARTH
(And to all other planets I visit.)
This month I’ve decided to give you the gift of rock-n-roll music. After all, it is the silly season and consider this my X-Mas present to the fiends who believe in the power of music. Oh, and to all who know looking fabulous in Lip Service clothing means you’ll get more presents this year. L.S.Clothing makes your naughtiness; a nice thing hehe. Yep, yep. And it contributes to the whole peace on earth, good will to mankind, be cool to others thing as well … The power of good fashion … It’s there for you my friends.
Cheers to all … I say love and respect shall lead the way every day and not just through one certain time of year … Let it be an ongoing thing and shine with it my brothers and sisters. We are all in this together. Rise above and be beautiful to each other. YEYEAH!!!!!!
I’ve just put some finishing touches on the new TLV record and I’m glad to say it’s on its way to completion with mix and mastering. This record has been a completely different studio experience than I’ve ever gone though. And it’s been the most work. (But some of the things that went down late night were quite a trip …Very tasty … I will let you in someday when you are old enough.) It’s everything you will want it to be. 100% TLV. Looking forward to the future as always. Can’t wait to unleash the monster and give you a wild and exciting ride into the depths of a band of five guys who want nothing more than to seduce you to the spooky groovy and make ya jump out of your skin to sex beats and hot leather attitude … Get ready.
Till then, here is the brand new single from our album Whatever Gets You Off … ‘Apologize’ … Download it for free. thelastvegas.com
And don’t miss out on the video. I threw up some stills from the shoot. Enjoy.
Happy Holidaze to all and to all a devilishly R-n-R good time!!!!!! See you all in Los Angeles in January. (I’m not staying in Chicago for the damn winter time.) Joy! C.C.
Wednesday, November 24th, 2010 by Chad Cherry
DEREK MEARS KILLS PEOPLE…. But damn is he a nice guy…
American actor and stuntman Derek Mears is best known for his role as serial killer Jason Voorhees in the re-make of “Friday the 13th.”
He’s also known for not being around or anywhere near L.A. when The Last Vegas want him to be in their music videos … Derek is like … “Oh, sorry, I have to kill people on location for the next month” or “Oh damn, I’m in Guam … I mean, London … right now working on another movie.”
Born in Bakersfield California, (I will always think of the Rolling Stones song “Girl with far away eyes” whenever that town is ever mentioned … Did I ask if you gave a shit?) Mearsy got his start performing improv comedy, which can tell ya a lil’ about how cool of a dude the D.M. is. You can not do horror or sci-fi without a great sense of humor. That’s what I always say … (I’ve never actually said that.)
Derek has mega creds, both as a stuntman and as an actor on the boob tube and the silver screen. He’s done E.R., Alias, Nash Bridges, The Shield, My Name Is Earl, CSI:Miami, Angel, Bones, CSI: N.Y., Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Mans Chest, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, Blades of Glory, Semi-Pro, The Hills Have Eyes II, Men In Black II, Cursed, Zathura, His Name was Jason: 30 years of Friday the 13th (documentary), Predators, and (just announced) will be in the next Friday the 13th … Possibly …
Mearsman had a breakthrough role in the new ‘Friday’ film, with Scott Stoddard creating the new look for Mears’ character Jason Voorhees. Dereks’ height is 6 ft. 5 in., making him one of the tallest actors to ever portray Mr. Voorhees. (Ken Zirzinger is close … Did I ask again? … ) He was nominated for an MTV movie award in the category of best villain for his portrayal of Hockey Mask head. (Heath Ledger got it that year.) And, I think, he’s contracted to return for another ‘Friday’ sequel or another film being made by Platinum Dunes. I’m not sure, but I’m gonna find out.
He recently portrayed a ‘Classic Predator’ in the 2010 sci-fi horror film sequel ‘Predators’ … Yeyeah, looking good in that one D! He appeared in the American Sitcom Community episode “Romantic Expressionism” as the star of the movies “Kick Puncher” and “Kick Puncher II” … Ha Ha Ha … Good stuff.
He is also set to appear in ‘Pirates of the Caribbean: On Strange Tides” as an unknown role … (He’s taking over for Johnny Depp … It’s a joke … please don’t come at me with law suits.)
Derek actually found some time in his busy world of avoiding TLV video locations to rap with me and answer a lil’ Q and A with yours truly …
C.C.- I’m just gonna get to the point here Derek … I’ve been learning some martial arts over here for the last 3 days and I know with your background as a stuntman, you’ve had a lot of training. So, I was thinking, the next time I’m in your neck of the woods maybe we could practice some karate in your garage or something? I know you’re well over 6 ft. tall and I’m like 5 something, but I’m pretty sure I’ve had enough training so far to take you down … Are we cool with this? … Just answer ‘yes’ or ‘no’ Derek … And don’t get cocky with me please … Ok …
D.M.- Yes
C.C.- What was it like playing ‘Captain Jack Sparrow’ in that ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ movie you did?
D.M.- Umm, I think you may have me confused with someone else. I did just film Pirates 4, but …
C.C.- I don’t have anymore questions for you. That’s really all I wanted to ask ya.
D.M.- (Long pause) This is awkward.
C.C.- (Long pause) No … It’s not.
C.C.- Oh wait, is there any way you could explain to us what it’s like playing the role of a sex symbol, such as Jason Voorhees? I mean, it seems the ladies really dig the mongoloid killing spree types lately. Do you see this as a fad?
D.M.- Sex symbol? Jason? I do get some unique emails, but I … Um, fad? Is this interview going well?
C.C. (Long pause) Yes … It is.
C.C.- I actually do have a few more questions I forgot I had that are not on the serious tip. What are your top favorite rock-n-roll bands? Just off the top of yer head. You know I have to ask.
D.M.- Anything with Mike Patton, let’s see I like Korn, Metallica, Powerman 5000 … (Long pause) … What? … You want me to say The Last Vegas, right? … (pause) … Fine, The Last Vegas.
C.C.- Axe or Machete?
D.M.- AXECHETE
C.C.- Will you be playing Mr. V. again in a sequel? And, if so, can we expect to see a hot pin-up calender for the ladies to go along with it?
D.M.- Part 2 isn’t green lighted yet, so no word if I’m returning.
C.C. As Capt. Jack Sparrow?
D.M. (Long pause.. Then finishes his answer like I never asked) No word if I’m returning as Jason. No word on the pin-up calendar as well. I really should be goin’.
C.C.- Last question. Will you go out drinking with me after I whip you in Karate? I’m pretty sure I will forget my wallet if we do this.
I love being a professional … (Professional what, I don’t know)
Check out Derek in the new Pirates of the Caribbean movie coming soon. And for the Karate match of the century with me. Should be on pay per view never.
So I’m still in the recording studio. “Mega” is all I’ll say at this point. I also just got done filming the video for the next TLV single ‘Apologize’. It will drop in December. I’m starting to feel like a mad scientist … I like that feeling! Do you think Lip Service can make me a lab coat?
Dr. Chad Cherry
<a href=”http://www.thelastvegas.com” target=”_blank”>TheLastVegas.com</a>
Wednesday, October 27th, 2010 by Chad Cherry
‘Black cats and goblins
and broomsticks and ghosts
Covens of witches
With all of their hosts
You may think they scare me
You’re probably right
Black cats and goblins
On Halloween night!’
-Children’s Rhyme
DAYS ARE SHORT…SHADOWS ARE LONG.
-A Holiday Burning-
Like I said earlier this month, you all are gonna get another dose of Halloween mayhem … And I’m in the mood for some John Carpenter.
“The descent to Avernus is easy; the gate of Pluto stands open night and day; but to retrace one’s steps and return to the upper air, that is the toil, that the difficulty” - Virgil
I’m writing this from being inspired by the original ‘The Halloween’ movies.
Days are short and shadows are long. The earth tilts further on it’s axis and the seasons hang suspended between autumn and winter; when the very light seems to change and colors deepen mysteriously…
You know what it’s like.
The morning sun arcs away across the sky, the afternoon rushes impatiently toward dusk, the cutting edge of darkness like the blade of a sundial pointed and turning under eaves and porches. A time of dampness and slow, flaking rust, of barking dogs that are never seen, of creaking lampposts and pale neon signs, of power lines that crackle as if underwater. Of distant traffic and laughter of children fading behind you and in front of you all at once; of the broken moon drifting like a gauze covered face. Of dripping condensation in chattering drainpipes, of the clutching of wings in the 
roofs of mouldering garages. Of frost on glass. Of litter dropped in gutters melting into paste, of laundry strung out to dry wilting before it can be folded, of labels bucking from jars in the musty cupboard and of your own white breathing, alone at midnight, glazing the window and then slipping out through the screen to meet the cold steam settling in the flowerbeds below…
It’s October thirty first… It’s very late… Once again, it’s Halloween.
…
The movie Halloween was one of the most successful low-budget horror films ever made and it spawned a whole sub-genre of inferior stalk ‘n’ slash imitations in the late 70′s and 80′s. This film is a staple to this holiday of doom. Set in a small Illinois town, it follows babysitter Laurie Strode as she is menaced by a masked killer, returned home after 15 years in a mental asylum. Director John Carpenter stages the brutal (but pretty bloodless) killings unrelentingly and his psychopathic protagonist, Michael Myers, is finally revealed as a wicked menace ( I still don’t know if he’s supernatural or just unstoppable) during the gripping climax when he keeps miraculously returning from the dead. You know the damn story … And might think it’s stale … But I don’t.
“Nowadays, violence is so commonplace,” agrees Carpenter. ‘It seems so random; it happens all around us, in every place. People seem to be seeking reassurance in the movies. I suppose that the time is over for the kind of movie Halloween is. It’s time to move on, to tell other stories.” … This quote was obviously before Rob Zombie’s outstanding re-make came into play. John’s film, which was originally going to be entitled ‘The Babysitter Murders’, was too powerful to move away from.
“Movies don’t make people kill. It’s life that does it.” - John Carpenter
The Boogyman is gonna get you…
It’s human nature to be fascinated by the horrible and the forbidden. We fear death and dismemberment, we fear pain, insanity and loss, we even fear sexuality, and it’s only by addressing these fears we avoid living in a state of constant trepidation. Horror can speak of such things in a way a more realistic or naturalistic genre can’t.
Horror is a leap of faith and imagination in a world where the subconscious holds dominion, a call to enter a territory where no image or act is so damnable it cannot be explored, kissed and courted; finally – why whisper it? – embrace.
If any time of the year, now is that time … Or if you are like me … Every day is Halloween.
Well, well, well … All is crazy, all is cool, all is shakin’ for this rock-n-roll fool! The Last Vegas are currently in the studio still working the graveyard shift on the music you love to get down to. It’s going to be MASSIVE!!! … Of course.
On top of that, we are also working on a new video for our soon to be released single ‘Apologize’. Stay tuned, stay wicked and stay sexy in your Lip Service style. Ya Dig?
-Chad Cherry- The Prince of Skynrd Punk.
Halloween.
Wednesday, September 29th, 2010 by Chad Cherry
Well, well, well, kiddies. It seems to be that time of year again. The summer is over, the air is a bit cooler, and where I’m at right now the leaves on trees are starting to change their color from green to lively shades of red, orange and yellows before they completely die and fall to the ground. It’s harvest time for 2010. Which means Samhain is coming … The God of Death. HALLOWEEN.
On the last day of October, when the harvest season has ended and the days get shorter and colder, the God Samhain allows the souls of the dead to visit where they once dwelled. For those of you who still think Samhain is just a Glenn Danzig musical act, then good for you! You’re not right, but you are cool for knowing that.
I’m gonna get brainy on ya for a sec … I know you Lip Service junkies love it when I do this … You’re all such smart lil’ fiends!
Historian Nicholas Rogers noted “… some folklorists have detected its origins in the Roman Feast of Pomona, the Goddess of fruits and seeds, or in the festival of the Dead called Parentalia, it is more typically linked to the Celtic Festival of Samhain. Original spelling – Samuin, an old Irish name meaning Summer’s End”.
This festival of Samhain celebrates the end of the “Lighter Half” of the year and the beginning of the “Darker Half”. Samhian is to be believed to border between this world and the otherworld, allowing spirits (not vodka tonics), some harmless and some harmful, to pass through. The good spookies can go home for a few and see who’s been sleeping with their spouse and the bad spookys are there for pain and mayhem. Those bad bitches need to be chased away … How are ya gonna get rid of a bastard spirit? … You wear a costume or a mask, genius! The purpose is to disguise oneself as a harmful spirit, thus avoiding the bullshit a ghost can pull. (I guess bad phantoms are afraid of their own likeness and are pretty fuckin’ stupid … -Note to ghosts- I’m just kidding, please don’t mess up my house or break my fine China … Epp!!)
Samhain is also time to take stock of food supplies and slaughter livestock for winter (In mid-western tongue this means getting fat as hell for the rest of the year.).
Bonfires!!! Fire! Fire! Fire! Uh-huh, uh-huh! A big part of this festival. The bones of the slaughtered livestock (aka Little Debbie Zebra cake wrappers and empty Doritos bags, in clearer terms) were cast into the flames. Bonfires would be built side by side and people and livestock would walk between them as a cleansing ritual. Food and drink we’re also involved. To be more clear, once again, this means cow, corn and P.B.R. … I think … I’m getting off track here.
Anyway! Listen! You have to dress up for Halloween! Or yer screwed with the whole spirit harassment thing. It will mess up your night, trust me I’ve seen it. Halloween costumes are traditionally those of monsters such as vamps, ghosts, skeletons, witches, devils, and aliens etc. This is cool. There are also costumes of pop culture figures like presidents, athletes, celebrities, film, TV and cartoon characters, too. However, these costumes are not cool. They are lame unless you get creative with ‘em. And by creative I mean lots and lots of BLOOD!!! The more morbid the better kiddos.
Really though, for me the true meaning of Halloween is the excuse … I mean … The popular trend for women to wear the most revealing and sexiest costumes ever!!! I want ya to show off more skin until you ladies are socially unacceptable … Which is very acceptable! Thank you so much for this evening called Halloween, sweet Satan.
My costume suggestions … Just for the ladies. Vampirella is a very, very, very good one. And don’t forget Elvira!!!! Bikini beach-time Elvira is nice. She will never not be cool. Can’t wait to see it!
There will be more Halloween madness from Lip Service next month. You’re not gettin’ off that easy punks.
All is ROCKING with The Last Vegas this month. We are in the legendary Groovemaster Studios for the next several months (if not more) conjuring up the wicked music that will make hearts beat to the rhythm of voodoo drums and souls go to the other side of reality with deep hard grooves that will make you feel as sexy as you do when yer wearin’ Lip Service … Or when you’re not.
Loving you freaks all to death, C.Cherry TheLastVegas.com
Tuesday, July 27th, 2010 by Nos
BRAINS FOR DINNER, BRAINS FOR LUNCH, BRAINS FOR BREAKFAST, BRAINS FOR BRUNCH …
Nos: You can tell you really love something when it goes through a fit of popularity, vomits out a bunch of half assed movies, and you still, STILL want more. This is how I feel about zombie movies. I have no idea why horror trends to the point of ad nauseum…. but it does. Vampires are all the rage now but not all that long ago, zombies ruled both the big and small screen. This was a mixed blessing that brought both trash and strokes of brilliance to the genre. Whether you enjoy the new, rapid moving zombies or prefer the classic, slow moving kind … if you have mad love for the sleek Hollywood interpretations or stay loyal to the Italian screen, zombies have an undeniable appeal to them. I think it’s because they’re the most believable out of all the monsters. Something deep down inside of you always knows that you could wake up in the zombie apocalypse any day now. Well that’s how my mind drifts anyway…
Chad Cherry and I have decided to give our lists for the top picks for zombie movies. Romero has been left off our lists because most of his films are a given. We’ll talk more about him towards the end …
Chad: For the most, part Zombies are depicted as mindless, decaying corpses who love eating human flesh. For the record, they like brains in particular. But you should already know this fashion fiends. (To me this sounds like the normal everyday person I see on the streets, just replace the lust of cranium noodle for greed.)
The “Zombie” likeness has been shoved down our throats so much recently, I feel as if the undead are no longer scary. In ’09 Zombies and Vampires became king. But only the candy-coated Disney-esque almost-lovable ones which are safe enough for church and family time in front of the idiot box ( That’s t.v… I still like you idiot box ) …
Fuck that! I’m gonna show you the real deal ugly Zombie movies which will scar you and the kids, the shit Hollywood wants to flush down the toilet!
It’s time to realize these atrocities are neither cute nor funny, and they are not ‘for cryin’ in the night’ sexy. Unless they’re eating your flesh in Lip Service clothing, that is!
READY TO GET BLOODY ON THIS ONE BITCHES?
In the beginning…..
Author, and one of my favorite un-p.c.horror gurus, H.P. Lovecraft wrote of such monsters in novelettes which explored undead themes back in the 1920′s and into the 30′s. Some of his stories portrayed Frankenstein-inspired creeps which helped define the modern concept of the Zombie. (“In the Vault” might have the first recorded character bitten by one.)
W.B. Seabrook’s book “The Magic Island” exposed western culture to the concept of voodoo cults in Haiti resurrecting stiffs in 1929. It’s the book that introduced the word “Zombi” in to U.S. speech. Well alright!!! Enough of those silly things with words and such in ‘em … What are they called again … Reading hankies? Oh! Books! That’s right … You all want MOVIES!
(You will regret this.)
I’ve hit up some of my favorite obvious “Zombie” flicks in previous articles, so I’ll be touchin’ on some which need to be in the spotlight … But honestly … They should be left in the shadows.
Chad’s picks!
1932. Directed by Victor Halperin and starring Bela Lugosi (If you don’t know who Bela is chloroform yourself.), White Zombie is regarded as the first real zombie film ever. It has a voodoo theme three years prior to Seabrook’s book. This is where the blood ball get’s rollin’ and the walking dead start to become movie stars.
1980 by Joe D’Amato. Fucking Italian! Horror, exploitation, eroticism, rip off artist and voyeurism. Porno Zombie Rape! Euuuwww… Good luck finding this one. (While yer lookin’ check for “Porno Holocaust” and the ‘nunsploitation’ “Images in a Covent”) X trash. The music is ridiculously awesome.
1986 by Jack Braveman. A complete ‘Mystery Science Theater 3000″ flick. (All of these fuckers are.) But the soundtrack: Motorhead, Virgin Steele, Girl School, and one from the ‘glam- metal’ era by Pantera. Jon Miki Thor did the incidental music and plays the Zombie (reasons to not see this). To make up for that, it’s Tia Carrere’s feature film debut. Before she started “Crucial Tawnt” and met Wayne. Ugh.
Mutual Nos & Chad Favorites!
1979 by Lucio Fulci.
Nos: This will always be my favorite zombie film and it’s the standard I set all other zombie films by. Unfair? Perhaps … but when it’s the King of all zombie movies, you have to show some respect. One of the more amazing things about this film is the flesh eaters look like they’ve been rotting. Have you seen the poster art? Fucking disgusting and I adore it. There’s even an epic zombie v.s. shark scene and whole lot of creepy Voodoo. Very much worth your time.
Chad: The flick that put Fulci on the map. Conservative British Parliament scorned this puppy. A Zombie actually fights a real tiger shark underwater. Top that shit. Banned in several countries. Another “Video Nasties”. Likey.
1992 by Peter Jackson.
Nos: Pre LORD OF THE RINGS crap-fest Peter Jackson is pretty damn cool. This movie is gross and fun to spring on unsuspecting people at a party. A Sumatran monkey/rat gets the party started by taking a bite out of an old woman, who turns into a zombie. Our hero must fight to protect his new found love and his home town.
Chad: All I have to say is that there’s like a 10 minute lawnmower Zombie splatter, and I mean splatter, scene that will never be topped. Fuckin’ knarly! This one will gross out the most liberal horror fan. A true “Splatstick” Hahaha!!!! SHUT UP!
1981 by Lucio Fulci.
Nos: Another classic Fulci that takes place in the great state of Louisiana. While this really is more of a ghost story, there are still some incredible zombies populating this film. GRINDHOUSE releasing put out a great DVD of this which I highly recommend you find.
Chad: I’m a sucker for Italians. What can I say? Praise this one for oneiric incoherence. Dreamy and deadly. Love this!
Nos’ Picks!
By Wes Craven.
Not only is this an amazing zombie film, it’s also my favorite by Mr. Craven. This story takes a very realistic approach to zombies and explores the ties to Haiti where the legend comes from. This is one of the few films which creeps me out every time I watch it. Bill Pullman (CASPER) plays an anthropologist in search of a drug used in black magic, which he hope to bring back to the states for profit. What awaits him in Haiti is something truly terrifying.
By Michele Soavi
Rupert Everett stars as Francesco Dellamorte, a cemetery keeper who is placed with the task of killing the zombies the rise from the burial ground. A truly beautiful film! I really wish Everett did more horror, he looks dreamy covered in gore…
By Danny Boyle
Some people make a negative fuss over this movie but honestly I really love it. 28 DAYS is a whole new look at a zombie apocalypse. I like the virus approach to newer zombie films anyway and feel this movie really nailed it. Not in the least bit traditional and alarmingly accurate to how humans would handle such a thing. And while I do prefer my zombies to move at a slower pace, I got to admit that if they moved like they do in this film, we all would be fucked. If for some reason you missed this a few years ago, check it out!
Chad: There’s a lot of 80s stuff going on there, but I could go on and on and on and … on with Zombie movies that you all love more than Justin Beiber’s swoopy head, (Sorry J.B., I know you are an easy target, I can do better.) but I’m gonna stop this madness right now and give it all up to the master of disaster on this subject. He will be the first to deny this fact but the GodZombieFather of it all is …
Nos: You could really write volumes on this man’s work alone. While I’m not personally a fan of all “DEAD” movies, most have a special place in my heart. NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD was one of the first ten horror films I saw and I think I still watch it at least three times a year. For being made in 1968, this movie has a real 1950’s b-movie feel to it. Take that and combine it with brilliant writing and infuse social commentary and you’ve got yourself the perfect zombie movie, my friend! Romero’s formula for zombies evolves with every new entry. He stays true to the original root but is never afraid to expand and take risks with the world he has created. This man is truly fucking brilliant.
Chad:
NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD -1968
THE CRAZIES (still a zombie movie) -1971
DAWN OF THE DEAD -1978
DAY OF THE DEAD -1985
LAND OF THE DEAD -2005
DIARY OF THE DEAD-2008
SURVIVAL OF THE DEAD – 2010
Cheers to you Mr. Romero.
Now, I don’t even wanna think about getting C.C. brain juice on my Lip Service jeans. Cerebral cortex is so messy and can leave such awful stains. I realize the cingulate gyrus and the temporal lobe are some of the tastiest parts, and you really gotta dig deep to get at em’, but come on! … Very hard to get out of the material. So you “Zombies” out there… (I see some of you right now) Back off. Cuz I WILL make ya watch some of these movies that are made about you. And you don’t want that now do you.. Ya rotten bastards….
Well that’s that. I bid you all a good evening and remember one thing about Zombies kiddies …“SHOOT ‘EM MAN!!! … SHOOT ‘EM IN THE HEAD”!!!!
(All views in this article do not reflect on Lip Service … Lip Service does not promote the eradication of the living dead unless they have terrible sense in fashion )
From out of the coffin and into your heart.
-Rock-n-Roll Astro Vampire Zombie TLV Motherf**ker from Hell… (Huh?)
-Chad Cherry XXX
Come see the sexy scary sounds of The Last Vegas… If you dare…You can not hide.. I am everywhere. Mwwuahahaha!!!!
thelastvegas.com
Nos: Well I’ve been on the road most of this summer! My website (Goddessofgorenos.com) has been met with great enthusiasm and I am truly grateful for all the support I’ve been given. Film project wise, RATLINE is looking better and better each day … I can’t wait to show it off to the world! Till then you can a clip of it up on FEARNET.com
Xo
Nos
Thursday, May 27th, 2010 by Chad Cherry
FAKE BLOOD..SCARE ME LIKE THE REAL THING!
STEVE JOHNSON HAS MADE YOUR LIFE AMAZING AND FUN!!!! He has been inside your imagination and cinematic dreams (or nightmares) for a long time…. And you probably don’t even know who he is. Well that’s about to change rockers and slaves to fashion.
While I should have been doing my homework as a youngster, I found a much better after-school activity instead … No, stop thinkin’ dirty thoughts, freaks … Special F/X!!! You know, an extra leg on the dog, eyeballs that squirt jell-o, a severed finger that won’t stop moving, exploding skulls … etc.
Finding Social Studies and Home-Economics bland, I was too busy trying to learn how the hell to make these horrible creatures from movies that scare the shit out of everyone. I wanted a real education …in BLOOD!!! Ok, fake blood… Where the hell can I find fake blood when it’s nowhere near Halloween? Then I discovered a man who could give me that answer and the education that I needed in life … The school of STEVE JOHNSON!!! He taught me how to make all the blood I needed! And all the ingredients could be found from the shelves of my mom’s kitchen (I didn’t have to try to drain it from the neighbor kids anymore). It was a complete freak-show mess in my house after that! Blood everything!
Award winning F/X designer Steve Johnson was introduced to the Hollywood F/X scene after meeting with make-up artist Rick Baker in Steve’s home state of Texas. (If you don’t know Rick B. read my older ‘Devil Inside’ interviews dang it!) By the time he was 18 Steve moved to Cali and cut his teeth on such productions as ‘Tanya’s Island,’ ‘The Fog’ and ‘The Howling’.
Later, as Baker was assembling his select team in London for the production of ‘An American Werewolf in London,’ he again invited Johnson to join him. This position lead to key supervisory roles on ‘Videodrome’ (Debbie Harry from Blondie yum yum!) and ‘Greystoke’ on which he supervised the animatronic ape shoot in Africa. Robot Apes … Saweet!
By the mid-80s Steve was appointed head of Richard Edlund’s Boss Film Corporation creature shop for productions including ‘Ghostbusters’, ‘Fright Night’, ‘Poltergeist II’ and ‘Big Trouble in Little China’. ( F#@K – YA!) This position not only presented him with the challenge of realizing cutting edge F/X for major studio goodies, it also allowed him to bring larger than life concepts to an F/X work force of up to 80 full time freaks. This led to the formation of his own company XFX, Inc.
Originally based in Sun Valley, CA, Steve’s XFX, Inc. made a huge name for itself with its originality of design, attention to detail and innovative use of materials. Like the demise of Freddy Kreuger in R. Harlin’s ‘A Nightmare on Elm Street IV’ which lead to massive budget projects, like, oh say James Cameron’s ‘The Abyss’.
Steve is the man! He has brought XFX, Inc. to the forefront of the industry and continues to be actively involved with the conceptual development, hands on design and on set application for all his shows. A true leader in his field for sure.
He was awarded his first Emmy for Stephen King’s 8 hour mini-series ‘The Stand’ and continues to produce ass kicking, ground breaking make-up imagery for commercials, TV, theme parks, and film. Oh, and get this…. Emmy number 2 for S.King’s ‘The Shining’ series!
XFX, Inc. has kept very busy creating top-notch make-up and wicked creature F/X for ‘The Outer Limits,’ Stargate SG-1 and Steven Spielberg’s ‘Taken’.
Here is what Steve Johnson has done for you………………
War of the Worlds, The Cat in the Hat, Blade II, Charmed, Wrongfully Accused, Host, The Shining (mini-series), Night Watch, Eraser, Here Come the Munsters, Lord of Illusions, Species I and II, Exquisite Tenderness, Night Of the Demons I and II, The Stand, Brainscan, Oldest Living Confederate Widow Tells All, Return of the Living Dead III, The Temp, Innocent Blood, Pet Sematary II, Highway to Hell, To Save a Child, A Grande Arte, Monsters (t.v), Howling IV: Original Nightmare, A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: Dream Master, Dead Heat, Solarbabies, Big Trouble in Little China, The Clan of the Cave Bear, Howling II: Stirba: Werewolf Bitch, Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes, Tanya’s Island, Humandoids from the Deep, The Fog, Spiderman 2, Daai Zek lou, The Rundown, Arachnid, Necronomicon, Red Planet, The Dentist, Bad Moon, The General’s Daughter, The Rapture, Suburban Commando, Howing VI : The Freaks, Night Angel, The Abyss, Leviathan, Predator, Virus, The Warlord, Evolver, Amistad, Freaked, Poltergeist II: The Other Side, Fright Night, Ghostbusters, Rose Red, Where the Wild Things Are, Bicentennial Man….. I can keep going!!!!!!!!!!!!!
BOW DOWN CREEPS!!!!
Plus self-produced ‘behind the scenes’ making of kick-ass-ery-ness! All done by himself!
I SAY DOWN DOGS!!!!
Steve and I have been chatting over the months so I thought this would be a great opportunity to let you rock-n-roll freak-a-zoids in on what’s cool.. That’s what I do …
Talking with this master of the Special F/X (and my hero) during his busy schedule via Skype went a li’l something like this …
This interview was really hard for me to do with all the outrageous laughter that was going on the whole time….. So just put it this way… Steve and I are looney tunes and we were both drinking.
Chad Cherry: Steve I know you’ve done a ton of movies and have worked w/ some amazing people. Can you tell me which film you’ve had the most fun working on?
Steve Johnson: The most fun? That’s really easy, and I despise questions like this which I’m sure you do too, but I’ll spin off and answer it anyway cuz I like the sound of my own voice … Clearly … Easily … ‘Ghostbusters’. I mean look, ‘Ghostbusters’ was a comedy and people like me don’t often get the chance to work on a comedy so by virtue of the fact that you’re working on a comedy on set everyone is trying to make ya laugh and have a good time.
It really was a fantastic time and you know that the movie has become an icon, it’s a major, major film and when you look back this year is the 25th anniversary for it comin’ out and the world wide enthusiasm for it is rabid. I’m like fuck, that was an incredible once in a life time experience. So ‘Ghostbusters’… My most fun.
C.C. Well since you hated that question, I’m gonna stick to the program. Which one is the bloodiest? Most sick?
S.J. You are the worst interviewer.
C.C. I’m amazing.
S.J. But yer still gonna go for it. Well that’s a tough one, cuz a lot of those films were independently produced … Let’s see … Which one would the people recognize? … Ya know I really didn’t do a ton of bloody stuff. I tried to veer away from that actually. Maybe ‘Night of the Demons II’. On the first one the producers, director and writer wanted it to be a psychological horror for a low budget movie but on the 2nd one they tried to step it up a lil’ bit. “Just pour more blood on it! I don’t care if it takes 100 gallons, just pour more blood on it”! Spew it from fire extinguishers and we’ll get a reaction from the audience. So ‘Night of the Demons II’ … I just made that up … It’s not really true.
C.C. That’s o.k. … It’s all bullshit anyway. I’m not even gonna put this interview out. The questions that I’ve asked you so far have gone down hill … let’s keep rollin’ like that.
S.J. Ya, these are suckie questions.
C.C. Speakin’ of blood! Now that we are off the subject. Fake blood! Let’s talk about it. A very crucial part of horror or any movie for that matter. You taught me how to make it years ago. Steve can you tell the rest of the creeps of the world your infamous recipe for it? Let’s hear it.
S.J. Go online. Type in fake blood. Then order a gallon of it. That’s the way to go.
C.C. No, no, no, that’s too easy man! We want the kids to get creative here at Lip Service.
S.J. O.K. … Fake blood. Here’s easily how it goes. Caro (clear) syrup (pancake syrup) and food coloring. You used to be able to get it at the store, at least when I was a kid. Put red in it, if it’s too red, use yellow. If you want fresh blood make it brighter and if you want older blood make it darker. And then the way to really have it kick is to make it a tiny bit opaque and the way to do that is to actually use zinc oxide. And you can get that anywhere cuz it’s basically suntan lotion. If you’ve ever seen surfers w/ that white strip on their nose … that’s zinc oxide. So if you want it to be incredibly cool, that’s how ya do it.
C.C. And it’s tasty. I used to put it on my pancakes.
S.J. You made blood pancakes?
C.C. Ya, now I’m hungry so I gotta go … See ya … So what’s up with the story of a very young Steve Johnson in grade school making himself up to look like a bum, beard and all, so he could buy adult beverages for the kiddies. True or false?
S.J. It’s not only true, but I did it on more then one occasion and got away with it.
C.C. You kick ass for that! Hands down one of the most r-n-r stories ever.
S.J. For a 14 year old livin’ in Texas, I was like in 7th grade. Ya, I was the hero of all my friends. It worked. That is a r-n-r story, now we’re cookin’!
C.C. Alright, alright! You have 2, count em’ 2 Emmys. To me this next question sounds like something I would do givin’ the chance. You lost one! Steve, how the fuck did you lose one of yer Emmys?
S.J. It’s true, I did lose one of them. Here’s what happened. I Got fired from ‘Where the Wild things Are’ and from ‘Spiderman III’ from within an 8 hour period. 18 million $ down the drain in 8 hours and what are ya gonna do at this point? So what I decided to do was become a fugitive from the law cuz I saw the digital world comin’, I saw it for years and all the smart people have gone back to M.I.T., they’ve gone back to Pennsylvania to Fine Art. They’re not gonna sit back and make 12$ an hour like a fuckin’ plummer and I run their company. What am I gonna do? And so I thought, o.k. this is just a phase, this digital thing will go away. So I was completely delusional ya know and I’m thinking this is my career for the last 30 years, it will get fixed, it’s fantasy film it will go back to practical F/X.
And then Spike Jones calls me up from ‘Where the Wild Things Are’ and wants to do everything practical and I’m thinkin’ great! Finally! And on top of that … a 15 million $ paycheck. This is gonna be great! Well, he has one of his minions call me up after I had worked on the show for 8 months right, and then he goes, “Not only are we not gonna give you 15 mill but yer fired … and we are gonna do it all digitally and we’re gonna give the grunt work to the Henson corporation.”
So I’m like well o.k., at least I still have ‘Spiderman III’. I did the first and second so at least I still have the third. Then I get called into a meeting for 20th Century Fox that night and they say “Steve, sorry we are gonna do this all digitally … Yer fired” … So I went home. I just lost 18 million dollars and it will never ever, ever come back again. So literally … I can’t believe I’m giving you the scoop on this Chad, cuz nobody has heard this shit yet! But we are drinkin’ and this is fun so what the hell … So I went into my studio the next day and I talk to all my higher ups, had a big meeting and asked … What are we gonna do?
We just lost 18 mill, we have 15,000 $ monthly bills to run the company and we don’t have a job. We’re out, it’s over. And so my coolest guy, cool as ice all the time says to me, “I’ll tell you what you should do. There’s only one answer. You should rob your own company, take everything you’ve got and become a fugitive in some South American country and live as long as you can.” And as insane as I was, Chad, at that point it sounded reasonable. I was like, he’s right! I’m gonna rob my own company and go south of the border like fuckin’ Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. And I did!
Within a month I had left like one cig burnin’ on the table top and I ended up in Costa Rica for a year on an observation platform with no electricity and monkeys hoppin’ in and out of my house.
Ya, so I guess yer getting this breaking story … I knew this would get good. So that’s what happened … Wait I forgot the question…
C.C. It doesn’t matter anymore Steve.
S.J. Wait, here is the saddest part about what I just told you. That as it turned out, no one cared. I was the worlds shittiest fugitive. No one cared. So I came back to L.A. and was just waiting for the F.B.I. but they just looked at my passport and said “O.k. poor bastard, just clean it up” and they let me back in. I was a shitty, shitty fugitive.
C.C. Let me just say that that’s completely fucking insane … But what a great story!
S.J. I’ve looked at it in a bunch of ways and now that I’m back in L.A. People can contact me now, like you. Cuz when I was workin’ with monkeys in Costa Rica no one could get a hold of me. But now that I’m back, who would expect anything less.
C.C. Is there any way I can rent out yer old place with the monkeys? Cuz that sounds pretty good for me right now.
S.J. Absolutely. I’ll point you in the right direction.
C.C. Thank you Steve.
S.J. We should be snorting sea monkeys right now …
C.C. We need to do this high on sea monkeys. This is how we roll Steve.
C.C. Seriously.
S.J. Seriously.
S.J. Back to yer interview.
C.C. Let’s talk about your youtube channel. This is amazing!
S.J. Type in rubberrules or stevejohnsonfx . The intro episode is the real reason why the channel was born, cuz I’ve got 100,000 still photos from my entire 30 year career of every step of every movie I’ve ever done. I’ve got 10,000 hours of behind the scenes video and 20,000 pieces of original art work. I looked at this big piece of stuff when I got back from Costa Rica and said ‘what am I gonna do with all this?’ What does one do with the spoils of movies? I mean I just turned 50, what am I gonna do, come down here to my basement every 5 years and pull out old photos and jerk off, it’s ridiculous. I realized that this stuff needs to be shared. Not a lot of people have done that, documented their careers so specific and complete.
I had to look at it and thought, this is a really serious thing and there are a lot of people really interested in this so what better way to share it then to put it out on youtube for free. And that’s how that came about.
C.C. There is so much hard work that goes into it, the detail, the design, the wicked shit that ends up hitting the cutting room floor. I think this is important. I think people need to see this.
S.J. We have about a year’s worth of episodes so, in about a month or so, the show will be up with fury.
C.C. Do you see younger folks getting into the craft and the art of F/X? Kids wanting to work hands on with foam latex, sculpting creatures, making fake blood. Is this old school now? Is it going toward C.G.I.?
S.J. You know Chad that’s a really good question. You would think that it would, but it’s not the case. In the film industry producers aren’t paying people like me to create characters anymore. They pay digital guys to hit their buttons and that’s where it’s been for a while.
As a result of that, what I’ve found incredibly fascinating within the past years or so, is that there seems to be an innate desire in a huge percentage of our population to want to create physical things of the fantastic. Not the mental things, but physical things.
I just went to a huge convention in L.A. called Monsterpalooza. Oh my god!!! I couldn’t believe it. Since my type of art has kinda been nudged to the side for digital technology, I’ve been so amazed to see not only is the art still there but it’s blossomed in a way it never has before. Since there’s no one paying money for it anymore and it’s just turned into a game and a business, which I know you know what it’s like being in the music biz. What’s happened since the biz aspect has been dissected for monster-makers, the art has risen. It’s bloomed in a way that I couldn’t have imagined.
1st there was 5 times as many people there, 2nd it was mostly people creating for art’s sake. Full body Lon Chaney from the 1931 Wolfman. Lon Chaney! And then a series for his transformation into the Wolf! And it truly was like a M. Angelo sculpture. Ultra-realistic and this guy did it for no reason other then the sake of art. And that was just one example. It seems to me since the film industry has squashed the need for making monsters that the kids in the basement have risen to fight it.
There is a desire to make things and it’s blooming more than I have ever seen.
C.C. So good to hear! When we lose our passion and soul for art, things turn to shit. People can see through it. Some anyway.
S.J. Art creates itself like the sweat through pores. There’s a reason people want to create these thing and remember them. I don’t know, I’m really just happy to see it.
C.C. It’s call being completely nutz!…. Well this is just amazing and a real treat for the fans that love movie magic. Before I wrap this up. I got to do it Steve.
S.J. I knew it….
C.C. Top 5 favorite Rock bands, man?
S.J. I was waiting for this. How can you as a musician, as a writer, ask me this? It’s like asking yer top 5 favorite words in the English language! haha! Come on!!! Ridiculous! I mean, Chad, you know that music is a language! Here is the thing, not only is it a language, it’s a drug. And God knows I like every drug.
C.C. Me too.
S.J. It sounds cavalier and very Hunter S. Thompson but music is a drug. Music comes into yer mind and what it does is it unlocks a certain valve to derail chemicals that make you feel a certain way. I mean it really does. It’s not like you’re putting something foreign into yer body, these chemicals exist and it’s key. It’s a pharmacist that says I want to listen to Chad Cherry’s band and drive really fast down the highway and have a car crash! Or listen to Genesis and want to slow down … Maybe gay out for the night.
C.C. I listen to Depeche Mode when I want to gay out for the evening. I really do. I don’t give a shit.
S.J. I’m being esoteric
C.C. We can be whatever we want.
S.J. I stopped listening to rock music in high school in ’78. Of course Aerosmith, the Nug, Frampton … If ya wanna call him rock. I was listening to all those things but, as time has gone by, I find I try to listen to things that calm me cuz music can tame the savage soul and after 30 years in the film industry … I listen to TLV and I want to drive off a cliff!!! I’m not ready to die … I’m quite certain that I haven’t answered yer question, but that’s all yer gonna get.
C.C. Perfect!
S.J. Come back to L.A. I love yer music! I post it on my wall, you guys rip but I need to see it live, Cherry. It’s the best live!
C.C. We are going to party when I get back.
S.J. This will be a bit dangerous.
C.C. That is how it goes. I can’t wait.
S.J. Awesome. Well maybe you can make sense out of this interview.
C.C. I highly doubt it, but who needs to makes sense anymore anyway. Let’s confuse them with beautiful madness. See you when I rock L.A. again.
S.J. I think we have too much fun! That’s why we are potentially dangerous friends. Skipping hand and hand through the gates of hell.
C.C. Of course. We’re fucked. I can’t wait for you to read this and say “That motherfucker made me sound like a punk!”
S.J. I don’t care if you tell people that I went to Thailand and got a sex change operation … I really don’t care.
C.C. Done.
S.J. There’s yer story …
So check out Mr. Johnson’s youtube channel he has set up to share with all you maniacs. It’s at – stevejohnsonfx’s- This will blow your mind! If you still have one … Take a look at all the madness from its origins and see the craft of a man and his team who actually create the movie monsters and inhuman beasts we love and fear. If you are not into Special F/X, you will be after taking a glimpse at the experience Steve will let you in on.
Oh hell! It looks like I got some blood all over my Lip Service stretch fuck’n jeans … And it’s not Steve’s recipe either … It’s the real McCoy! MMMMmmm that’s good human! Damn, I liked the color of those jeans too, but the red is more suiting for this article, anyway, I guess.
So I’m looking forward to influencing and possibly seducing you into my darkside of rock-n-roll by giving you all ‘On the Road with Stretch Fuck’n Jeans’ blogs Chad Cherry style while I’m prowling around the world with The Last Vegas … Coming soon to a victim like you … Are ya ready?
CHAD CHERRY -crazy rock guy-. XXX www.thelastvegas.com
Thursday, March 11th, 2010 by Nos
Last month held a rather sad anniversary for the underground … the one year mark for THE CRAMPS front man Lux Interior’s death. (Oct.21st 1946 – Feb.4th 2009) To say he was an inspiration is a gross understatement. For many of us he was the father of an incredible subculture.
So today Chad Cherry and I would like to delicate THE DEVIL INSIDE to some of the things that made THE CRAMPS truly great!
“Hey I’m on my way, on a journey outta this world” -LUX-
“In the spring of 1976, The Cramps began to fester in a NYC apartment. With out fresh air or natural light, the group developed it’s uniquely mutant strain of rock-n-roll aided only by the sickly blue rays of late night t.v. While jackhammer rhythms of punk were proliferating in NYC, The Cramps dove into the deepest recesses of the rock-n-roll psyche for the most primal of all rhythmic impulses -Rockabilly- The sound of southern culture falling apart in a blaze of shudders and hiccups. As late night sci-fi reruns colored the room, The Cramps also picked and chose amongst eras – surf, instrumental rock, psychedelia, and 60′s punk.
And then they added the junkiest element of all…. Themselves”.
It would be almost impossible to have not heard of The Cramps. But there are those who live under candy coated rubble that love to get force fed whatever media says is cool at the watered down moment…. Which is mostly shit… This article is for you.. So you can learn.
Their career has been the stuff of legend. Dangerously bizarre but most of all cool, The Cramps represent everything that is truly reprehensible about rock-n-roll. Founding members Lux Interior ( The psycho-sexual Elvis/Werewolf hybrid from hellfire) and the guitar slingin’ soul-mate Poison Ivy ( The ultimate bad girl vixen that I still have a crush on. So sexy evil!) are the architects of a wicked sound that distills a cross of swamp water, moonshine and nitro down to a dangerous and unstable musical substance. (I’ll have a couple shots of that!!!) Their cultural impact has spawned a legion of devil cults and dance floor catfights, and created in it’s wake a cavalcade of cave-stompin’ imitators.
As punk rock pioneers in the late 70′s they cut their teeth on the stages of CBGB and Max’s kansas City and recorded their first record at Sam Phillip’s legendary Sun Studios, funded mainly by Ivy’s income as a dominatrix in NYC. They coined the now ever so popular term “psychobilly” on gig their posters. Their hair raising live performances where a total, no-holds-barred rock-n-roll assault. After a quarter centry of mayhem, they’re too far gone to even consider any other course.
The Cramps were the garage band that fueled everything nasty about the way my mind developed as a kid. I would skateboard for hours listening to my master comp that I put together via 7inch/12inch vinyl record to cassette. (old skool muthaf#@kas) I still have that tape… Somewhere…. I would destroy my body with my terrible skateboard tricks and The Cramps would be right there in my ears telling me that I’m suppose to be in pain and bleeding like a stuck pig . Now enjoy it punk………….. And i did.
I was first exposed to THE CRAMPS somewhere around 15 years old at a Christian school. I had long since been obsessed with music of the late 50′s/early 60′s but hadn’t been properly introduced to the modern take on it. Needless to say it was love at first listen… Such rebellion! Such filth! And at the heart of it all was the ultimate rock and roll love story … Lux and Ivy.
There are countless Psychobilly bands in THE CRAMPS’ wake but none have even come close to matching the raw energy that dripped from Lux’s stage. This man was beyond committed to his bit! At 50 he was still touring and STILL cutting himself up in front of the audience. He wasn’t afraid to unleash his demons ….
The band has had several line up changes but the whole deal was always Lux and Poison Ivy. The greatest couple to ever come from Hell. That is why I was crushed when I heard the news last year (while I was on tour with the Crue and partying in new Orleans) that Lux had died after suffering an aortic dissection. Out of nowhere.. He was 62. The first thing I thought about was Poison Ivy. He was her Frankenstein. Second thing I did was finish up the bottle of Jack with TLV as a toast to a great rock-n-roll monster who will be undead in my heart until I hit sunlight and as long as I keep blazing The Cramps evil groove to the rhymes of the devils blues.
I remember reading an interview with Lux and Ivy just a few years before he passed. They still seemed so in love and still so in tune with each other. – That’s hard for “normal” couple to do after several decades together … let alone rock n roll pairing! Ivy was the first one I thought of too after I heard about his death…
But the legacy will always live on! And so will their passion for things bizarre and horror related.
One of my all time favorite concert videos is THE CRAMPS live at Napa State Mental Hospital. If you haven’t seen this yet you’re SO missing out! During a 1978 tour THE CRAMPS paid a little visit to a metal institute for a concert and someone captured the results on camera. The patients scream, jump around, and even sing along with Lux …. utter madness.
I’m sure you can pick up a copy via Amazon.
The music of THE CRAMPS was also no stranger to horror films (as Chad Cherry will get into in a minute) and they’ve even been known to make an elusive cameo or two in a horror film. FOR EXAMPLE: Did you know they dressed like zombies and ran around in tunnels for Romero’s DAY OF THE DEAD? It ‘s true … watch the behind the scenes on the DVD!
Their music is in some of my favorite movies (Return of the Living Dead -”Surfin’ Dead” and The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 – “Goo Goo Muck”) and they were in the greatest Halloween episode of Beverly Hills 90210. Look out Dillon! Lux comes out and say’s “Hey boys and ghouls, are you ready to raise the dead?” then they played “Mean Machine” and Strange Love.” Yeah! I’ll never forget that. I always wondered how the vibe was on the 90210 set having real Vampires around Kelly and Brandon……
Anyway…….. If you don’t have any of The Cramps music (your excused if you were born yesterday) and you love the creepy, then buy these record right now.
If you are looking for “best of”s and compilations… Here ya go.
If you’re into high production and glossy fluff (who isn’t) then stick with American Idol stuff.
Enter at your own risk lovelies.
Another thing that is undeniable about THE CRAMPS is their impeccable fashion sense! Lux could make tights look hot on a man and he wasn’t afraid to wear lipstick with large sunglasses either. Ivy was the queen of animal print and reconstructed vintage … with a touch a dungeon gear added in for good measure. Even in their later years they looked fucking amazing and fashionable.
Lip Service has some very CRAMPS esc items and I’ve put together a list of my personal favorites …
[Ghost town cigarette fit jean] Time to channel your inner Lux with this fabulous jeans from the Ghost Town collection.
[Branch foil print leggings] It takes a bad rocker girl to pull these bitches off!
[Patent Vinyl bra w/o-ring details] ‘Cause who really wants to wear clothes on stage?
[Gangsta Pranksta Knee length dress] This little number has a real vintage appeal with an updated rock n roll edge!
[pocket hipster straight leg] Great for sweating yer balls off!
[Caged skirt] This Caged skirt is fucking crazy and would look wicked hot on both girls and boys.
LONG LIVE ROCK-N-ROLL HORROR! The mold was broke when the B-movie sci-fi outer space neanderthal sex vamps called The Cramps landed back in the late 70′s. This is a one of kind rare band that you will never see the likes of again. You can still hear their music coming from graveyards in the evening, and I guarantee that they will keep you rockin’ with the un-dead all night long……….
So I just got back from the middle of nowhere Michigan, a.k.a – no-mans land -………. The Last Vegas set up a recording studio in a lake house with our engineer and started flushing out song ideas that we’ve had floating around inside our wicked little minds from the last couple of tours (and some from a lot earlier as well). The location was so isolated that phone reception was non exsistant and there was zero internet the whole week we were up there. Creepy and beautiful, cold and very snowy. Picture the movie ‘The Shining’…. But replace the sweet shrubbery maze with a frozen lake. Very scary at night. It was so quite and peaceful too… Until we got there that is. “ALL WORK AND NO PLAY, MAKES CHERRY A DULL BOY”!!!!! Check out The Last Vegas on tour this March. THE TEXAS C.C MASSACRE is coming!!!!! Cheers from your favorite Vampire creep…. -Chad Cherry- xxx
No doubt THE CRAMPS will continue to inspire generations … both musically and with their legendary style.
In the Nos world I’ve been busy shooting new content for my website: goddessofgorenos.com and posing for magazines! I’m gracing the cover this month of ST.LOUIS SINNER and two of my photos made it into issue 31 of GOTHIC BEAUTY … which will be on newsstands March 12th! I’ve also been cast in a new horror film called AFTER PARTY MASSACRE and I’ll be shooting in glamorous Ohio next month.
Here’s some more great Cramps eye candy:
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