You mentioned that Marc and Dee Dee were friends when Marc was still in the Voidoids - what was it like hanging out around with those two in those days ?

I don't remember the exact incident just suddenly I'm hanging out alot with Marc and then there's DeeDee, Marc was friendly with D. I thought DeeDee was hysterical., but honestly I couldn't figure him out, Sometimes I'd think is he high? what the hell is he on? and is DeeDee a total moron., not in a bad way, I just couldn't figure his behaviour at times out. He'd be on stage playing., he's perfectly or seemingly straight they go through the whole set perfectly, DeeDee seems fine . They'd finish and before you know it DeeDee was wacked out., I couldn't figure out if he ran off somewhere and shot up or had taken a bunch of pills and timed it so they'd take affect right after the set because he didn't seem to be high on junk it was more like pills..and of course he drank! . but I couldn't see how you could get so drunk so fast. Marc I knew wasn't into junk,. he drank and he never got out of control either slurring falling down and unlike his brother never got nasty rude or abusive. Once DeeDee over did what ever it was and Marc and I had to carry him out side to get some air, He snapped back in a minute and said as he often did " Hey..I'm hungry"! What DeeDee liked to do and Marc would follow and me was go into the kitchen and look around and eat whatever was around which was a giant pot of Chilli that Cosmo the lighting guy who'd make huge batches of. It really wasn't what you'd call great chilli., it was kinda pasty and had a sweet taste that doesn't belong in chilli and as a chef I had to ask Cosmo what they hell do you put in it., his secret Cosmo told me was ketchup.,I'd argue with Cosmo how wrong that was but you know when its late and you've been out all nite and your kinda blitzed from smoking grass or whatever was your preference you get pretty hungry and it wasn't so bad., there was barely any meat if any in it which was good for me being a vegetarian, and DeeDee and Marc could care less they were starving. DeeDee would stick his hand in the container in the fridge or if it was just sitting there rotting on the stove, they'd eat off the serving spoon. Sometimes they'd dump it in a bowl. The thing is you had to be fast or Hilly's daughter Lisa might catch you and start screaming at you and threaten you "I'm gonna tell my father! what are you doing in here your NOT supposed to be in here"!!!.

DeeDee and Marc would go in there all the time., no one was ever in there I don't think anyone knew you could get something to eat at CBGBs and eventually Hilly got rid of the kitchen. It was alot of fun sneaking in there because DeeDee was often bouncing off the walls yelling I'm fucking starving! Once DeeDee and Marc found a box in the fridge full of raw ground beef for burgers..so they fired up the stove and I was thinking we are gonna get sooo busted. There was a frying pan on the stove..and DeeDee was throwing the meat at it as was Marc while also eating chili., but the meat wasnt landing in the pan it was all over the stove..and they were both just bouncing off the walls! There was this cabinet full of dishes and as they were crashing into it the doors of it flew open and the dishes were flying out and crashing to the floor and breaking, I'm panicking thinking oh any minute Lisa is going to walk by and just FREAK OUT! I wasn't worried about Hilly at all., he was such a soft spoken laid back guy..,you'd hardly know he was there, he'd sorta look over the crowd walk around a little once in a while with his coffe cup ( but not filled with coffee!..,or tea!..no he wasnt a drunk! just a little something to be able to put up with the noise and insanity of the music and all the people talking and shouting and shrieking at each other,,it was a madhouse !)

Finally I got so freaked out at DeeDee and Marc breaking things playing with the stove raw meat flung all over some burning. , I was trying to clean up after them it was like a bull ran threw this little room or one DeeDee and Marc right behind him., it was too funny I was almost screaming how funny it was., if only someone was filming it, you had to of seen this with music blasting from some other band stoned out people passing stumbling by I kept shooing away. finally I said look listen you two let me cook it for you., let me clean up because Lisa is bound to walk by any minute and BLOW HER GASKET! and I shoved them out with too bowls of that horrendous ketchup and bean chili glop..punk chilli! Im cleaning up sweeping up broken glass wiping the stove as fast as I can and suddenly I hear "WHAT R YOU DOING!!!!!! and there's Lisa and screaming "What till I tell my father about this..!..he's gonna 86 you..oh you'll be off the guest list when he finds out"! then I try to explain to her calmly that someone else was in here and I threw them out and I was cleaning up..and hey you know me Lisa I respect your dad I'd never abuse his kindness and generosity his given to me and my friends over the years ( sounds pretty good huh? ..but I meant that sincerely) but she's still steaming and you know I don't blame her she helped her father and mom run the place she was in school., college she was under alot of pressure and crazy shit was always happening., bands fighting each other or other bands.

outside the angels HQ after 9/11 - photo by Deborah Olin

A few times the Hells Angels caused a scene., one Angel named Burt I called Roachclip because he had a missing hand and wore a hook., he was really a bug out, he dropped his sunglasses in the place one nite and accused one girl of stealing them and ripped her neck to hip with his hook and it went threw her clothes she ran down to the bathroom while he howled threats and pounded and almost broke the door down., I knew Burt and the Angels through Eric Emmerson who was friends with there then leader Sandy., and Eric's band were the entertainment at a huge beach party the Angels gave once in Staten island for Gerry Garcia's of the Greatfull Deads birthday,,it was the craziest party I ever went to..and the Angels had there families and kids with them.

Eric Emmerson

Later I heard an Angel say that "Eric was fucking crazier than all the Angels put together" at one point Eric ripped all his clothes off and was dancing around a bonfire the Angels put together near the stage they built on the beach., and a few of the Angels got on the stage and sang Jailhouse Rock! Another lost Kodak moment. So Lisa went through alot of crap from people and thats what i was hoping to avoid but she was steaming.., and I told her look it was Marc and DeeDee., they were in here going crazy and I threw them out to clean it up..go look there stuffing there face over there..and I only said that because short of murder Hilly would never throw DeeDee or Marc out or even get mad at them..after all The Ramones and the Voidiods were 2 of his biggest draws., and he was fond of them he I believe loved all the musicians that played there he thought it was all wonderful and creative., and finally his dumpy little bar on the bowery was making money and in the newspapers around the world. So I gave Marc and DeeDee up to save my ass., though I also knew short of unprovoked murder Hilly would never throw me out. So Lisa calmed down and actually thanked me as she did see that I had cleaned up alot of broken dishes and I was washing down the burnt meat encrusted stove ect. I went after Marc and DeeDee and said 'oh you missed Lisa screaming at me THANKS ALOT!..but its all cool..DeeDee didn't care he said something like :oh shes always angry at something whats the difference who shes yelling at as long as she call yell at someone about something" which is a very DeeDee kinda answer., Marc said " Uh oh" and I told him naw its cool she can tell Daddy on me..and we laughed.

Another time DeeDee took Marc and I around the corner to Arturos loft., there was a small party., mostly people from CbGbs..other bands., Arturo as you probably know is an artist., and on his white white walls he painted these giant day-glow swastikas, I remember a big orange one, we just got there DeeDee and Marc headed straight for the table with drinks and some chips or some food and out of no where in BURSTS Connie., DeeDees crazed girlfriend who stormed right over to DeeDee and was screaming and going ballistic., she had her hair up with this big pink bow and had this big hot pink bubblegum colored coat on and as she screamed he face was the same color as the coat she was as day glow as the swastikas on the wall, She was relentlessly screaming at DeeDee something to the affect where were you and she looked like a bizarre Barbie Doll gone Berserk totally gonzo and screaming and sputtering and out of control and it was a bit scary.., everyone in the place just went silent and watched this scene.

At first DeeDee..oh poor DeeDee he was trying to calm her down., he was almost whimpering and pleading with her to calm down "Come on Connie...Connie come on calm down..please Connie etc" then finally he just blew up he couldn't take it anymore and now there both screaming at the top of there lungs and everyone was kinda frozen watching and it started getting to the point it was gonna get out of control and psychical because she was pushing him and she had this bag., a purse and was starting to swing it around and I said to Marc " Hey I am out of here and he agreed and said lets get out of here and go back to Cb's so we did and a few other people were leaving. While Marc and I were walking in the street suddenly DeeDee came flying over "Come on! I gotta get away from her lets go" so we all started to run and ran back into Cbs and DeeDee said "oh I think now I'm safe., thank god., she won't start with me in here..I hope"! and she didn't, she didn't come after him, DeeDee said hopefully shell get high and forget about it..and when I asked DeeDee what was that all about., because I really felt bad for the guy. DeeDee was so loveable., he was like a little kid he was very sweet, adorable even and he looked like a little lost boy at times, and Connie was a monster, I remember when she was going out with Arthur Kane of the NY Dolls., the first time I met him with a friend of mine who knew him in the street he had his hand all bandaged up and said Connie slammed the guitar case closed on his hand., she was mad she couldn't go on some tour the Dolls were doing..but I later heard she really tried to cut his finger off and attacked him with a knife., which I believe because there was blood on his bandage., I guess he was to upset to tell what really happened he was very bummed out he couldn't play but he was going to go with them anyway and go onstage all the same while some other guy temporary filled in and played bass. So I knew all about this girl., I was also a little worried her seeing me standing alone with DeeDee because she'd been known to beat up girls she felt were trying to take her man. And though that definitely wasn't the case with me., I liked DeeDee a whole lot but I wasn't interested in him that way, he was someone I liked hanging around with, he was alotta fun. Once we were just sitting on these barstools and he turned to me and said "Hey! lets get outta this place its a dump!l lets go over to Cb's and I said DeeDee I hate to break it to you but YOU ARE IN C.B.'s"! And he swung his head up and around his hair spinning out..and he looked shocked and turned to me and said "oh wow! we are in Cb's!..its a dump isn't it hahahahah"! Another time he was hungry but didn't want anymore of that stinking chilli, and said to me "got any food in your house?" what do you have"? I joked and said oh probably a can of Tunafish and he said "great I love that., oh I want a tunafish sandwhich! great lets go can we"! I told DeeDee are you crazy I live in all the way out in Brooklyn now., you seriously want to go all the way to Brooklyn to get a sandwich!? and he said "SURE YEAH., we'll get a cab I'll get a cab and he was in the street trying to flag an empty cab., I grabbed his arm come on DeeDee no that's crazy another time I'll invite you and Marc and everyone over for dinner, stop it your not making sense (???? I said that to DeeDee!) also I was terrified Connie would show up and get it ALL wrong and go after me, not only was she violent and irrational she was alot bigger than I was, I'm 5 feet 2 and I weighed around 110 at that time she'd of creamed me. But thankfully DeeDee was easily distracted and Marc and he went back inside to hangout drink whatever. Marc didn't do or say crazy outrageous things so I have no crazy stories, I know we joked and laughed alot., he had alot of his old friends from Brooklyn that he grew up with and hung out with.

You know people back then were really good they were very kind and loving., it was nothing like that English Violent angry pissed off fuck you Punk Rock thing. It was still all Peace and Love baby., these people that were the first wave of and the original bands, people that played and hung out a CBGB's were from the Woodstock hippie generation., they were the kids that went to the Fillmore East and they were mostly all very cool people.., some of the nicest people and interesting for sure that I've ever met, to this day. Marc was a very standup good guy., really good and sweet, funny a little goofy. I really enjoyed his company he was a total gentleman too., some thing someone from the outside world who has read about Punk Rock would not expect to hear but Marc was all that and DeeDee too. Drugs get people into bad stuff and they can and will take advantage of people if they can to get high., I've heard DeeDee say that but as far as I was concerned all DeeDee wanted was for Connie to stop busting his chops and have a little peace and he wanted to have fun and he was hungry., when I remember DeeDee I remember him saying "I'm starving man!" not I wanna shoot some dope or sniff some glue or get into fights. I feel really sad that DeeDee died., he had been doing really well staying straight. Michael Mancuso who was Cherry Vanilla's drummer and The Brats, who I spoke about earlier he had been friends with his first wife Vera and knew DeeDee from the neighbourhood in Queens Whitestone where he hung out as a kid and later still lived when he was married. to Vera,, and when DeeDee was going to N.A. meetings And he was writing books..who knew DeeDee could do that? at times I thought and not in a mean way..whats with this guy is he a dopey kinda guy or high or what?! I'm not alone in thinking this., it probably also had alot to do with just the way he spoke his NY accent., he spoke kinda slow and nasal.. and he was high alot and getting high brings out the Einstein in all of us doesn't it.! Me included! I have my own drug induced little wacky stupid incidents.., like thinking I was kidnapped by Iranians and held hostage in a Cuban shipyard.., when in reality I should have never downed at least a pint of if not more of Jack Daniels in one swoop. I hit the deck like a door off its hinges! How does Keith Richards do it!

Keith