My 80’s Club Scenes, CBGB’s, Music Videos and Blondie Weekend

In the days before my birthday, it’s pretty natural to find myself deeply introverted and taking stock of the almost 43 years that have made up my life so far. While some years are better than others, I often think back to the person that I thought I wanted to be and the person who I actually am now and I think about how 16 year old Claud would judge 43 year old Claud.

I remember the first time it occurred to me to think about life through my younger eyes and that was, egads, close to 20 years ago! I was visiting my good friend and incredible artist Joe Fig when he still had his studio by me in Woodstock . We had gone to SVA together and he had the requisites black and white photos from our photography classes around. I caught an image of the slightly then, now much younger 18 year old me looking up and giving me quite the hairy eyeball. It was at that moment when my inner 16 year old self really found her voice. I have often thought about what she would think about where I am now.Now back in the day, my goals in life were somewhat different. Of course, back then, I had no idea that my life would soon be dominated in one way or another by adoption and life as a birthmother. No back then, as I say, I was first generation MTV and video didn’t just kill the radio star, videos help turn a nerdy freak into a punk rock Goth chick. MTV brought me Adam and the Ants and the Cure and Siouxise Sue and everything that followed. No, back then, all I wanted was to get off Long Island, get into NYC, be able to get busy living, be a great “artist” have super cool clothes and friends, party hard, and have fun. It was all about concerts and clubs; Danceteria, Limelight, King Tut’s Wa Wa Hut, Scrap Bar, and a bunch more that my memory cannot pull up anymore without help. In high school, we read the Village Voice and Details magazine and kept track of Diane Brill and Andy Warhol like people now care about the Kardashians. And, for some time, my personal goal was to BE at a party WITH Andy Warhol; that would be the ultimate in COOL parties and I, would then know, that I was super cool and not some wanna be poser.

Losing Andy Warhol, Losing the Dream

On February 22, 1987, that dream came to its end as Andy Warhol died before I had a chance to be at that party. I can still see the face of the radio dial; I stared at it as the news came in that Andy was dead. I was sitting in the passenger seat of my friend Terri’s car as it drove down Sunrise Highway. I think we were going to the train station for another night out in NYC, and heard the news. Warhol was dead, my party dreams squashed and, while I didn’t know it, I was newly pregnant with Max and life as my 16 year old self wanted was over. I was almost 19.

Now of course, I don’t judge my life a failure since I never got to party with Warhol. It’s Ok that I never owned the club of my dreams: the uber coolest place in NYC that EVERYIONE waited to get into. I really am not friends with rock stars and getting back stage passes to the best shows in town. Truth be told, I hardly ever go to concerts anymore since the tickets are so damn expensive and I don’t even listen to as much music anymore since I don’t commute to an office! And, the only time I really get to dance is when they play Madonna’s “Holiday‘ at Weddings. Yeah, I’m almost 43. I work full time. I do laundry and make my family dinners and our big plans this weekend is the Community Easter Egg hunt.

But sometimes, just sometimes, cool things happen!

This weekend I spoiled my inner 16 year old something fierce.

About three weeks ago, the local Facebook channels started a buzzing about an upcoming video shoot in the area having to do with Zombies and uber fashionable Dance Clubs. About 4 different people posted it to me and with the message “this is so you!” so I sent my email and said; “yeah, I WAS an 80’s club kid and I still got a ton of my vintage stuff..and I DO a huge Halloween party too, so this might be fun.”

Life as a Film Extra

Now, I knew that probably it wouldn’t be THAT fun! I haven’t done a ton of films or anything, but when I have, I know there is lots of waiting around. Rye and I filmed that silly poker commercial and that was a long day with more “pretending” to play poker. Granted it was cool to see it the view times it played on ESPN, but the website went south anyway. Montel Williams was hours in the green room for 15 minutes on camera and was more disappointing than losing one’s virginity. Being Lilly’s “dog handler” for Rocksteady was incredible painful for both her and me and I don;t even know if she made it into the finished film.. In fact, overall, the least painful of all my “films” to date has been the interview for Related by Birth because all I had to do was sit on a couch and talk about adoption for a few hours. That’s my favorite thing to do!

So, my almost 43 year old self said “oh gosh, WHY did you commit to this thing? It’s going to eat up your whole weekend!” while the inner 16 year old Claud was thrilled to pieces. It wasn’t filming any old thing. It was a chance to film a Music Video, a play on MTV ( if they still play music) music video, a this is the medium that changed my life music video. And my 16 year old self was still all pissed off at the rest of me since I didn’t go to Jersey to take part in I’m Legit filming. I had only one day off left for that year at work and it was either film the video or be a good mommy and take off Christmas Eve. Being a mom won, so this time, I let the 16 year old win.

Plus, it wasn’t some “new” band that I had no idea about. It was…. a BLONDIE video! Score another point for huge band with punk roots in CBGB’s and all that good stuff! And it was on the weekend. And it was happening right down the block from me. And did I mention that the theme was 80’s NYC club getting attacked by Zombies? Oh, and was the shoot being organized by the Woodstock Film Festival who I would really love to see screening Related by Birth? Yeah, so I committed my weekend and when my mature older self complained, my 16 year old self told her to shut up because in the long run, filming the Blondie Video might be good for Adoption! How’s THAT for rationalization!

Being the Costume Consultant for A Blondie Video

So last week, I was planning on meeting a bunch of folks there to go over stuff. I happened to check my emails before I left and was rather surprised to find my offer of purging my attic for my vintage 80’s club clothes netted me credit as “The Costume Consultant”! I had a minor panic attack and then hauled my butt to met with everyone anyway knowing that I really had NO IDEA what I really had gotten myself into this time! Repeat my mantra of life” Just ride the waves” and pretend that I can do this thing!

And I did. And it was pretty freaking excellent.

Yeah, there was lots of waiting and yeah, it was pretty cold filming in the old vaudeville theater with no heat; but everyone was so VERY nice. In all my professional-ness, I grabbed two huge laundry baskets full of bustiers, leather and pleather pants, velvet shirts, jackets and garb and told people what to wear. I smudged black eye liner on tons of folks, made faces white and yeahed or nayed their outfits. No, the Nirvana T-shirt won’t work, but here, rock the vintage CBGB’s t. Try these tights, how about the leopard print bra, Ok let’s try that with the white wig! I think it’s safe to say that bits of my closet are in almost every scene. The red chiffon scarf worn on the guy who gets killed first in the club scene; mine. The red pleather Billy Idol jacket, bra and sparkle skirt worn in the lesbian bathroom scene; mine. The bouncers assistant entire ensemble; yeah.. mine. And, the knowledge that on my death bed I can say “I was the costume consultant for a Blondie video“.

Ok, maybe it IS 25 years AFTER I wanted to do this sort of thing, but I still did it!
The finished product? You can’t seem me much.. I’m in the “door” scenes in the front of the “club” and then in the “copncent” seens you see the back of my head to the left right ino front of Blondie. I’m near the bald guy(usually letting him know that boon/ boom camera is about to bonk him!

Wearing the Old Claud Skin

And then, I got to wear an outfit all weekend that I prolly should not go out in public in! But something about rocking black fishnets, a mesh top, my little Catholic School Girl kilt, and my corset is fun. Not to mention, how I love an excuse to crimp my hair and break out the Super Extra Hold Aqua Net! I was a bit concerned about arriving at 9am on Saturday all decked out. It just feels weird to get dressed like that during the day time! So I wore an oversized cardigan most of the time and did my own makeup while there. However, on Sunday evening, I went back to be an extra on the “door scenes” outside the “club” while we wait in line to get in. So after a day running around with Rye to home improvement places and painting the garage, I got dolled up again..and I have to say, at one point, I felt her inside, that tough little Goth chick who felt all so cool and like the whole world was in front of her. Maybe I should just crimp my hair more often?

Filming a music video is like having a private concert; a repetitive lip synching concert, but still, Debbie Harry was like 6 feet in front of me. And we actually WERE having fun. I think there was about 50 extras all day and there was that sense of shared “OMG how COOL is THIS?” I met some great people and we had a blast!

And the new song, Mother, is actually pretty damn good too!  We all had it stuck in our heads!

Not Meeting Andy Warhol 

However, the BEST part, I have to say was when we were all waiting about ( huddling around space heaters INSIDE..it was really cold!) and the Andy Warhol Impersonator was talking and I overheard him talking about the real Andy..

….and my 16 year old self just about popped out live:

“Wait a minute, you’re the guy who REALY impersonated Andy for ANDY? You’re THAT guy? I’ve read about you!”

Yup, total geeky star stuck for the Any Warhol impersonator, aka Allen Midgette.

But I HAD read about him in Edie. Hell, for quite a while I wanted to BE Edie Sedgewick (except for the fact that she died young, but even that had a certain appeal at times especially when I was younger!) and while I was never going to be Edie, not Claud the uber coolest thing in NYC since Edie, for a hot minute there I was filming a Blondie Video and hanging out with the closest I would ever get to the Factory. And it almost felt like I was a Superstar.

 

My inner 16 year old Claud was THRILLED!

It might be 25 years later, but she FINIALLY got to live her dream.