Poet, Illustrator, Musician, Generally Awesome Guy

Shel Silverstein was a big part of my childhood, probably like many of you. I grew up reading his books and once was so haunted by one of his cassettes that I brought it to my mom crying asking her to hide it from me since, even though it terrified me, I couldn’t stop listening to it.

A talented artist, wit and musician, you can also see he was a first rate babe. Can’t you just envision him teaching a class in old school butchering or being one of the only men that wouldn’t look lame holding a guitar down on the Williamsburg waterfront? Straight up heart melter, the kind that even dudes can get psyched about (just look at the joy in Dustin Hoffman’s face just to be hanging out with him).

He sadly passed away a little over a decade ago and suffered several tragedies in his own life including the early death of a wife and daughter. He gave the world much joy though with his quirky, awesome books.

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Posted on May 24, 2011

Indie Star and Rocker

Juliette Lewis is one of those are current celebrities that can just get away with anything in my book. Shady business like blue hair, drug addiction, Scientology, and even corn rows abound with her – but I still love the lady, just love her! Any movie is better with her in it and any movie could be improved by a cameo.

Aside from an long film resume that features duds (Starsky & Hutch, The Other Sister) as well as gems (Whip It!, Natural Born Killers, Hysterical Blindness) she is the lead singer of the band Juliette and the Licks where she demands the stage, screaming and Mick Jagger swaggering around while wearing latex panties and kooky head wear.

I could have sworn I made this rock star and original quirky indie icon a style icon, but while linking my last entry I was shocked to not find hide or hair of the entry. Well, now I can make up for the omission.

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Posted on April 18, 2011

Doors Keyboardist

Jim Morrison may have brought the poetry, the leather pants, the pouty lips and the raw sexuality, but Ray Manzarek brought the mutton chops, the cleft chin, the psychedelia thanks to his keyboard and a more refined sex appeal behind those wire frame glasses.

Now sporting a handsome aged rocker meets Sydney Pollack look, Manzarek continues to make music. It’s in his hey day, however when he made buttoned up pinstripes seem so rock and roll.

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Posted on March 21, 2011

Cure Front Man

Robert Smith is too mysterious to be a mere pop star, too peculiar to be a typical heartthrob, but with his shock of black tangled hair, whiter than white skin, and smeary red lipstick, he changed what the face of rock and roll could look like.

With his sensitive and intellectual lyrics and pop sensibilities that merged with gloom, sadness, joy, heartbreak, and wonder – he changed what popular music could sound like too.

Even as he’s associated with creating the “goth” subculture, you know, back when it was a subculture and not manufactured for mall stores, his look and music are far too unique and complex to neatly fit in that category.

While very, very few men can pull off the look exactly (and  by now you should know if you’re one of them or not) there’s more to his style than just drag ghoulishness.

Just love that grey sweater vest/polo combo (see? not what you’d consider goth huh?) and below/after the jump he plays guitar in the most perfect gloomy artist sweater ever.

On top of having great taste in sweaters, he’s also pretty much a musical genius – a fact I am reminded of every time a Cure song comes up on the shuffle just as A Letter To Elise did this morning, causing teenage romantic palpitations and sudden urges to keep a journal.

Click here for the rest of Robert Smith

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Posted on March 11, 2011

Rebel Heartthrob

I’ve got no problem with the way pop heartthrobs have gone in the past couple decades. It’s OK for innocent youngins to be in love with innocent youngins. Sure, the music’s mostly bad (though, as you know I have a soft spot for some Hanson B sides) but if girls want to scream for Bieber and The Jonas Brothers, that’s awesome.

But isn’t it odd that there’s no modern equivalent to the snarling, punk rock (like for real punk rock – he used to be in Siouxie Sioux’s band before hitting it big on Mtv), bad boy that was hey day Billy Idol? (Then again, maybe it’s better there are no double bj photos floating around of Aaron Carter?)

Not only was the music good (just try to skip Eyes Without a Face when it pops up in your ipod) the look was perfect: like teenage rebellion and prettied up danger. (You can capture it with this insane Halloween costume)

And to his credit, at least at the writing of this entry, he’s yet to have starred in a reality TV show.

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Posted on February 27, 2011