Subject: NY77 - Coolest Year in Hell

NY77 - The Coolest Year in Hell is a two hour documentary I shot that covers the year in music, politics, and historical events including the Son of Sam, the blackout, graffiti, and the sex trade during a time when New York was on the verge of bankruptcy and music flourished as a result of low rents and anarchic freedom.

I had a great time interviewing the subjects for this film and re-living my past on the Lower East Side.

The film airs tomorrow night August 11 on VH1 - 9PM Eastern Time - check your local listings.

Thanks for reading this shameless plug - but really - the film's a lot of fun.

Besides the Yanks and Jets, I tend to avoid the tube. But I just printed this out and will do all I can to check it out tomorrow night.

Sounds like a cool project, Bud.

Bob

Thanks Bob. The Post gave it four stars yesterday.

cool ass beans, bud!!

Congrats on the 4 stars!!!!!

z

All right BUD!

As you know I've been looking forward to seeing this.

Bud - any plans to release this for those of us on the other side of the pond? I'd love to see this.

Steve

Dude! That's very, very, very cool! I will try to tune in, seeing how it's about the year I was born, and I will be 29 years and 364 days old the night of the airing. :mrgreen:

congratulations!

That's great Bud. I will certainly watch. I spent a lot of time in NYC during those years I published my first book of photographs in 1977. The 70's was a great period to be a visual artist. There were a lot of outlets for ones art work and many galleries to show work in and of course the music was interesting (sans Disco). I spent most of my time in Soho back then and it was a great center for artist to work and hang out. Now it's a shopping destination for all the high end fashion stores. I remember the lower East Side back then was filled with extreme sex shops and hole in the wall clubs that played puck music. Today it still has some nice clubs but it became very yuppie in the 80's. Even Time Square is owned by Disney now and its become a tourist destination. The 70's in NYC were great I thought. If you want to get a feel for what it was like, just watch the movie 'Taxi Driver'

Congrats, Bud, that's awesome! I would definitely watch it if I had cable. Maybe it will show up on the web too...?

I just wanted to bump this back to the top. I think this will be a good show. NYC in the late 70's was the center of the creative universe as far as I water concerned.

JAC

Hey Bud,
Excellent job on the interviews! It was a great documentary.
I even caught your name on the credits, even when they're flashing by at a hundred miles an hour.

I was ten living in queens what memories thanks Bud. 77 was an excellent year!

Great show, Bud. I love the part where the Hip-Hoppers in the Bronx invited the Punks from CBGBs up to their party...the parallel was so cool.

And you were THERE!!! Must have been a kick, man.

Impressive, man...AND: you play music!

:-)

only caught a small bit of it.... i loved the ramones segment... no one rocked NYC like the ramones!!!

Caught most of it. It was on in the A.M. here in Alaska. I was looking for it on my cable box to set up a reminder and it had already started!

Very well done! Most enjoyable. The only thing I didn't like (and it's totally nothing to do you the film itself) there were waaaay too many commercial interruptions. :? Kinda hurt the flow. But, that could be said about any show on any channel.

Looking at VH1's website, parts 1&2 will be aired again at 12am EDT on August 15th. Maybe this time I'll remember to set the dang DVR!

Thanks to everyone who took the time to watch. Iwas out of town without a TV so I dvr'd it so I can experience it with commercial interruptions. It will be rebroadcast soon - you can check vh1.com for info.

Wednesday Aug. 15
12:00 AM EDT (That's midnight, right?)

This two-part, two-hour documentary tells the story of one of the most astonishing pop culture years in American history. New York City had fallen in decay and chaos. There were not enough jobs, not enough money, not enough police, not enough schools, and not enough social services. There was a city wide black out with major looting, there was a serial killer on the loose, and the Bronx was burning.

Yet out of the chaos, emerged one of the most creative times any city has ever encountered. Hip Hop was emerging from the South Bronx, punk music was emerging from the lower eastside, and disco was emerging from Queens and midtown Manhattan. Elaborate, finely crafted graffiti art decorated the subway cars. Break-dancers danced in the streets. There was a huge sexual liberation with sex clubs and a burgeoning porn industry. In the beginning of the year, the world was not paying attention, and most of this activity existed in its own underground bubble. Yet by the end of 1977 all of this artistic expression was about to become part of mainstream America and would remain popular for generations to come. Maybe it would never again be this independent expression, not invented for money or fame, but the need to rebel against the mayhem around them. Maybe it would go on to be commercialized and sterilized for massive consumption. Maybe it would never again be this unique.

It was, after all, a very special window in time, that doesn't happen too often. And it will be celebrated in the documentary NY77.

The film will be graphically dizzying and groundbreaking, led by the team that produced the acclaimed documentary The Kid Stays in the Picture. Firehouse Films was created in 2004 by Academy Award nominated filmmaker, Nanette Burstein.

BUD-

Just randomly caught this on VH1C and was bowled over. Incredible film. Particularly the Disco Fever club segment - had me going crazy with excitement.

Now, help me out here. During the graff segment, there's this GREAT funk track in the background, the hook in it is a couple open-and-shut hi-hat hits in each measure... Despite my funk knowledge and extensive searching, I CANNOT figure out what that track is... Can you tell me??

AAAWW whne do we get to see it in OZ???