Dean Johnson - Death of a Legendary Legend

HomoCorps 10/03 Dean put these two naked cuties in the NOTORIOUS bathroom of CBGB's!- !- RIP Hilly Kristal, who was a good friend & supporter of Dean's, and went along with the then UNTHINKABLE notion of doing a gay night @ CBGB's.

PS a big 'f*ck you!' to Daniel Boulud, who wants to name his upscale burger joint on the Bowery "DBGB's" and totally hack the original logo. (DB: Unless your gourmet burgers have cigarette butts as a topping, DON'T demean CBGB's like that).

CBGB's 04/03- Shock & Awe indeed. The line-up includes Lisa Jackson (who sang 'Beautiful Freak' last night for Dean) with the Bankheads Hosting and Clark DJ'ing- Clark KILLED IT! last night with his spoken-word performance of 'Fuck You'- !

Backstage at the Slipper Room.......

The House of Rapture's staff photographer Mark Bailey captured everyone who took the stage last night, along with images of the stage setting and wall.

Here is a link to Mark's Flickr page:

http://flickr.com/photos/9304074@N05/

You will also find a section for the initial Reading for Filth season, Verbal Abuse at Rapture, Night of 1000 Stevies and other Rapture-related items.

I will post more words on the evening for all who were not able to attend in a physical sense. It is still all a bit surreal to write about.

Dean at Reading for Filth, Season One:

And...

And one more...

The first of a few forthcoming Times articles:

A Fond And Boisterous Memorial...

To everyone posting photos and articles: Thanks - i lost all my Dean mementos, writings, and music in a house fire a while back. I especially love joe's snapshots of dean reading at the Filth series. Watching Dean perform always left me starstruck, but our heart-to-heart conversations were those of loving friends. Seeing pics of him sharing his literary and peculiar genius is moving, since I never saw Dean reach that level of expression in the flesh. And I so wish I had, being a wordperson myself... love to all of you.

I was contacted yesterday by the boyfriend of the other boy who died 4 days earlier. He is being called Jordan in the press but he went by the name of Jeremy.
I know this topic is about Dean but it was a double tragedy.
We didn't know Jeremy but our hearts go out to his boyfriend and his family & friends as well.

Special Note to Dale aka Dominick!

I want to thank you for posting all those gorgeous and *scurrilous* insider details (on page 5 of this thread) all about Dean-the-Master-Red, Dean-the-Escort...
As I said before, I was only getting to know Dean-the-Writer, as a major, major talent... and "Angel Stern" was also looking forward to knowing "Master Dean."

To know he bloodie CARED about his johns like that... that he gave his all in session, that he considered at times 'not charging.' From my experience for 20+ years in Manhattan as a Domme and Madam, I can say this is a rare kind of soul. Too many people in the sex business deserve the bad reputation we mostly have!
But there ARE those pros who stick by their clients, through the years, as friends and intimates. Somewhere along the line Dean must have realized that a good way to weather the trials of 'the business' is to find compassion for your clients, messed up and hung up as they might be. When you give them your kindness, you get so much more back than money.

That one of his johns thought to call him, and ask for his care and company ... if that WAS his motivation, and let's say it was... and that Dean didn't say "Ick! What do I care about that trick!" shows how much heart the guy had.

I've read a few posts/comments on other sites about Dean, and some people just want to dismiss him as a no-talent escort. And these are GAY people. It's about time that sex workers are respected and given their rightful place in the gay world AND the straight... as psychologists and priests/priestesses and healers.

It's ironic, sad and tragic, that that impulse took him to the apartment of a sick puppy, a possible monster. I just hope whatever transprred WAS an accident... though
the case is starting to read like a Law & Order Special Victim Units puzzle.

1980's at the dirty sleezy sexy Metropolitan porn palace on 14th St. I saw Dean Johnson in the balcony. I was wearing my Guardian Angel drag of a red beret with a T-shirt, levis and hightop sneakers. Dean sat down in one of the movie seats with his long legs spread wide. I think he had on light colored pants. Any way I was nervous about approaching him as one never knows what kind of reaction you will get in these places. But I knelt down between those legs and together we took out his big dick and I proceeded to give him a very deep and through suck job, jerking my own cock until we both came.
And thats my memory of Dean Johnson may he rest in peace.

good times.

Hi S'tan (and all FOD's). Thanks for the love. Dean was really excited to contribute to Verbal Abuse. Sadly, his shoulder injury kept him from writing more of late.
I'm totally with you on the gay on gay ignorance. I dont want to drive traffic to Wonkette, so I won't post the link, but they did a snarky piece that took off on the page 6 item. Many of the comments are beautiful but a few suck. Below is my post:

Dean LOVED appearing on Page Six, and is getting a big kick out of the lurid headlines that outfit is generating. (Gotta love "Viagra Death Probe" too)
But Dean would be APPALLED that Wonkette calls him a 'six-foot-six bald-headed HIV-positive meth-using porn star' ! Dean was a HEROIN addict! Can I get a fact check? Meth is for the Nazi SS and Chelsea boys.
And BTW that business about the sex parties for a Saudi Millionaires was, like, ages ago.
Ask any decent NYC working boy and they will tell you that DC is a HUGE market for their services. Something about that power structure thingy you have there. There's nothing like being forced into panties and submitting to a dominant top after a long day of legislatin'...
Dean specialized in detailed fantasy scenarios of abuse, humiliation and domination, so naturally he had a lot of johns in high places in DC.
As for the dispective TROLLS on this thread (homopolitico- hey!), a little background on the Weenie's underground hit. Dean was at Area one night in '85 and this bore wouldn't stop yammering. Dean went home, flipped on the TV to the Mary Tyler Moore reruns, and wrote the song. Verse 2 & 3 are for toi:

Why are you talking to me?
Please leave immediately
Where is your dignity? Please get away from me
Why don't you choke on a fashion accessory?

I cannot remember your name and I couldn't care less
I could have more fun talking to the IRS
Why don't you take you take you problems to analysis?
Get your foot out of your mouth and suck on this-

...and you know how it ends. Mwaa

The man Dean went to visit is a gay man with a disabling disease. He was someone Dean cared about and talked to me about. He's on a ALOT of meds- morphine and other drugs. He has a neurotransmitter for pain management. My most charitable assessment of the situation is that he was SO impaired that he used REALLY POOR judgement in inviting Jordan Cronkin to stay with him, and WORSE judgement in giving Dean (and possibly Jordan) his meds. I suspect his meds had a bad interaction with Dean's meds.
My darkest assessment is his disability left him feeling powerless and he sought to control his visitors with his meds.

Thank you Dominick for a little more insight on the situation. I figured if Dean was REALLY throwing wild sex parties in DC for rich saudis there would have AT LEAST been a FLYER involved!

Thanks Dale aka Dominick. For everything you're doing and everything you've done since this fell on our heads. Ditto Mr. Joe. And a few more of you. It's so good to know he was hanging out with the right people.

Hi Fam - here is the "Daytime Dean" I knew getting a quick refresher in between jaunts to the Meat Rack. I love you Big Johnson!

We've been away from the Internet for a week now, and just found out about this. We're shocked and saddened.

R.I.P. Dean

Really gorgeous Dean pictures and links to all articles here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/anomalous/1479875170/in/photostream/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/anomalous/1479607224/in/photostream/


I dont know who the poster is, but thank you friend.
xo
v

I am so sad to see this. I am performing a Stevie Nicks set at OUToberfest next Sunday in a massive park downtown, under the trees, next to a gorgeous water fountain and will dedicate my last song, Beauty and the Beast, to this magical friend of us all.

Last night at PS 122 Hattie and Hapi hosted the first of two nights of Avant-Garde-a-Rama. Lucy Sexton ended the evening with a tribute to Dean...everyone in the show came out with bald caps, little black dresses and big sunglasses and sang Fuck You with Dean and the Weenies.

Dean is so alive this week.

It was incredible, very moving and very deadpan at the same time - so very Dean..

And Gina Varla Vitro's primal FUCK YOU at the end will haunt me for many days.

Dean's last performance, at Low Life @ Howl 9/8/07

DEAN! Wednesday was amazing. Harmony in extremes, sadness, loss, comedy, joy and communion. I really needed that night and all of you. I've registered on this site to post photos because I have so damn many.

It seems a common experience. I saw Mondo New York. i lived in Baltimore. A friend had the single with the awful cover. We got stoned and learned all the words. Dean became a hero to me...

FFWD: 97 or 98 when I found myself sitting across from him breaking bread.(omigodimsittingacrossfrom DEAN JOHSON!) I tabled the star struck thing and we kinda got each other right away.
Dale and Viva present. All four of us are Gemini's. spooky.

To the beach! Many summers, all of us working clubland and free to dominate a cheap and vacant cherry grove Mon Tues Wed. I had SO much fun with that big goofy sweet giant.

I wonder if I will ever know someone so OUT about themselves. He hid nothing. And made me feel safe to do the same. can't sum him up. beautiful friend.

I will miss burning sage and dancing naked under a full moon with him.
I will miss that the only thing black he had to wear to the black party was a pair of flood water old black sweat pants.

We both loved the song 'feeling stronger everyday' by Chicago. One HOT summer day on the LIE returning to the city in my tin can toyota with 180,000 miles on it, no ac, no radio, we sang the whole song in its entirety at the top of our lungs. he also sang rhiannon which i dont know the words to.

Today I drove to the beach alone and listened to the whole recent MAFIA cd and then listened to just the track coco chanel 3x in a row. The last time, as it ended, i switched over to the radio and on cue 'feeling stronger' began and I was visited by the angel from planet muff and I just cried my fucking face out.

Dean, my love for you is indelible. Knowing you was (is) the most amazing gift.

This photo was taken by Dean's friend John Grauwiler...

From c1950sboy on http://www.yehoodi.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?p=888044&si...ea2e9b3250591cb27e4c


Rapture Cafe was packed to the rafters last night for a spectacular
memorial to Dean Johnson as reports of his suspicious death are
finally beginning to appear in the Wash. D.C. and New York media.
Sure was great to see how many people loved and respected him. M C Hattie Hathaway had to break up the tributes into several shows, so many people wanted to speak, so I only stood through one round inside and then went out on the equally mobbed sidewalk to reminisce with friends. Michael ("The Hours") Cunningham was there, gay super-poet Bobby Miller came all the way from Cape Cod, and if you had the current issue (Oct.) of OUT Magazine in your hand, you could have checked off many of the faces in its "Creratures of the Night" photo splash. I thought I saw Linda Simpson squeeze by me, Raven-O across the room, Thomas Onoratio in tears on the sidewalk, super-promoters
Chi Chi Valenti and Johnny Dynell who hosted Dean's last performance at their HOWL Festival just two weeks ago- Chi Chi was so sad she could barely talk and if you know Chi Chi... Lady Bunny in black teddy, huge hair and (of course) black veil...
Promoter and Rapture owner Joe Birdsong read an hilarious short story published a while back re. how he and Dean had thrown a wild dance party and the go-go boys had failed to show up. Dean then pumped joe full of booze and Viagra and said, "Guess we'll have to do it ourselves!" Sorry, can't print the rest of the details here! But the best tribute I caught inside was Michael Musto reading an interview he had done with Dean 20 years ago. Between Dean's wit, Michael's writing and Michael's ad-libs, we were all howling and cheering. If you gotto go, leaving joy behind is definately the way to be remembered. We love you Dean, and so many of us miss you so very much!

Yes...Dean is cackling hysterically at all the buzz.

From queerty.com:

No. 2 Danny C says:

My Favorite Quote:
Sung , not spoken

"I would rather stay home all night
Than pay the cover at Slimelight!"
Dean Johnson
Posted: Oct 4, 2007 at 5:22 pm

Dean most likely would chastise me for not charging a cover for his own tribute the other night; when I worked the door for XXX some holiday weekend a million years ago, we taxi'd back to my place from the Hole (3 blocks, mind you) to stash the cash at least 5 times! At the beginning of the next morning, we made one last trip, pulled the plastic bin full of money out from under my bed (okay, it was around six grand) and threw it up in the air, giddy, shrieking, "We're rich! We're rich!" He started recording the Velvet Mafia album soon after.

In the words of Cultural Archivist Hattie Hathaway to the Times journalist, "Hon, the sex industry has always supported the arts!"

One more outrageous headline that Dean is living for:

Death By Boner?
Coppers Searching Below The Belt

Did a hard on kill Dean Johnson?

Authorities are investigating whether or not the New York nightlife staple died after mixing erection enhancers with anti-depressants and other drugs.

Cops want to know if a bad reaction to Viagra or Cialis could be behind the mysterious death of a New York gay-club legend who died in a Washington, D.C., apartment last month, a pal said.

Dean Johnson - the second man in several days to die in the apartment - may have had a bad reaction by mixing the erection-enhancing pill with other drugs or medication, according to pal Dale Corvino.

Corvino said Johnson traveled to D.C. to comfort an acquaintance, Steven Saleh, whose friend died in his apartment just days earlier...

If we were the coppers, we'd be looking less at erections and more at Saleh. Two bodies in a week? That's not a hard one...



Please know, I post these in honor of Dean's humourous medicine; he laughed so heartily at so many things attributed to him. I realize some of his long-lost friends and acquaintances are coming here to pay tribute in shock and sadness; as do I. His sense of humor, remember, would cut through ALL of this remembrance and shrouded mystery. He's still living for all of this.

Okay...lastly for this sleepless night:

Kudos, Daddy, for ackowledging the other victim in this scene, Jeremy Conklin. His boyfriend, John, speaks so fondly of him...and I feel we should all take a moment to acknowledge another victim in this mess. John will post details of Jeremy's Provincetown memorial on his myspace page:

http://myspace.com/livefan81

When you have a face to the name it becomes real.
Unfortunately.

John (left) and Jeremy (right).

all 6 of us...

Thats Dale and Wyatt. Wyatt loved Dean....

To say that I am crushed by Dean's passing is an understatement. It's like losing Warhol. Sprouse. Now Johnson. I met Dean when I was 17 and doing fashion shows at Danceteria. He had just finished a perfomance, scoped me out and asked me on a date. We went for chinese then headed to my apartment where we vacuumed up copius ammounts of shitty blow, attempted a make out session and then found ourselves in the typical abyss of coke dick. Dean suddenly said, "you wanna be a one time trick or friends forever?" I chose the latter and Dean and I began a visual colloboration that lasted 2 decades. He modeled for me in countles downtown rags and was the main model for me my fashion line Dom Casual. He never stopped inspiring me, making me laugh, or reading my ass and putting me into places where i wouldn't hurt myself so much. I loved him dearly. When I moved to San FranDisco in 96, i pretty much cut myself off the NYC club scene and rarely if ever venture back into it, even now that i'm living back in NYC. The end result of this was losing touch with so many of the people that had inspired, influenced and taken me under their wings. This was especially true with dean, although I would occassionally come across him on horned up adventures at his XXX and Hustler parties. recently I had begun to run into him at the legendary salon of adam & Leslie and it was a chance to catch up and remember old times. He was so excited about his recent reading series at Rapture and even inspired me to polish off my old soul and get back into doing some spoken word again. As I write this I'm crying, but the tears are mixtures of sadness & joy. Sad because I won't see dean again, joy because he was such a major presence in my life that I will never forget him. No-one will. Everything he stood for only becomes more important and his image will only become more iconic, a true classic of queer punk rock super fagdom realized by a genius who sadly is now getting his due. I miss you Dean and I will always love you. Thanks for being in my life.

And from the New York Blade:

Dean Johnson, Downtown Icon, Rocker, Dies

So very sad, may Dean RIP,, Dean is dancing with the Angels,, Angels in boxer shorts.

I didn't know Dean personally but did see him perform and many times I saw him on the street,, one could not but recognize Dean when he walked down the street.

I've just been reading these pages, staring at Dean's myspace and watching countless youtube video's of his performances for days. I found some old emails he sent me with pictures from homocorps and some myspace messages we'd sent each other a while ago. The last message he sent me was filled with so much love. I hadn't seen Dean in a few months and I regret that. Anytime I would see him, it would always make my day. It's just another reminder that people dissapear, important people you think will always be there. I don't know why, but it didn't really hit me until a couple days ago that this is for real. I was just watching the video for "Fuck You" and I burst into tears.

Looking at the pictures he sent, I remember that sweet, brave man. I miss you dean. I wish this was all a big hoax.

There are some great recently posted youtube clips- tributes and also Dean and the Weenies' performances of "Attitude", "Bourgeois Boys", and "Little Andy" from Nelson Sullivan. Big thanks Nelson! I'm working on deciphering lyrics to all songs. I ESP. LOVE "Attitude", but it's the hardest to hear. It begins:

A gitchy gitchy gitchy gitchy, yea yea yea!
One day back in thirty b.c.
A moment seized Mark Anthony
He led his legions down the Nile
To give Cleopatra a smile-

Cleo said: drop dead!
I would rather kiss that snake instead
She said: Go tell Mark I'm not in the mood
Cleopatra had an attitude.
'
...and it goes on to verses about various people with attitude: 'a fierce queen named Marie Antoinette', Hitler, and Ronald Reagan. The rest of the vids are pretty clear but this is a tough one- anyone?

Here are the transcribed lyrics to Chicken. Dean's lyrics are awesome and as far as I know, there is no written record...

Chicken by Dean and the Weenies
Written by Dean Johnson

Jailbait! Hell-bent!
You ain't gonna wait for no age of consent
You're a teenager with the devil's mind
So get those tail feathers ready for pluckin' time-

Seventeen might be a little bit young
But he ain't too young to have a little bit of fun
When seventeen is ready willing and hung-
He's chicken!

I want chicken!
I want a skinny wing tasty thing
Get him while he's tender spring
Chicken!

I said baby!
You know you're really just a baby!
But the way you work your baby booty
Drives your daddy crazy!

He said: Baby?
Well yea, I may be just a baby-
But don't let my infancy cause you alarm,
I'll keep you happy as a fox on a poultry farm!

Seventeen might be a little bit young
But he ain't too young to have a little bit of fun
When seventeen is ready willing and hung
He's chicken!

I want chicken!
I want a skinny wing tasty thing
Get him while he's tender spring-
I got the barnyard fever!

Seventeen just might be jumpin' the gun
But he ain't too young to jump the gun
When seventeen is ready willing and hung-
He's chicken!

I want chicken!
I want a skinny wing tasty thing
Get him while he's tender spring
Chicken!

Frank Purdue
Ain't got nothin' on you!
Chicken! I want chicken!
I want a skinny wing tasty thing
Get him while he's tender spring

Chicken!

While I'm at it here's all of Fuck You- Dean knew how to read.

Fuck You by Dean and the Weenies
Written by Dean Johnson

Why are you staring at me?
When I look back at you I don't like what I see
Your lack of character shows, I hate your clothes-
And you've got something disgusting hanging out of your nose.

Why are you talking to me?
Please leave immediately
Where is your dignity? Please get away from me
Why don't you choke on a fashion accessory?

I cannot remember your name and I could not care less
I could have more fun talking to the IRS
Why don't you take you take your problems to analysis?
Get your foot out of your mouth and suck on this- Fuck you!

Everybody now-
Fuck the telephone company
Fuck national security
Fuck the prime interest rate
Fuck the Secretary of State
Fuck Union Carbide
Fuck Third World genocide
Fuck thermonuclear war
Fuck Mary Tyler Moore!
Fuck You!

So go tell it the judge, ˜cuz I don't care
You'd be cooler if you wore a Frigidaire
Get lost, eat shit, drop dead, go screw
We're in big trouble baby and the trouble is you!

Fuck You! Fuck!

I can't stop singing "pardon me while I go steppin' out to fire island with David Geffen"

I also loved his rhyme of wisconsin and big johnson.

sigh - i still can't believe its real.

Attitude
by Dean Johnson

A dishy, dishy, dishy dishy, yea yea yea!

One day back in thirty b.c.
A Roman named Mark Antony
led his legions down the Nile
To give Cleopatra a smile-

Cleo said: drop dead!
I would rather kiss a snake instead
She said: Go tell Mark I'm not in the mood
Cleopatra had an attitude

she had ceasar poppin,________ attitude

Back in the 18th centuy
The peasants of France were tres hungry
They went to Versailles to see what they could get
From a big queen, named Marie Antoinette

Louie's Lady, she didnt care
she was wearing a 7 course dinner in her hair
When the peasants cried, "We want food!"
Marie said, "Let them eat attitude!"

ooh waa,
She had ________,_________ attitude

Back in 1933
In the Weimar Republic of Germany
times were tough and people needed cash
along came an ex-con with a funny moustache

He was easy enough to ignore
but then he was elected chancellor
And a hundred million people died in WW2
Adolf Hitler had attitude

he had dirty nazi holacost-y attitude

Ouch!

Back in 1980, I couldn't see
much of a future for the moral majority
I giggled when the GOP went so far
as to nominate a movie star

So when Reagan ran for president, i didnt care
now the white house has matching silverware
and the peasants still cry out for food
'cause Ronald Reagan has attitude.

So don't be friendly, polite or fair
keep your nose up in the air
Be nasty, rotten, vicious and rude;
dish that attitude!

dish that attitude!

dishy, dishy, dishy, dishy, yea, yea, yea!

-------------------
A video was made for this song at The World by the people who did Fuck You for Mondo NY (at least partially due to the efforts of Keith @ Radical Records who produced the Chicken/Fuck You single). Back in the days when there was no cable in Manhattan, there was a music video UHF channel in NJ that played the video late on the weekends. I saw it twice as I recall. Supposably, it was also played on an MTV show called "closet classics".

Those were the daze...