A few things came to mind when I though about what I might encounter during a visit to the Bushwick headquarters of the outlaw motorcycle gang, Forbidden Ones. And none of them involved peace and harmony. For one, there’s the image of the old-timey cast iron cannon one member allegedly sold to an undercover NYPD officer a few years back (definitely the most hilarious of the items that led to a slew of criminal weapons trafficking charges brought against a number of the club’s members). And then there was the unmistakable visage of Tatu Jesus, an FO with a preference for blood-red contact lenses, heavy chains, and black leather.
It’s hard to explain until you see him, but Tatu looks exactly like a vampire biker. Naturally. Which makes sense, seeing that I was invited here by was Eric Rivas, the director of Vamp Bikers Trilogy. The Brooklyn-born-and-bred filmmaker was wrapping up part three, starring Michael Alig as a Club Kid zombie alongside “authentic, real outlaw bikers.” (The second installment, Vamp Bikers Dos, screens tonight, March 1, at 8:45 p.m., as part of Anthology Film Archives’ New Filmmakers series.) More →
Robert Goolrick’s most recent novel, The Fall of Princes, finds retired 1980s ad man Rooney writing his memoir after an era of American Psycho-style unrepentant debauchery and greed (but without the murdering). Join the author for a discussion with the undeniably fabulous author and actress Joan Juliet Buck. (She played Madame Elisabeth Brassart in Julie & Julia and wrote an essay about being intimidated by Nora Ephron during the audition, and she’s written for a bunch of fancy publications, including Vogue, W, and The New Yorker.) And Algonquin’s publisher Elisabeth Scharlatt will be there, too. Aug. 25, at 7 p.m. Strand Book Store, 828 Broadway (Noho).
TUESDAY