Adventures of an Autograph Hound Part Deux
May 31st, 2012 by chocko
One of my favorite French street artists, Fafi made an appearance at The Hole Shop (312 Bowery) in New York last week for a signing of her new graphic novel from Rizzoli titled The Carmine Vault. There were also prints for sale, along with a limited edition tote bag for $25. Fafi signed and sketched for fans who were also treated to free drinks next door in the Hole Gallery. For future events at The Hole…theholenyc.com.
Gregg Allman was at a signing for his new book, an autobiography titled My Cross To Bear at Barnes & Noble in Union Square NYC last week. The blues (Muddy Waters In Effect) pumped through the speakers while the huge turnout got their books signed. Gregg only signed the book, fans with Allman Brothers albums and guitars got rejected at the table. The signing took place a day after it was announced that he was engaged to his 24-year-old girlfriend. Good luck to Mr. Allman and wifey #7!
Lloyd Kaufman of Troma Entertainment stopped by Forbidden Planet in NYC to sign the LIMITED EDITION BIG BOX VHS of The Toxic Avenger. No need to adjust your tracking…yup, VHS is back. This release is only limited to 300. All you tapeheads, grab ’em while you can! These ain’t cheap, at 30 bucks a pop. Save up that allowance money, kids! Mr. Kaufman, the president of Troma and the creator of The Toxic Avenger signed and talked with fans of the 1984 cult classic. He signed a copy for me along with a bunch of other Troma movies. He mentioned that a remake of Class of Nuke’Em High was being filmed this summer in the NY/NJ area. There is an open casting call, so if you think you got what it takes to be in a Troma film…check out their website for more info.
Micky Ward, a retired professional boxer from Lowell, Massachusetts, signed copies of his book A Warrior’s Heart at Bookends in Ridgewood, NJ. You may know him as being the main character in the 2010 movie based on his career, The Fighter starring Mark Wahlberg. To boxing fans, we’ll always remember the epic battles he had with Arturo Gatti in the boxing ring. Chocko brought the camera, but forgot the memory card! Thanks to Mr. C, not only did we get our books and DVD (bootleg?) signed but we also posed for pics in our best wannabe-boxer poses.
(photo of Micky Ward courtesy of Mr. C, all other photos by Chocko)
Tags: book signings, fafi, forbidden planet, gregg allman, lloud kaufman, micky ward, new york city, nyc, the toxic avenger, troma
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OFF! played The Bell House
May 31st, 2012 by chocko
OFF! played a last minute show with The Bronx at the Bell House in Brooklyn, NYC last night. It was a day after they played the Bowery Ballroom and the show was easy on the wallet…FREE! All you had to do was show up and pick up a wristband to get you in. Chocko had some time to kill, so wandering around Park Slope and shopping for some comic books was a no-brainer. Bergen Street Comics at 470 Bergen Street is a recommended spot if you’re in the area. Chocko bought some books including Ben Marra stuff (his art was hanging on the walls…cool!) and the new Super Crooks by Mark Millar and drawn by Leinil Yu. Millar and his crew recently made a trip to The Philippines to do a signing at The National Bookstore. Check out the story behind “The Milla in Manila” here.
10:30 p.m. rolled around. Keith Morris, the dreadlocked, insane lead singer of OFF! and a direct descendant of the legendary West Coast bands BLACK FLAG and CIRCLE JERKS, taped up the set lists and the rest of the band emerged from the back stage. The other band members of OFF! consists of Dimitri Coats (guitar), Steven McDonald (bass) and Mario Rubalcaba (drums), who’ve all been in other bands including Red Kross, Burning Brides and Rocket From The Crypt. Once the pleasantries were out of the way…it was down to business and blowing the roof off the place…old school L.A. punk style. Keith Morris yelled and screamed all night, stopping only to tell brief stories including one of his old friend Jeffrey Lee Pierce (The Gun Club) who tragically passed away in 1996.
OFF! songs are fast and furious…some clocking in at less than a minute. They played a lot of songs from their first four EP’s and it wasn’t until the eighth song in their set that they played a track off their new self titled album which is highly recommended. The new album delivers and is the musical equivalent of a roundhouse kick to the face. Brutal stuff. It looks like OFF! have a busy summer ahead of them…tons of shows in Europe, back in NYC and the East Coast in July and opening for the Red Hot Chili Peppers at The Staples Center in Los Angeles in August. The Bronx played after. I’m sure it rocked but Chocko needed to escape from New York and get back to the cave for some serious slumber.
SET LIST
Panic Attack
I Don’t Belong
Borrow And Bomb
Poison City
Now I’m Pissed
Jeffrey Lee Pierce
Blast
Feelings Are Meant To Be Hurt
Wrong
King Kong Brigade
I Got News For You
Vaporized
Crawl
Rat Trap
Wiped Out
Peace In Hermosa
Cracked
Black Thoughts
Darkness
Upside Down
Tags: black flag, brooklyn, circle jerks, keith morris, new york city, nyc, off!, punk, show, the bell house
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Throwback Thursdays: Planet Chocko Issue 3 – Fall/Winter 1997
May 30th, 2012 by Mr. C
Let’s take this muthership back – way back to the fall of 1997 to issue 3 of Planet Chocko when we chit chatted with our favorite live action anime girl – APOLLO SMILE. By the way, Apollo Smile can sing, dance, and kick your ass, too! And not necessarily in that order! We also had the privilege to talk to one of America’s finest in the KiNg of SlEaZe realm with filming/producing B-Movies, gore, exploitation, & sexploitation flicks of the low fi variety – DAVID FRIEDMAN (R.I.P.)
Chocko also shared some of his rad photos of Jerry Only from The Misfits (Misfits/Sick of It All show at Birch Hill in Old Bridge,NJ), Bruce Dickinson (Iron Maiden) + Geezer (Black Sabbath) from their Coney Island High Show on St. Marks Place – October 1, 1997!
Please enjoy the artwork on the front/back zine covers by our very own caveboy resident – Mr. Chocko! Now sit back – smoke a bone, roll up a crepe with nutella & bananas, eat a bloody rare steak, or just enjoy your vegan treats as we flashback to some repugnant writeups – planet chocko style! Please secure the safety of all women, senior citizens, and children!
Enjoy your day – freaks, ghouls, & fiends!!
Tags: apollo smile, david friedman, planet chocko issue 3, throwback thursdays
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east village and lower east side street art + graffiti
May 26th, 2012 by chocko
Chocko took the photos above at Second Ave. and Houston St. in NYC. Beware of the gaping hellmouth the size of Illinois behind the fence.
This Eviar piece is near the old Mars Bar location on 1st St. and 2nd Ave.
Music Machine by Sonni is located at Artist Alley behind the original location of the legendary CBGB. Sonni got his start painting murals in Buenos Aires, Argentina but now NYC is home base for this talented artist. Check out Music Machine located at Extra Place and E 1 st.
Here are some shots of the Centre-Fuge public art project located on East 1st St. between First and Second Avenue. The trailer will be home to different murals for the next couple of months. Nice job on the Beastie Boys tribute mural by Danielle Mastrion. R.I.P. Adam “MCA” Yauch.
Tags: art, east village, graffiti, l.e.s., lower east side, new york city, nyc, street art
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The Planet Chocko Zine skeletons — October & November 1997
May 25th, 2012 by Mr. C
About once a week or maybe even more – depending on if we have to run the TPS reports at the Office Space or shrink wrap the pallets in the warehouse, we’re gonna drop a few Kaity Tong updates from our dusty & crusty planet chocko vaults. This week Chocko gave us the 411 on Chiller Theatre from October 1997 in Secaucus, NJ and also his 3 hour wait outside of Tower Records on 4th & Broadway on a cold, cold November 25th, 1997 night – waiting for THE RAMONES! Without further adieu – Hey Ho – Let’s Go!
Tags: chiller theatre 1997, planet chocko zine skeletons, the ramones, tower records
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KILLER SWAG: Posters from After Dark Action!
May 25th, 2012 by Mr. C
I just wanted to drop a big AFTER DARK ACTION elbow and HI-FIVE to the guys and gals at After Dark Films for sending us some killer promotional posters signed by the cast members of the recently released films including sigs from Cung Le from DRAGON EYES, the beautiful – Yvette Yates from EL GRINGO, Devon Sawa & Wes Chatham from the PHILLY KID, Elisabeth Röhm & Antonio Negret (Director) from TRANSIT, and a signature from STASH HOUSE that I couldn’t quite make out, but I KNOW it’s not Dolph Lundgren – darn! Now I’m on a mad hunt to get Jean Cleade Van Damme, Scott Adkins, Christian Slater, & Dolph Lundgren’s autograph to complete my collection!
After Dark Action (After Dark Films + Silver Pictures) released these 5 exclusive action packed movies on May 11th which played at select theatres. After Dark usually specializes in horror films but they took a swan dive into the action world! Please continue to make martial arts and action films – AFTER DARK FILMS! You can catch DRAGON EYES, EL GRINGO, PHILLY KID, TRANSIT, and STASH HOUSE on video on demand such as Amazon or iTunes as well as on DVD soon! I watched 3 out of the 5 so far (Dragon Eyes, Stash House, & El Gringo). Philly Kid & Transit – I see you!
Tags: after dark action, after dark films, posters
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REEWIND: The 43rd Chamber
May 25th, 2012 by Mr. C
Just came about some old flyers from one of our favorite kung fu video stores (VHS format) from the late 1980’s and 1990’s on 43rd street not too far from the Port Authority Bus Terminal in NYC – The one and only – THE 43rd CHAMBER. They had an awesome stock of classic kung fu movies – Shaw Brothers and modern HK action as well. The 43rd Chamber also stocked instructional martial art videos. I remembered buying the Benny “The Jet” Urquidez kickboxing set which I still have in the planet chocko vaults. The 43rd’s poster collection was very extensive to boot. The awesome thing that I remembered about this shop was that they allowed you to preview the film on VHS before buying. The guys behind the counter had a quick nack for fast forwarding right to the extraordinary fight scenes while all the customers started to chat and revel about the movie! “Damn – Lo Lieh’s footwork was amazing!” It definitely was the place to be for the kung fu movie fanboy!
I don’t remember exactly when they closed their doors but I think it was shortly after the triple XXX cleanup and the Disney invasion of Times Square. Of course, the prominence of DVD’s and the internet also led to their demise. There were plenty of other Hell’s Kitchen video stores that stocked kung fu movie gems A LA – ahem – cough, cough – the XXX video-peep show joints but the people frequenting those mutha’s weren’t quite the same as the raggamuffins at the 43rd! Hey – Pee Wee Herman – how the hell are you?
Tags: 43rd chamber, nyc, vhs, video stores
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The Great GoogaMooga 2012
May 24th, 2012 by chocko
The Great GoogaMooga (An Amusement Park of Food & Drink) weekend happened last week in Brooklyn’s Prospect Park. Shout out to Joey Teacups for hooking me up with a ticket for Saturday! Yeah, I know you’ve all heard about the “disaster” that was Googa…spotty cellphone service, waiting on a line for 45 minutes for a bite to eat or for Googamoola, the preferred form of payment at the Beer and Wine Pavillions. Oh no! Would you like some cheese with that whine? This is probably coming from the same folks that will wait on a line for the same amount of time for a Double Shack and fries. Yes, there were plenty of lines, but nobody starved at the FREE event and there were lots of great bands and activities to keep us entertained and distracted from the rumbly in the tumbly. My only beef was trying to get into the Extra Mooga section of the festival, but apparently that V.I.P. Wonderland was only inclusive to the people crazy enough to fork over $250 for the weekend. They all got their tickets refunded due to the lack of heaping plates of food they were promised. Those of us in the lower ranks of the Mooga caste system stayed in the freebie areas where the bands were playing. I caught most of the Holy Ghost! set. Synth melodies and dance music heavy on the hooks got most of the crowd shaking and baking.
A view from inside the Wine Tasting Pavilion. Lots of Sommeliers and Wineries represented. Gitoff…definitely not the scene for the raggedy looking Chocko who was outta there faster than you can say “Pinot Noir.”
This is more like it…and no need for quarters at these machines! I played free games of Ms. Pacman and Burger Time ’til I got dizzy! I also picked up a lot of free bubble gum from the Orbit girls walking around. Score!
There were a lotta hot chicitas in the park lounging out on blankets and noshing and munching. “Hey Boo-Boo what’s in the picnic basket”?
The Urbarn featured watermelon sculptures (nice melons!) and a Seed Bomb booth brought to you by Just Food, an organization that “connects communities and local farmers with the resources and support they need to make fresh, locally grown food accessible to all New Yorkers.” Hooray!
Chocko caught a couple songs by Unchained, a Van Halen (David Lee Roth era) cover band. They ruled! Next time they’re playing, I’m there. Pictured above is Bear Hands at the Hamageddon Stage where the crowd worked off the pounds in the hipster-punk mosh pit. People were walking around with plates of bacon. Chocko got inspired and went to the Porchetta booth for a $7 moist, and tasty, boneless pork roast sandwich. It was pretty small for the hefty price and I housed it in about 3 bites.
The crowning jewel of the carnivore friendly (sorry vegans!) Hamageddon area was the “This Lil Piggy” steel sculpture which featured a whole pig getting roasted and toasted. If that wasn’t enough…flames shot out of that sucker too. It was a sight to behold! Props to the sculptor Charlie Smith and Crew at Sparseland Studios from Atlanta, Georgia.
My adventure ended with some songs by an amazing hip hop band out of Philly, the Roots. Black Thought was cold crushin’ on the microphone, Questlove on the drums is always a sight to see and a pleasure to the eardrums. The rest of the band was super hyped, hopping and running all over the stage. They started out the gates with their version of a Slick Rick song, “La Di Da Di” and dedicated the song to the late, great Godfather of Go-Go, Chuck Brown. They performed some of Kool and The Gang’s “Jungle Boogie” (check out the video below!) and some of the hits including “You Got Me.” Adios and see you next year, GoogaMooga!
Tags: 2012, bear hands, brooklyn, googa, hamagegddon, mooga, prospect park, the great googamooga, the roots
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Capilano Suspension Bridge in Vancouver
May 22nd, 2012 by Mr. C
While still on the pedestrian bridge tip after recently visiting the Walkway over the Hudson in New York State, we figured we might as well add some photos of a more death defying and cooler bridge that the Planet Chocko freaks have quivered across in February of 2009 while in Vancouver for a Broken Social Scene and Tegan & Sara concert at the Orpheum. Here she is – the famous Capilano Suspension Bridge originally built in 1889 which stretches 450 feet across the Capilano River! There were also some very neat smaller suspension bridges that we crossed over from tree-top to tree-top!
(All photos by Planet Chocko)
Tags: capilano suspension bridge, planet chocko, vancouver
Posted in mr. c, photos, travel | Comments (0)
Walkway over the Hudson
May 21st, 2012 by Mr. C
The Walkway over the Hudson is a 1.28 mile pedestrian bridge that crosses over the Hudson River from Poughkeepsie to Highland, NY. This bridge was converted from an abandoned railroad crossing over to this pedestrian bikeway-walkway-Historic Park which opened in October of 2009. The smooth walk over the Hudson is not overly exciting nor challenging, however the breathtaking scenic views of the Hudson Valley from the bridge offers a nice slice of serenity with sights of power boats roaring up the river leaving some evidence of ripples in the water that lay beneath her. Along the shorelines of both sides of the river are railroad tracks running freight trains on the Highland side while Metro-North runs on the Poughkeepsie side. There is a Metro-North stop that is walking distance from the Walkway over the Hudson. The car ride over to Highland, NY from Northern NJ (about 60 miles away) was very scenic carving through mountains going past Woodbury, West Point, and Newburgh, NY.
Bicycles and dogs are welcomed on the Walkway as well but be sure to pickup after pooch!
Highland Entrance
87 Haviland Road
Highland, NY 12528
Poughkeepsie Entrance
61 Parker Avenue
Poughkeepsie, NY 12601
Tags: bridges, new york, planet chocko, walkway over the hudson
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CHILLER THEATRE April 2012
May 17th, 2012 by chocko
Going to Chiller Theatre is a tradition here at Planet Chocko. It is the place to be for horror and sci-fi enthusiasts, b-movie fans, and collectors of the macabre. Chiller happens twice a year in Parsippany, New Jersey. Mr. C and Chocko stopped by the Spring Extravaganza last April to see some of our favorite people of the television and movie screen. Some of the many highlights: Seeing Erika Eleniak (The Playboy mags with her in them hold a special place in my heart!), chatting with Al Leong (more on that here), running into people in costume (what’s up with that clown rapist?) and shopping for movies with Mr. C. I think we had a collective flashback of rummaging through the shelves of Kim’s on St. Mark’s and Tower Video. Chocko picked up 2 smutty gems: The Swinging Barmaids (1975) and Mama’s Dirty Girls (1974). Mr. C also picked up some exploitation treasures which I’m sure we’ll review somewhere down the road. I also ran into Matt of the NYC thrash punk band VERMEFÜG and the website Horror Boobs (bringing you the “best in breasts from all genre cinema”). I picked up the new gory, cult 80’s throwback MOLD!. It’s awesome and also available on VHS. I also picked up Matt’s brand new ‘zine titled Blood Video a very cool read, jam-packed with articles about VHS Culture, Cult Cinema and upcoming VHS-related events! I can’t wait for Issue Two. You can pick up a copy at Forbidden Planet in NYC. The next Chiller Theatre Expo will take place on October 26 – 28, 2012.
Zacherle “The Cool Ghoul”…The O.G. of Horror Hosts. Zach is Back.
Sgt. Slaughter applies the Cobra Clutch to a Philadelphia Flyers fan.
Greg “The Hammer” Valentine and to his right…The Enforcer!
another wrestling legend…Tito Santana. Arriba! There were so many wrestlers at Chiller, there should have been a battle royale in the lobby.
Kathy Coleman (Holly from Land of The Lost). I was expecting to see some pigtails! She signed my Land of The Lost lunchbox (a special shoutout to dbborroughs of Unseen Films who pointed out the lunchbox at the DVD store) and then we posed for a photo together by the Sleestak head…Chocko and Holly together at last, a dream come true!
Laurence R. Harvey of Human Centipede II. Ahhhh! Those eyes.
John Astin…best known for his role as Gomez Addams of the television series, The Addams Family (1964-66). He was also The Riddler in the 60’s Batman series after Frank Gorshin.
Believe It Or Not…Dean Cain is in this photo! Use your Superhuman vision.
Dwight Schultz (‘Howling Mad’ Murdoch) and Dirk Benedict (Templeton ‘Faceman’ Peck) of the 80’s tv series THE A-TEAM.
Linda Blair (The Exorcist). Check out those arms! Seriously, check out her website for WorldHeart Foundation, devoted to care and rescue of animals in the Los Angeles area. Damn, she got some baseball biceps.
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Tags: chiller theatre, cult cinema, horror movies, human centipede, linda blair, sgt. slaughter, zacherle, zacherley
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POLIÇA played Maxwell’s
May 15th, 2012 by chocko
The Minneapolis four piece Polica (pronounced with a ‘soft C’) played a SOLD OUT show last Sunday at Maxwell’s in Hoboken, New Jersey. The band consists of 2 drummers (Drew Christopherson and Ben Ivascu), a bass player (Chris Bierden) and the lead singer, Channy Leneagh who is beautiful and has an amazing and powerful voice. Her voice is perfect for the band’s electronic, trippy R&B music. The mesmerized Chocko and the rest of the super-psyched crowd couldn’t keep our eyes of her. She isn’t afraid of the spotlight, and danced all night while getting lost in the music which was written at a dark time when her recent marriage and relationship with her former band (Roma di Luna) were dissolving.
Polica played songs from their debut album Give You The Ghost, a Totally Gross National Product release. The album is a collection of melancholic tunes with Channy’s voice getting the auto-tune treatment in a hypnotizing whirl of synthesizers and bass. Thankfully, the voice effects were scaled back for the live performance at Maxwell’s. Some highlights of their set included “Leading To Death” which got the jersey crowd moving and “Lay Your Cards Out” (check out some videos below!) The band played a couple new songs not on the album, but hopefully they see the light of day on a future release. Polica is a band that hasn’t played together for a long time, but has generated a lot of hype recently, winning over crowds at SXSW and making their national television debut last month on “Late Night With Jimmy Fallon.” Polica most certainly backed up the hype and hopefully come back around the NYC area soon.
Tags: channy leneagh, hoboken, maxwells, new jersey, nj, polica, review, show
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