In fact, most of the more devoted of the devotees do in fact seem to be male. GG appeared on Jerry Springer once, and a young girl was on hand to explain why he was the most amazing thing to ever happen to her, but all Todd Phillips can find is a bunch of quite, well, geeky fellas who seem to love GG so much because he is doing what they all wish they were, but don't have the balls to.
Obviously these genitals are of the metaphorical variety. I don't mean to be rude GG but, honestly, I've saw nuns with bigger dicks.
Phillips seems to suggest that the reason for GG's popularity is simply because he speaks for an increasingly isolated and disenfranchised section of America's youth. The kind of kids who see smug, preening motherfuckers like Geraldo every day of their lives, and want nothing more to take a shit, chew it, and spit it into the bastard's face.
Geraldo in fact makes an appearance in the film, GG providing the focus of one of his shows. As the fans down front applaud their hero, Geraldo makes patronising comments about them, and about anyone who might even want to think seriously about what this maniac does for a living. You can see why these teenagers, these kids who are invited onto national television and then ridiculed, you can see how they might wanna punch a motherfucker in the jaw.
They don't though. Why? Fear, mostly. Something which GG Allin had seemingly little personal experience of, outside of his propensity to inflict it on others.
As a footnote to the film, after the credits, we get to see footage of GG's funeral. His open casket is wailed over by Mohican-spouting fans, his blackened, bloated skull sporting a pair of head phones. In death, as in life, his appearance is brutally uncompromising.
Phillips, who seems unsure what to think about it all, finishes by noting that he had kind of hoped GG would live up to his constant threat, and go out in some glorious fashion, something no one in the rock world could ignore. Instead, he sighs, "He died like a rock-star. In typical rock star fashion."
The Duke resides at Mondo Irlando
Article comments
1 - Tom Johnson
Somehow, Mr. Duke, you bring a beauty to all of this disgusting nonsense surrounding this most sour of sour people. Allin is most definitely the most intriguing musical character I've ever heard of, and I've never even heard a note of his music (not that it seems I'm missing out on much - the spectacle of him and his fans is really the only thing of interest here.) However, I think I might be better off simply imagining the horrible displays this man is capable of, thanks to your stunning descriptions. Actually seeing him in action, like when I bought Naked City's Leng T'che without realizing what the man strapped to a stake on the cover was really going through, might destroy any "enjoyment," for lack of a more fitting term, I might get out of it.
With Leng T'che, if you're curious, it turns out the cover photo was 100% real, and it was of a very unlucky man who was being sacrificed - alive - for some ritual or another in Asia many decades ago. His torturers doped him up with some serious meds and then proceeded to hack away at his limbs, all while the unlucky fellow gazed into the distance with unfocused eyes, apparently so doped up he was completely unaware of the horrors being committed upon him. Some photographer captured a moment where, limbless, he remained alive, a numb stump tied to a pole, as a crowd watched with apparently no sense of discomfort as his life dripped out of his hacked up extremities. It's easily the most disturbing thing I've ever seen, and I'm not sure if it's solely because of the actions taken upon this guy, or because he apparently willingly offered himself up for this sacrifice. Either way, the end is the same, and the glassy, lost, clueless look in his eyes haunts me to this day - long after I simply had to get rid of it, regardless of how rare it was. I can only handle so many things like that in my head.
2 - Aaron, Duke De Mondo
Tom, thank you for the kind words. You really aren't missing much with regards the fella's music. Really really poor derivitive punk rock.
Except for one by the name of Hanging Out With Jim which manages to be suprisingly catchy. I'm scared to even think about who Jim might be.
In Hated he also plays a couple of country numbers on an acoustic, believe it or not. Again, alarmingly tuneful.
I know exactly what you mean about that record cover. Whilst i haven't saw the item in question, there are plenty of things i've owned in my time, or got hold of, and later found out things about the origins that make one feel a bit dirty just having them in their possession, however rare they might be, as you say.
It's not really quite in the same league, but a similar example sort of, is Last House On The Left by Wes Craven, who in the accomponying documentary on the DVD reveals that one of the actresses in particular was genuinely terrified during one of the torture scenes. Makes it all the more unpleasant, and means its something you dont really want to spend a lot of time with again.
3 - Brady
GG as disgusting as he usually was, happened to be one of the last of a dying breed of truly "dangerous" artists. Now the merits of being dangerous can be argued into infinity, however the courage to do so within the vacuum of a super-repressed, double - standard bearing culture that titilates and then closes it's legs coyly is not. Sure he was fucked-up most of the time, sure he didn't really stand for anything other than pissing off the upper, middle and lower classes, and most importantly (and I do not say this glibly), sure he hurt and violated some people which is inexcusable. Ultimately he left us with a sad portrait; a man lost and out of touch with the focus to excorsize his demons in an artful fashion. This much can be said however: he was never boring and he never sold out.
4 - Aaron, Duke De Mondo
Brady, thanks for the comments! You pretty much voiced my own opinions there give or take a "motherfuck" or two. You're right - He never did sell out, and thereby retains his mystique and what not. Dying probably helped.
5 - Sean
Hanging out with Jim. That'd be Jim Beam, GG's favourite tipple.
6 - DogNose
What's amazing is the fact that gg seems to be growing more popular the longer that he's been dead! I've met many fans who never had the opportunity to see him perform, but nevertheless are fascinated (in some cases obsessed) with this guy. Even more interesting, unlike the fans portrayed in the film, most of the ones I've met are reasonably functional, productive members of society. (Then there's the rest, who are cleary whack-jobs that can barely communicate in a coherent way. These types are the most amusing to meet, however.)
Bite it, you scum!
7 - Aaron, Duke De Mondo
DogNose, thanks for the comments. It's true, GG has gained an even larger cult following in death than he did in life, a fact illustrated to some degree by my own fascination with the nutcase, as evidenced in this here article.
I guess it takes the whole dying malarky to make folks pay attention. All that shit flung and all he had to do was pop it.
Well, obviously if he hadn't flung the shit there'd be nothing for folks to get all fascinated by, but you know what i mean.
Thanks man
8 - Lord Simian Astronaut
'bout ye Duke!
glad to see an objective and above all honest review.ol'GG may have been a disgusting mess of a man but he LIVED it.The music may be shit but its REAL and makes the flaccid punk rock of MTV seem all the more......Safe.GG was a kind of genius,but all truly deranged people have a twist of brilliance in them.
Keep up the good work...and check out City Knee Deep in Dead Spides if you havent already.....truly hilarious.
Lord Simian Astronaut,
Enniskillen
9 - rfed
gg is sick!!!
fuck yhe gg allen!
10 - gavin roche
i'd rather watch gg than cliff richard.