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Early Addition
Photo by Robert Kreizel
After the John Varvatos boutique officially opened its doors last weekend in the old CBGB space, activist Rebecca Moore held court on the sidewalk. This past Tuesday she sat outside the retail shop in protest with a sign that read: "One small loss of a music space, one large step for pants," and was joined by a few other supporters. Moore says her statement isn't about just one music space (CBGB):
"It's about Tonic closing, and Fez, Theater Club Nada and Charas...about Copacabana being forced from their space by the city using eminent domain. These are not abandoned dusty relics. These are places that still cater to strong and vibrant, burgeoning communities. They are being ousted by people creating a Disneyworld, expensive version of the real culture that was here."Well, except that at least one old punk rocker who played CBGBs is actually a Varvatos model now."It would be great to see Mr. Varvatos not just stepping in to save a building he deems a shrine, and using that environment to help sell his clothing -- but rather actively petitioning the city to save and recognize local cultural arts and community spaces that have a rightful place in these neighborhoods! Mr. Varvatos caters to a wealthy, male-dominated major-label mainstream rock world that has no claim on the CB's legacy whatsover."
As for Varvatos, he said earlier this week, "We're not trying to reinvent CBGB's. We're just trying to respect the past and let people have an opportunity to enjoy what was there. It sounds kind of hokey, but the walls kind of talk in that place."
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Wouldn't it be great if activists put their money where their mouths are? We would have a lot more places to see music.
as much as i agree with her general sentiments she's wasting her time. that battle was lost years ago. move on.
oh, punk has an address now.
guess that means it has a beergut and bills too - neighbors too loud, don't chain bikes to this fence, etc. etc.
Nothing is lost when you got molotov cocktails
She doesn't really look like the type that frequents the Copacabana.
Well, it's not really Varvatos's fault. Blame the BRC who owns the building, or Hilly.
Just for the record, it was Theater Con Nada, not Theater Club Nada.
The copacabana closing really sucks. columbus 72 is tiny plumm isn't much bigger, the only thing left is lq & cache. :(
CBGBs should have been landmarked.
While I agree that the protests may be futile, it's good to see that there is at least a small cadre of New Yorkers disgusted with what is happening to the city. I never thought I would miss the homeless and crackheads that used to populate the Bowery, but they were less offending to me than the ignorant, moneyed human abominations frequenting it today. It hurts to see Iggy Pop shill for this purveyor of overpriced clothing as well.
these are not artists who had dozens of billboard top 10 singles. they want to be comfortable in their dotage - fine. do what you need to do. get some cool clothes. it's not their fault that hilly was a terrible businessman (he was, the facts are there) or that he accrued an enormous rent bill or that the rents in the city were astronomical and BRC wanted a tenant who could pay. if iggy and rick nielsen want to do an ad for varvatos, so be it.
it is better to light a single candle than curse the darkness. i respect the protest.
the old astoria hotel and waldor hotels on 34th street should have been landmarked too. that way that ugly monstrosity called the empire state building, er i mean progress would have never been built.
while i agree to some extent that CB's was a great place, the owner perhaps should have taken some action when he had the chance to back in the 80's to buy the building. this is very similar to max's kansas city's closing (it's second closing in 1981.)
#11 - love the springsteen reference.
if i was in a band, i'd start putting my stickers on the front of that piece of shit store... and i'd get my friends to do the same...
I heart Rebecca Moore. More Moore!
Oh the irony! Moore's hipster T-shirt was probably made by Varvatos -- and she probably paid $500 for it.
While I also wish CB's could have stayed around, it was the owner's own fault for never really investing enough in the space and opting not to buy it when he had the opportunity.
Instead he signed licensing deals and opened a club in Vegas.
Can't really cry for the death of punk rock when the guy's cashing in on the legacy and not preserving the roots.
I once gave a girl a thorough exam right at the bar at CBs, so at least I have beautiful memories
Hilly never ran a good business - his rent went up and he didn't even know it, then hired lawyers and PR firms to try to prove that he didn't have to pay it because it had been lower historically. Basically, CBGB's was slowly getting priced out, but Hilly, God rest his soul, didn't help his own case much through years of mismanagement.
The City should have stepped in - artists should have stepped in - some billionaire should have stepped in - but no one did.
Now that CB's is gone - I'm glad it's in the hands of someone who at least acknowledges what it was and preserved some of what was there. Varvatos is a good guy - a cool guy - with good intentions. It's just too bad that the last guy to stand between CB's becoming a WaMu or Rite Aid was a retailer instead of a music promoter.
And, those memories are really what it was all about anyway, Phil McCracken 222!
LOL
I usually hate designer clothing but John Varvatos is really good! He's so much better than prada, dkny, calvin klein or any of that other crap.
It seems that 18 & 20 have met before...
Punk rock is dead, and CBGB's hadn't been any good for about 20 years. It's like mourning, say, the loss of the shoe shops on 8th St.
i'd rather have these kids protesting instead of panhandling.
What a beautiful shop! And such a nice addition to the neighborhood. Whatever it was that was there before, I bet their customers are so happy to be able to find such a nice selection of menswear! If those protesters would only just go inside and spend some of their wealth, I'm sure they would be thrilled with their new look!
- First of all - that is not ME in that t-shirt, as one post above seemed to think. That is an internet ad below the actual blogpost - with a model in it. Not sure how anyone could confuse that. And she is awfully pretty. Sadly, not me. I was wearing the second hand coat I have had for years, embellished with some red thread to try to give it new pizzazz. Hope no one rips off my design and starts selling it for $1600 bucks on the Bowery, though.
Yes, used jackets at that varvatos store cost $1600. (jaw drop. faint/thud.)
re: yes, it was theater con nada. In my exhaustion, I typed it wrong. Thanks for the eagle eyed proofreading and to Gothamists for even caring to post those comments in the first place. I typed those talking points up at 1 a.m. so it had many typos.
thanks for the people posting a thumbs up, who understand these issues and give props. we know that it is too late to stop what is going on but I think it is worth it to do actions to invite even just a few more people into the dialogue, as that is how I learned these ropes and raised my own awareness of social justice issues on the Lower East Side... It seems also that it is good to do these things, so that there is record for people in the future...
Nothing that isn't wealthy can pay these rents. Is that really "market forces" or wealthy landlords tipping the scales in such insane directions that it doesn't matter what the community wants to support?
I was glad to go out and will again. I was born here and my perspective on seeing certain changes impels me to go out.
Our musicians advocacy site is www.takeittothebridge.com and lower east side stuff will be on www.theloco.org if I can ever find enough time in the day to work on that website. for those who are game, who think that it is still worth speaking up and dialoguing on these issues, come and join the scraggly bunch.
viva la musica,
R. Moore
willets point should be the next punk epicenter given the whole form/function thingy...