DOA: The Sex Pistols 1978 Tour and Film
Chapter Seven: Leaving Memphis! January 7, 1978
NARRATOR: In our last exciting episode, John Holmstrom arrived at the Memphis airport thanks to a friendly assist from a trio of pimps, who conveniently dropped him off just a mile away.
I walked into the airport hotel lobby, still shaken from my near-death experience with the pimpmobile (but happy to be alive). Before I could figure out what to do next, Lech Kowalski, the film director, recognized me! Right away! He and Rufus, the cameraman, asked me how I was doing, so I explained my situation. Lech invited me to a meal in the restaurant and gave me the lowdown on what was happening. (I was more than a bit curious why no one was at the Taliesyn Ballroom as Tom Forcade said they would, since it almost got me killed!)
While I scarfed down a sandwich, Lech and Rufus told me about their own fucked-up day. According to Lech, they were thrown out of the Taliesyn Ballroom by Noel Monk and his roadies and unable to get much footage. The film crew and Forcade were on Monk’s “Enemies List.” Malcolm McLaren, the Sex Pistols manager, was pretty much cut out of things by Noel Monk as well. Malcolm had set up the tour dates and some of his Glitterbest crew was with him (notably Boogie, the sound engineer and Sophie, an assistant), but Noel Monk was in control of all day-to-day operations. For instance, Monk was not cooperating with journalists, which wasn’t Malcolm’s style at all. Lech also warned me that Noel Monk hired several Vietnam vets/bikers as security/bodyguards for the tour, and they were not shy about using violence against anyone in their way. I didn’t think much about it at the time, since I figured I’d be going back to New York City soon.
Lech also revealed that the Pistols had gone on late because Sid disappeared after the show in Atlanta to find drugs. (He was dope sick throughout the tour.) A rumor spread that Forcade had kidnapped Sid, gave him heroin and had Lech filmed him shooting up, but this was to cover up Noel Monk’s inability to control the Sex Pistols. Obviously if that footage existed, someone would have seen it by now, right?
Not only that, but Lech claimed that earlier in the day Noel Monk and his goons visited Tom’s room, where he was meeting with Malcolm, and threatened him if he didn’t give up Sid Vicious to them. Forcade tried negotiating a deal with them when Sid appeared outside the window. The bodyguards left in a hurry, attacked Sid (who tried to defend himself by using his belt), and quickly subdued him. I’ve never been quite sure if this was all true but it could have been something Forcade told Lech—who knows? This entire tour was so surreal it was difficult to figure out what was true.
Some guy at a nearby table was eavesdropping on our conversation and wanted to tell Lech what he thought about the Sex Pistols, so Lech and Rufus sprang into action and filmed him badmouthing the band. I remember the guy saying: “They ain’t Sex Pistols, they’re more like Water Pistols!”
After a few minutes I was invited to visit photographer Don Snyder, who was hired to shoot stills for the movie. His room was down the hall, and it took Lech and Rufus several minutes to set up the scene. I held a light for Lech and Rufus as they filmed him as Snyder lay flat on his bed and whined and complained about everything from Warner Brothers security to the audiences to the impossible task of trying to document the tour. This guy was not into punk rock in any way, shape or form: He was famous for his documentation of the 1960s hippie scene and had the same, typical hatred against punk that many people from his generation felt. He did appreciate that the tour was the most interesting thing going on in the world at the time, though.
DON SNYDER’S Wikipedia page:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Don_Snyder
Don Snyder (from an interview in the PUNK Magazine DOA Filmbook):
“I flew to Memphis and arrived at the concert to walk into a barricade of police which always seems to be the case whenever anything important is happening. The police are always around when anything that is different or changed. Yeah, a few people were freaked out but you didn’t need shotguns. So I arrived in the midst of a storm and Kowalski embraced me and said, “Thank God you’re here.” I said, “What for, man? I’ve got no guns, nothing.” But I had some credentials because I’ve been doing difficult things for a long time.”
After filming the interview we decided to call it a night. I slept in Rufus and Lech’s room on a small cot, falling asleep quickly after the long day. Once I woke up I had a quick breakfast then went back to the hotel room to call the airline about replacing my ticket so I could go home. While I was on hold Rufus told me that Tom Forcade was in the parking lot and wanted to talk with me.
“What is he doing in the parking lot? Anyhow, can it wait until I get my ticket?” I asked.
“No, he wants to see you right now! You’d better go out there before he leaves! He’s in a white limousine.”
NEXT EPISODE: Meeting Forcade
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Thanks, Bruce. The story only gets weirder as we go on!
There is so much here that I’ve either forgotten or never knew, and it’s all as fascinating as it was at the time — maybe even more so. Keep these great stories coming.