Just Daisy! Daisy checks out the Just Chaos! opening at Bookmarc

Our pal, Daisy, who usually checks in once in a while with her Letters From London, happens to be in NYC this week. Last night she attended the opening of the Just Chaos! photo show at Bookmarc in the west village. Here's what she had to say:

Met lots of punk rockers last night - ahem… maybe I shouldn't have started with the word "MET". Did you read the reviews of the Gala at the Metropolitan Museum's annual fundraiser Costume Ball the other day?  Someone on TV actually asked Vivienne Westwood who she was wearing,  and they didn't mean her Bradley Manning jewellery.

I read about the Gala in the Costa Coffee lounge at Heathrow. They have free newspapers. The Times of London loved it: "Crowns are the new Tiara's," they wrote. The Daily Mail hated it (probably because Lady Diana is dead and couldn't be there).  

I am a bit confused about it all.  It's not like the designers were meant to re-create 1976, were they?
I thought Madonna's outfit with her signature crucifix on her bottom was trying hard, and please, someone, give Sarah Jessica Parker something to eat.

Bookmarc is a clean and bright corner bookshop owned by Marc Jacobs. Yes the fashion designer.  I am glad he has a bookshop.  He used to work for Louis Vuitton.  Now there are 200 Marc Jacob stores in 80 countries. This show was organised by Roberta Bayley who invited Punk Photographers:  Janette Beckman, Stephanie Chernikowski, Laura Levine, Julia Gorton, Eileen Polk, Marcia Resnick, Lee Black Childers, Danny Fields, Godlis, Bobby Grossman, Bob Gruen, Chris Stein and Joe Stevens, to put a few photos each in the store windows and amongst the punk rock literature inside.

Sofia Coppola tins of wine and Pelligrino were served.

Because I had been a little thrown by the torrential rain in the morning, but decided to visit the local thrift shop to see if they had anything interesting, $15 got me a pair of red tartan trousers.  Perfect!
I didn't see a pair of converse at the show but I did have a wonderful time - this included:

John Leyland & Andy Schwartz

Speaking with John Leyland (nee SPIN now NYT) about going to the punk show at the Met.  We both hoped the Gala was successful even if the punk exhibit fails. I saw Leee Black Childers (another Warhol Factory man) but we couldn't chat because he was being interviewed all evening pretty much.

Randy Haecker

I admired Laura Levine's photographic career and she told me how she organises events at her shop upstate called The Mystery Spot.

Randy Haecker told me he's working on a Clash Box Set (I forget how many discs but there are quite a lot).  He had a Marc Jacobs bag and when asked to show-and-tell he didn't produce a shirt or a tie, but a book, nicely wrapped, by photographer SHEILA ROCK.  Sheila just had a book launch in London.

I met a real-life ballgirl for the Phillies baseball team:  Ms. Ronnie Norpel.  She's even written a book called Baseball Karma & The Constitution Blues. 

Howie Pyro & Jahn Xavier

I met Howie Pyro who told me his punk rock flyer collection is still up in the Bowery Electric and will be for a few more weeks. 

I stood with Jahn Xavier who could name most of the people on the sidewalk from his youth - and I mean YOUTH.  He was 16 when he played bass for Richard Hell.. he named the CBGB's waitresses amongst others...

My Smoking Life

I met a Jewish-Norwegian man who had given up smoking three days ago.  WELL DONE.  I may have said, it's a bit of a mystery why we smoke, isn't it? And he produced a typed - on a TYPEWRITER - paper - why he liked smoking.

The Huff Post team lead by Mark Sax were on the sidewalk.

Handsome Dick Manitoba and Handsome son Jake were present. 

Handsome Jake & Handsome Dick

It was warm.  It got dark.  Godlis took a last look at the window before heading off to his neighbourhood.

Someone said, "I can't believe I'm nearly 60."

"You have such great skin."

Someone else said, "That's because we don't go out in daylight.  Rock and roll isn't a daylight thing".

I hopped the uptown train with a good friend.  We talked about Dylan, and people we knew, and how we are going to raise some funds of our own, without mentioning google, internet, like it was 1976.

See more photos of the event here.

From left: Julia Gorton, Laura Levine, Bob Gruen, Godlis, Stephanie Chernikowski, Bobby Grossman, Marcia Resnick, Roberta Bayley, and Leee Black Childers.