Legendary New York Dolls rocker David Johansen has died at age 75.
His stepdaughter Leah Hennessey confirmed the sad news, saying the punk icon had passed away Friday at his home on Staten Island.
The New York native revealed just last month that he was suffering from stage four cancer, a brain tumor and a broken back.
David Johansen, frontman of the New York Dolls. Getty Images
Transgressive punk rockers the New York Dolls exploded onto the scene in the early 1970s. Getty Images
Portrait of the New York Dolls. Getty ImagesOver the past few years, Johansen had been unable to perform due to his ailments.
Johansen began singing with the Vagabond Missionaries, a local band on Staten Island, in the 1960s. A decade later he joined the New York Dolls and their self-titled debut album was released in 1973.
The controversial record cover featured the five male band members clad in wigs, make-up and high heels.
Their music — described as “dirty, sleazy and loud” — in combination with their cross-dressing offended many and their debut album was deemed a commercial flop, failing to crack the Top 100 album sales charts.
Their follow-up record, 1974’s “Too Much Too Soon” performed even more poorly, only reaching 167 on the sales charts.
By 1976, the band went their separate ways and Johansen became a solo performer.
The rocker went on to open for The Who during their 1982 tour before he rebranded as lounge singer Buster Poindexter. As Poindexter, Johansen performed with the “Saturday Night Live” band.
Their hit song “Hot Hot Hot” made waves in the late 80s.
David Johansen photographed in London in 2006 Redferns
David Johansen, Cyrinda Foxe and friends attend Stevie Wonder’s party. Penske Media via Getty Images
Buster Poindexter during the musical performance of ‘Rockin’ Good Way’ on December 13, 1986. NBCUniversal via Getty ImagesJohansen also dipped his toe into the acting world.
He first portrayed the Ghost of Christmas Past in the 1988 comedy “Scrooged” alongside Bill Murray and Carol Kane.
The rocker also starred in 1989’s action-comedy “Let it Ride” and 1993’s “Mr. Nanny” with Hulk Hogan and Sherman Hemsley.
Johansen additionally appeared in the HBO drama “Oz” alongside Christopher Meloni, Dean Winters, Harold Perrineau and J. K. Simmons.
Meanwhile, in the decades since the 1970s, the New York Dolls had built up a cult following, and critics had come to reconsider their albums.
In retrospect, the iconoclastic band became emblematic of the grit and grime of the Big Apple in the 1970s, their punk songs synonymous with the chaos and societal breakdown of the decade.
Buster Poindexter during VH1’s Buster Poindexter’s Show at Universal Studios. FilmMagic, IncIn 2004, the band reunited, releasing three albums and embarking on a tour.
That same year, Johansen reflected on his career during an interview on “Fresh Air,” telling host Terry Gross: “When we started the Dolls… we were really such a gang, and it was like us against the world, and we were really trying to evolve music into something new, and it was, you know, very kind of almost militant to us.”
“Then over the years, you know, in the history books, like the ‘Rolling Stone Complete Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll’ or something, you look in the appendix and see where your name is and see what they say about you…. and (it) would always say, ‘They were trashy. They were flashy,'” Johansen continued.
Johansen is pictured in 2023. Deadline via Getty Images
Singer Buster Poindexter (David Johansen) performs at City Winery on February 19, 2016 . Getty ImagesReflecting on the negative headlines, he recalled, “‘They were drug addicts. They were drag queens.’ And that whole kind of trashy blah, blah, blah thing over the years kind of settled in my mind as, oh, yeah, that’s what it was, you know? And then by going back to it and deconstructing it, and then putting it back together again, I realized that, you know, it really is art.”
