Miss Margie (aka Margie Thorpe) takes her friend Lisa on a tour of the slums of the East Village and encounters many of her friends along the way in this true-life video shot by Nelson Sullivan in 1985.
Yes I was just searching for the words to describe it. Get on the train, with a token, no plans just a book in your jacket pocket and stay out there for 12 hours. Make friends, share ideas, exchange numbers, maybe call a friend with a quarter at a payphone and say "hey there's this festival at Bleeker Street. I'll meet you in front the the coffee shop in an hour". Now it's stupid apps and texts so we can all ignore each other and "like" each other's dumb pictures of their morning coffee or desert.
IDK, I think the purpose was only ever to document his own life for his and his friends purposes. Maybe a part of Nelson thought it'd be nice when Rupaul etc. became the stars he knew they'd be to have these films as a reminder. Unfortunately, I imagine many of his friends do not like these films purely because they are a painful reminder of so many lost loved ones like Nelson himself. So, I think if there is any kind of paranormal afterlife, I think Nelson would certainly be content in other people being able to understand the lives of the such loving, creative people, to be used as an education tool to remind us to be kind and never give up on ourselves, is more than noble. I certainly think it does and I've been finding a lot of comfort in them tbh.
@@92RedRevolver actually a few days before he died he quit his job at the music store to work on a cable show that featured all these lovely videos he shot. There is a documentary called Nelson Sullivan’s World of Wonder and they have a mock up of his show, where he talks about wanting to introduce the world to his friends and family and to also document the history of the time. I’ll link a video when i find it of the mock up.
@@92RedRevolver ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-mPbGEBYEk_Y.html So this is what he imagined his show to be. He wanted to show the world all the interesting folks here in NYC. It’s so interesting because he was so ahead of even cable. I think some folks find it painful, but rupaul looks back fondly at the time. There is a clip from a podcast where he talks about watching Nelson’s last video ever. It’s really cool to hear him talk about this time and how he went back to the house 5 ninth avenue after many years.
I love these two. Margie represents how free we were in the 80's..not alot of fear..fun rap and music..we had a blast..people were just different..a different world...best time of my life. Glad I was there.Wish I could go back. These films take me there. So glad u have these.
Me too. What an incredible time. It was such a struggle but every day was an adventure. So glad I got to experience NYC and the East Village in the 80’s. Pyramid was incredible. I walked through Tompkins nearly every day. Still waiting to see Boy Bar… or more of the incredible street art.
Oh, to be young and living in NYC in the 1980s!!!! In 1985 I was 23 years old and living in village. I saw some terrible urban poverty and homelessness then, not to mention the crack and AIDS epidemic that robbed me of so many people I loved. The area is now so much different than it was in 1985. The East Village and NYC on a whole are worlds apart from they way they were in the mid 1980s. WOW .... how could 1985 have been 35 years ago? Incredible to me!
it's so sad what has become of NYC... it had been so full of life, creativity, freedom and opportunity... now it's so inauthentic and blandly corporate.
@@jasonledyard404 I've been away for decades, BUT, may be returning for a job in October so, we'll see. It's been IONS since I lived there. When I left we danced ar Area, The Palladium and Lime light and drank after work beers at Uncle Charlies (I know, I'm like totally dating myself). I know the place is nothing like she was, for good and for bad, but can you explain to me WHY a dismal little studio way the hell out in Brooklyn cost alomst 3K per month. I mean WTF is that? I hope I'm not making a mistake.
I've watched quite a few of Nelson's wonderful videos but I think this is my favourite thus far. Miss Margie is absolutely delightful and I just love how they are bumping into so many of their friends on their stroll and how friendly everyone is. I remember that world :)
yep young people of today are assholes millennials are total fucking assholes they are always like how dare you talk to me as if i would ever talk to you in person no way just look me up on the plastic fake ass internet world cause i will shatter into a million pieces in the real world cause i have no substance lol
I am fascinated by Miss Margie! She seems like such a cool chick. I found her on facebook and she's a realtor in Atlanta and looks great. I messaged her a few times and she responded and told me Lisa and her spent New Years eve together. Makes me so happy that they are still friends.
Yes. She was very comfortable in front of the camera. You can see how stiff and unsure the others were compared to today's standards! This was the time period that the Gentrification took hold.
It’s so strange to see the same streets that I know well but in a completely different world to the one we live in now. Nelson’s videos are a real treasure. I go back to them every few years just to remind myself.
I feel embarrassed at how much of a crush I have when I watch these videos of Miss Margie. But moreso, it makes me feel a little silly for feeling an ache for an era of New York that I didnt get to experience when I lived there. The party was long over. Again, thanks for uploading these. I enjoy them very much.
Thank god for Nelson documenting what life was like in NYC in the 80s- I was there and his videos bring back some of the happiest days of my life- thank you Nelson!
It is amazing how none of them are bothered one bit by the total decay, yards of trash and utter deterioration at every corner. I remember dropping a friend of mine off on Ave B and E3rd st and it was a burned out building. I said where are you going? She said there's a club in the basement that;s how it was back then.
Wow, cannot believe the amount of people they run into that they know. Look at the packed full streets in NY now. It seems so care free back then. Everyone is so cordial and sweet to each other. If this is the “rebel” youth of the 80’s I am worried for this world of today.
I have seen a lot of Nelson's videos and this one I'm just now seeing, I must say this is one of my favorites. Everyone is just so happy and high on life, well and maybe other things LOL
I've been watching these vids for a few yrs, love them. Reminds me of a NYC that I roamed and loved. I was so young and constantly seeing bands. While I'm watching this, I was shocked to see the gals and Nelson run into their random friends and I spotted someone I used to work with! Louie! Lololol.
Wow, 85. I was 25 and just got married. Loved going to the city and cruising around Manhattan. People were just so relaxed compared to todays society. Oh and cell phones were not anatomically attached to our bodies.
Incredible. Cliche as it sounds, those were the days. Love Miss Margie! Love watching Margie & Lisa interact as female friends should; women these days are so in competition with each other.
Right. I even think about how my grandma and ppl that have past are walking around and living while this is playing. At that point in time they were living their lives
@@vikingsong2068 , it has the beauty of endless opportunities & vast possibilities to it... and the feeling of art and creation is everywhere... unlike now!
There was a fair share of doom and gloom in NYC during the 1980's, but people partied and danced and laughed and did their best to escape or ignore it. There were less technological distractions, laws and restrictions in the pre 9/11 world, and people were a lot more carefree and willing to interact with each other, converse and just hang out in general. The arts and music scenes in 80's NYC was bustling too, and the street culture was rich and authentic. Trust me though, it wasn't all sunshine and rainbows. Crack and dope, A.I.D.S., poverty & homelessness, violence , crime and grime were everywhere, and many people struggled and were swallowed up by the despair of the ghettos in the city.
7:53 its hard to believe that there were so many abandoned buildings and empty lots back then. It's the way I remember the neighborhood and the way it is now seems so foreign to me.
There was so much burned buildings because when this was filmed a lot of landlords were not making enough money from the apartments so they burned them on purpose to get the insurance money
Call me crazy I think this video is his best video and has a feeling of great movie the camera just absolutely loves her. The cuts are perfect this is some stuff.
Wow... I just found a link to a video clip of her just last year (2019) in Atlanta. I love how she speaks about "giving back to the community"! ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-6G_IxB7Zjzg.html
