Five stories above a New York alleyway, RuPaul climbs from roof to window to reach the "crumbling elegance" of an abandoned building for this dangerous photo shoot with photographer Liz Lizard in 1986. Video by Nelson Sullivan
@@ZairaL03 Nelson Sullivan: en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nelson_Sullivan. Randy Barbato and Fenton Bailey: en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_of_Wonder_(company).
foefproductions Yeah, exactly - this is the type of atmosphere that makes a lot of go, "wow, why weren't I there ..." - but really, this is type of life that cano be anybody's if they express their creativity and seek the company of others who do that too.
I continue to be completely charmed by Nelson's views of NYC in the 80's. It was as gritty and tough as reputed, but knowing that this group of artists (kids, really) were running around the Village, meeting each other and making the future brings a smile to my face and warms my heart. I wish I could go there and see them, run into them, and watch it happen in life. NY, while still a fab city, just isn't that city anymore and it makes me a little sad.
If I had a time machine, 80's New York would be my first stop. The atmosphere and vibe seemed unique, but I can't find words. Did you live in New York during those times? If so, please tell me what it was like. Thanks
Justin Hopkins New York at this time was so gritty. It's amazing how homogenized NY has became. I miss the little aspect of "Danger" when walking the streets! It's hard to explain, but NY was such a different place back then. You could still be an artist and poor and find a place to live in the village or the Bowery.... now.. huh... good luck. This time was the end of an era for NY before all the change. Makes me miss It!
Aaron Bandy there are different parts of new york city, 5 different boroughs. nelsons videos don't cover them all. there was always more affluent parts of the city and abandoned parts, like where they did this photo shoot
i remember this time. i was there. i miss new york like this. 70's 80's new york city was my home. hung out lower east side. the pyramid was my club. didn't realize how fortunate i was to be growing up in that place at that time.
I also love The Lowa The Pyramid was awesome bck in the day's. It's changed so much watching while still under quarentine due to THE CORONA/COVID-19 CHAOS 5/15/20
Really? It terrifies me loll I'm a kansan girl born and raised in big outdoor spaces...the darkness and claustrophobic essence to his videos freaks me out...
6:50 OMG !!!! That girl and RuPaul was jumping from window to window, spider-man style.. literally risking their life for some photos......I probably would have fainted
Yall do know that NELSON DIED AND HIS LAST VIDEO WAS In 1989 he died of a sudden heart attack on july 4th 1989 he died 3 days after he quit his full time job cause he got an offer to produce his videos on a cable show he was about to become famous !! its so so sad!!!
Sadly knowing what I know now about what it takes to become as famous as a few of the ppl in these vids (RuPaul especially) Nelsons sudden death seems so shady to me.. But I love his videos.
@@DinkLover69 do some research into what it takes to reach the level of fame RuPaul and Michael Alig reached after Nelsons death... Ya must be a boomer to be so dense...
in 1986, as a English 25 year old New York beatnik trapped in the body of a frustrated, small-town 10 year old girl in Northern England, a dedicated follower of street fashion, Madonna, 'Fame' and all things urban American, I dreamt of being part of the fabric of THIS world; a world I just KNEW was out there! Turns out I was right. Does it look like what I imagined I was missing in NYC? I think it does. Did I miss a party I wasn't old enough to be invited to? I think I just might have! Credit once again to Mr. Sullivan, who, instinctively, stays mostly silent and behind the lens for this one. It's like sneaking behind the scenes at a big theatre before a big, exciting production. I finally got my V.I.P. pass! Why isn't this precious archive material better known?
Sean Gallagher oh Sean I saw them in the East Village in the eighties. The poor blacks and Hispanics living uptown struggled to keephold on to their apts until greedy landlords developers where buying the properties in the early nineties and try turn black Harlem into white Harlem. we cant thank mayor Koch for this development Up In Harlem and in the East Village and elsewhere where he allowed 90% of the single room occupancy known as SROs to be condemned and not forced the slumlords to repair them so these these condemned properties War sold Pennies on the dollar too Greedy investors and Developers. and these developers paid for Koch's reelection campaign it's obvious
George Plagianos 😡 the only group of people I detest besides prejudiced ones are slum lords,scum of the earth,,adults and babies have died by huge numbers because the slumlords wouldn't,t supply basic human. Ne
Basic human rights,such as plumbing and black mould to rundown walls ans right down through overhead lighting.my family buried a baby girl on her first birthday and if I hadn't,t got out of the last place I was stuck in for 13 yrs,I,d be dead.i received a cabin from senior housing just in time though 2 doctors don,t think I,lever recover completely.i,m lucky I didn't,t die like my bird,and three kittens( mama cat survived and gained 4 pounds since) .well I never talk on this subject because I get triggered( or my buttons get pushed as we say) out of control.i apologize if it triggered anyone else but something's should not be kept quiet .
I'm addicted to these videos. Nelson really was way ahead of his time. Also I grew up in the 80s saddly not New York, in Edinburgh. Love seeing how things used to be....so sad that Nelson died when he did it was such a waste of life......I wonder what he would have thought of you tube and all the other millions of vloggers
i think I'mma start documenting my life. Ru is an inspiration to me seriously. He is the reason I started loving myself because back in the day I use to be a hot mess. I wanted to die and later in life I realized that life could be a lot worse. His soul is just so positive and I love him for that. Honestly I do.
I know it's been 2 years since you posted TaRon Thomas, but did you start documenting your life? I'm so happy that you were able to start loving yourself! Hopefully you'll see this and maybe you can share some of your videos! All the best
Fenton, Randy, and Ru have been friends for soooooo many years. These are the brains behind the global success of RPDR. This shows what loyalty in the business gets ya!
Oh my god this takes me back. In San Francisco we had art studios in warehouse that people lived in and the rent was 1 cent a square foot because they were empty and unused. There were scenes like this of Freaks, Artists and Queens all over the country. New York was the epicenter of All Queer Creative Movement. You kids missed out... making fashion out of used clothes and free boxing treasures.
Nelson did so many incredible and exciting things, but my favorite videos are the ones where he's just recording small gatherings like this. I love watching everyone interact with one another and listening to the way they spoke. These videos really are a time machine.
This is such a trip. I took a break from reading Ru's 1995 autobiography to watch some videos from the part of the book I'm at & there's a photo in there from This Day's shoot ! How wild is that
These videos are absolutely fucking amazing! I watched them till my phone died last night, then had dreams I was in the 80's partying with everyone from the videos 🥰
My heart was in my mouth the whole time I was watching this! You've gotta have some steady nerves to climb over that balcony-love Nelsons fly on the wall style. Ru's look here is now being channelled by drag artist Christeene, amazing how Nelsons videos are influencing a whole new generation of drag!
This is blisteringly raw entertainment on a historically uncompromising level. The flourishes of the old World Trade Center added another layer of authenticity. Nelson's videos, particularly with Ru Paul, should have its own room at The Museum Of The City Of New York...
Wow, there are a lot of people in this video that are now iconic in pop culture media: - James Siena is now a prolific abstract visual artist - Fenton and Randy have founded and run World of Wonder - and of course Ru Paul with her Drag Race show fame
BRAVO NELSON BRAVO! the camera work in this video is Amazing and thrilling,,,,,i have never been scared of heights until I watched this video. Nelson you blew my cover, you made squeal like a girl in fear! Nelsons camera work in Genious! I love Dick! The touch of color in the video, my sweet friend Dick Richards! thanks for this amazing journey back in time.
Wow these are taking me waaaay back! In Sydney I lived in buildings just like those .. they're mostly gone now :( So sad .. that's why I don't live there anymore .. the Sydney I knew & LOVED is gone. Thankgod (Nelson) for these videos. I'm so sad he didn't live to see these amazing artists grow & become the dream they wanted .. and HIS dreams. Ru as we all know is so gorgeous .l there is something about him when he's young ... he's so smooth & gentle & beautiful to look at .. which is the same now, but such innocence & brains. They really are a time gone by, & it saddens me. I'm not one to let go of the past very easily. So much freedom back then & you're young & you have either no fear or less fear anyway. Unless you had a "NO!"button that switched on every now & again is the only way any of us survived these times. Others pure luck or mix of both. I have to say, not very long in when Ru is doing his makeup there is a shot panned back where we see his whole body, on the stool leaning into the mirror .. those legs! SUCH an epic shot. I'm LIVING for these videos. I'm not sure why I'm only finding them now, perhaps it's a region thing, & they now are available to watch in Aust?? I just would have loved to talk with people as we were all as a collective watching this unfold. Love you Ru Ru ., and Nelson you are sorely missed my dear. xxx
Did anybody clock that Angels photo shoot on the 2nd season premiere on pose was on this same balcony? & her indoor shots were a recreation of the 2nd part to this video❤️❤️ Nelson hunny you’ve successful inspired a hit television show. RIP wish you were here to see this
Goodlies drag queens stared all the male up hacks lol from contouring, the dramatics brows setting make up with hair spray.. I just learned about that one 😉
I loved this video, and the ending with the 1986 late sunset. Brings back my own memories of that time in Europe. At that time I was being educated to be a fashion and portrait photographer in Copenhagen, Denmark. Thanks Nelson for sharing your work starring a young RuPaul.
Liz seems like such a lovely person. It's crazy how you could be an artist and just afford your own place back then. I definitely moved to NYC at the wrong time.
2:58 *Liz Lizard opens the door* "wow, that's a great beehive. I wonder how she does it..." 3:25 *Liz Lizard gives me a step by step tutorial* It's like she read my mind 30 years ago!!!!
Read about the death of NYC which begins just after Nelson's death. I love this project (although I seem to be late to the party), adore Nelson's Mr. Rodgers like narration in the latter years of his videos, and mourn the fact that this once greatest city in the world became nothing more than gigantic glass and steel, luxury buildings interspersed in the block after block of Starbucks, banks and drug stores that barely sell any pharmaceuticals. For an incredibly insightful read, Jeremiah Moss's "Vanishing New York" is THE authority on NYC's demise and the historical context of how NYC lost its soul.
Wow these videos are amazing!!! They are true historical documentaries!! THIS is the real true setting for "Rent"!!!!!! Thank you for creating and saving them and posting them!!
Just a millennial trans guy binging these vlogs before their time. I love his camera angles. This man is an artist. And I appreciate the creation of grandiose amongst Ru and the men and women in these videos even and especially when they didn’t have much to their names. It seems to romanticize life. The spirit of people like them lives on in true hipsters, obscure artistic people, young poor students etc. It’s still there. It feels a lot like the hipster kids in my college town.
When I watch this I just wonder how Nelson managed to get that huge camera over through the window... This is brilliant. A real time capsule. I feel like I'm there with them.
Thanks so much for posting this. I'm so happy to have been there during these colorful years. I was living on E 7th at ave D. I did some work on the exposed brick in Miss Liz flat. I think she is back here in Portland,OR Sean
I'm amazed how modern he seems to be dressed. Considering this is more then 30 years ago; his fashion does not appear outdated. Very strange. He was ahead of his times in many ways.
@TheMaidofMiddleEarth yep, it's definitely cyclical. Right now late 90s - early 2000s fashion is very in style. Heading back into 90s grunge in the next few years. It's cool.
this video is such potent inspiration. RuPaul is a golden example of how to shape your own reality. this video feels like my friends and i working together on our projects
Ya gotta respect the grind ; Nelson Sullivan, Ru Paul pulling it outta the mud...these videos of the people, the times and the landscape were just priceless!
Alphabet city use to be a dangerous place especially Avenue B C and D . Thanks to Nelson and his crew to document their life back then. We are there with them right now and we will be there together forever in the next life. God bless you all 🙏❤
NYC seemed like an interesting place to live then. Now, it's full of overpriced apartments, pretentious hipsters...and even more of that "got to be working to afford living here" feel. Glad that's not my scene...probably would have liked it during this era though. "I
Two of the club kids who make up a group called the Fashion Police lamented how the East village had changed so much. Calling it an evolution to 'mediocrity'
I love these videos. I am so glad that they were captured and are now available for people to watch. I can't imagine not having the internet and so being able to watch these amazing videos.
I absolutely loved this vlog, just out and about with each other enjoying themselves, interacting, not a care in the world! You hardly see that now, the only time people go out is if they have to, even children don’t go outside and play anymore it’s so sad.
Nelson gave us a brilliant time capsule we should all be very grateful for. Rest in paradise, he left his mark on this world in an awesome way. Dude was way ahead of his time.
