The Andy Warhol Diaries

by Andy Warhol

  The raffle was a trip to Milan. Why would someone want to go to Milan?

  Gael and I spent the night talking about the magazine, and Robyn and I tried to get her to dish Bob, but she said she wouldn’t talk about her boss, she just said she goes to the other side of the room when he screams.

  Tuesday, September 18, 1979

  Forgot that Halston was on the Donahue Show so I missed it.

  Ronnie was working, getting ready for his two weeks off when he goes to California to visit Gigi.

  Wednesday, September 19, 1979

  Got up early because there was a big lunch down at the office, Brigid had invited Stanley Marcus from Neiman-Marcus. Cabbed to Union Square and walked to office (cab $3, kitchen supplies $125). The building had just finished painting the downstairs lobby. They made it Puerto Rican colors and you just hate to walk into it.

  Mr. Marcus was a funny little man. I was trying to sneak some cole slaw and he caught me eating. We were expecting Fred back from Europe, but he never arrived. Rupert came by. Curley came and took the umbrella I’d borrowed from the Heinzes a few nights ago back to them. Jack Heinz had called about it and said it was his favorite one.

  I told Carole Rogers at Interview to try to register the word Out as the title for a magazine, and she said the only way to register it is to actually do up a dummy of a magazine with that name. Because I want to start another newspaper—one that’s younger than Interview because Interview’s so established now. Dropped Rupert ($4) and got into black tie and went to pick up Suzie Frankfurt and Bob.

  We walked to the Pierre for the Gianni Versace fashion show. Gianni Versace was at our table, but not until after the show. And Carrie Donovan was there who always gave me my first jobs. André Leon Talley was next to me and he’s just such a camp. And that guy who doesn’t like us from Women’s Wear, what’s his name? Michael Coady, he was at the table with his I guess girlfriend and this time he was nice, actually. And Ludovic who runs Regine’s.

  The fashion show had Joe MacDonald and European girls. It was funny fabrics—lace and suede and leather. The clothes he makes this year are very feminine, though, kind of draped and ugly. At the end he got emotional and (laughs) cried.

  Ludovic invited us to Regine’s, but we were going to first go to a party Nelson had invited us to for Michael O’Donoghue who wrote Mondo Video, a movie that’s coming out. I paid for a limo we got ($15) to Tango Palace on 47th and Broadway and the place looked like the old Factory with silver tinfoil on the walls. And the dime-a-dance girls now cost $20-a-second. A lady with breasts as big as Geri Miller’s in Trash was there, vulgar, dancing. The party was disgusting, the creepiest kids came over and talked to me. A band called The Clits was playing. Richard Turley was there and he loved the place.

  Thursday, September 20, 1979

  I had to go to a screening of that movie Anti-Clock that Jack Kroll’s friends made, they were giving it just for me and I didn’t want to go alone, so I invited John Reinhold and Curley, and Thomas Ammann because he’s interested in art movies. We went to 48th and Broadway (cab $3). I was five minutes late and they’d started the movie. It was out of focus, it only went into focus about four times. It was a double screen, filmed in video and transferred onto film, it had a girl masturbating in a shower. Then the film looked like it broke and we didn’t know if it had or if it was the end of the movie, and none of us dared to ask, so we just sat there in the dark, and then finally when a guy came out of the projection booth carrying the film, we knew it was really over. We didn’t know what to say and the girl showing it wanted us to say something, so finally I said, “I liked it,” and she was relieved.

  Friday, September 21, 1979

  Got up and wandered around, passing out Interviews. I went to Manolo Blahnik’s new shoe store on 65th and Madison, next to Kron’s, really beautiful, one-of-a-kind shoes. Went to Kron’s ($58.68). It was raining so it was just impossible to get a taxi, everybody was waiting. But Gene Shalit came along in a car and said he’d drop me and I said that it was way way too out of his way, and he said that anything I wanted wasn’t too much. His line is that he doesn’t smoke or drink or take drugs—all he does is work. He said he got Meryl Streep for an interview and I asked him what his secret was, that we’d been trying to get her for our magazine, and he said he just got her by working hard. He said he picks up the phone himself, that he never has an assistant do it. He dropped me all the way downtown and I worked all afternoon, then dropped Rupert off (cab $4).

  Then I got myself together, I was Sharon Hammond’s date for a party for Alexis Smith at a restaurant called Dukes, before they took The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas on the road. Sat between Mrs. Long and Twyla Tharp, and Twyla was saying that she was a has-been, that her movie career was over, that Lester and Hair ruined it because they didn’t use enough of her dancing, but I don’t see how they could have used more. She had her good-looking younger boyfriend who she’s been living with for years with her. She tried to pretend that she didn’t have anything to do with the Judson dancers—the dancers in Judson Church in the Village in the sixties—and when I would mention one of their names she wouldn’t really say she knew them, she said she was just down in the basement or something, but then after she’d had a few drinks, she began telling things about the dancers that she’d pretended she didn’t know. And her boyfriend had even said to her, “Why are you pretending you had nothing to do with the Judson?” I guess she was just a dumb dancer who must have picked up what they were doing and just made it, somehow. I don’t know how. She acts like she feels she’s more important than them now. It was fun to talk to her.

  Geoffrey Holder was there, and Geraldine Stutz, all the old-timers. It was a nice party. And then we went to New York/New York. Lester Persky was there and he was fun, and Jack Martin, I always have a great time with Jack Martin, he’s so much fun. He said that the Marilyn portfolio that I gave Joyce Haber was getting mildewed in her basement, and that once he was able to get Rona Barrett to give him the Marilyn poster I’d given her by saying, “Oh Rona, what do you have that stupid thing for?” and so she gave it to him. Jack knows about art, he has a few things. I gave Joyce the Marilyn portfolio after she wrote that big article on us in the L.A. Times in the late sixties and she’d just broken up with her husband, Doug Cramer, so I thought the portfolio would cheer her up and it was before I knew how much they’d be worth. They’re so expensive now.

  Saturday, September 22, 1979

  Down at the office. I went across the street to the farmer’s market and got some things for the kitchen ($8). Interview was working.

  Thomas Ammann picked me up in his limo and we went to Nippon to meet everybody. It was Wilson Kidde and Billy Kimball—he’s a friend of Wilson’s who goes to Harvard—John Reinhold, Robert Hayes, Curley, Keller Donovan the decorator, Rupert and his new friend—there were ten of us, all boys, so it was embarrassing. I heard an older couple at the next table say (laughs), “Oh it must be a prep school with their headmasters,” because John and I looked the oldest and the kids were all in ties and jackets. We had a good time (dinner $300). Then we decided to go to Cowboys and after that we went to Rounds. A guy there said he met me in Tennessee and he asked if he could sit with us to see what New York was really like ($105). Joe MacDonald was there and said that Flamingo was reopening so we went, and the guy let us in free because I’d judged a male beauty contest there. Flamingo was great because it was brand-new, and then at 3:00 Thomas Ammann dropped me off.

  Sunday, September 23, 1979

  I went to church and then went home. I glued myself together and Curley picked me up and we went to 42nd Street to the WPIX radio station for the John Ogel Show. I’d invited Walter Steding to play his magic violin on the air, he was good and he sounded intelligent when he was interviewed.

  Then Lou Reed rushed in and said how glad he was to see us. Lou told me one of his dachshunds had had an operation on his back. I told him to come down to the Mudd Club with us later because they were
having a Dead Rock Stars Night, and he said he would go as himself, but I told him he looks too good for that now.

  We stopped for dinner at One Fifth (cab $3). When we walked in Jackie Curtis—he’s back to dressing as a girl—was at the bar with, who else, Taylor Mead, who happened to be waiting for, who else, Viva. And then they were all on their way down to the Mudd Club. Had drinks ($45.14) and then it was 11:30 so we went to the Mudd Club, too (cab $3). They had a room where Janis Joplin was putting needles in her arm, and they had a Paul McCartney room—I guess because of the rumor that he died once—and they had Mama Cass choking to death with a plate of ham sandwiches in front of her and you could take the sandwiches and eat them. It was really sick. Vincent and Don Munroe were there videotaping.

  Viva was reading poetry but I missed it, I didn’t see her. François de Menil was there. The ex-Mr. Viva was there. They had girls in black crying, and then outside a hearse pulled up. I was really tired. Dropped everybody off (cab $15).

  Tuesday, October 9, 1979

  Went to Union Square at 12:45 to meet the Newhouses, the mother and son, Si and Mitzi. They brought pictures of the husband who just died, but they weren’t right so they’re going to send down some more for a portrait. She might want her portrait done, too. Nobody was around, so Victor served. She’s a short little woman, she’s eighty-two years old. I asked the son about Self magazine—he said they survey everything by computer every month, that’s how they know what’s happening.

  Had to go to Richard Weisman’s party for Governor Brown that Catherine had arranged. Curley was with me, Fred had invited him. Bad traffic, Castro’s in town (cab $3.50). Bo Polk was there, and he invited me to a George Bush party. Then Pat Hickey the hockey player arrived with his girlfriend and he looked like the Tareyton ad, his eye was all black. Governor Brown came and he gave a speech and I taped it and afterwards he asked what I taped it for and all the kids told him, “For nothing—he just throws the tapes in a box.” He didn’t say much, but when you give speeches all the time, what’s left to talk about?

  Stephanie was back with Bo Polk, Stephanie McLuhan, but I noticed she made a beeline for the governor when he arrived and kissed him, although she didn’t know him. And then after the speech she got up and asked an involved question, I guess to show she was intelligent, but she was stupid and he was stupid. He came around afterwards to shake my hand and get my vote, he said something referring to the art thing, I guess—the legislation that would make artists get royalties or something when their paintings are resold—but it didn’t make sense to me. Diane Von Furstenberg told him he’d gotten too skinny, that he’d lost his “love handles” and that she’d liked them. I wanted somebody to ask, “Is Jerry a fairy?” and Diane said no, that he wasn’t, that Jerry’s no fairy. Judith Hollander and Jed were there, they came by on their way to Tom Cashin’s birthday party at “21.” I just wanted to go home but Catherine wanted me to go to Elaine’s with Rod and Judy Gilbert and Pat Hickey and his girlfriend.

  Elaine was sitting at a table with five girls and one I think was Candy Bergen because later people said that it was but it didn’t look like her and I looked at her and she looked at me and we didn’t say anything. If it was her, she looks older. Pat Hickey took his girlfriend home and then came back because Catherine had been flirting with him all evening. Richard was trying to get me to drink tequila, and about 2:00 I left (cab $3).

  Thursday, October 11, 1979

  Got up and it was raining, cold again. Somebody ran into Truman in New Orleans, so evidently he didn’t go to Nebraska. Maybe he just needed some money—he asked us for $6,000 to go to Nebraska to do a story for Interview and we gave it to him.

  I worked all afternoon in the back.

  Fred was in one of those moods, mussing people’s hair up, and he invited Curley to go to the Larry Rivers show at Marlborough with us.

  Larry’s show is like a retrospective of all his work. It’s funny, it’s like he ran out of ideas and decided to repaint everything. In the elevator I ran into the Greek woman whose portrait I just did, but I didn’t recognize her. And I also ran into Rupert who said my Gem screens came out okay. At the opening a guy said, “I’m Larry’s brother-in-law and I own the building your office is in,” and he said that he’d just rented the ground floor to a discotheque but that we shouldn’t worry, that it wouldn’t interfere with us because it wouldn’t be going on during our business hours. I told him thanks a lot. So, I mean, isn’t that great? The Mafia discotheque fires will only burn the place to the ground after office hours. Isn’t that wonderful, a discotheque for a neighbor.

  Then I went to dinner at the Gilmans’ where I met a lawyer who’s in New York to go to tax-shelter school.

  Friday, October 12, 1979

  It was raining, another awful day. Michael Zivian called in the morning and asked me to come up and sign some of my Spacefruits, so I walked up Madison to his place.

  Henry Post called and I talked to him, but I was afraid he was taping me, so I didn’t say anything. He’d sent me an article he wrote on Quaaludes for New York. He’s still out to get Steve Rubell.

  Sunday, October 14, 1979

  I went to church and it was pretty out. Then met Bob at about 5:00 to go up to see the Dalai Lama at St. John the Divine Cathedral on 112th Street and Broadway. We picked Fred up and went uptown (cab $6). The Dalai Lama gave his speech, it was so boring, he had an interpreter but I don’t know why because later he talked English very well. He was wearing an orange and red dress. Then there was a party in the back and everyone was standing around shaking hands. Bob said he wasn’t impressed with the Dalai Lama because he wasn’t as good as the pope.

  Then we left, got a cab, dropped Bob off, and we went to meet Richard Weisman and Catherine at Madison Square Garden where they were going to retire Rod Gilbert’s number 7 (cab $7). Catherine has to go to the hospital to have the nerve in one of her hands retied because she still can’t feel it. Her mother’s coming to town and Catherine hopes she won’t notice anything. Only her brothers Valentine and Jasper know what happened.

  Monday, October 22, 1979

  Priscilla Presley came to the office and we interviewed her. Her boyfriend was with her, Michael Edwards, the model. She admitted she’d never had caviar in all her years with Elvis because he hated fish and would have thrown her out of the house if he saw her eating any. God, what a beauty. I wonder if she had her nose fixed, though. It looked a little wider in the early pictures you see of her.

  Monday, October 29, 1979

  I have to do a portrait for the Whitney show, so we thought since it’s portraits, I should do myself up in drag. It was Fred’s idea. I’ve got to get Gigi in to do my makeup. And Ronnie’s all nervous because he has an art show coming up downtown—he constructs cages as art now.

  Tuesday, October 30, 1979

  I ran into Juan Hamilton who was coming down to the office later. He and Georgia O’Keeffe are at the Mayfair (cab $3.50). As I got to the office Joseph Beuys, the German artist, was getting out of a car with his children and Heiner Bastion—about eight people. He kissed me on the mouth and I got nervous. I didn’t know what to talk to him about. Heiner Friedrich and Philippa de Menil came by. And Robert Hayes had Sally Kellerman and Barry Diller and Barry McKinley there, and there was no room to sit down. And Heiner Bastion said I should photograph Beuys for a portrait. Then I was photographing Georgia and Juan in the back. It’s too hard with famous people at the office all at the same time because nobody can understand why anybody else is there. I worked until 4:00 with Georgia. Finally they all left.

  Later I went to the horse show at Madison Square Garden. I went over with a bunch of horse people to the Statler Hilton for scrambled eggs and bacon, I guess that’s what horse people like to eat. It was good. I stole some silverware and then it was embarrassing because it fell out and everybody saw it. It was Statler Hilton silverware from the forties.

  At Studio 54 after that I ran into Steve Rubell who said that on Friday he was
going to be sentenced to two months in jail, that he’d made a deal with the government—they’d dropped the drug charges and he’d pleaded guilty to income tax evasion. He asked if we’d come and visit him.

  Wednesday, October 31, 1979

  Bobby Zarem was having a lunch for the photo book—Bob and I ended up calling it Exposures— at 1:00 at Maxwell’s Plum. So I stayed uptown in the morning and then met Elizinha Goncalves and Bob at the Mayfair House and we walked over to Maxwell’s Plum and when we were half a block away Bobby Zarem ran toward us and screamed that we were late and how dare we and that people were going to leave. But it was actually good timing that we got there late, because people were waiting to see us. It was crowded, we had to work our way in. Karen Lerner was there filming for the segment she’s doing on me for 20/20. She attached an invisible mike to me so I had to remember to watch what I said. It was a press party and it was basically everybody Bobby wanted to pay back for favors, I guess.

  They had big AW initials in ice, three feet high, but it was melting. I didn’t eat anything. Everybody got a free book, at least 100 were given out. The waiters stole lots of books and then asked me to autograph them in the kitchen, but I didn’t mind because they were nice.