In this case, I suppose I should really say vanished NYC on film, given that the venue in question is now gone. In any case, springing off this post from ages ago, herewith the first installment of a new feature I'm introducing wherein I needlessly highlight various NYC landmarks and locations that make cameo appearances in movies. Make sense? I hope so.
Last Monday night, whilst flipping around the dial, the wife and I stumbled across "Staying Alive." Finding nothing better to waste our time watching, we decided to stick with the abortive 1983 sequel to the far-superior disco odyssey, "Saturday Night Fever." If you're not familiar with the film in question, "Staying Alive" picks up with lamentable slackjaw Tony Manero (played with convincing dislikability by John Travolta) who has since moved out of his contentious Brooklyn home to Manhattan to try to cut it as a dancer in a laughably preposterous Broadway production dubbed "Satan's Alley." Though largely centered around Tony acting like a retarded douchebag and being one of the most unsympathetic protagonists in film history, there's a subplot involving one of Tony's fellow dancers, Jackie (played by b-list all-star, Cynthia Rhodes, who was also a supporting character in "Flashdance," "Dirty Dancing" and that video by Richard Marx -- whom she evidently married). In any case, Jackie becomes inexplicably stricken with Tony (despite the fact that Tony is cruelly leading her on, constantly standing her up and two-timing with fellow dancer Laura, played by Finola Hughes -- sort of a very poor man's Jane Seymour). When not crying about Tony, Jackie pursues a singing career (specializing in mawkish middle-of-the-road fare that makes Olivia Newton-John sound like Lydia Lunch, but I digress). Frank Stallone (brother of Sly) plays Carl, Jackie's guitar-brandishing bandmate and rival for Tony's lukewarm affections. At a couple of key points in the film, Tony goes to see Jackie perform (while Carl solos vindictively from the stage) -- and it's always at this one suspiciously familiar looking venue. After Tony stands her up yet again, there's a shot of Jackie weepily hanging outside the music venue -- and sure enough, it's CBGB.
So, why am I bothering to point all this out? No huge reason. I just find it somewhat striking that around the same time that this ludicrous film was being shot, CBGB was otherwise playing host to bands like the Bad Brains, the Undead, Minor Threat, Sonic Youth, the U.K. Subs, the Beastie Boys, Kraut and countless others. Moreover the notion of a band like the one featuring Jackie & Carl playing at the storied venue seems entirely incongruous. But there it is.
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