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.
Johansen first found success as the lead singer of the New York Dolls, one of the earliest punk bands. He began a solo career in the 1970s, and in the late ‘80s, he began performing cabaret under the name Buster Poindexter, most famously releasing the song Hot Hot Hot, which remains a wedding staple.
Johansen was born and raised in New York’s Staten Island in 1950. His father sang opera before he became an insurance salesman, and his mother was a librarian.
Johansen told People magazine in 1988 that he “was on another planet” during most of his school years, but he knew from an early age that he wanted to sing. Instead of college, he became part of an avant-garde acting troupe. In the late ‘60s, he began a stint as the lead singer of the Staten Island band Vagabond Missionaries.
Johansen joined the New York Dolls in 1972. They released their self-titled debut album in 1973. Their second album, Too Much Too Soon, followed a year later. Though neither album was a commercial success, the band ultimately influenced future generations as punk found mainstream appeal.
Billboard wrote in 2021, “There’s a slew of artists from the ’70s and beyond whose No. 1s would be unthinkable without the pioneering look, sound and attitude of these glammed-up NYC proto-punks.”
Though the band was never inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Johansen didn’t mind, telling the outlet, “To me, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame appears to be a racket.”
Johansen embarked on a solo career, releasing four albums between 1978 and 1984. Then, in 1987, he introduced his alter ego, Buster Poindexter.
The name came from childhood teasing, Johansen said, explaining, “On the street, they called me Buster. Then they’d catch me with books and call me Poindexter, so it’s kind of an intellectual punk or something…”
…In the late ‘80s, Johansen launched an acting career, with cameos in 1987’s Candy Mountain and 1988’s Married to the Mob. He played the Ghost of Christmas Past in 1988’s Scrooged and later appeared in The Adventures of Pete & Pete, Oz and A Very Murray Christmas...
…In 2004, Johansen re-formed the Dolls. He told NPR at the time that he had to relearn the lyrics to the band’s songs.
“I was thinking, ‘God, how did I write that song? This is great,’ ” he said. Johansen performed with them until 2011. “We were gonna do one show, and then we wound up playing for eight years and went around the world like three times,” he told People.
In 2015, Johansen began performing as Poindexter again at New York’s legendary Café Carlyle. “I just decided to do an act that only plays New York, that can only play New York,” he said…
…Johansen was married to actress Cyrinda Foxe from 1977 to 1978. From 1983 to 2011, he was married to photographer Kate Simon. In 2013, he wed artist Mara Hennessey and became stepfather to her daughter…
…In 2023, Johansen was the subject of the documentary Personality Crisis: One Night Only, directed by Martin Scorsese and David Tedeschi, which centered around his cabaret performance…
…Johansen is survived by his wife and daughter.
Read more at People.
