"It Was Great When It All Began"


"Erotic Nightmares"


"Absolute Pleasure"


"Didn't We Pass A Castle?"


"Not An Equal"


"We Return To Transylvania"


"Perhaps Even Time, Itself"


"To Treasure Forever"


"Unconventional Conventionists"


"Superheroes"


"To Absent Friends"
















I had met others like me.
We had the same interests, tastes, and love of music, alcohol and marijuana.
We all considered ourselves to be artists and performers.
And above it all, we really loved ROCKY HORROR.

In October 1979, David & Julie drove to New York City with Corey Haibloom to attend ROCKY CON ONE.
They said that they had a great time, even though the event was considered a failure.
But still, they really wanted to take participation to another level.
Richard and I were also very warm to the idea, and so we created a cast.
The core group was David James as Frank, Julie Ford as Columbia, Richard Gifford as Riff-Raff, and me.
There was also Lisa Ciafu & Selina Phanara trading off as Magenta, Sherri Johnson as Janet,
Kurt Koenig as Brad, Patrick Miller & Doug traded-off as Rocky, and Cindy Okert as Eddie.
There was also Whitney, Terri, Toni, Tammy, Diane and some other Transylvanians.
And there were other participants whose names I will never, ever remember.
Matt had moved on, and Richard was the obvious choice to play Riff Raff.
In January 1980, Richard, David, Julie & I moved into an apartment at 10652 Burton Street in La Sierra.
It became our "Official Rocky HQ". ROCKY HORROR became our life.
Richard suggested the name "EROTIC NIGHTMARES".



JULIE FORD, DAVID JAMES, RICHARD GIFFORD, TROY MARTIN
Riverside - 1980

TROY MARTIN, JULIE FORD, DAVID JAMES
JOANNA MORALES, RICHARD GIFFORD
Tiffany Theater - West Hollywood - 1980


OUR CASTLE
1979 - 1981
La Sierra CA
(Please Do Not Disturb Occupants)

Our theater was the United Artists Theater 4 - Tyler Mall, located at 3485 Tyler Street in Riverside, CA.
Depending on the size of the crowd, we would do our shows either in Theater 1 or Theater 3.
Theater 1 was huge and seated 300. Theater 3 seated about 100. Most of our shows were done in Theater 1.
I saw a lot of films here: "Star Trek: The Motion Picture", "The Warriors", "The Empire Strikes Back", etc.

We ate at The Krazy Greek which was down the street. Still one of the best burritos I have ever eaten.



And of course we dined at Denny's on Magnolia Avenue after our shows.
All of our drug paraphernalia came from The Wooden Indian, a headshop on Hole Avenue.
I was able to buy liquor because I looked older. No one ever checked my ID. Seagrams 7 was my favorite.

I had a job at The Gold Mine fixing pinball machines within walking distance of our theater and Licorice Pizza.
Licorice Pizza was the best record store in town, and it was where we got most of our music.
When we were in Hollywood, we always went to Tower On Sunset.
KROQ was our favorite station. KMET & KLOS played dinosaur.
I could only stand so many plays of "Stairway To Heaven" before I started spinning the dial for other music.
70's Punk, Ian Dury & The Blockheads, X, Dead Kennedys, The Flying Lizards, DEVO, the B-52's, Sex Pistols,
Frank Zappa's 200 Motels, National Lampoon's Lemmings & Radio Dinner, Pretenders, etc. got a lot of airplay.

And we had the soundtracks from other versions of "THE ROCKY HORROR SHOW" that were available at the time.


We would buy things like A&B Buttons and magazines from Alan Hiero's mail-order "THE ROCKY HORROR SHOP".
I still have a first edition, first printing of Bill Heinken's "THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW BOOK".
My copy of "THE OFFICIAL ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW MOVIE NOVEL" was lost in transit.
("C'mon Now!!!"...indeed!)
We also bought the poster magazines from Adam Sargis and his "Rocky Horror International Fan Club".
His club was eventually absorbed into "THE ROCKY HORROR OFFICIAL FAN CLUB" organized by Sal Piro.



As we were deciding on our characters, it was clear that no one wanted to play the part of The Criminologist.
I decided that The Criminologist was the perfect character for me. It just seemed natural for me.
I knew I could handle the abuse from the audience, and it would strengthen our cast.
AND I got to lead "The Time Warp".

My costume sucked. The coat was black and the pants were gray, but my No-Neck shirt and vest were perfect.
It was all that I could find in my size and within my budget. I'm hard to fit.
Then there's that !@%$#%@ ascot.
It's Burgundy velvet with black sequins embroidered in a VERY UNIQUE pattern.
After a few lame attempts to make one, Sherri's mom made one for me. I still have this costume piece.
I would also play Transylvanian, using David's tailcoat and a fabulous, yet tasteless shiny shirt that I had.

Even though my costume was not perfect, one of the most fun things to do was to help create our costumes.
You have to keep in mind that in 1979, there was no DVD, VHS or Anal Retentive Rocky Horror Costume Lists.
We had to use production stills and memories from the watching the film to match the costumes.
It got a little easier when Bill Heinkin's book and the photonovel came out.
We would hit every thrift store in town for costume pieces. If we couldn't find it, we would make it ourselves.
House Of Fabrics, J.J. Newberry's, Columbia Makeup Store, and Zody's got a lot of our business.
We would buy vintage pieces of clothing and alter them, rip them, soil them, add and remove pieces from them.
I'm still looking for a "proper" smoking jacket with the right materials and colors that actually fits me.

We really strived to look as close to the characters as we could. And we would act like them.
We were a rather freaky and intimidating-looking bunch when we were out of costume, too.
I'd spray my hair silver, and after I got tired of it sweating off me, I bleached and colored my hair.
David & Julie colored their hair, too.
Richard used a professional baldcap that he got from Doris at Columbia Makeup Store in Hollywood.
But one night at the Tiffany Theater, he met a girl in line and wound up banging her in the back of his truck.
His bald cap was ruined, so he bleached his hair AND shaved his head.
It was a very bold move on his part, and unheard of at the time. Richard WAS Riff-Raff.

EROTIC NIGHTMARES established ourselves as THE cast for Riverside & The Inland Empire.
We were a regular, popular attraction. EROTIC NIGHTMARES had their act together.
We would rehearse a lot and develop props. All the pieces seemed to fit into place.
We were good...very, very good. We knew we had "that elusive ingredient".
On February 2, 1980, we celebrated our 1st ROCKY HORROR Anniversary at Tyler Mall.



TROY MARTIN, LISA CIAFU, ADAM ASSENBERG, CINDY OKERT
SELINA PHANARA, SHERRI JOHNSON, RICHARD GIFFORD
United Artists Theater 4 Tyler Mall - Riverside
February 2, 1980


SELINA PHANARA, RICHARD GIFFORD, PATRICK MILLER
United Artists Theater 4 Tyler Mall - Riverside
February 2, 1980


JULIE FORD, DAVID JAMES, DOUG, LISA CIAFU, STEVE, SHERRI JOHNSON
United Artists Theater 4 Tyler Mall - Riverside
February 2, 1980

Bill Gartley, the manager of the United Artists Theater 4 - Tyler Mall deserves special praise.
Bill was really good to us, encouraged us, and he helped keep ROCKY HORROR alive in Riverside for years.
Once we talked Bill into screening "Pink Flamingos" as a Midnight Movie.
It played one night, and was never shown in the theater again.
At the time, I don't think any of us were prepared for what "Pink Flamingos" had to offer.
But it still turned out to be one of our favorite films. And it still is, Babs!

After a while, Bill would bring in other films like "Dawn Of The Dead", and "Quadrophenia".
One night we dressed up as zombies for "Dawn Of The Dead".
Kurt dressed up like "Flyboy". He looked absolutely hideous and was covered in fake blood.
Afterwards, Kurt said he would never dress as "Flyboy" ever again.
When we asked why he said, "Chicks won't come near you when you have that much blood on you."

Another film that caught our interest was "Phantom Of The Paradise".
It was released on a double-bill with "THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW" at one point.
The film is not as good as "THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW", but the music in it is excellent.
Paul Williams gives a marvelous performance as "Swan", and Gerrit Graham is hysterical as "Beef".
"Phantom Of The Paradise" was the "other" rock 'n'roll musical for ROCKY HORROR fans at that time.
And there were some other fun films as well.

EROTIC NIGHTMARES did a lot of cool things together.
We enjoyed each others company, and thought of ourselves a real troupe or band.
Richard bought a 1967 Ford Country Squire Station Wagon like the one Brad & Janet are driving.
He altered the name plate to read "C*unt** Squire". But the car was a lemon, and we never got to use it.
We would get around using Richard's truck, Julie's truck, or David's TR7.
We bought all of our punk pins at Poseur on Sunset & La Brea in Hollywood.

Julie, David & I appeared on a radio show called "People And Passions" on KUCR 88.3 FM.
The host had shown up at the theater, and he asked us to be on the show. I forget his name.
He interviewed us about our ROCKY HORROR experiences, and we answered his questions honestly.
We sounded great on the radio!
But we found out later that it was a show about genuine perverts & sexual deviants. The real kind.
They didn't tell us that when we agreed to do the show. Needless to say, we were disappointed.

EROTIC NIGHTMARES hit all of the conventions and events.
One time, we went to a convention in Anaheim and walked out with a bunch of ROCKY HORROR photos.
Later that night, we went to ROCKY HORROR at the The Tiffany Theater in Hollywood where we met Rick Sloane.
Rick organized "Annual Transylvanian Conventions" through his production company, R.I.P. Productions.
Rick also deserves special praise for his efforts.
It was because of Rick that ROCKY HORROR fans from all over the world were able to meet and greet.
He also had some great merchandise that one else had.
I bought a Limited Edition of Richard O'Brien's "THE ROCKY HORROR SCRAPBOOK" (#01809 of 2000) from Rick.
Years later, Tim Curry signed it for me. I also bought an "Original London Cast LP" from Rick.
I still have these items in my collection.
Rick went on to direct several films such as, "Blood Theater" the "Vice Academy" series, and "Hobgoblins".


On July 20, 1980, we attended the Second Annual Transylvanian Convention at the Holiday Inn in Hollywood.
Richard made a point of pinching every girls ass that he encountered.
The crowd adored him, and he took first prize in the costume contest.


RICHARD GIFFORD
WINNER - "BEST RIFF-RAFF"
Second Annual Transylvanian Convention -Hollywood
July 20, 1980

We send a telegram to Richard O'Brien on his birthday, and about a month later, he sent us a "Thank You" card.
We started going to other theaters in the "So-Cal Rocky Circuit", most notably, The Tiffany Theater in Hollywood,
The Balboa Theater in Newport Beach, Montclair, San Bernadino, Brea, Orange, and Long Beach.
We enjoyed checking out the other ROCKY HORROR casts and making connections.
On August 19,1980, Richard, Selina, Joe & I went to see DEVO at Raincross Square.
But DEVO cancelled their second set at the last minute.
The punks rioted, and the cops tear-gassed the crowd. WOW!...my first real punk show!
DEVO came back a week later and put on one of the best shows I've ever seen.



DAVID JAMES & JULIE FORD
United Artists Theater 4 Tyler Mall - Riverside - 1980
David wanted to play Eddie for a change of pace, and HE WAS GREAT!
He did it a few times, even wearing the "Roxy" Eddie make-up.
Lisa would also dress as Trixie The Usherette. Other times she would double as Columbia.
Richard had put together a "London Frank" costume to try out on the crowd.
Our friend Joe mentioned to Richard that the panties he was wearing looked pretty skimpy.
He suggested to Richard that he might want to wear another pair.
Richard simply replied, "If I don't wear these panties, the chicks can't see my balls."
Later that night at the theater, there was a guy named Colon already working the crowd out in front.
Colon was dressed in one of the lamest attempts of a "Sweet-T" corset every seen in all of Transylvania.
Two guys were in line and one them pointed at Colon and said "Hey look...there's Frank N Furter!"
His friend looked at Colon and told his friend "Nah...that isn't Frank N Furter."
He pointed at Richard and said, "Now THAT'S Frank N Furter!"


SENSUAL DAYDREAMS
LAURA MITCHELL, STEVE GOODPASTURE, GENE CULBRETH, LAURIE GORDON
United Artists Theater 4 Tyler Mall - Riverside - 1980

We soon had our first group experience of that nasty beast called "Rocky Horror Politics".
Another cast had sprung up at our theater. They called themselves SENSUAL DAYDREAMS.
They were not as "good" as we were, but none one really cared...until....
One night, Richard was at the theater by himself, and Adam, the leader of SENSUAL DAYDREAMS got rude.
He had insulted EROTIC NIGHTMARES. He said that we were washed-up (?!) and inferior (???!!!).
Richard kind of laughed it off, and he told us about it when he got home. We laughed it off, too.
I don't think that the other members of SENSUAL DAYDREAMS were in on it, or even aware of it.
SENSUAL DAYDREAMS were a nice bunch of people. It was just Adam talking shit.
But the next night, Adam insulted EROTIC NIGHTMARES again.
He also said that from now on, SENSUAL DAYDREAMS would be the "Exclusive Cast" for our theater.
And that all performances or input would have to be appproved by him and SENSUAL DAYDREAMS first.

We figured..."Hey, Fuck You!", and we decided the best way to deal with it was to put on "The Ultimate Show".
The idea was that if we focused and put on the better show, that would end the insults and bullshit.
We had 5 days to prepare, and prepare we did!
That was probably the most intense and creative week that we ever had together as EROTIC NIGHTMARES.
EVERYONE in the cast showed up for rehearsal every day that week.
We rehearsed and spent hours on the routines, costumes, and new props.
We called all of our friends to come out and support us.
And, we decided to do some of the things that we had seen other casts do.
On Saturday night, we arrived at the theater, and Adam told us that we were forbidden from performing.
I simply said, "Try and stop us."
The color drained from his face, and he was unable to say anything.

Our intention was to pull out all the stops and electrify the audience.
We were very successful.
The house was full of people that were in the mood for ROCKY HORROR, so we gave 'em what they wanted!
Their enthusiasm was evident when they wents nuts as we made our entrance into the theater.
I started the show with a bit of banter, we did the pre-show, and then the movie started.
What drove the crowd insane was when we did one of the bits we saw done at the Tiffany.
We created, a large set of 3-foot tall black letters that spelled out: "J-A-N-E-T".
We held them up in sequence against the screen when Brad sings "Oh, J-A-N-E-T! I love you so!"
The reaction from the audience was fabulous! Still one of the best that I've ever seen!
We did our bits and then turned the stage over to SENSUAL DAYDREAMS.
Our show went great! We would shift in between EROTIC NIGHTMARES and SENSUAL DAYDREAMS.
We clearly out-classed SENSUAL DAYDREAMS in every way.
In the words of one guy that was there that night, "It's clear who's got the better show!"
EROTIC NIGHTMARES and SENSUAL DAYDREAMS decided that it was best if we all worked together from then on.
And Adam turned out to be a good friend. He looked out for people and encouraged them.
With everyone working together, ROCKY HORROR in Riverside was fun again.
We kept drawing bigger crowds, and got more innovative with our show.

Naturally, the bright lights of Hollywood beckoned.

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