TODAY IN PMc HISTORY: November 16, 2009

Elton John, At An Enduring Vision 8th Annual NY Benefit for Elton John AIDS Foundation, Cipriani Wall St, NYC, November 16, 2009, Photography by Chance Yeh for PatrickMcMullan.com

SEE MORE HERE

TOP TEN: ANTHONY VOLPE & TYLER MALONE’S FAVORITE BOND THEMES - Dueling Lists of Favorite Bond Songs from Two Amateur Bond Enthusiasts

ANTHONY VOLPE & TYLER MALONE’S FAVORITE BOND THEMES

Dueling Lists of Favorite Bond Songs from Two Amateur Bond Enthusiasts

By Anthony Volpe and Tyler Malone
Fall 2012
(As seen in PMc Magazine, November 2012)   
—
“Bond, James Bond” has now been a character on the silver screen for 50 years. 23 films into the longest running Hollywood franchise–one that started in 1962 with Dr. No–and the character is still going strong. In fact, Skyfall, the newest Bond film, is probably the best the franchise has given us in decades. (You can read my review of it here.) Earlier in PMc Magazine‘s Fall Issue, I had my friend Anthony Volpe–the most knowledgeable guy that I personally know regarding the Bond cinematic universe–create a top ten list of his favorite Bond films. Soonafter, I proposed to him that we should make dueling best Bond theme lists, and he obliged.

Not only is Skyfall likely to join the ranks of best Bond films, but I predict Adele’s throwback theme song will also be remembered rather favorably. It could have certainly made my list here. It just felt too soon though to officially rate it against the others. Some of the same songs appear on both our lists, and some are unique to each, but we’ve got plenty to say about all of ‘em. So here, without further ado, are mine and Anthony’s favorite Bond theme songs from the first 22 films.

Anthony’s #10:
“The Man with the Golden Gun”
Lulu
[from The Man with the Golden Gun (1974)]
Lulu’s brassy ode to the film’s villain is a brew of psychedelica, freak-out funk, blaring trumpets, stray guitars, xylophones and gongs. Throw in a dash of the Far East for extra flavor. It’s a mess (much like the film itself), but an enjoyable mess.

Tyler’s #10:
“Die Another Day”
Madonna
[from Die Another Day (2002)]
Possibly the most maligned of the Bond title themes, Madonna’s odd little intrusion into the Bond cinematic universe is a sputtering tribute to a vintage Bond mantra. It certainly doesn’t harken back to the classic Shirley Bassey theme songs, but then again neither did Duran Duran’s Bond theme (which has sometimes been touted as one of the best tracks from the 23 Bond films, and which Anthony will list a little further on down). There are plenty of songs that could have taken this tenth spot–Bond has inspired more than ten great songs to be sure–but something made me want to let Madge into the top. Maybe I should have “Sigmund Freud analyze this”? Most likely I just wanted to buck conventional wisdom, and start the list off with a bang. But, despite the flack I know I’m courting with this choice, I stand by this eccentric electro-orchestral (auto-)tune and its accompanying title sequence (the only Bond title sequence to ever actually further the plot of the film).

Anthony’s #9:
“We Have All the Time in the World”
Louis Armstrong
[from On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969)]
Satchmo sings this Bacharach-esque wedding song (Hal David wrote the lyrics) for the star-crossed Bond and Tracy. Armstrong’s weathered and froggy voice contrasts playfully against the wistful melody. It also gives the song an unintended sadness on account of the film’s tragic ending.

Tyler’s #9:
“GoldenEye”
Tina Turner
[from GoldenEye (1995)]
In contrast to the “Un-Bond-ness” of the Madonna’s “Die Another Day,” when Tina Turner sang her Pierce Brosnan era Bond theme a few years earlier, she sure as hell Shirley Bassey-ed the shit out of it. Of course, that’s not at all surprising since she’s Tina motherfucking Turner and oozes sassy soul from every pore. The return to a soul-infused vocal with big, brassy instrumentation as its musical foundation was a great choice that started Brosnan’s four-film run on a high note (one it would never hit again in terms of either song quality or film quality).

Anthony’s #8:
“For Your Eyes Only”
Sheena Easton
[from For Your Eyes Only (1981)]
Bill Conti’s (Rocky, Karate Kid) yearning Oscar-nominated love theme was tailor made for Bond in the feathered hair era. Sheena Easton sings it onscreen during the film’s title sequence; the only time this has ever been done in a Bond movie.

Tyler’s #8:
“We Have All the Time in the World”
Louis Armstrong
[from On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969)]
Rarely in Bond films do you get a “love theme,” but in On Her Majesty’s Secret Service we get just that because love plays a big role in the film: it’s here alone that we see Bond getting married. With Armstrong’s muppety vocals, this tender little love ditty feels like it could have as easily appeared on Sesame Street as in a Bond film–and yet, his oddly beautiful voice also gives the song a sort of knowing wistfulness. Which is fitting since the lyric’s hopefulness is sadly in vain: a settled-down Bond can’t last long, and so the irony of the title is that James and Tracy Bond would not have all the time in the world; they tragically had barely any time at all.

Anthony’s #7:
“Live and Let Die”
Paul McCartney & Wings
[from Live and Let Die (1973)]
Macca’s frenzied, fever dream of a song (the first Bond song to be nominated for an Oscar) is perfect for this oddball film. One only wonders if in some alternative universe there is a John and Yoko version instead of the Paul and Linda classic. Many would shudder at the thought but I’d be curious to hear it. Speaking of alternative universes, listen to the Guns N’ Roses version at your own peril.

Tyler’s #7:
“Nobody Does It Better”
Carly Simon
[from The Spy Who Loved Me (1977)]
Thom Yorke has claimed that this is “the sexiest song that was ever written,” and thus Radiohead has covered it in concert a number of times. Though I don’t know if I’d agree with Thom that it is the sexiest song ever written–I have heard any number of Prince songs as sexy as this or sexier–it is likely the sexiest of Bond themes. It doesn’t need to fill the lyric with double entendre (as “Diamonds Are Forever” explicitly did) to exude its natural sexiness. The Radiohead live versions have now overshadowed Carly’s original for me, due to Thom Yorke’s ghostly vocals, or else this would probably be higher on my list, but the Carly version is still phenomenal, even if it feels a bit more showtune-y than Bond-theme-y.

Anthony’s #6:
“You Only Live Twice”
Nancy Sinatra
[from You Only Live Twice (1967)]
Definitive of Bond’s “die another day” philosophy, Nancy Sinatra’s siren song, with its Eastern tinged guitars and weeping strings, has an eerie beauty to it. The song itself has “lived” more than twice in the form of various covers and samples, and was most recently featured on the season 5 finale of AMC’s Mad Men.

Tyler’s #6:
“Live and Let Die”
Paul McCartney & Wings
[from Live and Let Die (1973)]
Just three years after the break-up of the biggest band of all-time, one of the members of the Beatles wrote and sang this epic rock powerballad of a Bond theme–now that’s a pretty big get. And yet when Bond producer Harry Saltzman first heard the song demo, he famously said to George Martin, “Very nice record. Like the score. Now tell me, who do you think we should get to sing it? What do you think of Thelma Houston?” To which George Martin could only reply: “Well, she’s very good, but I don’t see that it’s necessary when you’ve got Paul McCartney!” Though the more funky soul version sung by B. J. Arnau in the middle of Live and Let Die is quite good as well, nothing can touch the Wings version (no matter how hard Guns N’ Roses or anyone else might try).

Anthony’s #5:
“A View to a Kill”
Duran Duran
[from A View to a Kill (1985)]
The only Bond song to hit #1 on the Billboard Hot 100, “A View to a Kill” captures Duran Duran in all their schmaltzy 80s glory. This epic and boisterous song deserved a better film and it remains one of AVTAK’s few highlights besides Christopher Walken’s deranged villainous turn.

Tyler’s #5:
“From Russia with Love”
Matt Munro
[from From Russia with Love (1963)]
Before James Bond title themes were a thing, before that was part and parcel with the Bond cinematic universe, Matt Munro sang the first real Bond theme with vocals, and knocked it out of the park. Though it wasn’t over the opening title credits of From Russia with Love, it did start the trend of having a song in each Bond film that took its lyrics from the film title. Shirley Bassey would go on in the next film, Goldfinger, to really solidify the Bond title theme as an artform, but it’s Matt Munro who deserves some credit for singing the first great Bond vocal. Though oft-overlooked, I think Munro’s lovely pop crooning really stands the test of time.

Anthony’s #4:
“Nobody Does It Better”
Carly Simon
[from The Spy Who Loved Me (1977)]
Marvin Hamlisch (A Chorus Line, The Way We Were) threw a little Broadway into this Oscar-nominated paean to 007’s prowess and Carly Simon helped sing it to #2 on the charts. After hearing this song again I’m convinced that the mystery man behind Simon’s previous hit “You’re So Vain” could very well be Bond. I don’t care what Warren Beatty says.

Tyler’s #4:
“Diamonds Are Forever”
Shirley Bassey
[from Diamonds Are Forever (1971)]
If one were to create the ultimate Bond film by stitching together requisite parts from the 23 films in the franchise, the title song of this imaginary “ultimate Bond film” would have to be sung by Shirley Bassey. She was the first singer to have her song played over the opening title sequence in a Bond film; she is the only vocalist to have performed three Bond themes; and because of these two things she pretty much embodies any Platonic ideal of what a quintessential Bond theme should sound like. This tune received a second life through Kanye West’s sampling of it in his hit song “Diamonds from Sierra Leone,” and though Kanye may put the sample to good use, nothing compares with the original, where the lyrics are so blatantly about sex that it’s hard to even label them sexual innuendo. “Write it as though she’s thinking about a penis,” composer John Barry told lyricist Don Black; and Black certainly did: “Hold one up and then caress it, touch it, stroke it, and undress it.” Yowza!

Anthony’s #3:
“Goldfinger”
Shirley Bassey
[from Goldfinger (1964)]
Shirley Bassey, the First Lady of Bond themes (she did three in total), sung the first hit Bond song for
the first hit Bond film. Bassey’s voice, if weaponized, could kill millions with its awesome power…I think I just came up with the plot for the next Bond film.

Tyler’s #3:
“You Only Live Twice”
Nancy Sinatra
[from You Only Live Twice (1967)]
Perhaps the reason why Adele was such a perfect choice to sing the new Bond film Skyfall‘s theme song is because she is our modern version of Nancy Sinatra, and the real Nancy Sinatra sang one of the most universally acclaimed of Bond tunes. This oft covered and sampled song remains a perfect example of what Bond themes can be at their best: both an interpretation of the movie’s thematic interests and an independent piece of pop art in their own right. As my buddy Anthony said, “You Only Live Twice” has already had more than two “lives,” and I’d guess it will continue to have many more because it simply is one of the best tunes that Bond has given us.

Anthony’s #2:
“On Her Majesty’s Secret Service”
The John Barry Orchestra
[from On Her Majesty’s Secret Service (1969)]
The late, great John Barry’s music is synonymous with Bond. He scored 11 Bond films in all (From Russia With Love to The Living Daylights), and the music for songs #10, 9, 6, 5, 3, 2, 1 on this list was all written, arranged and performed by him and his orchestra (co-written in the case of #5.) Barry’s pulsing and urgent instrumental theme for OHMSS is one of his finest moments. And it makes for great running music. Try it sometime.

Tyler’s #2:
“Goldfinger”
Shirley Bassey
[from Goldfinger (1964)]
This song is the first theme with vocals to be played during a Bond title sequence, and because of this or in spite of it, “Goldfinger” remains, for me, the gold standard against which all Bond title themes are compared. Shirley Bassey’s vocals are absolute perfection, but it took effort to get them that way. After singing it and singing it and not quite hitting and elongating that final note to the producers’ satisfaction, she ultimately decided to unhook her bra, which she felt had been constricting her, and then she sang her heart out (with boobies out). Interesting side note: the first person to hear this song after John Barry wrote it? John Barry’s roommate, some unknown actor named Michael Caine.
Anthony’s #1:
“Diamonds Are Forever”
Shirley Bassey
[from Diamonds Are Forever (1971)]
Over the top doesn’t even begin to describe Shirley Bassey’s delivery of the song’s innuendo-laced lyrics. Diamonds Are Forever proved to be a harbinger of the campier direction the Bond films were to take. The film’s Vegas setting (1970s Vegas, mind you) certainly fuels the song’s devilish decadence. Considering that double entendres make up a large part of Bond’s vocabulary it’s only fitting that Bassey’s sparkly and sexy theme be number one.

Tyler’s #1:
“James Bone Theme”
The John Barry Orchestra
[from Dr. No (1962)]
How could the number one spot go to any other song? James Bond’s theme is probably the only thing as famous and recognizable as the popular character himself. With that nasally surf-guitar riff that launched a thousand spy themes and the swinging horns that moderate the tension between the moody danger of the song and its rapturous bounciness, this is not just a great Bond song, but one of the most iconic instrumental film compositions in cinematic history. ‘Nuff said.
—
Anthony Volpe is a writer, student of history, and amateur Bond musicologist.
Tyler Malone writes for various publications, runs Reading Markson Reading, and is working on a forthcoming novel. He is the Editorial Director of PMc Magazine. He lives and works in New York City.

LINKS:
Tyler’s Skyfall Film Review
Official Site: Skyfall
IMDb: Skyfall
—
Written, Compiled and Edited by Anthony Volpe & Tyler Malone
Photography Courtesy of Eon Productions
Design by Jillian Mercado
—
Captions:
Photography Courtesy of Eon Productions

SUMMERS LOVE: A Conversation with Musician ANDY SUMMERS, One-Third of the Band THE POLICE

SUMMERS LOVE

A Conversation with Musician ANDY SUMMERS, One-Third of the Band THE POLICE
By Chiara Spagnoli
Fall 2012
(As seen in PMc Magazine, November 2012)   
—
Andy Summers, the English guitarist and multi-instrumentalist, is an artistic of eclectic talent. Not only was he the guitarist for the rock band The Police, and thus a pioneer of several sonic innovations in rock music, but he also established himself in the world of photography.

The popular and successful songs “Can’t Stand Losing You,” “Roxanne,” “Don’t Stand So Close To Me,” “Every Breath You Take,” become worldwide hits for The Police, and while the band was loved by fans the world over, critics also took to their new brand of rock, with the band winning multiple Grammys, including two for Best Rock Instrumental Performance with “Regatta de Blanc” and “Behind My Camel.”

It’s remarkably inspiring to retrace the history of this outstanding life, listening to Andy Summers unveil his artistic path, where music blends in with photography as his pop career leads to the mentorship of young talents.

Chiara Spagnoli: How was it to hold a guitar in your hands for the first time?
Andy Summers: I was given a guitar by my uncle when I was about 12 and a half years old and it was an instant symbiosis: I would never put it down. I think my fate was sealed by that gift. I used to play the piano before, but the guitar was my thing.

CS: You started playing gigs when you were just a teenager, what do you remember of those times?
AS: I grew up in a town called Bournemouth, in England, and I was in a band, there were little groups. I played ten hours a day. But it was great for me, I found myself to be very fortunate to have found out at that age that music was the road forward for me. We eventually would go to London with my band and be in shows for weeks. I completely lived a life of music.

CS: Was joining The Police that moment that gave a twist to your career?
AS: Not in an obvious way, because I joined The Police when it was a sort of fake punk band, on the instinct of something I felt and I also wanted to be in a trio. But there was no future, there was no money, there was no record company. I joined a band that was going nowhere. But then something started to happen: when we came to the US on a tour of the East Coast people got very excited and that was gratifying and authenticating. Those three weeks really put us together as a band.

CS: What happened?
AS: We did this three week tour with literally no money but we had eight songs that we would stretch out in a jam and we would play for an hour and a half: it was very good for us as a band. We went back to England and we were offered to go off on a tour with the comedy rock band called the Albertans. For a 21 day college tour they offered us a pitiful sum to join them as a support act. The first night we went to Bath University and we got on at 7:30pm in a place that was jam-packed with punk kids. We were on stage and the place went in complete pandemonium, there were screaming girls and when we came off the stage the crowd was clear utter riot. The poor Albertans were standing to one side with white faces wondering what had happened. So somehow we started getting known outside of London, and from then on, it got more intense, with sobbing girls and chaos everywhere we played. That is when we knew we had to keep going on.

CS: When did you figure the time was ripe to continue playing solo?
AS: Well, as I truly am a musician, my musical life depends on more than being in a pop band. I’ve been a serious musician before, I’ve been to the college of American studies of music, I was fully pledged. I absolutely would have carried on as a musician. After The Police, I started making records on my own pretty quickly.

CS: Through your music career you experimented with different kind of sound effects, like Echoplex?
AS: Yes, it was a sonic landscape sort of thing, particularly in The Police. Echoplex was one of the signature sounds of the band. I started to use this device which gave me repeat rhythms with beautiful spacey echos and from there I started to add more things until I had a sort of sonic pallet. So during the course of a two hour show I could change the sound of the guitar from song to song and do different things with the technology that was available then. I didn’t know then, but I was starting to innovate with some of these sounds.

CS: You’re also established in the world of photography, how did that come about?
AS: Well, at the beginning I was so absorbed with music that I didn’t take to photography with the same sort of devotion. But it was in the early days in New York, maybe the second time we came here, I had the money by then so I could get a really good camera and I went out with a photographer to the B&H store and bought the icons with upper lenses, and decided to do it seriously. I started to take pictures all the time, carrying my camera everywhere with a bag of film. I became completely obsessed with photography too. I was able to talk to a lot of photographers. Hence, I basically photographed all The Police from day one: I was photo-reporting the band right from the inside.

CS: How did the documentary Can’t Stand Losing You, based on your life, come about?
AS: The documentary grew organically. I had written my autobiography and I also had done a book of photographs. At the same time I saw a film called The Kid Stays in the Picture by Brett Morgan, who is one of the producers of the documentary, and was going to be the director. I was so impressed with the film of the still photographs, animated with a new technology, and the voiceover, I decided to contact him. And as destiny turned out I met somebody in Los Angeles who knew Brett and put me in touch with him. So I literally contacted him by email and eventually sent him the autobiography and he was blown away by it. So we got together and started working on the film. Then other producers got involved, and the film got financed very quickly, I was pretty amazed.

CS: Music, photography, film…any other artistic field you’d like to explore?
Architecture, I’m joking. Music has always been my prime interest and of course I love to do photography. Right now I’m excited about a new rock band I put together with a really brilliant singer from L.A. named Rob Giles. The band is called Circa Zero, and we are just about finished with the album. We’re aiming to put that out right after Christmas and start bringing it out into the world.
—
Andy Summers is an English musician and photography, famous for being one-third of the band The Police.

LINKS:
Andy Summers – Official Site
Can’t Stand Losing You – IMDb
—
Written by Chiara Spagnoli
Edited by Tyler Malone
Photography and Design by Marie Havens for PatrickMcMullan.com

—
Captions:


Cover:

Andy Summers, DOC NYC Presents the World Film Premiere of CANT STAND LOSING YOU Featuring The POLICE Guitarist, ANDY SUMMERS, SVA Theatre, 333 West 23rd Street, NYC, November 9, 2012, Photography by Marie Havens for PatrickMcMullan.com

IT’S NOTHING, IT’S MY LIFE: A Spotlite on RADIOMAN

IT’S NOTHING, IT’S MY LIFE

A Spotlite on RADIOMAN
By Chiara Spagnoli
Fall 2012
(As seen in PMc Magazine, November 2012)  
—
Radioman, born Craig Castaldo, has had an extraordinary life: a spin on the classic rags-to-riches story, he started out in the streets of New York as a homeless lost soul and became the darling of filmmakers.

Tom Hanks and Joel Schumacher defined him as a landmark of New York City along with the Statue of Liberty and the Empire Stare Building. Johnny Depp wonders if he’s an alien from a distant planet or an eccentric billionaire, or both. Helen Mirren, George Clooney, Meryl Streep have known him for decades, and Robin Williams is flabbergasted by Radioman’s friendship with Scorsese: “He calls him Marty, I can’t call him that!” This extraordinary and amusing troll is the contemporary superhero of the silver screen, with cameos in countless films.

Chiara Spagnoli: You have acted in over 200 movies, how does it feel to have an entire film retracing your life?
Radioman: Miserable–no, I’m joking–it’s very bizarre and awe-inspiring to have anybody really care and think that my life is so interesting. It’s all about me, I don’t understand the reasoning behind it. People like it, they seem to adore it. I was in England, and Scotland, and they loved it, I never expected to get that kind of reception.

CS: How do you feel about being the lucky charm of filmmakers?
R: The movies that I’m in do well in theaters. and also when they’re released on DVDs, they tend to make money. Most of the films I’ve been in have been successful and in some of them I was just background. I think I may be some kind of a catalyst and make it happen for them.

CS: How did you start going on film sets? Do you remember your first one?
R: My first movie was with Bruce Willis in The Bonfire of the Vanities. I yelled at him in a high-pitched voice: “Bruce Willis your movie looks like an animation, it looks like a cartooooon, you don’t know how to act!” And I didn’t know what this guy was about, he had a bag with a bottle in it, and I thought he was a drunk, like I was at the time. I asked him if he wanted a beer and he told me he was an actor and that was a prop. Bruce said to me, “I’m just playing a part, but I’ll tell you what: when I finish the shoot I’ll have a beer with you!” So we had beers together and started talking.

CS: At the time you were homeless?
R: Yeah, I lived in the streets, in parks, down in the subway tunnels, on track 17 next to the men’s room at a low level of the Long Island Rail Road. A lot of homeless guys were there, at that time we were known as ‘bums,’ there was no word to define ‘homeless’ yet. You were either a bum or a derelict or somebody on the street nobody cared about.

CS: You also had a very rough time in a psychiatric institution, what do you recall about that experience?
R: I was there for two months or so. I was internalized for addiction even though I never did drugs or strange substances, it was just beer. One day I was on the set of a movie called City Hall and I didn’t realize there was a holiday. Al Pacino wasn’t there–he starred in the movie with John Cusack, Al played the mayor of the city of New York–and I said to everyone “Hey, I know Al Pacino, I know all these actors, and I’m friends with them all, they know who I am!”

They thought I was a nut and pushed me away. I spoke back to a cop who handcuffed me and gave orders to take me to Bellevue. Someone from the crew tried to say, “he really does know all these people,” but they took me away anyway. They kept me there, strapped me to a chair, brought me to the 24th floor of the observation room, and gave me some kind of drugs to try to mellow me out. I was screaming and yelling, saying: “I don’t belong here, I should be where they’re making movies.”

CS: How is it that you manage to find out the locations and schedules of the shootings?
R: Sometimes it was word of mouth. I would just ride around with my bike, and I would see the schedule signs of different permits, and I would put two and two together. Or I would ask one of the attendants about what was going on. They would tell me the call time, so sometimes I found out what was going on that way. I used to drive around a lot, day and night, I basically never used to go back home, I spent my time dwelling.

CS: Where does your passion for films come from?
R: My mother used to like to watch the old movies with Myrna Loy and Olivia de Havilland, Gone with the Wind and all these different films. My father would go for John Wayne and Ronald Coleman and stuff like that, Lawrence Olivier too. He also liked westerns and all the Italians, the old films on channel 9 with the subtitles, with Anna Magnani and all the old Italian actors.

CS: Why did you choose the radio as your symbol and why do you carry it around with you?
R: I always wanted to be a radio announcer, besides wanting to be a movie actor. I loved the movies, I used to watch them on television with my parents, but I always liked music, rock n’ roll. Before I was Radioman, I was known as Aqualung. I loved to show off, I always did it in school. I wanted to be the center of attention, and I didn’t really realize it, I was just being me. That’s the reason I have the radio around my neck, and because when I used to hold it in my hand, they tried to steal it–this way no one can take it away from me.

CS: Do you feel you’ve pursued your dream?
R: Yes, the dream just came to me 20 or 30 years later. I’ve been doing this for a long time. and I never expected it to be like this, have fame and recognition from people. I’m loving it. People love the documentary on Radioman, but to me it’s nothing, it’s my life.
—
Radioman has been in countless films throughout the years, and now there is a documentary about his life.

LINKS:
Radioman – IMDb
—
Written by Chiara Spagnoli
Edited by Tyler Malone
Photography by Jimi Celeste for Patrick McMullan.com
Design by Marie Havens
—
Captions:

Cover:
Radioman, FOCUS FEATURES Presents a New York Special Screening of TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY, Landmark Theater Sunshine Cinema, New York, November 30, 2011, Photography by Jimi Celeste for Patrick McMullan.com

THE EXCITEMENT OF THE UNKNOWN: An Introduction to Actress and Model KATIE CHONACAS

THE EXCITEMENT OF THE UNKNOWN

An Introduction to Actress and Model KATIE CHONACAS
By Owen Hoffmann
Fall 2012
(As seen in PMc Magazine, November 2012)   
—
Katie Chonacas is a fresh new face in the acting world. Not only does she have talent, but she loves a good challenge–she’s excited by the unknown. As her career begins its ascent, I decided to sit down and have a conversation with the model, actress, and artist.

Owen Hoffmann: I’m always interested in people’s stories on how they made their way to the Big Apple. Tell me your story…
Katie Chonacas: I have always wanted to live and thrive in NYC. Thank goodness I am finally here! Two summers ago I did a TV show in Brazil. My episode was all about fashion. O’Neal McKnight was on another episode devoted to music. We didn’t shoot together, but the producer of Noble Exchange, Tamara Park, thought it would be a grand idea to connect us. O’Neal had a project going on with Diddy, so he flew out to California and we connected over the summer. His uncle’s 50th birthday party was being held the following month in New York City with Diddy hosting. O’Neal invited me to come, and I obliged. I bought a round-trip ticket, visited my family in New Jersey for a week, and then went to the city for the birthday party. I decided ahead of time I wanted to stay in NYC for a week to take some meetings and see what opportunities could arise. Right away a modeling agency said they would start working with me, so this was great news. At the time, my sister, Anna was living in the city working for a PR company. We were downtown outside relishing in the moment on Lafayette Street having Greek gyros when it suddenly dawned on me: my return flight was that day, and I had already missed my departure by an hour. We were laughing and in shock, and I just never returned to LA! I went to New York on a round-trip ticket and never left.

OH: When did you first start acting and feel the need to pursue it as a career?
KC: I started professional acting when I ventured west to California. I knew only one person in the acting business–honestly, that is all you need: one person to help and direct you when you first start. I was led into the William Anderson acting studio under the Meisner technique. While studying, I was networking non-stop and found a firm to represent me. Finally, after going out for a constellation of projects and then landing a spot on CSI: NY soon after, I started to book more TV shows and feature films. Beginning in childhood I always knew I wanted to be an actor. When I accomplished my goal, I was full of love and excitement, and it thrilled me to entertain people and make them laugh.

OH: Who has been your inspiration?
KC: Inspirations for me have been Reese Witherspoon, Madonna, Winona Ryder, Andy Warhol. I admire Evan Rachel Wood, Sean Penn, James Franco, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Ben Stiller, Johnny Deep, Judd Apatow, James Mangold, David Lynch, and Amy Heckerling.

OH: What has inspired you to keep acting?

KC: My passion, my love for God, and my love for living–for the excitement of the unknown–to be able to create and make something out of nothing, this inspires me to keep going. I love to push the limits. What are limits, really? It’s exciting to challenge yourself and push others to challenge themselves as well. There’s so much going on in life I want to experience, and when I’m exhausted I love to sleep and dream in the heavens, treating myself to bubble baths and massages. I love going to art shows, galleries, and the Met. I feel much love for the theatre as well.

OH: You also are very talented in other areas of the spectrum; tell me a little about this love for art and music, and what roles they play in your life.
KC: Well, thank you kindly. I have been writing since I was a pre-teen. I found myself writing all these deep, emotional thoughts and experiences. Not knowing where this writing would lead me, I just knew it was important to write. I have turned some of my writing into spoken-word poetry. I record in the studio a cappella. I met this amazing producer, Ronnie Beck, who has done all the beats for my spoken-word poetry. Ronnie says he has never created the way we have created. Normally a producer gives an artist a beat and they lay vocals on the beat, but with us it’s the other way around. Ronnie listens to the message in the poem, and interpolates the beats around and within my vocals. It’s pretty exhilarating and exciting to create something no one else is creating. Since then, we have done more traditional radio-ready tracks. Our first single is “Fresh Louboutin,” which can be found on iTunes under Kyriaki Sunday. Last week, I flew Ronnie here to NYC, and we recorded the sister track titled “Paris Fashion Week,” which I dedicated to my BFF and fashion stylist extraordinaire J. Logan Horne. I am obsessed with fashion, so I have incorporated within the lyrics my love for style and the experiences in the fashion world I see and admire. I have decided to call this “fashion pop.” My follow-up track is titled “Rockstar Legend.” I am also very blessed and pleased to announce I had my very first art show in New York City for six weeks at Pie in the Union Square area. The artistic reception for me in the Big Apple has been a grand welcoming. Since then, I’ve been commissioned in a couple of cafes and coffee shops with plans to have more exhibitions in New York and around the world. The pieces can be viewed at KyriakiSunday.com. and soon Artspace.com.

OH: How has social media affected your career?
KC: Social media is the 21st century’s way of bringing back care for one another on the hierarchy of what’s important in our daily lives. The ability to socialize and connect a little deeper with fans domestically and internationally on such a personal level is rewarding because I can instantly see my positive impact in the lives of others. Twitter is especially good for metering that impact and deepening social connections. When my fans feel that personal connection with me, they love me even more, which in the end, has inspired me to heights I never could have imagined. When it comes to Instagram, I am enchanted and enamored; sharing one’s best life experiences through pictures is really the sweet spot of the social media revolution. You can find my twitter and Instagram at KYRIAKISUNDAY.

OH: How do you see your career playing out in the future?
KC: I am a powerful creator. Having built an empire, I am really excited for the present and the future. I love predicting the future by creating it now because the future is a flowing continuation of “nows.” Looking back, I have been blessed with childhood and ten years of delicious experiences in LA and around the world. I am taking all that I have learned, and I’m applying it here in New York. It’s so exciting to see and feel all the dots connecting with aplomb. I know as long as I feel good and stay healthy, things that come into my experience will continue to please me. I am ready for my pleasing future, for I am so pleased with my “now.”
—
 Katie Chonacas is a New York based model, actress, and artist.

LINKS:
Katie Chonacas – Official Site
Kyriaki Sunday – Official Site
Twitter – @kyriakisunday
Instagram – @kyriakisunday
Check Out Some BEHIND THE SCENES Clips of this Interview
—
Written by Owen Hoffmann
Edited by Tyler Malone
Photography by Owen Hoffmann
Design by Marie Havens
—

Captions:
Katie Chonacas, 2012, Photography by Owen Hoffmann

TOP TEN : PATRICK MCMULLAN’S FAVORITE CURRENT TV SHOWS

PATRICK MCMULLAN’S FAVORITE CURRENT TV SHOWS

The Founder of PMc Mag Lists His Favorite Shows

By Patrick McMullan

Fall 2012
(As seen in PMc Magazine, November 2012)   
—
1. The New Normal
2. Homeland
3. The Walking Dead
4. Survivor
5. Law & Order: SVU
6. Project Runway
7. Revolution
8. 30 Rock
9. Criminal Minds
10. Hoarders
—
Patrick McMullan is an American photographer, columnist, television personality, businessman and documentarian. The premiere nightlife photographer in New York City, McMullan’s work seems infinitely pervasive. It appears regularly in his weekly New York Magazine column, “Party Lines.” His other columns include: Allure, Interview, Hamptons, Ocean Drive, Gotham and Art & Auction among others. In addition to the publications which feature his columns, his photography has been featured worldwide in publications such as the New York Times Magazine, Vogue, Wall Street Journal, New York Post,  Harper’s Bazaar, Details, In Style, Cosmopolitan and Out…just to name a few. Patrick McMullan is also a contributing editor at Vanity Fair. He has published five books of his photography: Secrets of the Riviera, Men’s Show, so8os: A Photographic Diary of a Decade, Kiss Kiss and Glamour Girls. His latest venture is PMc Magazine, which you are currently reading.

LINKS:
Patrick McMullan’s Official Site
PMc Magazine
Patrick’s Tumblr
—
Compiled by Patrick McMullan

Edited by Tyler Malone
Photography by Shaun Mader for PatrickMcMullan.com
Design by Jillian Mercado

—
Captions:
Patrick McMullan, Victory for Women Photoshoot for the National Hemophilia Foundation, at Pier 59 Studios, NYC, August 24, 2010, Photography by Shaun Mader for PatrickMcMullan.com