Dean Johnson (entertainer)
Encyclopedia
Dean Johnson was a transvestite musician, party promoter, and icon of downtown New York City
nightlife
in the 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s. Known for his towering height, shaved head, giant sunglasses, and penchant for wearing short cocktail dresses that exaggerated the length of his pale, lithe figure, Johnson played a seminal role in the emergence of the Queercore
gay rock and roll
subculture in the EEast Village
.
Both an underground rock star and a porn star, Dean Johnson fronted two bands: Dean and the Weenies and the Velvet Mafia. He partied with art-world luminaries like Keith Haring
, Jean-Michel Basquiat
, and Andy Warhol
, and performed at nightclubs such as Danceteria
, Area
, and the Pyramid
. Johnson was the driving force behind the ground-breaking “Rock and Roll Fag Bar” party, held Tuesday nights in the late 1980s at The World
. He subsequently produced the monthly “HomoCorps” live music showcase at CBGB
, which featured gay and transgender rock-and-roll bands.
Johnson grappled with drug addiction and also was a sex worker
. He died at age 46 from an apparent drug overdose while turning a trick in a Washington, D.C. apartment.
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
nightlife
Nightlife
Nightlife is the collective term for any entertainment that is available and more popular from the late evening into the early hours of the morning...
in the 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s. Known for his towering height, shaved head, giant sunglasses, and penchant for wearing short cocktail dresses that exaggerated the length of his pale, lithe figure, Johnson played a seminal role in the emergence of the Queercore
Queercore
Queercore is a cultural and social movement that began in the mid-1980s as an offshoot of punk. It is distinguished by being discontent with society in general and its rejection of the disapproval of the gay, bisexual, and lesbian communities and their "oppressive agenda"...
gay rock and roll
Rock and roll
Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...
subculture in the EEast Village
East Village, Manhattan
The East Village is a neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, lying east of Greenwich Village, south of Gramercy and Stuyvesant Town, and north of the Lower East Side...
.
Both an underground rock star and a porn star, Dean Johnson fronted two bands: Dean and the Weenies and the Velvet Mafia. He partied with art-world luminaries like Keith Haring
Keith Haring
Keith Haring was an artist and social activist whose work responded to the New York City street culture of the 1980s.-Early life:...
, Jean-Michel Basquiat
Jean-Michel Basquiat
Jean-Michel Basquiat was an American artist. His career in art began as a graffiti artist in New York City in the late 1970s, and in the 1980s produced Neo-expressionist painting.-Early life:...
, and Andy Warhol
Andy Warhol
Andrew Warhola , known as Andy Warhol, was an American painter, printmaker, and filmmaker who was a leading figure in the visual art movement known as pop art...
, and performed at nightclubs such as Danceteria
Danceteria
Danceteria was a well-known four-floor nightclub located in New York City which operated from 1980 until 1986 and in the Hamptons until 1995. Throughout its history, the club had seven different locations, three in NYC and four in the Hamptons...
, Area
Area (nightclub)
Area was a themed nightclub at 157 Hudson Street in Manhattan, New York City which operated from 1983 to 1987. The theme of the club changed roughly every six weeks, and the club was redecorated for each theme change. Themes included "Night" , "Surrealism", "Suburbia", "Red", and "Gnarly"...
, and the Pyramid
Pyramid Club
__notoc__The Pyramid Club is a nightclub in the East Village of Manhattan, New York City. After opening in 1979, the Pyramid helped define the East Village drag and gay scenes of the 1980s...
. Johnson was the driving force behind the ground-breaking “Rock and Roll Fag Bar” party, held Tuesday nights in the late 1980s at The World
The World (nightclub)
The World was a large nightclub in New York City, which operated from the mid-1980s until 1991 at 254 East 2nd Street, in Manhattan's East Village neighborhood. The venue, which included a secondary establishment called "The It Club," was housed in a former catering hall and theater...
. He subsequently produced the monthly “HomoCorps” live music showcase at CBGB
CBGB
CBGB was a music club at 315 Bowery at Bleecker Street in the borough of Manhattan in New York City.Founded by Hilly Kristal in 1973, it was originally intended to feature its namesake musical styles, but became a forum for American punk and New Wave bands like Ramones, Misfits, Television, the...
, which featured gay and transgender rock-and-roll bands.
Johnson grappled with drug addiction and also was a sex worker
Sex worker
A sex worker is a person who works in the sex industry. The term is usually used in reference to those in the sex industry that actually provide such sexual services, as opposed to management and staff of such industries...
. He died at age 46 from an apparent drug overdose while turning a trick in a Washington, D.C. apartment.