I'm still pretty bummed about The Stooges guitarist, Ron Asheton, dying yesterday at the age of 60. Although the way he lived, I can't say I'm that shocked about it. I grew up in Ann Arbor, the home of The Stooges, but never quite got into them until I was about 15 years-old. Ron Asheton was one of my many odd crushes I developed as a teenager and it continued that way through the years. Right before I moved from L.A. to Cleveland, my husband and I befriended Angela and Micheal Davis (of the MC5), Angela said she could arrange for me to meet Ron — actually I had a few people in Ann Arbor offer to do the same — but I declined because I didn't want my image of him to be ruined. I wanted to remember him as he was from his younger days and keep my distance as it was. I have missed out on the newer Stooges shows the past 5 years or so, but I've gotten rather sour on reunions so I'm not beating myself up about it too much.
In 2002 I did a large painting of Ron, which years later was published alongside an interview with him in Plan B Magaine for The Stooges new album release "The Weirdness". I thought it was funny and sort of coming full circle with my strange interest in him. Totally by chance, the magazine's art director came across an avid Stooges fan and fellow Ann Arborite all because the photographer punked out.
