Marilyn Manson
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Template:About Image:Marilynmanson22.jpg Marilyn Manson (born Brian Hugh Warner on January 5, 1969) is an American musician and the leader of the band Marilyn Manson. Known for profane, provocative lyrics and behaviour, he has been the subject of much controversy, particularly during the late 1990s.
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Early life
Brian Warner is a Canton, Ohio native and the son of Hugh and Barbara Warner. Hugh, a former carpet salesman, had fought in the Vietnam War and while there was exposed to so much Agent Orange that military doctors and psychologists were amazed that young Brian turned out "normal". Brian Warner attended Heritage Christian School, but was alienated by what he saw as hypocrisy, and a religion that seemed to teach fear more than it taught virtues—sermons prophesying the Apocalypse had a lasting effect upon his outlook. Brian graduated from GlenOak High School, where he joined a band, in which he started out playing percussion instruments like bass drum and snare drum, but ended up playing triangle. After his graduation, the Warner family moved to Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
An untrue rumor circulated in the 1990s that the actor Josh Saviano who played a nerdy sidekick in the 1960s themed TV show The Wonder Years grew up to be Marilyn Manson. A similar story about Rob Stone, who played Kevin Owens in the ABC sit-com Mr. Belvedere, was also spread.
Music career
Early years
While in Broward Community College (BCC), Warner became Assistant Entertainment Editor of the college newspaper The Observer as well as working for local magazines such as 25th Parallel and Tonight, Today. During his time as an interviewer he decided he wanted to be on the other side of the microphone, and subsequently resolved to form a rock band. Warner originally formed the band Marilyn Manson and the Spooky Kids with college friend Brian Tutunick (bass guitar), Scott Putesky (guitar), and Perry Pandrea (keyboard). The original band had no live drummer, and used a drum machine instead. Warner took light and dark aspects of American pop culture, a culture in which movie stars and serial killers (Marilyn Monroe and Charles Manson) have equal notoriety, and merged them with his own personality, creating the persona of Marilyn Manson. He drew all the band's concert flyers himself, and oversaw every aspect of the band.
To gain more notoriety Manson single-handedly orchestrated an open mic poetry night at a South Florida club called Squeeze, which ended up being in his words, "The Goth Gong Show". Squeeze would later become his headquarters and home away from home, and where he would meet long time friend and confidant Jessicka (Jack Off Jill, Scarling.); he convinced her to start a riot grrl band, which he later dubbed Jack Off Jill. The two at the time were said to be inseparable, though Manson would later label her a groupie in his autobiography. Jack Off Jill went to open most of his shows, along with producing many of the band's early recordings. This was mirrored when Trent Reznor did the same for Marilyn Manson on a much larger scale years later.
Rise to national fame
Image:Mmanson1.jpg After months of gigging, Manson decided to drop "and the Spooky Kids" from the band's title. The band was signed to Nothing Records in 1992, shortly after the label had been launched by John Malm, Jr. and Trent Reznor. Their debut album, Portrait of an American Family was released in 1994, and Marilyn Manson toured with Nine Inch Nails, Pantera, Danzig, and others to promote it. Although they received large amounts of press and interest in the underground scene, it was not until 1995 and the release of the EP Smells Like Children, which included a cover of the Eurythmics hit "Sweet Dreams", that the band became nationally famous.
After the 1996 release of Antichrist Superstar (#3 Billboard Charts), the band's second LP, Manson severed ties with Reznor and looked to make his own decisions upon the band's change of style and sound. In 1998, Manson released his autobiography, The Long Hard Road Out Of Hell (with help from Neil Strauss of Rolling Stone). It had sold 1.4 million copies by mid-year. In that same year, Manson released the album Mechanical Animals (#1 Billboard Charts), which included the songs "Dope Show", "I Don't Like the Drugs (But the Drugs Like Me)" and "Rock is Dead", the latter of which was featured in the soundtrack for The Matrix.
Columbine and Holy Wood
The fallout of the Columbine High School shootings of April 1999 would lead to accusations, death threats, and finger-pointing from lawmakers, including Connecticut Senator Joseph Lieberman. Manson, in turn, cancelled the remainder of his "Rock Is Dead" tour and underwent a media blackout, communicating almost solely through his website, MarilynManson.com.
Almost two years later, the album Holy Wood was released which was, in a way, a response to the criticism he received after Columbine. It was also a theme album, covering issues such as gun violence, teen angst, and the role of television in American society. In it, Manson draws a parallel between the assassination of John F. Kennedy and the crucifixion of Jesus, and cites Mark David Chapman's murder of John Lennon — illustrating that television makes martyrs of the victims and stars of the killers. Holy Wood (In the Shadow of the Valley of Death) entered the Billboard charts at #15 and was not as commercially successful as previous albums. The band toured for an entire year to promote Holy Wood, including the summer of 2001 on Ozzy Osbourne's Ozzfest tour.
The Golden Age
After the tour, Manson began work on the fifth LP, The Golden Age of Grotesque. The album wasn't released until May 2003, and it entered the charts at #1—albeit, during a commercially slow sales period. While its sales, like Holy Wood, were short of those generated by Mechanical Animals, it was nevertheless a commercial and critical success.
Recent
On September 28, 2004, Lest We Forget was released, a best of compilation album that included a newly recorded song Personal Jesus, a cover of the song by Depeche Mode. The album was packaged with a DVD as a Deluxe Edition, which included all the Marilyn Manson videos except (s)AINT, Tainted Love, Personal Jesus and Astonishing Panorama of the Endtimes. Copies of the CD/DVD ordered though the Official Website included both the (s)AINT and Personal Jesus videos.
In November 2005, the album was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for shipments in excess of 500,000 copies.
Manson is currently working on the 6th Marilyn Manson LP as well as focusing on his art movement, Celebritarian Corporation.
Personal life
Those close to Manson give a mixed impression of his personality. While his wife, Dita Von Teese speaks of him as a genuine and passionate individual, and parents Barbara and Hugh often express great pride in their son's career, Manson has a history of strained and destructive relationships.
It is notable that, of the original band members, none remain, the longest lasting band member is Madonna Wayne Gacy (whose predecessor lasted only a matter of weeks). The departure of some former members has resulted in lawsuits.
Manson has been quoted as saying, "I always feel like other people are interchangeable."
Unofficial tour footage reveals Manson treating fans, interviewers, and tour staff in a condescending, demanding, or curt manner, although this is hardly aberrant behaviour for a rock star.
The overall impression is of a man who is very intelligent and driven by his ambitions. Those who do not serve to help him achieve his goals do not seem to last very long.
Fallout with Trent Reznor
Image:Mansonreznor22.jpg One of his very high-profile relationships, the intermittently defunct friendship with Trent Reznor, has been marked with mutual bitterness and perhaps vendetta. In a Hierophant online-interview Manson implicated Reznor in being responsible for the destruction of the master recordings of Manson's first 3 albums.
Fallout with John 5
One example is former guitarist John 5's reaction to being fired:
- "I don't know… I was nothing but nice to him," he continued. "I never screwed up onstage — well not really badly — and I did everything I could to get along with him. Maybe, just maybe, it had something to do with the fact that I don't drink or do drugs, and he's not like that at all. Maybe he held that against me. I don't know. He never said."
But it was later confirmed in innumerable interviews that John 5's reasons for leaving were mutual; he was in fact attempting to pursue a solo career and to also form another band. He apparently felt that his participation with Manson failed to give him enough creative control, as he was just a conductor.
Twiggy Ramirez's departure
In May 2002 Manson announced in his online journal that he had fired bassist Twiggy Ramirez, citing difference in perspective as to the future of the band. However, it is widely circulated that Ramirez left the band of his own volition and belief that the job of Manson bassist had become too routine.
While not a hostile departure, Manson has publicly maintained that he fired Ramirez.
Manson told SPIN Magazine:
- "He felt he had to choose between his personal life and Marilyn Manson (the band), and I pointed out that Marilyn Manson should be his personal life. It was amicable, but we don't see each other anymore."
The odd factor is that Manson has claimed in countless interviews that he and Twiggy are still close friends although Jeordie maintains that he rarely speaks to Manson. Currently, Twiggy Ramirez (real name Jeordie White) plays bass for A Perfect Circle and Nine Inch Nails.
Romance
On December 32005, Manson married burlesque performer Dita Von Teese in a secular ceremony presided over by cult film director Alejandro Jodorowsky in County Tipperary, Ireland. Prior to his five-year relationship to Von Teese, he was engaged to actress Rose McGowan. He has also been linked to or involved with Melissa "Missi" Romero, Traci Lords, and Jenna Jameson.
Film career
Manson has helped or provided full scores for several major motion pictures, although several of his pieces have been cut, and his name dropped from the credits. Some of his more notable soundtrack score contributions include From Hell, The Matrix and Resident Evil. Manson's first appearance in a film was in the role of a pornographic actor in David Lynch's Lost Highway, in 1997. He also had a minor role in former love interest Rose McGowan's 1998 flick Jawbreaker and a supporting role in 2003's Party Monster. His most talked-about film cameo would be for the Michael Moore political documentary Bowling for Columbine.
Manson was rumored to be an early candidate for the role of Willy Wonka in 2005's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory; though while the character is one to whom Manson has made many references in his own work, the role eventually went to his erstwhile friend Johnny Depp. He played Jackson in the 2004 film The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things, and is set to appear in Abelcain, directed by Alejandro Jodorowsky, and Living Neon Dreams in 2005 as well as voicing Edgar the Gray Alien in the game Area 51.
He is currently working on PHANTASMAGORIA: The Visions Of Lewis Carroll, which will appear on his website in Winter (USA).
He will also be seen as a bartender in an upcoming vampire movie Rise.
Art career
Manson is also an accomplished watercolor painter. An exhibit for his art was held at Los Angeles Contemporary Exhibitions on September 13 – September 14, 2002 and also at the Hotel Lutecia, Paris on September 14, 2004 and the next day in Berlin. He contributed a piece to the West Memphis Three benefit exhibition at sixspace. Many of his paintings have sold for large amounts, usually between $ 5,000 and $ 50,000. His most famous buyers include Jack Osbourne, Nicolas Cage, Dave Navarro, and Andy Dick. He has also stated that a new book containing all his pieces of art work will be released in the near future, possibly 2006. During late 2005 Manson was quoted talking much of his art movement, Celebritarian Corporation.
In January 2006 his website was updated with many new artworks being revealed. Details have been listed here at the Heirophant.
Video games
In the 2005 first-person shooter Area 51, Manson provides voice talents (an alien named Edgar), alongside David Duchovny and Powers Boothe. Marilyn Manson is also featured as a playable character in the video game MTV Celebrity Deathmatch. He has also said that he is a fan of the Nintendo DS, that it is "pretty neat". He says he is "pretty good at Mario Kart" and that one of his friends bought him "this little Japanese lawyer game. It's amazing." The "Japanese lawyer game" is Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney.
Bibliography
- Manson, Marilyn (1998). The Long Hard Road Out Of Hell. Regan Books. ISBN 0-06-098746-4.
- Reighley, Kurt B. (1998). Marilyn Manson: a Biography. omnibus press.
- Manson, Marilyn (2004). Marilyn Manson Talking. omnibus press.
- Baddeley, Gavin (1999). Dissecting Marilyn Manson.
Major Label Discography
- Portrait of an American Family (1994)
- Smells Like Children (1995)
- Antichrist Superstar (1996)
- Remix and Repent (1997)
- Mechanical Animals (1998)
- The Last Tour on Earth (Live) (1999)
- Holy Wood (In the Shadow of the Valley of Death) (2000)
- The Golden Age of Grotesque (2003)
- Lest We Forget (The Best Of) (2004)
Filmography
- Lost Highway (Acting, 1997)
- Jawbreaker (Acting, 1999)
- From Hell (Score, 2001)
- Resident Evil (Score, 2002)
- Bowling for Columbine (Guest Appearance, 2002)
- The Hire: Beat The Devil (Acting, 2003)
- Party Monster (Acting, 2003)
- Doppelherz (Director, 2003)
- The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things (Acting, 2004)
- Living Neon Dreams (Acting, 2006)
- Rise (Acting, 2006)
- PHANTASMAGORIA: The Visions Of Lewis Carroll (Acting, Directing, Writing, Score, 2006)
- Abelcain (Acting, TBA)
- Up To The Ground (Acting, TBA)
External links
- Manson's Official Website
- Marilyn Manson Artwork Online
- The Heirophant Marilyn Manson News
- The Nachtkabarett Marilyn Manson Analysis
- Marilyn-Manson.net
- {{{2|{{{name|Marilyn Manson}}}}}} at The Internet Movie Database
- Manson's Mugshot Taken after his arrest in Detroit, July 2001 for sexual misconduct.
- Manson's French Website
- Marilyn Manson Lyrics at Lyrics4fun
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