Season 1 · Episode 3
"Lisa E.", 80s it girl · actor, playwright and James's partner-in-crime
Released 13 Sep 2021 · 1:08:34 on WOW and as a podcast
Every name, club, book, song, night and look from the interview - 201 references and 458 mentions in this episode. James reads from his diaries - lunchboxes, drooping picture hats, a backwards Alaïa dress and the whole guest list of Warhol's memorial. Iconic!
Dark curly hair pinned up; black short-sleeved top with a crisp white Peter Pan collar; natural make-up with a brownish lip
At home: a bright room with a window onto green leaves, a big red-and-black floral screen print with butterflies, and a silver podcast mic
Lunchbox bags
Never allowed a packed lunch, James carried lunchboxes matched to every outfit - and people copied
Lisa once walked down the street discussing Kindergarten Cop with him; James read his diary account of Warhol's memorial
FashionStarted as a fashion illustrator
Heard as “Andy / Auntie / Warhol / auntie”
Host; reads from his 1981–91 diaries and his plan to conquer the club scene with Lisa. Links to his own Night Fever episode
FashionClub Kid famous for his looks and lunchboxes
Heard as “James / James St. James”
The guest: actor and playwright, 80s it girl 'Lisa E.', James's NYU partner-in-crime. Links to her Night Fever episode
FashionDowntown it girl of the 1980s
Heard as “Edelstein / Lisa / Lisa E / Lisa Edelstein”
Always nearby with Stephen Saban; recommended Lisa to Maureen Dowd; Lisa says he later asked her about AIDS symptoms. Links to his Night Fever episode
Heard as “Marstow / Musto / Michael”
Their first big club, with a new theme every month; where they worked the room
FashionTheme nights and window displays
Heard as “area”
The city itself: Lisa says people with a vision came there and went out, rather than starting an Instagram page
What he wore, where he went and who was there - read aloud on the show
FashionA record of his outfits
Heard as “diaries / diary”
Details nightlife writer they were always near; recommended Lisa to Maureen Dowd
FashionNightlife writer at Details
Heard as “Stephen Saban / Steven / Steven Saban / Steven Sabin”
In James's diary nights; as told on the show, she turned orange on a carrot-and-miso diet by Warhol's memorial. Links to her Night Fever episode
FashionQueen of the Night, famous for her silhouette
Heard as “Diane”
Never allowed a packed lunch, James carried lunchboxes matched to every outfit - and people copied
FashionLunchbox bags
Heard as “lunchbox”
Nightlife photographer who loved and promoted Lisa; she first called herself Lisa E. to him
FashionSociety and fashion photographer
Heard as “Patrick / Patrick McMullen”
Lisa moved there at 24 after MTV
Heard as “LA / Los Angeles”
The tragic it girl Maureen Dowd compared Lisa to; James wanted an Edie to his Andy
Fashion1960s style icon
Heard as “Edie / Edie ******* Sedgwick”
Co-host; remembers Lisa's pivot from the scene to her career
Heard as “Randy / Randy Barbado”
Lisa was a VJ there and started Lisa's World
1 April 1987 at St. Patrick's; they dressed for a party and James read his diary list of everyone there
FashionDressed as if for a party
Heard as “Warhol's funeral / it was a funeral / the funeral was”
Maureen Dowd's it-girl story that changed Lisa's life
Heard as “New York Times”
Lisa says she never liked him; James was intrigued, which is where they parted ways
FashionClub Kid ringleader known for his looks
Co-host; was at NYU film school at the same time
Heard as “Fenton”
On James's flashcards and in the diary nights
FashionClub personality
Heard as “Beauregard / Borgard / Houston Montgomery”
Sat in a full-length mink doing his make-up at the Gaiety. Links to his Night Fever episode
FashionDesigner known for chainmail and metal fashion
Art dealer who, as told on the show, ditched Warhol to join them for breakfast at 103
Heard as “Shafrazi / Shaprazzi”
Wrote the New York Times Magazine piece on Lisa as it girl, and was protective of her
As told on the show, she fell out of favour after her New York Magazine story; Lisa talked to her about how she coped. Links to her Night Fever episode
FashionIconic fashion sense
Heard as “Sally / Sally Randall”
Doorman and writer whose chosen family took Lisa in after the article
FashionNightlife writer for Paper and Details
Heard as “Howie / Howie Montag”
Co-star on The Kominsky Method; as told on the show, she was refused at the studio gate without her ID
Sat three hours with them at a dinner talking about her garden in Nicaragua
FashionStudio 54 style icon
Heard as “Bianca / Bianca Jagger”
Boy George's make-up artist who rescued James's face at Nickel Bag
FashionMake-up artist
Heard as “Paul / Paul Gobel”
Seedy Times Square strip club; arriving with Schmidt and Bartsch got them into Area
Heard as “Gaiety / Gayity / from the gating”
Was with Michael Schmidt at the Gaiety, which got them into Area. Links to her Night Fever episode
FashionNightlife and fashion host
Heard as “Suzanne / Suzanne Barsh”
Their first club together; Bruce Willis tended bar
Club on the north side of Union Square
Heard as “the underground”
James's NYU theatre studio, later Lisa's
Heard as “ETW / experimental theater wing”
Also worked at Palladium (identity inferred from 'Kari Wer')
Heard as “Kari”
Palladium bartender who taught Lisa how to make her hair bigger
FashionBig 80s hair
Heard as “Idalis”
James's silk-fringe hula skirt as a shawl, then copied in Ibiza's window
FashionFringe shawl
Heard as “hula”
Lisa's laced, low-backed Alaïa dress worn back to front
FashionAlaïa lacing
Heard as “backwards”
Took communion with them at Warhol's memorial; at the party after
FashionMiami Vice style icon
Heard as “Don Johnson / Don, again”
Took communion at Warhol's memorial; talked to Lisa at the party after
Heard as “Clauson Bueller / Klaus von Bulow”
The hosts' company; Alicia works there now
Co-star on The Kominsky Method
James's diary has them there almost every weekend
Nickel Bag's abandoned warehouse
Heard as “Soho”
Floating party - an opium den, the story goes - where James threw Lisa a fake birthday
Heard as “Nickel Bag / Nickelbag”
Where the Gaiety was
Got his bartending job at Kamikaze
Lived in the same NYU dorm; they hung out in his room
Also on their nights out; one of Howie Montag's doors
Heard as “Danceteria / danceteria”
They went at 9 before the $5 cover and nursed one drink till 1
Heard as “pyramid”
Walking out of Area with them the night they met Warhol and Tony Shafrazi
Heard as “Ben Vereen / Benji”
Shafrazi's artist; in the front pew at Warhol's memorial
FashionPainted-suit downtown style
Heard as “Basquiat”
Shafrazi's artist; in the front pew at Warhol's memorial
FashionArtist who also designed fashion and the Pop Shop
Overruled Palladium and hired Lisa; threw the party after Warhol's memorial
FashionStudio 54 co-founder
Heard as “Steve Rebel / Steve Rubel”
Sniffed at their outfits at his BAM dinner, then put the same looks in his next Chanel collection, says James
FashionFashion designer (Chanel)
Heard as “Lagerfeld”
Where they scandalised Lagerfeld's dinner
Its crew went to the Lagerfeld dinner; Howie wrote for it
FashionDowntown fashion magazine
Heard as “Details / details crew”
James's look at the Lagerfeld dinner at BAM
FashionBikini and bolero
Heard as “bikini”
Lisa wore his laced, low-backed dress backwards to the Lagerfeld dinner; at Warhol's memorial
FashionFashion designer
Heard as “Azadine / acidine Elia”
Covered their outfits and the memorial
Where Lisa wore James's red dress (as heard), and one of Howie's doors
Heard as “Tunnel / tunnel”
Went to Warhol's memorial with them; Liza Minnelli waved at him. Links to his Night Fever episode
Heard as “Michelangelo”
Right in front of James in line at Warhol's memorial
Heard as “Judith Martin / Miss Manners”
Also at Warhol's memorial, to James's surprise
The film Lisa remembers discussing with Warhol
Heard as “Kindergarten Cob / Kindergarten Cop”
Killings in Lisa's building that may have inspired Disco Bloodbath
Heard as “Bleecker Street bloodbath / Bleeder Street”
Her class made Lisa realise she had something to say
Heard as “Elizabeth Suetos”
Home of The Kominsky Method
Friend at the lunch where Lisa insisted she doesn't remember anything
The NYU dorm on Fifth Avenue and 10th Street where Lisa first saw James
A typical diary entry of what James wore
FashionClub look
Heard as “spandex and pumps”
Bianca Jagger's garden
Famous make-up artist they spent nearly every night with for a year
FashionMake-up artist
Boy George's make-up artist fixed James's face after the mud puddle
FashionMake-up
Heard as “took out his makeup”
She went to the seedy strip club in a ball gown
FashionBall gown
Heard as “ball gown”
Doing his make-up at the Gaiety in a full-length mink
FashionFur coat
Heard as “mink coat”
Where the Underground was
Its students ate in the NYU dining hall
FashionFashion school
Heard as “Parsons”
Parsons student who came to the dining hall in pearls, tube skirt and heels; now runs Visionaire
FashionFashion publisher and creative director
Heard as “Stephen Gann”
His look in the NYU dining hall
FashionGender-bending look
Heard as “tube skirt”
Lisa's first NYU studio
Heard as “circling the square”
Lisa's outfit for an Area 'red' opening she never went to
FashionTheme dressing
Heard as “red unitard”
Discotheque Lisa first went to at 14 with her sister; later the Red Parrot
What Magique became, she thinks
Pauley Perrette's later show
Flip the hair from one side to the other as it dries
FashionBig 80s hair
Heard as “hair bigger”
Lisa had no money, so she wore what she owned - three dresses
FashionRe-wearing outfits
Heard as “strapless dress”
Worn over and over
FashionSequins
Heard as “red sequin jacket”
Its window copied James's hula-skirt shawl
FashionBoutique
Heard as “Ibiza”
James's black and Lisa's white hats, so heavy they drooped; his black crinoline from Hebrew school
FashionPicture hats
Heard as “picture hats”
With the Details crew at the Lagerfeld dinner
FashionFashion editor and stylist
Fenton thought the scandal was at a Comme des Garçons event
FashionFashion house
Heard as “calm de gas”
What turned up in Lagerfeld's next collection, as James tells it
FashionChanel collection
Heard as “next Chanel collection”
Suggested the stage name Lisa Sparrow
Tulle and a big black rose; Lisa borrowed it and everyone said she'd never looked better
FashionFishtail dress
Heard as “red spandex dress”
It girl whose parents' anniversary party Lisa wore James's red dress to
FashionIt girl
Heard as “Angela jenclo”
Told Lisa she looked fabulous in James's red dress
James sang it at Lisa when everyone wanted to dance with her
FashionRed dress
Heard as “Lady in Red”
Lisa says you first became famous below 14th Street - your training wheels for fame
Like Warhol, drawn to people on the edge
FashionFashion photographer
Heard as “LaChapelle”
Brilliant performance artist at Area who made it out
FashionPerformance looks at Area
Heard as “Zet”
Hair up, cleavage and heels, sure Andy would pop out of the casket
FashionParty dressing
Heard as “boobs out”
In the front pew at Warhol's memorial
FashionDebutante of the year, society style
Heard as “Cornelia guest”
In the front pew at Warhol's memorial
Fashion1960s it girl and style icon
Heard as “baby Jane Holzer”
In the front pew at Warhol's memorial
1930s star at Warhol's memorial
At Warhol's memorial with Kelly Klein
FashionFashion designer
Heard as “Calvin and Kelly”
Stage star at Warhol's memorial
Made a fabulous exit from Warhol's memorial
At Warhol's memorial with Dianne. Links to his Night Fever episode
Heard as “Rudolph”
Resplendent but fluorescent after a carrot-and-miso-soup diet, as told on the show
Heard as “carrot and miso”
Co-host of the party after Warhol's memorial at his and Rubell's new club
At the party after Warhol's memorial
FashionPunk style icon
At the party after Warhol's memorial
Talked to them for half an hour after Warhol's memorial
At the party after Warhol's memorial, with a new chin, as told on the show
Heard as “Monique Van Voren”
At the party after Warhol's memorial
Bleached her hair for the occasion
At the party after Warhol's memorial. Links to his Night Fever episode
FashionFashion journalist
Heard as “Billy Norwich”
At the party after Warhol's memorial
FashionFashion photographer
Heard as “Matthew Ralston”
Looked fab at the party after Warhol's memorial
Heard as “Patty Darbinville”
Also at Warhol's memorial
Also at Warhol's memorial
Also at Warhol's memorial
Fenton and Randy saw Warhol alone at a screening
A little dress he asked Warhol to admire
FashionCostume dress
Heard as “Red Riding Hood”
James wonders if the Bleecker Street murders gave him the title
Heard as “disco bloodbath”
Ran the big Sally Randall story
Lisa volunteered and did its 27-hour AIDS workshop
One of Howie Montag's doors
Lisa's musical about AIDS, staged at La MaMa
Her MTV segment giving downtown performance artists a national platform
Heard as “Lisa's World”
At home: a bright room with a window onto green leaves, a big red-and-black floral screen print with butterflies, and a silver podcast mic
FashionDark curly hair pinned up; black short-sleeved top with a crisp white Peter Pan collar; natural make-up with a brownish lip
His home library with packed bookshelves, a framed Edgar Allan Poe, a red chair and a white podcast mic
FashionBlack velvet jacket over a black lace top, strands of dark beads, a cameo brooch, a sparkly stud earring and black rectangular glasses; shaved head
Sunflower-patterned wallpaper, rust velvet and teal curtains, bookshelves
FashionGrey-blue T-shirt with a dark print; clear rimmed glasses; a pencil in hand
Warm wooden bookshelves with lamps, a gold pig sculpture and a David LaChapelle book
FashionNavy polo shirt with cream-striped collar and cuffs; dark tortoiseshell rectangular glasses
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