1976/1977 - SWFs Seeking Excitement

Pinocchio & Figaro met up with Lampwick

They were promised unlimited freedom. While on the island, the children are encouraged to commit acts of vandalism, fight, drink alcohol, smoke cigars, and gamble - all things that good little boys are not supposed to do. from Pinocchio

1976/77- Belinda Carlisle and Terry Ryan were a couple of bored teenagers who would go into Hollywood looking for adventure. Belinda and Terry met in art class at Newbury Park High School in Thousand Oaks, Ca. Terry introduced Belinda to a lot of music like Iggy and the Stooges, New York Dolls and Roxy Music. They were into the same things - like any music or guy from England

They started going to clubs when they were both in high school. Belinda would pick her up, and they would go into Hollywood.

Lookin' for adventure...

lapl photo database

They drove into West Hollywood- which was a 40-minute drive from their home in Thousand Oaks.

Hollywood Frwy, Sunset Blvd off-ramp

1980 photo:Roy Hankey

They would often hang out in the parking lot of the Rainbow Bar' n' Grill on Sunset Boulevard - next door to the Roxy club. Like a lot of teenage girls, they wanted to hang out with Hollywood celebrities and meet rock stars. For this - the Rainbow parking lot was the place to be.

Elmer Valentine's Roxy nightclub

N.D photo: Roy Hankey

Belinda and Lorna have a Germ encounter...

In 1976, Belinda was into Freddie Mercury and Queen. She heard he was staying at the Beverly Hilton on Wilshire Boulevard - so they hung out in the hotel lobby hoping to meet him.

The Beverly Hilton Hotel

They were unsuccessful at meeting Freddie - however, they did meet a couple of other Queen groupies. These guys turned out to be Paul Beahm (Darby Crash)
Georg Ruthenberg (Pat Smear) and Pleasant Gehman from West Los Angeles. This encounter changed Belinda's and Terry's direction in life forever.

I’m off to Funland where there are parties every day.

Groupies form their own Group...
Belinda and Terry became their friends and agreed to join Paul and Georg's band called the Germs. Belinda was to be the drummer and Terry the bass player. However, shortly after the Germ's formation Belinda got sick with mononucleosis and was replaced on drums by Donna Rhia (aka Becky Barton).

Terry would go on to be a full time member of the seminal LA punk rock band - The Germs. She changed her name to the more punk sounding Lorna Doom.

Paul initially changed his name to Bobby Pyn before settling on Darby Crash. Georg went by Pat Smear.

Belinda did a stint as Darby's prop girl. She would hand him salad dressing and peanut butter when he was on stage ala Iggy Pop.

photo: TheresaK

Lorna Doom

photo: TheresaK

It was this association with the Germs that led Belinda to immerse herself totally into the new punk rock scene forming. She and Lorna made friends with other scenesters, went to clubs, hung out back stage, dated musicians, and became one of scene's it girls.

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I'm not a donkey...