Negative role model John Waters in the DVD ‘This Filthy World.’ He says that ‘New York is the cleanest city in the world. There’s not one bad block left.’ The DVD is out now. Photo courtesy of Dokument Films.
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By John Russell
Friday, November 09, 2007
It’s just after 1 p.m. and John Waters is super busy. There are phone calls to be made concerning Broadway musicals, children’s Christmas albums and inspirational books about role-models. Sounds weirdly wholesome for the Pope of Trash, the man whose 1972 breakthrough film, “Pink Flamingos,” featured longtime friend and muse Divine eating dog poo. But because this is John Waters, the role models are trashy, the children’s songs are probably more than a little inappropriate, and the musicals—well, can you get much campier than Broadway? Waters found time to sit down (appropriately at the Trailer Park restaurant in Chelsea) to talk about “This Filthy World,” his new DVD, a recording of Waters strand-up act.
The new DVD has a career retrospective feel to it.
It is a career retrospective. I say in the beginning I’m trying to be a negative role model for the new generation that needs someone bad to look up to. And it is probably a greatest hits album of every anecdote I’ve ever told. I always refresh that. Since [the DVD was filmed] that act has 15 new minutes in it. I’m always adding stuff and taking stuff out. I test material that’s going to be in my next movie to see if it gets a laugh.
Baltimore has the dubious honor of being your muse, but what inspires you about New York?
The lowlife in Baltimore is so great and the high-life here is great. I think the lowlife here is faux lowlife, and I think high-life in Baltimore is ridiculous. It’s embarrassing. And I like places that don’t really participate in America. And people here are more successful than anywhere else. So that’s inspiring. But I also don’t want to be around that all the time. That isn’t what I make movies about. That’s who I sell movies to. And I like them too! I don’t want to only go to redneck bars in Baltimore!
Is there any good sleaze left in New York?
Are you kidding? New York is the cleanest city in the world. There’s not one bad block left and if there was the trendiest new restaurant would open there.
Inside the curtain of irony—which is what New York is—there’s never any real anything. It’s faux everything. If there is good sleaze in New York? I don’t know anymore. And I believe it would probably be in Brooklyn. I’m too old for Brooklyn. I certainly think [party promoters and nightlife celebrities] Miss Guy, Formika, all those people have that same spirit in clubs; I just wish one would catch on.
Why do you think that stuff isn’t taking off anymore?
It’s so expensive that marginal people can’t live in New York. But it always was expensive. I’m not saying there are no good places. I’m too old to go to them! And if I did go to them now, what am I gonna do, have public sex? Come on! That would be really mortifying—and it would be on the Web the next second!
Tell me about some of your favorite New York sleaze.
I used to go to The Hole, which is now The Cock. But I liked straight night at The Hole, because it was mixed. I always do much better in mixed clubs. I’m against separatism.
What do you think of the concept of post-gay?
I’m for that! Because it means not corny gay. That’s what I presume. I love people that don’t even fit in their own minority! I want to be an outlaw again! I don’t want to get married! But I’m not against fighting for it. For “straight” gay people marriage means a lot. I will be in every voting booth pushing the buttons till that happens. I vote gay.
Can you define “trash”?
That word doesn’t work anymore. I use “filth” now. Which is a little punkish. To me, “filth” is a joyous way of saying “humor with an edge” With a gay edge even. But now that’s on national American television. There’s no reason to call it anything but funny at this point.
So American culture is tabloid-culture now?
Not completely. The tabloids—I read all of them. But at the same time there’s serious journalism. And I think there always will be. The thing that’s scary to me is, I would still always rather read serious journalism holding it in my hand rather than on a computer—even though I look at web sites every day. But the kids don’t want to ever read a newspaper or magazine now.
Do you think you’ve inspired any fetishes with your movies?
No, because first of all, in “Pink Flamingos” eating shit was not coprophagia. It was anarchy. Coprophagia is sexualizing eating shit, which believe me, thank god I don’t have. I’ve had people surface that were into that, because of the movie. So they misread the movie. There’s no sexual attraction there, it was anarchy. And if I hadn’t done it, Johnny Knoxville would have. He’d do it now!
Do people misread your movies a lot?
No. I think my career is totally understood.
As a “filth elder,” what’s the most important thing you want to impart to the next generation of weirdoes?
Every single thing you try to hide or you might be uptight about, learn to embrace it, as long as it doesn’t make you feel bad about yourself. Exaggerate it. Turn it into a style and run with it.
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