Vincent Gallo

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Vincent Gallo (born in Buffalo, New York on April 11, 1962^{[citation needed]}) is an American movie actor and director starring in a number of independent movies. Gallo is also a recognized painter, male fashion model, musician, motorcycle racer and breakdancer.

Gallo is known for his outspoken views and claims, once stating: "I stopped painting in 1990 at the peak of my success just to deny people my beautiful paintings; and I did it out of spite."^[1]

Gallo has said in interviews that he is a great admirer of the work of Werner Herzog, John Cassavetes, Rainer Fassbinder, Charles Mingus, Mario Bava and Anita O'Day.

Contents 1 Biography 1.1 Music 2 Public feud with Roger Ebert 3 Website controversy 4 Trivia 5 Selected filmography 5.1 Actor 5.2 Writer/Director 6 Discography 6.1 Albums 6.2 Singles 7 External links 7.1 Websites 7.2 References

[edit] Biography

Both of Vincent Gallo's parents had emigrated from Sicily. His belief is that "the only real Italians are from Buffalo."^{[citation needed]}

After his father kicked him out of the house at the age of 16, Gallo began living in New York City, and from there traveling around most of Europe, only to find himself back in the wild scene of New York under the name 'Prince Vince'.

Gallo has modeled, most notably for Calvin Klein, and been photographed by Richard Avedon. He first began painting, then racing motorcycles, and finally became an actor. He has directed two films, Buffalo '66 and The Brown Bunny. The latter was controversial as it contained a scene in which actress Chloë Sevigny performs actual fellatio on Gallo. Buffalo '66, which he wrote, directed, and starred in, is considered his most notable work.

[edit] Music

Gallo formed his first musical group in 1971 at age 9. This band was called The Blue Mood. He played bass guitar in this band and sang. From that time forward he has been involved with numerous music groups that have embraced a number of musical styles. To date, he has released five albums, plus several singles.

He has been in many bands, including The Plastics, Pork, Bohack, and Gray - in which Jean-Michel Basquiat was a member, and good friend. He is also good friends with producer Rick Rubin, John Frusciante, and Johnny Ramone, among others. He was in a rock band with Lukas Haas, called Bunny. Even though they are no longer together, Vincent put out his own CD under Warp Records, titled "When". In 2002 he released "Recordings of Music for a Film", which is some of his older music work remastered. Gallo is rumored to have one of the largest collection of Rickenbacker instruments known.

In Japan, for his 2001 When tour, Josh Klinghoffer and Carla Azar of Autolux supported him as his tour band. He's also done shows with Jim O'Rourke supporting him, mainly on bass. Gallo has also performed shows with Sean Lennon, whom he collaborated with on an album they completed in 2004, that has yet to be released. Nikolai Haas, Lukas Haas's younger brother, was also a drummer and techie on a few of Gallo's shows.

Vincent Gallo also arranged and organized the "All Tomorrow's Party" event at Camber Sands in the UK, April 2005. His friend John Frusciante appeared on the bill, which also included, by invitation, British electronic music pioneer John Foxx and his partner Louis Gordon. It is believed that John Foxx delayed the start of his set so that Gallo himself could be present.

[edit] Public feud with Roger Ebert

A war of words erupted between Gallo and popular critic Roger Ebert in 2003 regarding the latter's negative criticism of The Brown Bunny at the Cannes Film Festival. Ebert wrote that The Brown Bunny was the worst film in the history of Cannes, and Gallo retorted by calling Ebert a "fat pig with the physique of a slave trader." Ebert then responded, paraphrasing a statement once made by Winston Churchill that "although I am fat, one day I will be thin, but Mr. Gallo will still have been the director of The Brown Bunny." Gallo then put a hex on Ebert's colon, cursing the critic with cancer. Roger Ebert then replied that viewing a video of his colonoscopy would be more entertaining than watching The Brown Bunny. Later on, Gallo told Ebert that he had been misquoted, and he had actually wished him cancer of the prostate and not the colon.

A shorter, re-edited version of the film played later in 2004 at the Toronto International Film Festival (although it still retained the controversial sex scene). While not receiving the highest praise, neither did it garner the same level of derision as the Cannes version, and on the August 28, 2004 episode of Ebert & Roeper, Ebert gave the new version of the film a thumbs-up. In a column published at about the same time, Ebert reported that he and Gallo had made peace.

Ironically, the outrage and hysteria surrounding The Brown Bunny meant it ended up being the most talked-about film of the festival—even more so than the eventual Palme d'Or winner, Gus Van Sant's Elephant, and Lars von Trier's highly anticipated Dogville—creating a mystique that some thought might enhance its likelihood of securing major U.S. distribution. This did not happen, however, and the $10 million film had the highest per screen average at the box office, the weekend it opened. The film won approval from Sony Pictures Entertainment, which acquired multiterritory distribution rights of the film in February 2005. Sony Pictures Entertainment also released the film on DVD in North America in August 2005.

[edit] Website controversy

In early 2005, Gallo made a posting on his merchandise website offering his "disease-free" sperm for $1 million. However he added that he "maintains the right to refuse sale of his sperm to those of extremely dark complexions. Though a fan of Franco Harris, Derek Jeter, Lenny Kravitz and Lena Horne, Mr. Gallo does not want to be part of that type of integration."[1]

He also offered a $50,000 discount any woman "who can prove she has naturally blonde hair and blue eyes" and "anyone who can prove a direct family link to any of the German soldiers of the mid-century".[2]

Gallo also expresed his desire to impregnate a Jewish woman, because "this connection to the Jewish faith would guarantee his offspring a better chance at good reviews and maybe even a prize at the Sundance Film Festival or an Oscar."[3]

In early 2006, Gallo made another website posting offering his services as an "evening or weekend escort" and was open to any woman who would pay his fee of $50,000 for one night or $100,000 for a weekend.

[edit] Trivia

• He owns an old-fashioned style recording studio full of rare, out- of-date equipment. He also records his albums to tape.

• He created a short film called Honey Bunny starring Paris Hilton.

• There is an original portrait of Vincent Gallo hanging in the Phoenix Hotel in San Francisco.

• Vincent Gallo was featured in the glassJAw video "Cosmopolitan Blood Loss"

• He is also featured, walking with Rick Rubin, in the video for Jay-Z's "99 Problems".

[edit] Selected filmography

[edit] Actor

• Moscow Zero (2006)
• Oliverio Rising (2006)
• The Brown Bunny (2003)
• Stranded (2001)
• Trouble Every Day (2001)
• Freeway II: Confessions of a Trickbaby (1999)
• Buffalo 66 (1998)
• Truth or Consequences, NM (1997)
• Nénette et Boni (1996)
• The Funeral (1996)
• Basquiat (1996)
• Palookaville (1996)
• Arizona Dream (1993)
• The House of the Spirits (1993)

[edit] Writer/Director

• The Brown Bunny (2003)
• Buffalo ’66 (1998)

[edit] Discography

[edit] Albums

• It Took Several Wives - (1982), released on Family Friend Records (as Bohack)
• The Way It Is Soundtrack - (1984), released on Rojo Records
• Buffalo 66 Soundtrack - (1998), released on Will Records
• When - (2001), released on Warp Records (as Vincent Gallo)
• Recordings Of Music For Film - (2002), released on Warp Records

[edit] Singles

• "So Sad" EP - (2001), released on Warp Records
• "Honey Bunny" 7" - (2001), released on Warp Records

[edit] External links

[edit] Websites

• Drowning In Brown - information about Gallo's music.
• Excerpt from Ebert's interview of Gallo
• Gallo Appreciation - comprehensive resource page
• Official merchandise website
• Official website
• Sperm donation and escort ads
• The Guardian: Contrite Gallo apologises for pretension
• Vincent Gallo at the Notable Names Database
• Vincent Gallo at the Internet Movie Database
• Warp Records website

[edit] References

2005, "Buffalo boy", The Guardian [link accessed April 4, 2006].

• The Brown Bunny Trailer (Spanish)