According to reliable sources, Fox Searchlight is reportedly in negotiations to produce a film based on the book “I Slept with Joey Ramone (A Family Memoir).” The book, which is set to hit stores in December, was written by Ramone’s brother Mickey Leigh, who is himself a punk rocker, and Ramones biographer and author of punk insider history Please Kill Me Legs McNeil. While we have no doubt the book will be an entertaining and enlightening read, how the adaptation will turn out is slightly less rosy. First, the problem of casting: the Ramones were pretty distinct looking guys from Forest Hills, and though Williamsburg has its share of dirtbag-y knockoffs, the producers would really need to comb the streets and convince some genuine Queens natives to go full method to get it right. Though, knowing Hollywood, someone has already called Bradford Cox and called him “bro” several times. Problem two: the Lower East Side no longer exists, so they will have to green-screen CBGB back on Bowery and remove the 8,000 glass and steel condos that surround it. Maybe they could just say punk was born in the Whole Foods on Houston Street. Begin anticipating the film now and pick up the book on December 1st. If you’re in NYC, get it directly from Leigh and McNeil at the Barnes & Noble Tribeca on Warren Street, where they will be signing books and doing a Q&A session.

Written By Phillip Mottaz

Dedicated to those songs that I can’t stop playing, humming, or thinking about; the 4+ minutes you fall head-over-heels in love with. Past instances have included Matthew Sweet’s “Girlfriend,” Led Zeppelin’s “C’mon Everybody,” and M.I.A.’s “Paper Planes.”
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Today would be Joey Ramone’s 58th birthday, and tonight Joey’s brother, Mickey Leigh, will be hosting the official birthday bash at the Fillmore at Irving Plaza in NYC. Among the guests will be special appearances by the likes of Handsome Dick Manitoba and Tommy Ramone. But if you don’t have a ticket to the show, you won’t have to wait long to see Handsome Dick and Tommy — along with Lenny Kaye and Chris Stein — again. Ladies and gentlemen, may we present the Loud Fast Jews!
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[Photo by Jenny Lens]

There are few people who helped transform the New York City punk scene more than Joey Ramone. Even if only as an icon of New York in the late 70s, Joey helped define a generation of punks as well as a certain country and bluegrass club. So as we approach what would’ve been his 58th birthday tomorrow [May 19], it only makes sense that said bluegrass club — CBGB’s — would be hosting an online chat, featuring family and friends remembering the late Ramones frontman, today.
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Written by Danny R. Phillips

Metallica, the bay-area giants that legitimized “thrash metal” with albums like Kill ‘Em All, Master of Puppets, …And Justice For All and “The Black Album” were welcomed into the hallowed confines of The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on April 4, 2009.
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