Category Archives: New York

Robert Stark talks to Ashley Messinger about Roger Blackstone & The Politics of AESTHETICS

1980's, aesthetics, Aleister Crowley, Alicia Silverstone, Alternative Right, Architecture, Aristocratic Individualism, Ashley Messinger, Asian Culture, automation, Basic Income, Brandon Adamson, capitalism, Cities, Culture, Cyberpunk, democracy, Disneyland, Distributism, Donald Trump, Drugs, Economics, Elections, Environment, Eugenics, Fascism, Futurism, hedonism, Japan, Japanese Culture, Journey to Vapor Island, Las Vegas, Literature, Nationalism, New Urbanism, New York, Nietzsche, Occultism, Pepe the Frog, Philosophy, Politics, Post-scarcity economy, Retro Futurism, Roman Empire, Sexuality, Skyscrapers, Socialism, Third Way Economics, Transhumanism, Urbanism, Utopia, Vaporwave

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Roger Blackstone is a fictional presidential candidate in Robert Stark’s novel Journey to Vapor Island.

Topics:

Ashley’s article Roger Blackstone: The Politics of Aesthetics
Roger Blackstone’s ideology as a psychedelic futurist form of social nationalism
Roger Blackstone utilizing capitalism as a real estate mogul to rise to power
Roger Blackstone’s Utopian visions in contrast with Trump who has been a major disappointment
Roger Blackstone’s campaign commercial
“Advancing civilization and furthering human progress” implies a rejection of the NRx reading of history (inverted Whig view) and assumes that some forms of progress are actually meaningful
Basing political ideology on aesthetic values
New Urbanism and the necessity of creating aesthetically pleasant living spaces
The idea that simple libertarianism is just not enough and we need to create intentional communities for every possible group
The 1980’s Retro Futuristic theme; “Neon Nationalism”
Roger Blackstone’s idea of making humans, rather than just art and architecture, the subject of aesthetic concern
Roger’s Blackstone’s economic views and support for a basic income
The power to completely re-engineer the human genome to enhance human potential(Transhumanism)
The book The Chemical Muse about the prevalence of drugs(especially entheogens) in pre-modern societies, and the importance of drug use to a lot of artists and anti-conformists
Roger Blackstone’s father Alistair and his manifesto “Why The True Aristocrat Must Rule”
The notion of a natural aristocracy(ex. Ralph Waldo Emerson and HL Mencken)
The term “Aristocratic Radicalism” pops up, which has been used to describe Friedrich Nietzsche’s philosophy
Similarities to Alistair Crowley’s concept of “Aristocratic Communism,” where society is geared towards empowering those who are naturally non-conformists, artists, and intellectuals
There is some evidence that Alistair is sympathetic to distributive economic philosophies, because capitalism has this stifling effect on the creative class
The mock presidential debate scene where Noam has to represent Roger Blackstone against the Democrat, Republican, and Libertarian
The growing trend of political fusionism
The importance of using fiction to influence political discourse

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This show is brought to you by Robert Stark’s Paintings and his novel Journey to Vapor Island




Robert Stark talks to Count Fosco about the film Eyes Wide Shut

acting, aesthetics, Alice in Wonderland, Architecture, Cinema, Communism, Conspiracy Theories, Count Isidor Fosco, Culture, David Lynch, Depravity, dreams, Erotica, Eyes Wide Shut, Film, Hollywood, humor, Hungary, Journey to Vapor Island, Leelee Sobieski, Literature, Music, New York, Occultism, Prostitution, Psychology, relationships, Religion, Salò, Sexuality, Stanley Kubrick, Surrealism

 

 

 

 

 

Robert Stark talks to Count Fosco about the film Eyes Wide Shut directed by Stanley Kubrick. Count Fosco has a background in the Canadian Film Industry.

Topics:

Secret Societies; the conspiracy theory outlook vs. elite social clubs
The book  CULT AND OCCULT (THE UNEXPLAINED FILE) by FRANCIS KING
The book Dream Story by Arthur Schnitzler which the film was based upon
Kubrick’s Kaleidoscope
How there is a lot of subtle camera work in Eyes Wide Shut, that most people may not have caught
The importance of symbolism in the film
Types of Venetian masks worn at the party
The use of clues throughout the film
The theme of what is real and what is fantasy
What if David Lynch directed Eyes Wide Shut?
The Mentmore Towers Palace in England where the orgy scene was filmed
the conflict over sexual desire and libido between the married couple played by Tom and Nicole
There is a slight suggestion that perhaps Alice Harford is part of the Cult but her husband is not, when she says “You have no idea.”
Everyone have a price, notice how Bill Harford solves all his problems with money, both with the taxi man and the clerk, hence his name “bill” as in dollar bill
The man who gives him the password is a failed medical doctor which might be suggestive of something
Is it possible Ziegler has himself been lied too, despite his story not entirely adding up, despite lying?
Kubrick deliberately tries to fan the flames of Mandy’s death even after his own death, via the journalist who works on his newspaper props
Ritual in a sexual theme, the use of incense used typically only for sacred things
Leon Vitali, Kubricks personal assistant played the red cloak
The Custom store scene doesn’t make a whole lot of sense; it doesn’t fit in with the whole orgie conspiracy
Leelee Sobieski as another sacrificing anti-career heroine Hollywood mother, who put her children above a career
Leelee’s small but interesting roles in “Never Been Kissed,” “Branded,” and “Deep Impact”
Robert’s novel Journey to Vapor Island and parallels with Eyes Wide Shut

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This show is brought to you by Robert Stark’s Paintings and his novel Journey to Vapor Island




Robert Stark interviews Dain Fitzgerald

1980's, 1990's, Alternative Right, Asian Culture, Baby Boomers, California, censorship, Cities, Class, Conservatives, Corporations, Culture, Dain Fitzgerald, demographics, Economics, Family Guy, Futurism, Gender, Generation X, gentrification, Harvey Weinstein, Historic Preservation, Hollywood, income inequality, Joshua Zeidner, Libertarianism, Millennials, Music, New York, Oakland, Political Correctness, Politics, Sacramento , San Francisco, Science, Silicon Valley, Skyscrapers, Social Justice Warriors, Synthwave, technology, Transhumanism, Urbanism, Wealth

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Robert Stark and co-host Joshua Zeidner talk to Dain Fitzgerald. Dain works in the Silicon Valley, is based in Oakland, blogs at Dry Hyphen Olympics, and writes for The American Spectator and Secular Right. He is also on Twitter.

Topics:

How Robert met Dain at a Bay Area futurist meetup
Growing up in Sacramento, CA
Life in the Bay Area
The Bay Area’s economic situation and housing crisis
Dain’s political views, how he is fairly centrist economically, and opposed to SJW culture
The Grey Tribe
The Culture War; the humanities vs. the sciences
The political climate of the Silicon Valley
The firing of James Damore from Google
Neurodiversity 
Dain’s article Asian-American Leaders Are Scarce in Silicon Valley. And?
Dain’s article Meet the New Boss about how well behaved Millennials are
Futurism and science based politics
The Harvey Weinstein Scandal(note: the show was recorded before the recent SNL)

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This show is brought to you by Robert Stark’s Paintings!




Robert Stark talks to Robert Brenner about HBO’s The Deuce and 1970’s Time Square

1970's, aesthetics, Architecture, Cities, Culture, Historic Preservation, History, Neon, New York, Pornography, Prostitution, Robert Brenner, San Francisco, Sexuality, Taxi Driver, The Deuce, The Porn Industry, Time Square, Urbanism, Vice

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Robert Stark talks to Robert Brenner. Robert Brenner runs the Remnants of Gritty Times Square Tour hosted by Untapped Cities and has his own tour company Pig Feet Walking Tours.  Check out Robert Stark’s first and second interview with Robert Brenner about bout his Time Square Tours.

Topics:

HBO’s “The Deuce” Resurrects Gritty Times Square
NYC Film Locations for The Deuce about Gritty 1970’s Time Square on HBO
Robert Brenner’s upcoming tour on October 22nd which will incorporate locations from HBO’s “The Deuce”
How the locations for the show have been re-created from scratch in Washington Heights
42nd Street which was once known as “The Deuce” and was a hub for adult venues
Remaining adult venues on 8th Avenue including Show World and The Playpen
Theatres retrofitted into Broadway venues including the The Victory, The Empire, The Lyric, and The New Amsterdam
The Condor and Big Al’s being retrofitted from adult venues in San Francisco
Defunct theatres including The Pussycat Cinema, The World Theatre, The Rialto, and The Apollo
Adult Films Beyond the Green Door and Deep Throat
The history of Broadway

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This show is brought to you by Robert Stark’s Paintings!




Robert Stark interviews Old Urbanist Charles Gardner

1970's, aesthetics, American Culture, Architecture, arcology, Art, Charles Gardner, Cities, Culture, Disneyland, Economics, Environment, Europe, Frank Lloyd Wright, Historic Preservation, History, James Howard Kunstler, John C. Portman Jr, Las Vegas, Market Urbanism, New Urbanism, New York, Sam Kevorkian, San Francisco, Skyscrapers, Strong Towns, Suburbia, Urbanism, Utopia, Wilderness, Zoning


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Robert Stark and co-host Sam Kevorkian talk to James Gardner. He is an Attorney based in Stamford, Connecticut and blogs at the Old Urbanist.

Topics:

Jane Jacob’s The Death and Life of Great American Cities
The Curated Landscape  and how European towns and cities have starker divides between urbanized and undeveloped land than those of the United States
The Streetcar suburb model and Bourgeois Utopias: The Rise And Fall Of Suburbia: Robert Fishman
That 70s Urbanism, 70’s Urban Renewal projects(ex. the Embarcadero Center in SF and the Crystal City in Arlington, Virginia), and how those projects are underappreciated
Paolo Soleri’s Arcosanti
Cruise Ships: The Densest (Urban) Environment in the World
Disneyland and Urbanism
Heroic materialist
Green Urbanism, Frank Lloyd Wright’s Broadacre City, and the Garden City movement
Rehabilitating Walmart
The European Arcade and the Middle Eastern Souk as a model for retail
Height Acts and Restrictions
Narrow Streets
Vancouver and the Zoning Straitjacket
Lot Sizes: Regional Trends and Causes
NYC Suburban Demographics: and the  demographic collapse among the young adult population in wealthy suburbs
Urban growth boundaries

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This show is brought to you by Robert Stark’s Paintings!




Robert Stark talks to Scott Laudati about Cuba & Occupy Wall Street

Alternative Left, Alternative Right, Beatniks, Blade Runner, Cartrell Payne, Cities, comedy, Communism, Consumerism, counterculture, Crime, Cuba, Culture, Donald Trump, Economics, Film, gentrification, Hipsters, humor, income inequality, Literature, Los Angeles, Louis CK, New York, Occupy Wall Street, Oligarchy, Pablo D'Stair, Pilleater, Poetry, Police, Police Brutality, Police Corruption, Police State, Prison, Scott Laudati, Socialism, The Adventure Kid, Thom Young, Twin Peaks, Urbanism, Wall Street

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Robert Stark, co-host Pilleater, and Cartrell Payne(The Adventure Kid) talk to  Scott Laudati. Laudati is a writer and musician. He is the author of Play the Devil and has written a book of poetry Hawaiian Shirts in the Electric Chair.

Topics:

Intro: Scott Laudati – “A Girl From Greenwich Village pt. II
The translation of his book Play the Devil into Italian
The publishing process and the pros and cons of self publishing
Scott’s Upcoming book of poetry “Yeti Funeral,” a poem about his dog, poems about New York, and influences including the Beats and Jim Carroll
Observations about living in New York City; Williamsburg, Brooklyn
Experience living in LA, Downtown LA, Broadway and the Bradbury Building
Scott’s recent trip to Cuba, the embargo, the travel ban, the current laws, and misconceptions about Cuba
Scott’s involvement with Occupy Wall Street, Police Brutality, and his arrest
The rise in political violence
Movies, Comedy, and TV shows

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Check Out Robert Stark’s Paintings!




 

Robert Stark interviews Joseph Dobrian

aesthetics, Architecture, Art, censorship, Culture, Economics, Edward Hopper, Fashion, Feminism, Film, Historic Preservation, Iowa City, Joseph Dobrian, journalism, Libertarianism, Literature, New York, Philosophy, Pilleater, Political Correctness, Politics, Sexuality, Urbanism

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Robert Stark and co-host Pilleater talk to Joseph Dobrian. Joseph Dobrian is a novelist, essayist, poet, and financial journalist, also known as a political activist and TV talk show host. Hard-Wired is his third novel. Previous books include the novels Ambitions and Willie Wilden, and the best-selling collection of essays, Seldom Right But Never In Doubt. He ran for Mayor of New York City in 2009, and now lives in Iowa City, Iowa, with four rescue cats.

Topics:

Joseph’s experience living in New York City, his “Guys and Dolls” lifestyle in the 80’s, and how the city has changed
His run for Mayor of New York City as a Libertarian and his political views
His home town and current location Iowa City which is called “Berkeley on the Prairie,” and the city’s architecture(ex.Englert Theatre)
His custom made 1940’s inspired suits
His talk show on local cable TV the Joseph Dobrian Show
His novels including Ambitions, Willie Wilden, and Hard-Wired
Literary influences including William Makepeace Thackeray’s Vanity Fair, George Orwell, and Herman Wouk
Favorite artist including Walter Sickert, Gilbert Stuart, and Edward Hopper
Architectural interest including The Federalist Style, Albert Speer, and Hugh Ferriss
His op ed Abolish the National Endowment for the Arts – Iowa City Press-Citizen
Joseph and Robert debate funding for the arts
The cancellation of a book reading at Prairie Lights Bookstore in Iowa City due to hecklers

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Check Out Robert Stark’s Paintings!




Robert Stark talks to Jim Goad about the New Church Ladies and Re Release of Answer Me!

Adam Parfrey, Alternative Right, Black Culture, Cartrell Payne, censorship, Class, Country Music, Culture, Economics, Gender, Globalization, humor, Immigration, Jim Goad, journalism, Literature, Midnight Cowboy, Morality, Music, New York, Peter Sotos, Philadelphia, Pilleater, Police, Political Correctness, Portland, Prison, Punk Rock, Race Relations, rape, Sexuality, Slavery, Social Justice Warriors, Taxi Driver, The Adventure Kid, The American South

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Robert Stark, co-host Pilleater, and Cartrell Payne(The Adventure Kid) talk to JIM GOAD about his new book The New Church Ladies and re release of ANSWER Me! by Nine-Banded Books.

Topics:

Jim’s new book The New Church Ladies: The Extremely Uptight World of “Social Justice”
Social Justice as a new secular religion and their moral absolutist nature
Social Justice Warriors totalitarian tactics and dehumanization of those they disagree with
Jim’s early experience with political correctness in the Punk Scene in the early 80’s; Rock Against Racism
Jim’s experiences with anti-racist skinheads in Portland
Experiences with censorship in 1994 for the publication of Answer Me!’s “Rape Issue”
The Redneck Manifesto and the white privilege fallacy
Michael Hoffman’s They Were White and They Were Slaves
The liberal establishment abandoning economic issues and political correctness as a tool to disarm working class opposition to globalization
Individualism vs Identitarianism; “If you can’t beat them join them”
“Why Are White Death Rates Rising?”
The re release of ANSWER Me! All Four Issues
Peter Sotos’s “Quality Time” article for the “Rape Issue” which lead to threats of prosecution for obscenity
Jim & Debbie Goad on Hot Seat with Wally George
Music interest; 80’s rap music,  70’s British Glam including Garry Glitter, Rockabilly, and ‘Psycho’: The darkly insane country music classic
Philadelphia, Temple University where both Pilleater and Jim attended, and the city’s reputation

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This show is brought to you by Robert Stark’s Paintings!




Robert Stark interviews Jack Ravenwood

1980's, 1990's, aesthetics, Anime, Architecture, Art, Asia, Asian Aryanism, Beatniks, capitalism, China, Cinema, Cities, Class, College, conformity, Conservatives, Consumerism, Culture, Cyberpunk, Deconstruction, Donald Trump, Economics, education, Film, Free Trade, Ghost in a Shell, Globalization, History, Hong Kong, Immigration, Jack Kerouac, Jack Ravenwood, Japan, Japanese Culture, Jean Baudrillard, Las Vegas, Literature, Martin Heidegger, Mid-Century Modern, Neoliberalism, Neon, New York, Paradise Theater, Philosophy, Pilleater, Robert Brenner, Ross Perot, Shenzhen, Skyscrapers, SWPL, Thomas Rinaldi, Time Square, Trans-Pacific Partnership, Urbanism, Wisconsin

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Robert Stark and co-host Pilleater talk to Jack Ravenwood. He is the author of Paradise Theater, a collection of short stories centered around the theme of the post-industrial American small city. He is also the main writer at Mean Street Cinema, a website dedicated to films from New York City in the 70’s and 80’s, as well as the co-founder of little ape press. He blogs at Foreigner Thoughts

Topics:

The setting of the book Paradise Theater in Jack’s home town West Allis, Wisconsin in the 1980’s and early 90’s
The Paradise Theatre movie house which the book was named for and featured on the cover
The Fairview Motors Sign which is featured on the back of the book; Mid-Century Road Signage
The cultural, political, and economic themes in the book
Allis-Chalmers closing in West Allis and the de-industrialization of the Midwest
Ross Perot’s campaign in 1992 against NAFTA, and Trump campaigning on trade issues
Jack’s Unz Review article Trump, JFK, and the Deep State
National Review Writer: Working-Class Communities ‘Deserve To Die
How the best case scenario for the US would be to carve out a niche in high end manufacturing that caters to China’s growing middle class
Jack’s new home Shenzhen, China which is a manufacturing power house, and new mega city built from scratch
Jack’s Mean Street Cinema site, his interest in Vintage New York City, and Robert Stark’s interviews with Thomas Rinaldi about New York Neon and Robert Brenner about his Time Square Tours
Jack’s observations about Hong Kong Neon and how Hong Kong Is Slowly Dimming Its Neon Glow
Jack’s future plan to document Neon in Hong Kong in either a book or blog
The culture of Hong Kong as a bridge between the east and west and it’s “relative autonomy”
Vertical living and how it is the norm for urban China for all classes
High density living isn’t inherently bad but it is necessary to have a high quality of culture to sustain it
Jack Kerouac’s The Town and the City
Conformity in Asian culture; authentic Asian culture vs. SWPL larping
Chinese Philosophy; the Tao Te Ching
The evolution of Western Philosophy; Deconstruction and selective deconstruction
Jean Baudrillard and the simulation


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This show is brought to you by Robert Stark’s Paintings!




Thomas Rinaldi returns to talk about Neon

1960's, 1980's, aesthetics, Architecture, Argentina, Art, Art Deco, Asia, Blade Runner, Buenos Aires, Cities, Consumerism, Corporations, Culture, Economics, Futurism, gentrification, Historic Preservation, History, Hong Kong, Las Vegas, London, Los Angeles, Mid-Century Modern, Neon, New York, Philadelphia, Pilleater, Retro Futurism, Robert Brenner, San Francisco, Thomas Rinaldi, Time Square, Travel, Urbanism, Wildwood New Jersey

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Robert Stark and co-host Pilleater talk to returning guest Thomas Rinaldi. He is the author of New York Neon and blogs at nyneon.blogspot.com

Topics:

Thomas’s Tours of West Village’s Vintage Neon Signs, his Greenwich Village Neon Walking Tour, and how those areas have the highest concentration of surviving Neon in New York City
Thomas’s observation that Neon has declined in both corporate chain dominated, as well as lower income communities
How ironically in the 60’s Neon was synonymous with commercialization(ex. Simon & Garfunkel’s The Sound of Silence)
The association of Neon with 80’s Retro-Futurism(ex. Retrowave, Club NEON) and the irony that Neon hit rock bottom in the 80’s
The decline of Neon in Time Square, Robert Brenner’s Gritty Old Time Square Tours, and the few remnents including the West 43rd Garage and the McDonalds from the 80’s
Lights Out 2016: Signs We Lost That Year
The Colgate Clock in Jersey City, which has been LED’ed
Clock Towers Signs in New York including the Paramount Theatre, the Consolidated Edison Building, the Met Life Tower, and the Williamsburgh Savings Bank Tower
Soviet Neon Stars at the Kremlin and Neon in Communist Cuba
Williamsburg’s Domino Sugar Refinery redevelopment; the outlawing of waterfront signs in New York City
The C & H factory Sign in Crockett, California
Ghirardelli Square in San Francisco as one of the best examples of a renovated former industrial site
Georges Claude, the father of the commercialization of Neon
The popularity of Signs Inside
Fake Neon
Animated Neon Signs, the peak in the 50’s, and San Francisco’s “Coca~Cola” Sign
Bulb Signs which were proliferate in the 1920’s, and Robert’s observation that they were also popular with 90’s era Las Vegas Casinos
Wildwood, New Jersey Neon
Mid Century Road Signage; Route 66
Downtown LA; The LA Museum Of Neon Art
Neon in Buenos Aires, Argentina; The Art Deco Kavanagh building and Estadio Luna Park
Thomas’s observations from Stockholm and Amsterdam
How Neon is declining in both Mega Cities such as New York and London as well as the poorest cities in the developing world
Hong Kong Is Slowly Dimming Its Neon Glow


Click Here to download!
This show is brought to you by Robert Stark’s Paintings!