Check out this interesting tidbit of piercing history crossing over with much larger world political history in this article by Yard[D]og, and then please come back here to comment or share your own stories. Click the picture to jump to the article.
Piercing History and Political History Intersection
Written by
Latest Tattoo, Piercing, and Body Modification News
- Skin and Strings: The Art of Human Puppetryby JonathonOne of the most powerful things about being at a convention like OSC is the sheer concentration of experience, creativity, and capability in one place. When you’re surrounded by people who not only understand the technical complexities of suspension but are excited by the challenge⦠Read more: Skin and Strings: The Art of Human Puppetry
- Twelve Points to the Skyby JonathonThereās a particular kind of magic that happens at your first big suspension gathering when you arrive with nerves, an open heart, and the quiet hope of flight. Guided by the encouragement of mentor Lynn Loheide and driven by the quiet confidence of belonging, Alex⦠Read more: Twelve Points to the Sky
- Ontario SusCon 2025by JonathonIn March 2025, BME attended the Ontario Suspension Convention in Hamilton, hosted by the Kevin Donaghy and the Ontario Suspension Collective. We had the pleasure to take part and help document the event, but also run a booth to sell a bunch of old (but⦠Read more: Ontario SusCon 2025
- Welcome Back to Body Modification Ezineby NefDear BME Community, Weāve been gone far too long, but BME is back to give people a voice, a space, a community. With time everything evolves, and BME may be different than you remember. Our goal is to stay true to Shannon and Rachel’s values⦠Read more: Welcome Back to Body Modification Ezine
- BME Social Mediaby NefWord of mouth has been our method of reuniting the community, and it has brought a substantial amount of us together. I am inspired by your loyalty and I want to remind more people of BME’s existence. In 2020 we gained control over @bmezine on⦠Read more: BME Social Media
- BMEShopby NefDespite the hurricanes in 2015 which destroyed almost all of what Rachel owned, she managed to save the original inventory from BME. We have relisted some of the stock on BMEShop.com with the hopes you may be interested. Our first drop includes a selection of⦠Read more: BMEShop
Comments
146 responses to “Piercing History and Political History Intersection”
socialcoma ā If someone goes out of their way to destroy the personal lives of other people, I donāt see the harm in taking a peek at what makes them tick personally as well.
socialcoma ā If someone goes out of their way to destroy the personal lives of other people, I donāt see the harm in taking a peek at what makes them tick personally as well.
no doubt if Louie was alive heād be quite happy that this story is out there embarrassing this very evil callous man.
no doubt if Louie was alive heād be quite happy that this story is out there embarrassing this very evil callous man.
Shannon, Marshall, Fliss ā Thanks for your insights and attitudes towards this topic. I appreciate them and take them into consideration as different views of this article.
I think Iām going to get a pa tomarrow
Shannon, Marshall, Fliss ā Thanks for your insights and attitudes towards this topic. I appreciate them and take them into consideration as different views of this article.
I think Iām going to get a pa tomarrow
I bet BushCo would be surprised that there is a eunuch that can play 6 degrees of separation and get to Bush himself through only one other person.
I bet BushCo would be surprised that there is a eunuch that can play 6 degrees of separation and get to Bush himself through only one other person.
As to the wikipedia issue, Louie isnāt notable enough to merit his own wikipedia page ā The reason that the information was removed from the Karl Rove page is that it isnāt necesarily notable, and Jim Wardās edit constitutes āoriginal researchā which is a big no-no. Jimās personal connection to the subjects father actually makes it a conflict of interest for him to edit the page at all.
This post could serve as a primary source for a Wikipedia edit, but as it is blog derived, itās going to have a very high bar to jump through, especially on a commonly vandalised page like the Karl Rove one.
As to the wikipedia issue, Louie isnāt notable enough to merit his own wikipedia page ā The reason that the information was removed from the Karl Rove page is that it isnāt necesarily notable, and Jim Wardās edit constitutes āoriginal researchā which is a big no-no. Jimās personal connection to the subjects father actually makes it a conflict of interest for him to edit the page at all.
This post could serve as a primary source for a Wikipedia edit, but as it is blog derived, itās going to have a very high bar to jump through, especially on a commonly vandalised page like the Karl Rove one.
Great article, Yarddog! Iāll look forward to reading more from you in the future. Very very good point on the six degrees of separation, an instance of which I was faced with two weeks ago. It further underlined the fact that a lot of people probably have (gay) skeletons in their closets. While I agree that Rove is entitled to privacy, itās well-known that his father was gay, and he was well-known in the body modification community. The fact that the communities didnāt meet in the middle doesnāt give him immunity from being exposed for the fraud he is.
Great article, Yarddog! Iāll look forward to reading more from you in the future. Very very good point on the six degrees of separation, an instance of which I was faced with two weeks ago. It further underlined the fact that a lot of people probably have (gay) skeletons in their closets. While I agree that Rove is entitled to privacy, itās well-known that his father was gay, and he was well-known in the body modification community. The fact that the communities didnāt meet in the middle doesnāt give him immunity from being exposed for the fraud he is.
Excellent, well written article. So now I know who that person was that filled my mind with wonder in my early days of getting pierced! Shannon, I have all issues of PFIQ and will scan and send what I can find about Louie. Thanks for the great article Yard(D)og.
Excellent, well written article. So now I know who that person was that filled my mind with wonder in my early days of getting pierced! Shannon, I have all issues of PFIQ and will scan and send what I can find about Louie. Thanks for the great article Yard(D)og.
I read the original on Yarddogās IAM page, and I just have to say, this is an amazing story. Itās sad to see someone disowned by their own family members.
I wish this were the reason Karl Rove was retiring.
I read the original on Yarddogās IAM page, and I just have to say, this is an amazing story. Itās sad to see someone disowned by their own family members.
I wish this were the reason Karl Rove was retiring.
realy loved the artical. a great insight to a great man (and no i donāt mean the son)
realy loved the artical. a great insight to a great man (and no i donāt mean the son)
Unbelievable article, this was truly fascinating.
It makes me proud to share the same name as that man š
Shannon, you probably live the most interesting life ever, I love it.
Unbelievable article, this was truly fascinating.
It makes me proud to share the same name as that man š
Shannon, you probably live the most interesting life ever, I love it.
Awesome and truly amazing that a father and son could take such different paths.
Awesome and truly amazing that a father and son could take such different paths.
The only Rove I know is the comedian on Aussie TV, so the political crap is lost on me⦠From reading comments however I gather heās not popular.
I find it sad that homosexuality and mods have to be āskeletonsā, I practise both and my heart sinks at the thought that my family consider me as something to hide.
I pray the day never comes when we, as a community, are ashamed of our families for being mainstream.
OwenBrown, fathers and sons take very different paths each day. The only difference in this is celebrity.
The only Rove I know is the comedian on Aussie TV, so the political crap is lost on me⦠From reading comments however I gather heās not popular.
I find it sad that homosexuality and mods have to be āskeletonsā, I practise both and my heart sinks at the thought that my family consider me as something to hide.
I pray the day never comes when we, as a community, are ashamed of our families for being mainstream.
OwenBrown, fathers and sons take very different paths each day. The only difference in this is celebrity.
What a wonderful, beautifully-written story. Louie would be so pround of you! (Iām a middle-aged, straight white-bread mother, and the article brought a tear to my eye ā and not because of the piercings!) Good on you.
What a wonderful, beautifully-written story. Louie would be so pround of you! (Iām a middle-aged, straight white-bread mother, and the article brought a tear to my eye ā and not because of the piercings!) Good on you.
It has been a new and interesting experience reading what folks write about something I have written. I will continue to follow the train.
However I want to add something to my story.
With regard to the information on other sites ⦠I am sad that they have picked this up and played on the āgraphicā side. It was never supposed anything other than a personal experience.
Secondly, I have since found out indirectly from āthe familyā that there was a private āfamily serviceā for Louie. I can respect a familyās intentions, but from a gay perspective, it is so typical for families who want āhideā a persons sexual orientation to keep a funeral private away from long-time friends. AIDS deaths are clutter with āprivateā family services.
It was also suggest to me that the family may have know about Louieās body modifications. It is not an absolute that the family would have known about them. Louie told me and others (see above), that he never wanted a tattoo because it was permanent; you can take out a piercing. And Louie was well into giving things away before he died. He gave me a collection of photographs for instance. Again, that is typical of single, older gay men. More than once I have been asked to āclean out a closetāā¦
Thanks to the folks who have contacted me or Shannon about Louie with information. And bits and pieces of his life and the times will help the historical record.
This last week I have been developing a question. It has to do with the father and son relationship. There is a part of me that wonders why Karl would NOT want it to be seem as ādistancing himself from his fatherā (Karl says they were close) ⦠But his father is gay, why not distance himself?
Karl on one hand is not distancing himself from his father but on the other hand is developing a political strategy based on inflaming an anti-gay political base!
Where they as close as you or I may think ācloseā is? Or was/is the son āusingā the father on their trips to Santa Fe to help him (Karl) develop that strategy at some level? God knows, maybe they went off together and developed that strategy ! A kind of father son bonding?
Whatever the case, Louie was gay; people knew it then and now. Perhaps not gay like a 20 year old is today, but just the same he was. What I donāt understand is why/how the son could do something that had the possibility to hurt the father one way or another. Why would Karl do that? Could you do that to your son? To your father?
It has been a new and interesting experience reading what folks write about something I have written. I will continue to follow the train.
However I want to add something to my story.
With regard to the information on other sites ⦠I am sad that they have picked this up and played on the āgraphicā side. It was never supposed anything other than a personal experience.
Secondly, I have since found out indirectly from āthe familyā that there was a private āfamily serviceā for Louie. I can respect a familyās intentions, but from a gay perspective, it is so typical for families who want āhideā a persons sexual orientation to keep a funeral private away from long-time friends. AIDS deaths are clutter with āprivateā family services.
It was also suggest to me that the family may have know about Louieās body modifications. It is not an absolute that the family would have known about them. Louie told me and others (see above), that he never wanted a tattoo because it was permanent; you can take out a piercing. And Louie was well into giving things away before he died. He gave me a collection of photographs for instance. Again, that is typical of single, older gay men. More than once I have been asked to āclean out a closetāā¦
Thanks to the folks who have contacted me or Shannon about Louie with information. And bits and pieces of his life and the times will help the historical record.
This last week I have been developing a question. It has to do with the father and son relationship. There is a part of me that wonders why Karl would NOT want it to be seem as ādistancing himself from his fatherā (Karl says they were close) ⦠But his father is gay, why not distance himself?
Karl on one hand is not distancing himself from his father but on the other hand is developing a political strategy based on inflaming an anti-gay political base!
Where they as close as you or I may think ācloseā is? Or was/is the son āusingā the father on their trips to Santa Fe to help him (Karl) develop that strategy at some level? God knows, maybe they went off together and developed that strategy ! A kind of father son bonding?
Whatever the case, Louie was gay; people knew it then and now. Perhaps not gay like a 20 year old is today, but just the same he was. What I donāt understand is why/how the son could do something that had the possibility to hurt the father one way or another. Why would Karl do that? Could you do that to your son? To your father?
The end⦠woah. Life really is strange and the only thing stranger is how long it actually takes to get accustomed to that idea. Stories like this help remind me of the boundlessness of reality. This feels like it was written with a lot of compassion so thanks for sharing it.
The end⦠woah. Life really is strange and the only thing stranger is how long it actually takes to get accustomed to that idea. Stories like this help remind me of the boundlessness of reality. This feels like it was written with a lot of compassion so thanks for sharing it.
Donāt be too critical of Wikipedia. Itās interesting, but itās original research by Wikipediaās definition. Wikipedia does not act as a primary source of information but always (theoretically) relies on previously-published sources that are known to be reliable. Also, it is frequently burned with libel suits, so it has to be extremely careful about stuff like this.
Donāt be too critical of Wikipedia. Itās interesting, but itās original research by Wikipediaās definition. Wikipedia does not act as a primary source of information but always (theoretically) relies on previously-published sources that are known to be reliable. Also, it is frequently burned with libel suits, so it has to be extremely careful about stuff like this.
Hey all, just thought youād like to know the major political blog Wonkette picked up on this today ā Iāve shared the link below.
http://wonkette.com/politics/no-more-a_roving-dept%27/karl-roves-gay-dad-made-his-son-fall-in-love-with-jeff-gannon-292407.php
Hey all, just thought youād like to know the major political blog Wonkette picked up on this today ā Iāve shared the link below.
http://wonkette.com/politics/no-more-a_roving-dept%27/karl-roves-gay-dad-made-his-son-fall-in-love-with-jeff-gannon-292407.php
This story is awesomeā¦karl totally deserves this, whether this is true or not.
This story is awesomeā¦karl totally deserves this, whether this is true or not.
I lived in Los Angeles from November 1982 to Sept 1991, and went to Louieās home for piercing parties. He had a house in the Wilshire District, a few blocks west of La Brea Ave and in the block south of Wilshire Blvd. Jim Ward pierced my nipples and my genitals. He did two didos on me, and the actual piercing hurt like hell. I live in Vancouver, WA now. Perhaps one of these days we will meet. I know Bugs. I have met him at several tattoo conventions. He bought Dottie Mās old studio on Venice Blvd. Best wishes. InkManLarry
I lived in Los Angeles from November 1982 to Sept 1991, and went to Louieās home for piercing parties. He had a house in the Wilshire District, a few blocks west of La Brea Ave and in the block south of Wilshire Blvd. Jim Ward pierced my nipples and my genitals. He did two didos on me, and the actual piercing hurt like hell. I live in Vancouver, WA now. Perhaps one of these days we will meet. I know Bugs. I have met him at several tattoo conventions. He bought Dottie Mās old studio on Venice Blvd. Best wishes. InkManLarry
I lived in LA (Pasadena) during the eighties, and was heavily involved in the gay tattooing scene, and leather and motorcycle clubs. I lived in SF fours years prior to moving to LA. I was a member of the Recon Motorcycle Club and the Warlocks MC Club. Both were heavily involved in the South of Market (SOMA) scene. Very enjoyable. I wanted to get my nipples pierced in SF, but couldnāt find any one to trust to do it. I moved to LA in Nov. 1982, and had Jim Ward pierce my nipples within a couple of weeks of the move. He did it at the Gauntlet in West Hollywood. I had a ladder of about 8 piercings in my penis. I also had a Prince Albert and two didos. All done by Jim Ward at the West Hollywood Gauntlet.
Anyway, I was more heavily active in the Gay tattooing scene, what little there was of it. I was one of the original founding members of the Illustrated Men. We had private pool parties, bar meets, and some runs to the motel clubs in Palm Springs.
Bud, the artist who did the covers of PFIQ designed the tattoo on my back. Robert Benedetting of Sunset Strip Tattoo had Bud design the piece. It was completed in April, 1985, just in time to be shown at the National Tattoo Convention in Seattle. My IAM page is inkmanlarry.
I was no where near as heavily involved in the piercing scene as you were, but I did live in Southern California during that era, and knew many of the individuals you talk of. I lived in LA near Grifith Park Blvd, and Los Feliz. I belive it is the Hyperion District. I moved to Pasadena in 1985, and lived at 72 S. Greenwood Ave., until Sept. 1991, where I accepted a transfer to Portland, OR. I lived 1/2 block South of Colorado Blvd, and two blocks east of Allen.
When I lived in Southern California, I got major work from Cliff Ravern, Robert Benedette (Sunset Strip Tattoo), and Bob Roberts (Spotlight Tattoo on Melrose Ave.).
One of these days, it would be great to meet you and spend some time talking about the good old days. I may be in the LA area in February or June of next year. I would come down as part of a trip to a tattoo convention.
If you ever want to talk, my e-mial address is [emailĀ protected]. My home phone is 360-882-1173, and my cell is 360-904-9270. I only keep my cell phone on when I am out of the house. My name is Larry Happ.
Best wishes, InkManLarry
I lived in LA (Pasadena) during the eighties, and was heavily involved in the gay tattooing scene, and leather and motorcycle clubs. I lived in SF fours years prior to moving to LA. I was a member of the Recon Motorcycle Club and the Warlocks MC Club. Both were heavily involved in the South of Market (SOMA) scene. Very enjoyable. I wanted to get my nipples pierced in SF, but couldnāt find any one to trust to do it. I moved to LA in Nov. 1982, and had Jim Ward pierce my nipples within a couple of weeks of the move. He did it at the Gauntlet in West Hollywood. I had a ladder of about 8 piercings in my penis. I also had a Prince Albert and two didos. All done by Jim Ward at the West Hollywood Gauntlet.
Anyway, I was more heavily active in the Gay tattooing scene, what little there was of it. I was one of the original founding members of the Illustrated Men. We had private pool parties, bar meets, and some runs to the motel clubs in Palm Springs.
Bud, the artist who did the covers of PFIQ designed the tattoo on my back. Robert Benedetting of Sunset Strip Tattoo had Bud design the piece. It was completed in April, 1985, just in time to be shown at the National Tattoo Convention in Seattle. My IAM page is inkmanlarry.
I was no where near as heavily involved in the piercing scene as you were, but I did live in Southern California during that era, and knew many of the individuals you talk of. I lived in LA near Grifith Park Blvd, and Los Feliz. I belive it is the Hyperion District. I moved to Pasadena in 1985, and lived at 72 S. Greenwood Ave., until Sept. 1991, where I accepted a transfer to Portland, OR. I lived 1/2 block South of Colorado Blvd, and two blocks east of Allen.
When I lived in Southern California, I got major work from Cliff Ravern, Robert Benedette (Sunset Strip Tattoo), and Bob Roberts (Spotlight Tattoo on Melrose Ave.).
One of these days, it would be great to meet you and spend some time talking about the good old days. I may be in the LA area in February or June of next year. I would come down as part of a trip to a tattoo convention.
If you ever want to talk, my e-mial address is [emailĀ protected]. My home phone is 360-882-1173, and my cell is 360-904-9270. I only keep my cell phone on when I am out of the house. My name is Larry Happ.
Best wishes, InkManLarry
Just a correction to comment 71. I lived in the Silverlake District, not the Hyperion District, when I lived in LA during the early 80ā²s. InkManLarry
Just a correction to comment 71. I lived in the Silverlake District, not the Hyperion District, when I lived in LA during the early 80ā²s. InkManLarry
Interesting post as for me. It would be great to read something more concerning that matter.
Interesting post as for me. It would be great to read something more concerning that matter.
Just some additional comments. I went to several piercing parties at Louie Roveās home in the Wilshire District. He had a beautiful home in the Wilshire District, just south of Wilshire Blvd., between La Brea Ave., and Gardener.
Just some additional comments. I went to several piercing parties at Louie Roveās home in the Wilshire District. He had a beautiful home in the Wilshire District, just south of Wilshire Blvd., between La Brea Ave., and Gardener.