BCR: What is your favourite memory of your mother?
SL: When I was about 8 she kicked her boyfriend of about 4 years, (an engineering student at UC Davis) out on the street for punching me in the face. He had been beating me for years but she was young and in denial for so long, it took some serious liquid bloodshed to get her to snap out of it. He actually punched me for not eating the fat from a chicken wing and the hit sent me back, over my chair and sliding till I ended abruptly at the wall semi-conscious. In retrospect it was one of, or maybe the only times, she ever went out of her way to protect me when I was a kid. Even though it was after years of her watching me get hit, kicked, beat with a belt, a cutting board, who knows what else. I'm glad she didn't let him kill me. I was 5-7 when most of that went down - does anyone remember everything from that age? I remember plenty enough to make me glad that I don't remember more!
BCR: I understand the night your mother tried to murder you with a dagger you watched the Honeymooners until you could get out. What is your favourite episode and why?
SL: Well that was the condensed version of the story. If I remember correctly, I was far too scared to pay much attention to whatever was on late night TV in LA at the time, which I might add, was WAY better then than it is now or than it ever will be again. My grandfather has been quoted as saying TV is the "God of today", and there are other belief systems actually that use this concept as the precept to their faith. TV, just like any god, band, or trend, has its’ heyday, and TVs time of glory, in my opinion, really has passed. Back in the 70's & 80's there was late night programming that would be great to see a revival of. From being able to randomly catch classic Universal horror films, to things like Night Gallery and Elvira. When I was a kid my TV crush was Punky Brewster though.
About the attack. Zeena always wanted to drive me mad using simple psycho-drama techniques that had I known then, at 10, what I know now, at 28, I probably would have killed her. It probably would have been excused as self-defense under the circumstances. The only thing that stopped me was I didn't completely hate my mother until I was about twelve. And the dagger out of the coffin incident happened when I was about 10, around when she was dating Boyd Rice (director and musician) and Adam Parfrey (Writer for Disinformation and author) and all these guys leading up to her current husband, Nicolas Schreck.
Stanton LaVey
BCR: What happened to Odium???
SL: Well ODIUM is an interesting story. "ODIUM" means "widespread hatred" so I guess ODIUM has always been with us, and always will and can be found everywhere. Kind of like peoples’ idea of God being "ever-present", ODIUM actually IS ever present. I believe this growing state of ODIUM will ultimately be the controlling force in the undoing of our own species. ODIUM is also one of a few separating differences between man and the other animals of this planet, along with the ego, and the tendency toward compulsion. We prove by our actions that "fear" and "hatred" are the real Gods that govern man. I think hatred, like death, is one of the few things in life we can count on. If we all ask ourselves: "How many times have I been mutually in love vs. the amount of times I've been in mutual hatred?" the numbers might seem staggering if collected & calculated! ODIUM was a few different things to me at the time; it was a turning point for me as an individual. The whole process, as an experience, showed me exactly what I'm capable of. I'm not claiming to have moved a mountain or built a pyramid, but there definitely was a sense of that during the construction of what I considered from Day 1 to be a Satanic Ritual disguised as an art installation and research center. I only hoped, but never really expected, the likes of Glen Danzig, Rick Ruben, Marilyn Manson & Hank III among many other celebrities, to not only visit ODIUM, but shop like kids in a candy store! Since ODIUM I've become friends with Danzig, but at the time, I was literally so stunned to just observe him perusing my serial killer section, it was just too cool for me to interrupt and introduce myself. And to watch the man carry out arm-fulls of books in multiple stacks, with his eerie, satisfied smile really did feel like a magical occurrence. As though I had successfully conjured one of Satan's own. ODIUM was my first major public Satanic Ritual. And it worked! Not only did it provide me with a learning facility to study "counter-culture", art & film, but a place to meet some like-minded folk. I even got the attention of a certain lovely lady named, Szandora. I learned more about life, the human condition and what Hollywood was built on, in that year, than I'd ever learn from any texts. I was interviewed about my store and life by Ron Athey (Performance Artist)! Without Ron Athey along with several other important people, my grandfather being a pioneer in this arena, a lot of us wouldn't have jobs and careers today. It was pretty amazing to turn around and be toe to toe with Manson and Dita Von Teese and the fact that they were so calm and considerate only made it that much more bizarre, almost as though it would have somehow made more sense for him to be angry, just because he's Marilyn Manson...I got what I wished for, the pair came back on several shopping sprees and I'm honoured to say that Manson has art and prints in his private collection that he procured from no one other than yours truly. I'd also like to give credit where it is due, and inform the public that the name "ODIUM" was given to me by my grandmother, Diane, founding High Priestess of the original Church of Satan. I was already doing construction on the place before I had a name when I got a call from my grandmother telling me, "you know Stanton, your grandfather and I loved to find words that meant something very harsh or extreme but that when spoken or read, have an almost poetic ring. One of our favourites was "odious" and the root word for odious, is odium - it means widespread hatred, isn't that GREAT!?" I have, hands down, the coolest, hippest, most beautiful and funniest grandma there ever has been. She's been there for me through the worst times in my life and she's somehow managed to still have enough faith in me to see me through the best. She's actually helping me plan my wedding right now.
For a time I had a revolving door of "employees" like for instance, a bum that would stand in from of my store, basically staring off at the sun for hours, and deterring business in the process. I decided it would be best if his presence be of some kind of use to generate business by drawing up a cardboard sign that read in big bold print, "WILL WORK FOR ODIUM", and there was definitely no mistaking this guy for being anything other than a homeless crazy - I asked him kindly if he wouldn't mind taking a seat, right by my front entrance way and hold the sign in front of him and I'd pay him $20 cash a day plus a meal and he could keep any handout's, naturally. I wouldn't say he accepted my invitation enthusiastically, but there certainly wasn't any hesitation. I also "employed" a young man from The Nation of Islam, or at least that's where he said he was from, I can't find any such place on a map for the life of me though! Anyway, this guy who called himself, and asked to be called "Fistacuffs" was about 19 and would bring me all kinds of weird ol' school black power mags and books that I would in turn make available for sale, none of which was ever sold! This kid, "Fistacuffs" would stand on top of a soapbox or milk crate on Sunset Strip in the middle of the day or night, weekday or weekend, with a mic and a mini PA and shout anti-white, pro-extreme black, rants, in front of an audience that included a variety of pimps, hookers and general misanthropes, most of whom were black and pretty unhappy in the first place. I didn't pay the guy, he wouldn't accept money from the "white devil", even though we were generally friendly. He did, on the other hand, accept payment in food, weed and booze! I guess the white devils food and drink ain't as bad as his filthy money. Now some people might see my making good use out of the people who would hang around as me exploiting economical, racial and cultural differences for my own personal gain, regardless of my opinion or stance on any of these subjects. Those people would be RIGHT! Your god damned right I exploited people! Who on this globe isn't either exploiting or being exploited in some way? Here's the Satanic rub; I provided a certain few with a more direct avenue to success, as determined by their own standards in life as individuals; i.e, know any other places on Sunset that'll give a bum money and food to loiter??? Or that would let a very angry young black man have the chance to be heard in his own words and the words he's found that best represent his plight? I don't know of another such place anywhere on EARTH. I also coordinated some other more professional events at my store, most of which are noted somewhere in the annals of the Internet. But it's these more intimate, sensitive encounters that created a truly romantic ambiance to a shoppe that would otherwise be chalked up as "the evil store". What I find most amazing is how many people I hear from all of the time that either regret not making it to ODIUM in time or the ones who did make it in, recounting fond memories of a lost land while begging me to create a new one. I'm proud to say that I designed, built, & orchestrated ODIUM single-handedly, and if it weren't for a few business mistakes, the store might still be in existence today. I was 23, and still on felony probation in San Francisco when I illegally moved to LA and opened my own research store/ art gallery two doors down from what was at one point in time Rodney's (Bingenheimer - Mayor of Sunset Strip) English Disco. Now ODIUM, like so many great institutions of days past, like The Church of Satan for instance, is fuel to the fire of some people’s darkest dreams and desires.
