My deepest regret for the summer of 2001 is not writing about Chris and Heather’s Li’l 16mm Film Jamboree. It was high on my list of things to cover, but somehow time (as it always does) slipped away. Last week when I called Chris to find out what was going on, he sounded slightly mystified, but suggested I call back in a week. The seven days went by and as I was about to call when I got a card in the mail. It was an advertisement for Chris and Heather’s last blowout (Sept. 8).
Now who are Chris and Heather Ligon? Many people actually. Chris is the composer or co-composer for his brother’s band Scotty and the Ligonaires (formally of the Heatersons) and also a performer in his own right (low-key, low-fi and hilariously off kilter), and Heather (McAdams) is a noted cartoonist in the Reader (no, not Lynda Barry). Together they created Chris and Heather’s Record Round-Up– a resale shop like I’ve never seen. Tucked discreetly on Montrose just west of Damen, the Record Round Up (2034 W. Montrose) is crammed with so many goodies (I mean really good goodies like vinyl, rare posters, books, adorable knick knacks) and all of it you want (I was truly tempted to buy every Cowsill album in stock). I went on a Sunday and didn’t come out until Tuesday. But Chris and Heather have a wonderful twist on things and they apply that to everything I’ve seen them do.
The Li’l 16mm Film Jamborees are events in themselves (Chris and Heather actually collect the rare film clips, none of it on video, all of it projected on a 16mm projector the old-fashioned way). Of the two that I was actually able to attend I was flabbergasted by what I saw. An interview with Bela Lugosi late in his life, a Revlon ad featuring a teen Cybill Shepherd, trailers for horror movies like The Vampire and the Ballerina (visions of which I will take to my grave) and Cleopatra Jones (poor Shelly Winters), and lots of vintage country clips (if you’ve never seen the Collins Kids in their 1960 glory, you haven’t lived).
Moreover, Chris and Heather are friends of the community, not specifically to the gay community, but to the Chicago arts community at large. Through their wide network of friends (among them Cynthia “Plaster Caster,” Old # 8, Matt Miller, Brigid Murphy, Patti Elvis, and Robbie Fulks) they’ve hosted many benefits, organized functions, and kept Chicago’s music scene jumping in a homey fashion.
The final Jamboree, starring Roni Stoneman (of Hee Haw) and the best of the movie clips will be at the Record Round-Up this Saturday, Sept. 8, with two shows, at 8 and 10:30 p.m. The $10 tickets can be purchased at the door or in advance (you can call the store at 773-271-5330 for more information). The store closes for good the following Wednesday.