If someone were to tell us that these Jeremy Powers fans were the Heroes in 1983 we would believe him. But of course we wouldn’t really believe him because we aren’t these kids and never were, not even in 1983. But the spirit of these fine young Americans is strangely familiar. When we were high school aged we didn’t bother doing anything unless we were either going to get a good laugh or in some other way make a spectacle of ourselves. Occasionally someone would invite us to a Catholic Youth Organization dance, for example, and it would never occur to us to simply show up. We would come dressed like women (those of us who were not women) or devils (those of us who were not devils) or priests.
We can imagine that Kansai Yamamoto (Designer of David Bowie’s Ziggy Stardust costumes) started like the above Wisconsinonians, compiling outfits from various and sundry items borrowed from his mother’s underwear drawer. Maybe, like Yamamoto did for Tokyo, one or all of these kids will someday design a high-speed train to connect Madison to Chicago.
For a treat listen to the Legendary Stardust Cowboy, the inspiration for Bowie’s Ziggy Stardust, sing I took a Trip on a Gemini Spacecraft.
Words by Jonathan Hero
Photos by Luke Hero