![]() ![]() ![]() “Joan very much believes in that rock myth Fowley ,” he told Hopper. When discussing the reaction of the other Runaways – particularly Lita Ford, whose dismissiveness isn’t as obvious in the story – Cherkis says that the resentment between the band members is still palpable, perhaps contributing to a sense of denial over Jackie’s attack. “If you didn’t follow with what Kim wanted, that’s because you didn’t want to be a star enough.” “It’s also this fervent belief that showbiz is hard, and if you can’t handle Kim Fowley, then you weren’t destined to make it anyways, and he was just testing you,” Cherkis said. The pair discussed how difficult it is to get people talking honestly about a figure as revered as Kim Fowley. Jessica Hopper of Pitchfork – who was also instrumental in helping the R.Kelly abuse allegations come to light – has interviewed Cherkis about the Huffington Post piece. In the end it doesn’t make much difference: too often do we look to other people to ‘corroborate’ a rape victim’s story, as if them speaking out isn’t enough. Joan Jett’s statement is careful not to confirm or deny anything, but admitting that “there were relationships that were bizarre” indicates that some bad stuff was going on. Obviously Jackie’s story is extremely upsetting and although we haven’t spoken in decades, I wish her peace and healing.” ![]() “For a group of young teenagers thrust into ’70s rock stardom there were relationships that were bizarre, but I was not aware of this incident. “Anyone who truly knows me understands that if I was aware of a friend or bandmate being violated, I would not stand by while it happened,” Jett said. But overnight, after the article went viral, resulting in mounting pressure from the public, she released the following statement through Yahoo: A representative of Joan Jett, meanwhile, said Jett had nothing to say about the matter. “I pushed it out of my mind the best I could”. In the piece, Fuchs says that she never discussed the assault with her bandmates, but was insistent that Currie and Jett had been in the room. Her replacement in the Runaways, Victory Tischler-Blue, confirmed that the rest of the band would often joke about the incident.Īccording to Cherkis, Currie claims that she “spoke up and stormed out of the room” she also says that the girls never discussed how to handle rape: “You forget it and you move on,” she told Cherkis. “I realised, ‘Oh my God, this is what’s happening on college campuses,’” she says. Fuchs was moved to tell her story after seeing sexual assault victims speak out against prominent figures like Bill Cosby. In the piece, Cherkis also speaks to various friends of the band including Kari Krome (who claims she was also assaulted by Fowley, and was one of the witnesses to Fuchs’ rape when she was 14), Brent Williams and Helen Roessler. Although his sexual inappropriateness with the Runaways has been documented for years, Kim Fowley has been a particularly celebrated figure in the music industry since the 1970s, making Fuch’s revelation particularly courageous. It’s a captivating and devastating piece of writing from Jason Cherkis, whose narration of the formation of the Runaways, Jackie’s alleged assault and the unravelling of the band in the aftermath is both immersive and thorough. The incident, which she says took place in 1975 when Jackie was 16, was made all the more troubling as it allegedly happened at a party in a room full of people, including lead singer Cherie Currie and her fellow band-member, cultural and feminist icon Joan Jett. Earlier this week, The Huffington Post published a devastating article, in which Jackie Fox (or Jackie Fuchs) from seminal all-female ’70s rock band the Runaways speaks out for the first time about being allegedly raped by the band’s manager and producer Kim Fowley.
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