Cheetah Chrome

A look at New York's dynamic punk rock scene through the lens of the ground-breaking Lower East Side club started by eccentric Hilly Kristal in 1973 which launched thousands of bands.

'Who the F* is That Guy'? The Fabulous Journey of Michael Alago tells the astonishing story of a gay Puerto Rican kid growing up in a Hasidic Brooklyn neighborhood, who got on the subway one day and began a musical odyssey that helped shape the musical landscape across N.Y.C. and around the world. Directed by Drew Stone and produced by Michael Alex the film tells the incredible story of a cherished New York City icon. From rubbing elbows with N. Y. scene makers as an teenager at Max's Kansas City and CBGB, to being the architect of a rock 'n' roll renaissance as the 19 year-old talent booker at the legendary Ritz, to making history as a 24 year-old A&R exec, signing the biggest metal band in a generation in Metallica, Michael Alago was on fire.

The film documents the beginning of the punk rock movement in New York City at CBGB's, a punk night club, and the lifestyle that revolves around this scene. It presents a sometimes shocking look at the attitudes and motivations behind the movement through interviews with outspoken club-goers and band members of the Ramones, Richard Hell and the Voidoids, and the Dead Boys.

An East Village performance space fought against the Bowery homeless shelter who threatened to shut them down. Some of the most iconic figures in music have performed here.

This 1977 performance from New York's legendary CBGB's proves why The Dead Boys were the epitome of snotty punk rock. Characterized by Stiv Bator's audience provoking on-stage antics, along with the band's aggressive power chord punch, the Dead Boys have big balls.

"Toronto's first punk rock club is the subject of this innovative document featuring performances by The Dead Boys, Teenage Head and the Diodes. The rock magazine CREEM praised the film for 'doing everything in its flickering power to self-destruct,' and commented that anyone who 'thought Canadians bored their beef to death ate a different delicatessen." –The Funnel Film Theatre Distribution Catalog.