Las Vegas Mixtape v43: Anything Goes Comedy, Essential Empanadas, and Punk’s Unhinged Stories

Track #3 (of 5): The Punk Rock Museum @Western Ave

 They live to tell. L-R: Pleasant Gehman, Genny Schorr (Image: Vegas 411)

The Punk Rock Museum rocked its way into our noisy hearts back in 2023—and it’s still going strong.  It was time for me to return to the 12,000-square-foot downtown museum, thanks to a guided tour invitation from two charismatic figures who I know from my days in LA: Genny Schorr and Pleasant Gehman. These fearless women and creative souls were instrumental in getting the city’s punk scene off the ground. 

As musicians, Genny was a member of the late ‘70s, mostly all-gal band Backstage Pass, who contributed money and co-signed the lease to open the groundbreaking, influential punk club The Masque. She went to co-own the rock ‘n’ roll clothing store Strait Jacket and became a fashion stylist with clients like Linda Ronstadt. Pleasant began publishing the early punk zine Lobotomy and later wrote the essential scene column “L.A. Dee Da” in LA Weekly. She also formed the rootsy punk band Screamin’ Sirens (an early lineup featured Genny) and became a world-traveling belly dancer. At the museum, I bought copies of their highly recommended page-turning books: Genny’s newly published “All Roads Leads To Punk” (with a foreword by Pleasant) and Pleasant’s 2022 "Rock’N’Roll Witch…A memoir of Sex, Magick, Drugs, and Rock’N’ Roll” (what more do you need to know?).

Both women were candid and infectious tour guides. Since they truly lived and breathed punk, they told fabulous stories about their own freewheeling lives and how they intersected with other musicians from Los Angeles (X, the Bags, the Screamers), New York (Ramones, Blondie), and England (Damned, Sex Pistols). Along the way, there were sexual conquests with some of these musicians—and they talked openly about how they were every bit as wild as the guys (an early example of gal power). 

A smartly dressed mannequin. (Image: Vegas 411) 

On the museum’s second floor, Genny pointed out the stage outfit that she created and wore from 1977 with Backstage Pass. She designed an ahead-of-it-time female/male wardrobe mashup as an “early nonbinary statement about being a person who played (punk) guitar in a male-dominated music industry.”

For intel on The Punk Rock Museum’s guided tours, visit their website. With any luck, Genny and Pleasant will soon be back to escort others into the rabbit hole of punk.