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Biography
Infobox musical artist | name = Jane Wiedlin| image = janewiedlin.jpg| caption = Jane Wiedlin in Philadelphia in 1988| image_size =| background = non_vocal_instrumentalist| birth_name = Jane Marie Genevieve Wiedlin| alias = Jane Drano, Jumping Jane Drano, and Reverend Sister Go-Go| birth_date = birth date and age|1958|05|20| death_date =| origin = Oconomowoc, Wisconsin , U.S.| instrument = Rhythm guitar | genre = Punk rock|Punk , pop rock , New Wave music|New Wave | occupation = Musician | years_active = 1978 http://www.gogos.com/bio.htm Go-Go's Biography from the Go-Go's websitepresent| label = EMI Records|EMI , I.R.S. Records|I.R.S. , Painful Discs| associated_acts = The Go-Go's , Frosted (band)|FroSTed , The Sparks | website = URL| http://www.janewiedlin.com/ Jane Marie Genevieve Wiedlin (born May 20, 1958) is an United States|American musician , singer-songwriter , and actress . She is best known as the rhythm guitar ist of the all-female New Wave music|New Wave band The Go-Go's .
Early life
Jane Wiedlin was born in Oconomowoc, Waukesha County , Wisconsin. Her father, an oral surgeon , was born in Chicago, Illinois and her mother was from Oconomowoc; they met at Marquette University in Milwaukee . Wiedlin spent her early childhood growing up in West Allis , a suburb of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. She is one of five children, with a sister and three brothers.
When Jane was six, her father took a job with the United States Department of Veterans Affairs at a VA Hospital in Los Angeles, California and her family followed in tow. Soon after arriving in California, Wiedlin's mother cut Jane's waist-long hair to her signature pixie cut hairstyle, due to Wiedlin's becoming an active swimmer now that she lived in a warmer climate.Citation needed|date=May 2011 Wiedlin loved watching Star Trek with her family when it first aired on television and is a life-long fan to this day.
As a child, Jane liked to listen to 1960s pop music , especially songs by The Beatles and The Monkees . By the time she was a teenager, Wiedlin was a fan of Sparks (band)|Sparks . Years later, she would record "Cool Places" with them, as well as turn down a marriage proposal from Russell Mael , the band's co-founder.Citation needed|date=May 2011 Jane Wiedlin stated, "I remember my childhood as extremely idyllic." Wiedlin also mentioned her teenage adolescence with angst and hope by saying, "I would definitely be a less- Depression (mood)|depressed teenager. I thought life was completely pointless when I was in high school, but just a few short years later I was having the adventure of a lifetime in a successful rock band!" Jane Wiedlin attended William Howard Taft High School (Los Angeles, California)|William Howard Taft High School in Los Angeles from 1972 until 1976.
Career
The Go-Go's
As Jane Wiedlin describes it, she was present "pretty much from the beginning" http://www.alicebag.com/janewiedlininterview.html Interview with: Jane Wiedlin conducted by Alice Bag in September 2005, from Bag's website of the Punk rock in California|Los Angeles punk scene . While attending college in the Los Angeles area, for fashion design , Wiedlin worked at a fashion design house where she created song lyrics by scribbling down ideas on the clothing patterns. "Jane Drano," as she came to be known, would later design Punk fashion|punk-style clothing that she sold at Granny Takes a Trip , a store on Sunset Boulevard . She became part of the scene that spawned bands like X (U.S. band)|X , The Germs and The Weirdos . She and Belinda Carlisle formed The Go-Go's as a punk band in 1978, with Margot Olaverra on bass, and Elissa Bello on drums. In 1981, Wiedlin and Terry Hall (singer)|Terry Hall of the Fun Boy Three and The Specials co-wrote " Our Lips Are Sealed ." The song peaked on the Billboard (magazine)|Billboard charts at #20 and remained on the charts until 1982. Hall also recorded the song with his band and the song was quite popular, hitting #7 in the UK.
The Go-Go's pop punk sound did not emerge until after Charlotte Caffey joined on lead guitar and keyboards, and Gina Schock replaced Bello on drums. After a 1980 tour of England , the band added KathyValentine on bass. They signed with IRS Records in April 1981. Wiedlin remained part of The Go-Go's until October 1984, when she left to pursue a solo career. " Rush Hour (song)|Rush Hour " (1988) was her most successful single (music)|single having done well in both the American and British charts. The song was taken from her second album, Fur (Jane Wiedlin album)|Fur .
After a series of reunions during the 1990s, Wiedlin, Carlisle, Caffey, Schock, and Valentine re-formed the band again in 2000 to record '' God Bless the Go-Go's , their first studio album in seventeen years. The album, originally titled Vision of Nowness , had a title and concept based on an idea from Wiedlin.
In 2010, the Go-Go's announced their Happily Ever After Farewell Tour . Although scheduled to begin in July, the tour was cancelled due to ACL tears Wiedlin suffered in both knees after a fall she took while on a nighttime hike.cite web|url= http://www.ladyrobotika.com/blog/2010/06/14/message-from-jane/ |title=Message from Jane |date=2010-06-14 She recovered and the band rescheduled the tour for 2011, no longer billing it as a farewell tour and changing the name to "Ladies Gone Wild."
Acting career
Her early acting credits include a one-line role in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (she is credited as Alien Communication Officer, but the script had her as Officer Trillya), Joan of Arc in '' Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure , an ill-fated singing telegram girl in Clue (film)|Clue '', and the White Fairy in Golan-Globus's Sleeping Beauty (1987 film)|Sleeping Beauty .
In a St. Petersburg Times online interview, Jane said this about her acting career in the 1980s: "It turned out to be much harder than it looks, and as much as I enjoyed those experiences, I don't think I'm very good at it." http://blogs.tampabay.com/80s/2008/02/the-beat-goes-o.html The beat goes on for the Go-Go's, a February 2008 interview with the "Stuck in the '80s" blog on the St. Petersburg Times website
In 2000, she sang in the choir on the Frasier episode " They're Playing Our Song (Frasier)|They're Playing Our Song ". In 2001, she had a regular role in MTV 's Spyder Games , playing the "ex-rock Girl|chick who runs the local coffee house" where everyone hangs out. http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/5921375/jane_wiedlin_goes_solo_and_gogo/print Jane Wiedlin Goes Solo and Go-Go from a November 2000 article in Rolling Stone
In 2003, she guest-starred as Hope Rodgers in an episode of As Told By Ginger .citation needed|date=December 2010 In 2005, she appeared as herself on the fourth season of VH1 's The Surreal Life , wherein she talked about her interest in BDSM .Wiedlin reveals (and demonstrates) her BDSM predilections in the Surreal Life episode "I'm With Cupid". First aired February 20, 2005. Prod Code: SL406.
Wiedlin also appeared as the bus station lady wearing a neck brace in Steve Balderson 's 2005 surrealist crime drama Firecracker (film)|Firecracker , a film Roger Ebert named on his list of the year's best films. http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article? AID=/20051218/COMMENTARY/512180302 Ebert's Best 10 Movies of 2005: Special Jury Awards from Roger Ebert 's website
In April 2009, Jane reconnected with director Steve Balderson for Stuck& #33; (film)|Stuck! , an homage to film noir women in prison dramas. Co-starring Karen Black , Pleasant Gehman , Susan Traylor, Starina Johnson and cult icon Mink Stole , Stuck! was filmed in Macon, Georgia and was released in 2010.cite web|url = http://www.stucknoir.com|title = Stuck! |format = movie website
Wiedlin has also provided voices for several characters in television and film. Her voice acting credits include one of Bruce Wayne's girlfriends in an episode of The New Batman Adventures , Gwen on Mission Hill , and Dusk, a recurring character in the Scooby-Doo franchise.Credits to "Scooby-Doo and the Witch's Ghost" In 2009, Wiedlin provided the voice of the evil List of toys in the DemonicToys films#Baby Oopsie Daisy|Baby Oopsie Daisy in the horror film, DemonicToys 2 .
Jane will appear in the season finale of RuPaul's Drag U for the second season
Other work
Wiedlin contributed quotes to Girls Against Girls by author Bonnie Burton .cite book|last=Burton|first=Bonnie|title=Girls Against Girls: Why We Are Mean to Each Other and How We Can Change|accessdate=2009-02-06|isbn=0-9790173-6-X In April 2009, Wiedlin was shot as Bettie Page by photographer Austin Young for the "Heaven Bound" art show.Wolfson, Julie. http://laist.com/2009/04/30/when_did_you_first_discover.php LAist.com "Lenora Claire on her 'Bettie Page: Heaven Bound' Art Show" April 30, 2009
Her latest project is a comic book entitled http://www.ladyrobotika.com/blog/creators/ Lady Robotika which she co-created with artist Bill Morrison (comics)|Bill Morrison . The series concerns the adventures of a woman being abducted by Extraterrestrial life|aliens and turned into a cyborg superheroine .citation needed|date=June 2009 To promote the comic series and her related projects, Jane appeared at the March 2011 WonderCon where she greeted fans, posed for pictures, and signed autographs.
Personal life
Wiedlin is a long-time Animal-liberation movement|animal rights activist , and has worked with People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals since at least 1989 when she performed as part of a "Rock Against Fur" concert in New York City. http://www.peta.org.uk/about/milestones.asp Milestones: 1989 from the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals UK website She is a close friend of PETA's Dan Mathews .
Wiedlin had what she called a "short but dramatic romance" with Terry Hall of The Specials during their 1980 tour in England; Hall later sent her some lyrics prompted by their relationship, inspiring Wiedlin to write "Our Lips Are Sealed", a song on which Hall has co-writer credits.
Wiedlin has been married twice; once to Ged Malone (from 19871999) and once to David Trotter (from 20042005). http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005553/bio Jane Wiedlin - Biography Her first marriage was the subject of her 2000 song "The Good Wife." Her current domestic partner is musician Travis Kasperbauer, whom she met at a Wisconsin music festival .cite web|author=Rich Albertoni| url= http://www.isthmus.com/isthmus/article.php? article=24121 |title=Go-Go's guitarist and Wisconsin native Jane Wiedlin falls in love, buys a house and whips up a Madison band - Isthmus & #124; The Daily Page |publisher=Isthmus |date=2008-10-24 |accessdate=2010-05-07
Wiedlin is an Minister (Christianity)|ordained minister known as "Reverend Sister Go-Go", primarily in the capacity of officiating at weddings.
Discography
Studio albums
Year
Album details
Peak chart positions
US cite web
UK cite web
1985
Jane Wiedlin (album)
Release date: October 1985
Label: IRS Records
127
1988
Fur (Jane Wiedlin album)
Release date: 1988
Label: EMI America
105
48
1990
Tangled (album)
Release date: 1990
Label: EMI America
2000
Kissproof World
Release date: October 31, 2000
Label: Painful Discs
"" denotes releases that did not chart
Compilation albums
Year
Album details
1993
The Very Best of Jane Wiedlin
Release date: 1993
Label: Alliance Records
Singles
Year
Single
Peak chart positions
Album
US cite web
US Dance cite web
NZ cite web
UK
1985
" Blue Kiss (song)
77
30
Jane Wiedlin
1988
" Rush Hour (song)
9
31
12
Fur
" Inside a Dream "
57
64
1990
"World on Fire"
Tangled
"" denotes releases that did not chart
Featured singles
Year
Single
Artist
Peak chart positions
Album
US
US Dance
1983
" Cool Places "
Sparks
49
13
In Outer Space
Other releases
see also|The Go-Go's discography
1990 Pretty Woman soundtrack (EMI, re-released 2006, with bonus disc)--"Tangled"
1996 Cold ( Geffen Records ) - as froSTed
2002 ''The Specials vs. The Untouchables: Ska's Greatest Stars (Big Eye Music) - Rearrangement of "Our Lips Are Sealed", with The Specials
2006 ''80's New Wave Hits (Big Eye Music) - Rearrangement of "Our Lips Are Sealed", with The Specials
References
reflist
External links
http://janewiedlin.com/ Jane Wiedlin.com - Pay No Mind To What They Say..., Official Website
http://www.gogos.com/ The Go's-Go's.com, Official Website
http://www.ultimate-guitar.com/interviews/soundcheck/jane_wiedlin_when_the_go-gos_started_we_were_terrible_musicians.html/ Jane Wiedlin: 'When The Go-Go's Started, We Were Terrible Musicians'
IMDb name|5553
http://www.alicebag.com/janewiedlininterview.html/ "Interview with: Jane Wiedlin," Alicebag.com, September 2005
http://www.songfacts.com/blog/interviews/jane_wiedlin_from_the_go-go_s/ "Jane Wiedlin from the Go-Go`s," Songfacts.com, 10/22/07
http://www.retrojunk.com/details_articles/7030/ "A Talk With Jane Wiedlin," RetroJunk.com
http://www.thedailypage.com/isthmus/article.php? article=24121/ "Go-Go's guitarist and Wisconsin native Jane Wiedlin falls in love, buys a house and whips up a Madison band," by Rich Albertoni, The Daily Page, 10/24/2008
http://www.tafthigh.org// William Howard Taft High School (Los Angeles, California) Official Website
Go-Go'sThe Surreal Life
Persondata | NAME = Wiedlin, Jane | ALTERNATIVE NAMES = | SHORT DESCRIPTION = American musician | DATE OF BIRTH = 1958-05-20 | PLACE OF BIRTH = | DATE OF DEATH = | PLACE OF DEATH = DEFAULTSORT:Wiedlin, Jane Category:1958 births Category:Living people Category:People from Waukesha County, Wisconsin Category:The Go-Go's members Category:Female New Wave singers Category:Female rock singers Category:American rock guitarists Category:American female guitarists Category:American female singers Category:Bisexual musicians Category:Rhythm guitarists Category:LGBT musicians from the United States Category:Musicians from Wisconsin Category:The Surreal Life participants Category:American New Wave musicians Category:Science fiction fans Category:Animal rights advocates
