Malcolm McLaren, punk impresario and former Manager of the Sex Pistols and the New York Dolls, died today in New York after a long battle with cancer at the age of 64.
EDIT: 8:15 P.M.–
Turns out Les Molloy, who the British media had thought was McLaren's agent, mistakenly told the Associated Press that McLaren had died in New York. McLaren's son, Joe Corre, has since clarified his father passed away in Switzerland–and that Molloy was no longer McLaren's agent and not authorized to speak for the McLaren family.
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McLaren had a seminal role in the shaping of punk rock–helping to introduce both punk music and the punk aesthetic to the mainstream with former partner Vivienne Westwood. The two owned the
legendary clothing shop on King's Road in London, Let It Rock, hawking
Teddy Boy clothing and McLaren/Westwood's first designs.
The storefront later
changed its name several times (Sex; Too Fast to Live, Too Young to Die;
Seditionaries), but both the Sex Pistols and New York Dolls would often
wear Westwood's flamboyant clothing. McLaren and Westwood's son, Joseph Ferdinand Core, later helped
co-found lingerie brand Agent Provocateur.
McLaren's body will be flown back to North London, and will be laid to rest at
Highgate Cemetery.
And now? We're just waiting for some choice comments by Johnny Rotten, who's set to bring PiL (Public Image Limited) to Coachella–Rotten was once quoted as saying “Let's just say that if Malcolm breathes, it's too much for me to stomach.”
EDIT 4:35 P.M.: Released via the official PiL site, Johnny Rotten–
“For me Malc was always entertaining, and I hope you remember that.
Above all else he was an entertainer and i will miss him, and so should
you.”
