David Johansen , frontman of the New York Dolls and the last surviving original member of the punk band, died after a battle with stage four cancer. In February 2025, he reluctantly announced his illness and asked fans for help through social media .
“This is the worst pain I’ve ever felt in my entire life. I’ve never been one to ask for help, but this is an emergency,” he said in a statement. Check it out on the official Instagram Sweet Relief Musicians Fund .
David Johansen's career
David Johansen, and his stage presence seemed larger than life (via Rolling Stone ). Soon, Hollywood took notice of the musician, considered a pioneer of punk. In 1985, he debuted as an actor in an episode of Miami Vice . Then, in 1988, he played the 'Ghost of Christmas Past' in the comedy Scrooged , starring Bill Murray , and played the priest in Married to the Mob . Subsequently, he received roles in films such as Just My Luck Richard Dreyfuss 's sidekick in the horse racing comedy, as well as Freejack, Tales from the Darkside , and the film Mrs. Doubtfire .
In 2004, Johansen reunited with the surviving members of the New York Dolls. This new lineup toured the world and recorded three more albums, but quietly disbanded in 2011. However, after the deaths of bassist Arthur Kane (in 2004) and guitarist Sylvain Sylvain (in 2021), Johansen became the last surviving member of the original band.
In 2020, Martin Scorsese and David Tedeschi filmed her show at the Café Carlyle in New York. This recording served as the basis for the documentary Personality Crisis: One Night Only , released in 2022, which explores Johansen's entire career.
Check out the video for “Personality Crisis” on the official New York Dolls YouTube channel
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