MAYOR OF THE SUNSET STRIP
Year: 2003
USA: First Look Pictures
UK: Tartan Films
Cast: Rodney Bingenheimer
Featuring: Exene Cervenka, John Doe X, Chris Carter, Courtney Love, Gwen Stefani, Brooke Shields, Kim Fowley, Brian Wilson, Alice Cooper, Michael Des Barres, Pamela Des Barres, Monique Powell, Keanu Reeves, Debbie Harry, George Hickenlooper, LiamGallagher, Noel Gallagher, MacKenzie Phillips, Neil Young, George Wendt, Nancy Sinatra, Pete Townshend, Beck, Joey Ramone, Ray Manzarek, Green Day, Rob Zombie, Jed the Fish, Danny Sugarman, Bing Bingenheimer, Zelda Bingenheimer, Sharon McDonald, Camille Chancery, David Bowie, John Peterson, Neve Campbell, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Ronald Vaughn, Leo Braudy, Cher, Sonny Bono, Suzanne Jenkins, Bob George, Steve Jenkins, Domenic Priore, The Mamas and The Papas, Davy Jones, The Monkees, Jerry Lee Lewis, The Four Seasons, Mick Jagger, Miss Mercy, The GTOs, The Doors, John Lennon, Linda Ronstadt, Johnny Marr, Liza Kumjian-Smith, Joan Jett, Lance Loud, David JoHansen, Cherie Currie, No Doubt, Louise Wener, Elvis Costello, Belinda Carlisle, Carnie Wilson, Phil Spector, Annabella Lwin, Nancy La Perch, Maria Montoya, Jello Biafra, Manny Furlong, Sid Vicious, Johnny Rotten, Sex Pistols, Coldplay, Chris Martin, Bow Wow Wow, John Easdale, Dramarama, Gary Strobl, Jane Wiedlin, Van Halen, David Lee Roth, Chris Stein, Heather & Annie, Blondie, Kramer Morgenthau, Isadore Ivy - Spaceman at Large, Oasis, Tori Amos, Kato Kaelin, Corey Feldman, Wendy Wilson, Clem Burke, Henry Diltz, Monte Robinson, Paul McCartney, Becca Grove
Director: George Hickenlooper
Country: USA
USA & UK: 94 mins
USA Rated: R for sexual content/nudity, language and some drug references
UK Certificate: 15 contains strong language and moderate sex references
USA Release Date: 26 March 2004 (Limited Release - Los Angeles and New York)
UK Release Date: 11 February 2005
Synopsis
MAYOR OF THE SUNSET STRIP tells the story of music and fame through the eyes of pop impresario Rodney Bingenheimer, and his friends David Bowie, Gwen Stefani, Coldplay, Courtney Love, Oasis, Brian Wilson, The Doors, Cher, Nancy Sinatra, Mick Jagger, Brooke Shields, among many others.
From the Monkees to Van Halen to No Doubt and beyond, Rodney Bingenheimer, a.k.a. 'Rodney on the ROQ,' has been a cherished figure not only in Los Angeles, but the entire music community, for over two decades. Motivated by his love for music and the allure of Hollywood, Rodney first hit the infamous Sunset Strip as a teenager during its psychedelic 1960s heyday. A constantly evolving fixture as scenester, journalist, promoter and club owner, Bingenheimer was deemed 'Mayor of the Sunset Strip.' He began spinning records on Los Angeles' cutting-edge radio station KROQ, and soon became one of the country's most well known DJs. Rodney was the first to play songs by many California pop, glam, punk, goth, new wave and alternative bands who have since become some of the most celebrated and influential bands in history, including David Bowie, Blondie, The Ramones, The Sex Pistols, Van Halen, The Go-Go's, Joan Jett, Dramarama, No Doubt, Coldplay Oasis, to name a few.
MAYOR OF THE SUNSET STRIP depicts the unusual life of a man who was taken in by Sonny and Cher as a teenager, was a stand-in for Davie Jones on the Monkees, and went on to launch the careers of a multitude of stars who clearly have not forgotten what Rodney's done for them.