THE GODDESS BUNNY STORY

photo- rick castro- 1986- copyright

THE GODDESS BUNNY STORY:

by Rick Castro

 1/13/1960-1/27/2021 

Johnnie Baima, born on January 13, 1960, in Los Angeles, 

changed his name to Sandie Crisp and was also known by her stage name, The Goddess Bunny.

johnnie baima- photo- rafael- 1986 copyright

sandie crisp formerly johnnie baima- photo- rafael 1985 copyright

Johnnie developed polio as a child causing severe deformity to her body, thus forcing her into a lifetime of disability, physical and emotional pain. As an effeminate child, Jonnie identified as transgender, desiring to become female. This put her at odds with her dysfunctional parents, leading to abandonment. She was placed in foster care, where she was abused mentally and physically. Despite extreme early-life adversity, one would never know she thought of herself as anything other than a goddess. This is how she presented herself to the world : The Goddess Bunny.

photo- rafael 1984-copyright

Longtime friend, roomie, and collaborator, performance artist & singer Glen Meadmore, remembers seeing Sandie Crisp for the first time- 

 “I first met Bunny in front of Oki Dog, summer of 1982.  I had just arrived to Los Angeles from Winnipeg, Canada, so knew nobody here at all. When I first saw her, I felt sorry for her--she didn’t look well. She asked if I could push her down the street. So I did, and we exchanged phone numbers. I was taken by her looks and the way she dressed. She was definitely in her own world, beating to her own drummer. Later I lived with her at an apartment on Cheremoya and Franklin Avenue for about a year. Our rent was $400.”

Johnnie bamia aka sandy crisp & glen meadmore- photo Rafael 1986 copyright

Longtime friend & collaborator, photographer/filmmaker Rafael, recalls his first meeting-

“ I remember meeting her during late December 1983. Someone asked me to do a drag show and asked me to meet them at Sandie’s residence. I wasn't warned about her condition, and I was shocked, seeing her talking and acting normally. Looking at her body, I didn't know how to act. I didn't want to be rude, say the wrong thing, or offend her. Afterwards, it all just came with the territory.”

sandie crisp & rafael 1987

I personally first met Sandie Crisp at Limbo Lounge, (on Thursday nights at the Four Star bar in West Hollywood) circa 1985--one of the few bars in the West Hollywood that wasn’t for the cloned white gay men of the era. The Goddess performed a lip-sync rendition of Debby Boone’s, “You Light Up My Life,(1977). It cleared the room. Glen Meadmore remembers a performance they did together as Richard & Karen Carpenter, also at the Limbo Lounge.

sandie's birthday party- L to R-
unknown- sandie crisp-unknown- richard/wanda coleman- rafael- unknown- rick castro- 1986

at the limbo lounge- L to R-
glen meadmore- rick castro- sandie crisp as a man- photo- rafael 1987 copyright

I became fascinated, (as did many others) by her severe physical appearance, contrasted with the way she carried herself-- like a golden-age movie star. 

 During 1986, I created a photographic portrait of the Goddess Bunny, with the help of  my friend Richard/Wanda Coleman, (RIP), who created her make-up and wig. For her attire, I purchased a satin teddy at the bargain basement at Playmates of Hollywood for one dollar. I’m very proud of this portrait and feel it presents the Goddess the way she saw herself. 

photo-rick castro- 1986-copyright

For me, it’s the perfect combination of old school Hollywood glamour, 

(a tinge of Joey Heatherton) showbiz glitz, and postmodern surrealism.

I’ve exhibited my Portrait of Goddess Bunny many times, including at my art gallery, Antebellum Hollywood (2005-2017).

joey heatherton- publicity still

During the 1980s, I was working as an art director/stylist/assistant for art photographer Joel-Peter Witkin. I presented my portrait of the Goddess to Mr. Witkin, who became equally obsessed with her. Joel began to call me on a weekly basis. “Do you think Bunny would look good with this backdrop? Imagine Bunny on a horse!” This went on until we finally did our photoshoot in early 1986, when I hired the Goddess to portray Leda for Joel Witkin’s version of Leda and the Swan. 

Bunny was returning from a visit with her mother somewhere in the Midwest, so her hormones had worn off. When I picked her up at the airport she was male appearing with black facial hair.  She told me that, at the farm, she'd been driving a tractor. The Goddess also randomly stated she was once Carol Burnett’s double and worked as her stand in. 

I replied, “Isn’t that Vicki Lawrence?”

She ignored my question. Bunny asked me to drive her by her PO box to retrieve mail. 

Waiting for her was an autographed photo of  minor celebrity teen star Ricky Schroder, sent by a publicity department. “To Sandie,  Love, Ricky Schroder,” it read. “He’s my boyfriend, The Goddess explained.  "He’s obsessed with me.” 

ricky schroder publicity still

The following day we created our Leda and the Swan photo at the studio of Herb Ritt  (whom I also worked for) on Hudson Avenue in Hollywood. Photographer Joel Witkin's wife, Cynthia made a wig in the style of a Renaissance Princess Leia bun. I did the make up. 

Because of the absence of hormones, Bunny was now flat-chested. Cynthia Witkin created a breast plate out of wax, but it didn’t fit Bunny properly, so we had to rely on make-up.  

I used allot of shadow and contour to give the look of cleavage.  I also hired two babies, 

( with mothers present of course)  to portray flying cherubs. We used dove feathers to create the look of wings. I also hired a real swan and a swan wrangler. 

I hadn’t realize swans were so clumsy out of water! The swan continuously fell off the fake rock landing on its back,  then flailed about, not able to get up. We had to have the wrangler close by so that the swan wouldn’t fall on the babies. The Goddess was a consummate professional. Not only did she never loose her pose--she positioned herself in front of the infants as a buffer in case the swan took another tumble.

 The Goddess Bunny as Leda, (1989) is now part of art history in the permanent collection of  Musée du Louvre, Paris. 

leda- joel-peter witkin- 1989- copyright

Mr. Witkin offered the Goddess a photographic print or cash for our session. I strongly suggested she take the print, as it would become collectable. The Goddess chose cash. 

On the way home, she made me stop at a cheap wig shop on Western Avenue. Once there, the Goddess spent all her just--earned income on wigs.

Rafael remembers the day of the shoot.

“Bunny was staying with me during that time. When she got back from the shoot, she said the swan scared her.  That evening we did a shoot she wore the wax breast plate, (Cynthia Witkin gave it to Bunny). Glen Meadmore came by and did an interview on video, and then we went to the Limbo Lounge.” 

glen meadmore & sandie crisp at the limbo lounge- photo- rafael 1987 copyright

Months later I was receiving numerous phone calls from the Goddess.

“Ricky!, she bellowed. I’ve decided that I want a print from our session with Joel Witkin.” 

“But Bunny," I tried to reason, "you opted for the cash.”

 “I don’t care," she went on. "I want a print!”

 I contacted Joel and implored him, “ I know you don’t usually do this, but please give Bunny a print--she’s calling me night and day!” 

Mr. Witkin obliged. When the goddess received the print she flatly stated, “I don’t like it.” She gave the print to Glen Meadmore.

Director Penelope Spheeris cast Sandie in the 1986 film Hollywood Vice Squad, 

starring Carrie Fisher and Frank Gorshin. Rafael claims Penelope Spheeris was driving past Bunny’s residency, the St. Francis apartments, (now the Gershwin)  on Hollywood Boulevard and Western Ave, saw her in front in her wheelchair, pulled over and offered her the role of Charlean, right then and there. 

After being featured in her first Hollywood film Bunny would often say to her fellow queens at the clubs, “Don’t you know who I am? Well, go to the movies.”

lori singer & sandie crisp- hollywood vice squad 1986 

Around 1987, friends Keith Holland & Quasi O’Shea were trying out their new VHS recorder. Glen Meadmore remembers.

“Bunny told me she could tap dance. She actually had a pair of tap shoes, so I wanted to film this and use it as backdrop for one of my performances. I eventually used the video footage as backdrop for many live performances at the Limbo Lounge and elsewhere.”

photos by keith hunter & quasi o'shea 1987 copyright

Glen, Keith and Quasi dressed the goddess in frilly lingerie, then placed a styrofoam clownie on her head, a parasol in her hand, the shiny patent tap shoes on her feet--then shot Bunny tap-dancing up a storm, followed by her infamous zombie walk. 

 When YouTube first took off circa 2005, someone posted Bunny’s tap dance footage. Thus, one of the first viral videos was born. The Goddess Bunny tap-dancing has been reposted and recreated thousands of times, with millions of views. Every Millennial and Gen Z Tuber knows this clip.

In 2008, someone in Chile re-edited the tap-dance video and retitled it as “Obedeca a la Morsa!,” ( Obey the Walrus). This repost became a legendary cult video throughout Latin America.

From 1987 thru 1989, no-budget filmmaker John Aes-Nihil directed a remake of the Tennessee Williams classic, The Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone. Glen Meadmore portrayed Karen Stone, (Vivian Leigh in the classic film version). The Goddess Bunny played the part of the Contessa, (Lotte Lenya in the classic version). 

the drift- photo- John aes-nihil 1989 copyright

Glen Meadmore recalls the shooting.

“We didn’t see the film and only glanced at the book. I got  a few lines from the book like, 'going down faster than the Titanic'. We were queens being queens. We shot at different locations--like the downtown Los Angels Theater, on the steps off Franklin & Normandy Avenues, and an old Hollywood hills Mansion. I have no idea who lived there.” I asked Glen Meadmore if the Goddess was a good actress, to which he replied, “She was as good as any of us…. and that’s not saying much.”  To add to the intrigue, Meadmore recently identified the exterior location. The power blue palatial estate just down the street from my current residency on Franklin Ave.

Rap band, Cypress Hill included the Goddess Bunny in their video "Puppet Master," featuring Dr. Dre, 1997.  Bunny portrays a nun/nurse fusion puppet on strings, wearing an octopus as a loincloth, and playing a duo role as a gold-leaf gargoyle. Glen Meadmore recalls the Goddess doing a performance as a puppet at the Limbo Lounge, so someone involved in the band must have seen it. 

The Goddess later appeared in music video, "The Dope Show".  Meadmore claims Marilyn Manson had seen the Goddess’s videos, and so knew about her. He randomly ran into her on the street and asked her to be in his video. Initially the Goddess had no idea who he was, as she explains here. The Goddess was also asked to performed as a backup dancer for Marilyn Manson at the 1998 MTV Music Awards.  The Goddess claims she created all the backup dancers costumes on the spot in four hours. She also said before filming she heard producers say to not include her.  They worried the viewers wouldn't be able to deal with her. The Goddess told Manson, so he and Twiggy Ramirez made sure they stood as closed to her as possible, making it difficult for her to be cut out. If you look at the footage closely and freeze-frame, you can see the Goddess in all her splendor. 

Manson had planned to take the Goddess on tour, but her diva demands soured the producers on including her. (This is alleged)

still from the dope show video 1998

Years later,  around 2007, I saw the Goddess at the Pride Festival in West Hollywood.  She was wearing a tiara and a sash that read "Miss West Hollywood" (she wasn’t) over a Dynasty-like sequined gown. Sitting like a queen on a throne atop her motorized wheelchair, she zoomed up to me at the speed of light, greeting me with a plastic scepter. 

“Wow, Bunny this is fancy!” I exclaimed.

 “Yeah, I was on the WeHo bus and the driver didn’t buckle me in properly, so I rolled down the aisle and flipped over," she explained. "I can’t walk much at all anymore. With the money I collected, I got this!” 

the goddess bunny as miss west hollywood

punk bunny

the goddess bunny- "luigi sandoval-francine dancer-
punk bunny- Live on The Jack E. Jett Show (Queer Edge) Copyright 2005

One evening in 2010, I hosted local art/thrash band, Punk Bunny as the musical performance at my art gallery, Antebellum Hollywood. Lead singer  “Luigi” Sandoval was a bundle of energy. Local eccentrics Francine Dancer and the Goddess Bunny were go-go dancers--both in wheelchairs. The set was amazing! After the high-energy performance the Goddess asked if she could do a solo performance. Of course I obliged and slipped her CD into the player. The Goddess belted out once again Debby Boone’s, “You Light Up My Life,” twenty-six years later, and once again her performance cleared the room. 

Around 2011ish, designer Rick Owens published a book that included a photo his crew shot of the Goddess Bunny. Now the Goddess was contacting me on Facebook IM on an hourly basis. “Rick I want a book! Send me a book!” “Bunny, I responded, I’m not Rick Owens, I’m Rick Castro.” This was as irrelevant to her as Republicans version of who won the election. “ NO!  I WANT A BOOK! SEND ME A BOOK!” I passed the info onto Rick Owens.

photo- rick owens 2003 copyright

Glen Meadmore ran into the Goddess at the art gallery/shop, Beauty is Pain in Hollywood. “She asked me if she could move back in with me. She was crying, said Meadmore, Unfortunately I already had a roommate in a single apartment, and couldn’t accommodate her.”

In the later 2000s the Goddess had to move into a hospice facility in Inglewood, 

a sleepy black neighborhood in South LA. She had numerous health issues over the years and was HIV positive. However this didn’t detour her from running for mayor of Inglewood’s 2014 election. I actually talked one of my friends who lived in her district into voting for her. I was told the Goddess received five-hundred votes. She was also a write-in candidate for the 2020 presidential election.

During 2016 Glen Meadmore reunited with the Goddess. Our friend from Leipzig, Germany, Jan Klesse, wrote a song entitled, “The Golden One.” Glen Meadmore decided to directed the goddess, (wearing a gold dress), and John Aes-Nihil filmed on location at the Goddess’s hospice.  Joel Gibb from the band, Hidden Camera sang the song. 

Glen also recalls annual birthday celebrations for the Goddess-

 “People from nursing home would watch her lip synch to scratched Donna Summer records”. Bunny’s surrogate son Hunter Ray Barker, director  Lawrence Elbert, musician Jan Klesse and director John Aes-Nihil all attended. “Bunny would get really drunk, said Glen, 'She wanted any deviation that would take her away from harsh reality. She was fabricating her life, there was no reality. I felt compassion for her.” Her surrogate son Hunter Ray Barker was convinced that the Goddess Bunny fantasies were better than reality.

from l-r- unknown- glen meadmore-lawrence elbert- unknown- sandie crisp- unknown-

 hunter ray barker-john aes-nihil- unknown

On October 15, 2018, the Goddess posted a live stream on YouTube imploring people to stop being so cruel and disparaging about her looks, harking back to the late nineteenth century plea by Joseph Merrick; “I am not an animal. I am a human being.”

The Goddess said, “I’ve worked my complete career trying to be the most fabulous looking person for me to look like. I could’ve been the boring everyday looking male, and stayed in my closet, and never had as much fun as I’ve had. I’m a human being and I would appreciate if people would recognize that. ”- watch here-

Last June 16th, 2020, the Goddess posted a video from her hospice bed sans make-up and wig, sporting facial stubble, giving stark realness. She implored her fans to stay home and warned that the pandemic was far from over. She worried about her friends and called out some by name. Sadly, Bunny was taken by the plague the morning of January 27, 2021.

Rafael remembers-

“ The last time I saw Sandie in person was January '2001.  Then on January 6 ‘2002, I got a call from her.  I had just arrived in Orlando, Florida to live for a while. She called me to invite me to her birthday party at the Queen Mary, Long Beach. She told me Billy Zane was going to be there.  I sent her a birthday card, which was returned. I then called the only phone number I had and a woman answered saying nobody by the name of Sandie Crisp lived there, so I lost touch. I had met her mother in '98, she might have been the person who answered the phone. Glen Meadmore sent me an e-mail on February 4, 2021, telling me Sandie had died from the plague.”

The last video the Goddess posted on January 11, 2021 was of her lying sick of COVID19. She’s very weak, but wants to reach out to her legion of fans and friends. This footage is sad and very hard to take. I’m giving warning not to view if you are sensitive to the harsh reality of illness and death-  the Goddess Bunny's last post-

The Goddess Bunny lived through adversity and pain, physical, internal and external, her entire life. Against all odds she became a worldwide phenomenon and celebrity through her own volition.  She knew who she was, knew the limitations bestowed on her and made them work. She was a fascinating enigma, and a sight to behold. 

the goddess & genesis p-orridge 1987- photo- rafael copyright

Without question Sandie was exploited throughout her life. She was used by the Hollywood machine and not paid for many projects where she was the star. Bunny tap-dancing video and Obey the Walrus have received millions upon millions of hits and continue to do so to this day. Imagine if Sandie received merely one dollar per hit.

She would be a multi-millionaire, able to have led a completely different life. 

While numerous people exploited her, there were many in awe and respected her self-determination, especially Zoomers and Gen Z generations who loved her just the way she was.  I personally saw the Goddess Bunny as living surrealist art in the form of diva.

photo- rafael 1987 copyright

As a full-fledge movie star, it was Sandie’s dream to be interred at Hollywood Forever Cemetery. The historic location where Rudolph Valentino, Peter Lorre, Tyrone Power, Douglas Fairbanks Sr & Jr, Marion Davies, Cecil B. DeMille, Clifton Webb, Mickey Rooney, Hattie McDaniel, Jayne Mansfield, Chris Cornell, Johnny Ramone,  Tomata DuPlenty, Rozz Willams, Gidget Gein, Judy Garland, Toto, Janet Gaynor, Adrian, Fay Wray, Holly Woodlawn, Coral Browne, Peter Finch, Victor Fleming, Ann Savage, Anne Heche  and Joan Hackett, all rest for eternity.  

A GoFundMe page was created by the Goddess’s “sons,” Mitchell Jackson and Hunter Ray Barker to make her last wish come true. Together we raised enough to purchase a niche at her desired resting site. 

photos- rick castro 2021 copyright

glen meadmore & rafael- photo- rick castro 2021 copyright

hunter ray barker eulogies sandi crisp- photo rick castro- 2021 copyright

rafael eulogies sandi crisp- photo rick castro- 2021 copyright

John aes-nihil eulogies sandi crisp- photo rick castro- 2021 copyright

glen meadmore- photo- rick castro 2021 copyright

photo- rick castro- 2021- copyright

from L to R-unknown- glen meadmore- hunter ray barker- mitchell jackson

copyright mitchell Jackson 2021

copyright mitchell jackson 2021

The Goddess Bunny’s funeral was one of the most remarkable memorial ceremonies I’ve ever attended. Organized by Mitchell Jackson and Hunter Ray Barker, because of Covid, the event was limited to twenty people. This didn’t detour guests from speaking fondly and brashly, recounting their favorite memories and vivid antidotes stemming from our special relationships with Sandie Crisp aka The Goddess Bunny. 

RIP Goddess. You deserve it.

written and compiled by Rick Castro,  May 2021

courtesy jan klesse 

I’m enclosing a crude map, if you would like to visit the Goddess.I know she would appreciate.  She requests only artificial flowers, "because they last forever".

Located in The Abbey Havens of Unity, Devotion, and Remembrance, right side entrance,  center isle, right side ground level niche. Directly North of The Judy Garland Pavilion, at Hollywood Forever Cemetery, 6000 Santa Monica Boulevard, Hollywood, CA 90038

The Goddess Bunny: filmography-

Hollywood Vice Squad-1986-Director Penelope Spheeris

The Drift-1989-director John Aes-Nihil

Puppet Master-1997-Cypress Hill & Dr. Dre-director Dean Karr

The Dope Show-1998-Marilyn Manson-director Paul Hunter

1998 MTV Music Awards

Obedience a la Morsa/Obey The Walrus- 2008

The Golden Ones- 2011-director Glen Meadmore & Tenderloin

photo- rafael 1985

The Goddess Bunny: best quotes-

“We were the last royal lineage of Italy. If I were to go back and kick the Pope off his throne, I'd be the queen.”

“I'm better known than Kim K. I'm tired of hearing about her. Its like a bad disease that won't go away.”

“Don’t you know who I am? Well, go to the movies.”

photo- rafael- 1988- copyright

Thank you for your contributions to this memorial-

Glen Meadmore; musician, performance artist, longtime friend, collaborator

Rafael; longtime friend, photographer, filmmaker. 

This project is made possible in part by a grant provided by the City of Los Angeles, Department of Cultural Affairs, and with the support of Community Partners. 

Rick Castro is a Los Angeles photographer, writer, filmmaker and blogger.

Portrait of The Goddess Bunny, (1986) was one of his first professional photographs.