Andrea Feldman (April 1, 1948 – August 8, 1972) was an American actress and
Warhol superstar
Warhol superstars were a clique of New York City personalities promoted by the pop artist Andy Warhol during the 1960s and early 1970s. These personalities appeared in Warhol's artworks and accompanied him in his social life, epitomizing his fam ...
. She committed suicide in 1972.
Career
Andrea Feldman was a native New Yorker. She attended Quintano's School for Young Professionals, a high school for the performing arts. She starred in three Warhol films; ''
Imitation of Christ
In Christian theology, the imitation of Christ is the practice of following the example of Jesus.''A concise dictionary of theology'' by Gerald O'Collins, Edward G. Farrugia 2004 page 115''Imitating Jesus: an inclusive approach to New Testament ...
'', ''
Trash
Trash may refer to:
Garbage
* Garbage, unwanted or undesired waste material
** Litter, material discarded in inappropriate places
** Municipal solid waste, unwanted or undesired waste material generated in a municipal environment
Arts, enter ...
'' and ''
Heat
In thermodynamics, heat is defined as the form of energy crossing the boundary of a thermodynamic system by virtue of a temperature difference across the boundary. A thermodynamic system does not ''contain'' heat. Nevertheless, the term is al ...
''.
A regular in the back room of
Max's Kansas City
Max's Kansas City was a nightclub and restaurant at 213 Park Avenue South in New York City, which became a gathering spot for musicians, poets, artists and politicians in the 1960s and 1970s. It was opened by Mickey Ruskin (1933–1983) in Decembe ...
, she pioneered a performance which she called "Showtime", in which she performed a striptease on the round table, at the center of the room. She became known for her dependence on drugs, particularly
amphetamine
Amphetamine (contracted from alpha- methylphenethylamine) is a strong central nervous system (CNS) stimulant that is used in the treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), narcolepsy, and obesity. It is also commonly used ...
s.
Feldman was featured in a 1970 documentary called ''Groupies'', where she referred to herself by a nickname given to her by the Warhol crowd; Andrea "Whips" Feldman. She also often referred to herself as "Andrea Warhol". She was known by her friends as "Crazy Andy".
"A lot of people in the Warhol scene pretended to be crazy, but Andrea really was. She had endless money for everything but mental health. When she had nervous breakdowns, her parents would send her to state hospitals. Just before ''Heat'' came out and she knew—she was about to be a star, she had a nervous breakdown, and her physician told her parents that what she needed was a job. I remember her saying "What am I supposed to do? Be a waitress?!" - Penny Arcade.
Death
In August 1972, several days after returning from Europe, Feldman summoned several ex-boyfriends, including poet
Jim Carroll
James Dennis Carroll (August 1, 1949 – September 11, 2009) was an American author, poet, autobiographer, and punk musician. Carroll was best known for his 1978 autobiographical work '' The Basketball Diaries'', which inspired a 1995 film of ...
, to the New York City apartment of her parents to witness what she called her "final starring role". "She left a note that said, "I'm headed for the big time. I'm on my way up there with James Dean and Marilyn Monroe"".
"Andrea and I were engaged at the time and we were going to get married. It was sort of a ploy at first but it started to get serious. Her parents would commit her to Bellevue Bellevue means "beautiful view" in French. It may refer to:
Placenames
Australia
* Bellevue, Western Australia
* Bellevue Hill, New South Wales
* Bellevue, Queensland
* Bellevue, Glebe, an historic house in Sydney, New South Wales
Canada ...
now and then to keep her under their thumb. Things seemed a little strange between us when I got back from doing ''Pork
Pork is the culinary name for the meat of the domestic pig (''Sus domesticus''). It is the most commonly consumed meat worldwide, with evidence of pig husbandry dating back to 5000 BCE.
Pork is eaten both freshly cooked and preserved; ...
'', a play we were performing in England. It was real wild for a while there, and Andrea was acting very strange toward me, like she didn't trust me. All of a sudden in the middle of all the mayhem, Andrea stood up on a chair and held a picture of Marilyn Monroe over her head, and she just stood there. And a couple of people at other tables said, "Oh, it's Showtime!" After a long time of just standing there, she said, "Marilyn died; love me while you can!" The next day, she jumped from the fourteenth-floor window of her uncle's apartment" - Leee Black Childers.
Andrea jumped to her death on August 8, 1972, a few days after the tenth anniversary of Marilyn Monroe's death.
Geraldine Smith, who had appeared in ''Flesh'' and was a close friend of Andrea, wrote in her obituary for
The Village Voice
''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, the ''Voice'' began as a platform for the crea ...
.
"Andrea Feldman, one of Andy Warhol's superstars, jumped to her death on August 8 at 4:30 pm from a 14th floor window at 51 Fifth Avenue, taking with her a crucifix and Bible she found in a church a few days before... Andrea left a note addressed to everyone she knew, saying she loved us all, but 'I'm going for the big time, I hit the jackpot!"
Rumours spread that the note that Andrea left behind wasn't as kind as Smith's obituary implied.
"Andrea had apparently made dates for that afternoon with half a dozen guys she had gone out with, including the poet and diarist Jim Carroll, so that they would all be down on the sidewalk when she flew out the window... In the back room of Max's the old Superstars were saying that Geraldine had been kind in print - the note wasn't to everyone and it wasn't about love; it was to Andy and it was very, very nasty." - Bob Colacello
Bob Colacello (born 1947) is an American writer. Born in Bensonhurst, New York, and raised in Plainview, Long Island, he graduated from the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University in 1969, and also has an MFA degree in f ...
.
Her suicide preceded the release of Warhol's ''
Heat
In thermodynamics, heat is defined as the form of energy crossing the boundary of a thermodynamic system by virtue of a temperature difference across the boundary. A thermodynamic system does not ''contain'' heat. Nevertheless, the term is al ...
'', in which she had a much larger role than in previous Warhol films.
[ Feldman's performance garnered positive reviews. ]Judith Crist
Judith Crist (; May 22, 1922 – August 7, 2012) was an American film critic and academic.
She appeared regularly on the ''Today'' show from 1964 to 1973 Martin, Douglas (August 8, 2012)"Judith Crist, Zinging and Influential Film Critic, ...
, a critic for '' New York'' magazine wrote: "The most striking performance, in large part non-performance, comes from the late Andrea Feldman, as the flat-voiced, freaked-out daughter, a mass of psychotic
Psychosis is a condition of the mind that results in difficulties determining what is real and what is not real. Symptoms may include delusions and hallucinations, among other features. Additional symptoms are incoherent speech and behavior ...
confusion, infantile and heart-breaking."
Filmography
*''Imitation of Christ
In Christian theology, the imitation of Christ is the practice of following the example of Jesus.''A concise dictionary of theology'' by Gerald O'Collins, Edward G. Farrugia 2004 page 115''Imitating Jesus: an inclusive approach to New Testament ...
'' (1967) - Son's girlfriend
*'' ****'' (''Four Stars'') aka ''24 Hour Movie'' (1967)
*''Groupies'' (1970, documentary) - Herself
*''Trash
Trash may refer to:
Garbage
* Garbage, unwanted or undesired waste material
** Litter, material discarded in inappropriate places
** Municipal solid waste, unwanted or undesired waste material generated in a municipal environment
Arts, enter ...
'' (1970) - Rich Girl
*''Heat
In thermodynamics, heat is defined as the form of energy crossing the boundary of a thermodynamic system by virtue of a temperature difference across the boundary. A thermodynamic system does not ''contain'' heat. Nevertheless, the term is al ...
'' (1972) - Jessica Todd
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Feldman, Andrea
1948 births
1972 suicides
20th-century American actresses
Actresses from New York City
American film actresses
Suicides by jumping in New York City
People associated with The Factory
1972 deaths