The voice of boyhood summers...

... has left us, 'what a marvellous ' voice it was.
The news this morning that Richie has died
leaves me close to tears, I have to be honest
the tears are more for me than RB. I'm so tired
now, so tired of loosing all my heroes.

Richie

Kitty Boots

In the early eighties or there about, I had a small business in the
 centre of Brum with a staff of about ten working with me in a rented
 building that backed on to the canal, which was nice, ha.
   One afternoon a young student (from Brum Uni.) walked in and asked
 me if I could sew Latex, her name was Karen Storey her "look" was
 half Goth and half punk, and I of course replied yes. She was about to
 leave Uni. and her intention was to open a stall at the Oasis in Dale End.
 Her trading name then was Forbes Hamilton, her plan was to make a
 few bob in the Oasis selling printed T shirts and latex clothing before
 moving to Kensington Market in the smoke and then New York City,
 all of which she did.

     We worked together for two or three years I guess and the
 memories make me smile, memories of shows in town, one
 outside the Oasis while I was still finishing off dresses for the
 models as Karen was in her office ( an old red telephone box)
 being interviewed by Central TV. Memories of a guy saying that
if you had enough money any one could have a number one
 hit and he did it. Don't remember the name of the one-hit wonders
 but we dressed them up for top of the pops in latex, the lead
 singer dressed in a pink latex cat suit.
    We also made the front cover of Elle, a beautiful lady dressed
 in a classic "little black dress" except I made it in gold latex,
 hand fitted of course. It was for sale at £99 but the printers
 made a mistake and listed it at £999 and, yep, Karen still got
 orders for it.
    It was about this time Karen was to leave for NYC, I hate
 goodbye's so I avoided her phone calls and visits to the factory
 until she gave up on me and left for New York.
 Some years later I was watching a fashion show on BBC2
 when the presenter said he was going to interview Kitty Boots
 the London designer in a taxi outside.  Red telephone box?
Yellow taxi? It couldn't be could it? It was, ha ha Kitty Boots
 aka Karen Storey, attagirl..... miss you ace.

Karen