James St. James

“I was definitely the oddball freak show in school.”

“I'll always be a party monster. I'll always love getting dressed up.”

“Play Trivial Pursuit with me, and you'll be astonished. I can remember every outfit I wore to every party going back to 1983.”

“People come. They go. Dying is the same as rehab or moving back to Missouri. It just means I won't be seeing them again.”

“There are people who have too much space between their ears, and given the time, do nothing but free fall forever inside their head. It's a spooky thing to be left alone inside an angry inner-verse.”

“I can remember every outfit I wore to every party going back to 1983.”

“I've sort of come to accept the fact that when I'm 80, people will ask about Michael Alig. I've had to realize that this is part of who I am.”

“Richie Rich, Keoki, Amanda LaPore are really successful. They've joined the culture at large.”

“When my trust fund ran out, I panicked. I have a lot of admiration for the kids who come to the big city with nothing and make it.”

“We danced on the lip of the volcano, so to speak. We were young, too. And New York was still a big, open city where anything could happen and anyone could be star. Rents were cheap, creativity was encouraged, and bottle service was still 20 years away. That was the era the Club Kids came into.”

“The true nature of evil is that it is so very casual.”

“As for my identity within the context of New York nightlife? I left in the '90s, so I'm not part of the scene anymore. I'll always be interested in what's happening downtown, and I try and keep up with the changing faces on social media.”

“The Club Kids were about fun. Wild, messy fun - the more debauched, the better.”

“You know when you're writing, and it's just you and the computer screen, and you never think that anyone is ever going to read it... you're able to say private things when you're writing.”

“I can be an incredibly fabulous person, and I don't have to be in the highest heels, the tallest wig, the skimpiest outfit.”

“I think that when you are a teenager, it's the smartest you will ever be in your life. Teenagers are so resilient and strong, it's just amazing.”

“I came to NYU to study experimental theater. Shortly thereafter, I was featured in a 'Newsweek' article about the emerging downtown club scene, and, well, that was it for NYU. I was off and running.”

“Getting dressed was always the best part of every night.”

“I would go to the all-night grocery store and pretend that I was at Studio 54 because it was the only place open all night. Truman Capote in the frozen foods. Andy Warhol over in vegetables.”