NEW YORK DOLLS, THE

American band whose raw brand of glam rock revitalized the New York City underground music scene in the 1970s, foreshadowing punk rock by half a decade. The members were David Johansen (b. Jan. 9, 1950, New York, N.Y., U.S.), Johnny Thunders (byname of John Genzale; b. July 15, 1952, New Yorkd. April 23, 1991, New Orleans, La., U.S.), Billy Murcia (b. 1951, New Yorkd. Nov. 6, 1972, London, Eng.), Sylvain Sylvain (byname of Sylvain Sylvain Mizrahi; b. Feb. 14, 1951, Cairo, Egypt), Jerry Nolan (b. May 7, 1946, New Yorkd. Jan. 14, 1992, New York), Arthur Kane (b. New York), and Rick Rivets (b. New York). Formed in 1971, the New York Dolls first gained notoriety in 1972 for their outrageous performances at the Mercer Arts Center and Max's Kansas City in lower Manhattan, where they appeared in their signature attirewomen's makeup and bizarre clothing. Their glam rock androgyny belied an unpolished musical style that combined British Invasion-influenced rhythm and blues with the guitar distortion and booming backbeat of proto-punk bands such as the MC5 and Iggy and the Stooges. The drug-related death of drummer Murcia during the band's tour of England in 1972 further fueled their reputation. The following year they signed with Mercury Records and released New York Dolls, produced by Todd Rundgren. Their 1974 follow-up, the aptly named Too Much Too Soon, gave title to the band's dissolution as its members struggled with drug and alcohol addictions. Notwithstanding their lack of commercial success, the irreverent Dolls had a lasting influence on a generation of bandsmost notably the Sex Pistols, whose founder, Malcolm McLaren, managed the Dolls briefly before their breakup in 1975.