Features
A Bad Day For Manson Fans
Some hardy souls had waited in line for up to 14 hours in 20-degree weather outside the Toledo Sports Arena only to be turned away.
About 2,000 tickets had been sold – less than half the amount Manson sold when he last played the city in 1998, said Gary Wyse, the venue’s general manager.
The band’s sound check was audible to about 150 people who had lined up outside during the day.
Ginger Fish – whose real name is Kenny Wilson – suffered a hairline collarbone fracture during a November 25 performance at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York City when he fell over his drum kit and off a riser. At the time, a Manson rep told Pollstar that the break wouldn’t affect the tour.
The canceled Manson show did have an impact on a Toledo high school, though.
Between 300 and 400 students at Bowsher High School stayed home the day of the ill-fated concert because of rampant rumors of violence supposedly being plotted by Manson fans, according to the Toledo Blade.
The newspaper reported that two girls were defacing a Bible and eating its pages in the school cafeteria. The girls were pegged as “Goths” because of their black clothing, hair, makeup, and fingernails. The girls evidently were not utterly devoid of humor as they were reportedly brandishing festive “Welcome Marilyn” balloons.
Another group of students confronted the girls and an argument ensued. By the end of the day, rumors were flying that the Goth kids had a “hit list” targeting jocks, cheerleaders, “preppies” and students of color for assaults and other violent acts.
School officials talked to about 25 students that day and planned to interview about 15 more the next. They found nothing to substantiate the rumors.
“The group who started this was asked to stay home. They caused a disruption. My recommendation is they come back on Monday,” school board president Larry Sykes told the newspaper. He didn’t specify which group – the alleged Goths or the students who confronted them – were considered to be the ones who started the problem.