Cherry Vanilla

Cherry Vanilla (born Kathleen Dorritie on October 16, 1943) is an American singer-songwriter, publicist, and actress. Born in Woodside, New York, she adopted her stage name while starring in Andy Warhol's play *Pork* and other avant-garde productions. She worked as David Bowie's publicist during the early 1970s, gaining notoriety for her bold marketing strategies, including controversial radio ads. After leaving Bowie, Vanilla formed her first band with Kasim Sulton in 1974. By 1976, she led *Cherry Vanilla & Her Staten Island Band*, releasing the track "Shake Your Ashes" on the *Max's Kansas City* album and publishing her art book *Pop Tart*. Moving to London in 1976, she became part of the punk scene, signing with RCA Records. Her band included future members of The Police (Gordon Sumner and Stewart Copeland), who supported her early performances. Her debut single "The Punk" was released in 1977, followed by the album *Bad Girl* in 1978. A second album, *Venus d'Vinyl*, came out in 1979, but the band disbanded after she split from guitarist Louis Lepore. In 1980, she contributed vocals to Vangelis's track "Not A Bit – All Of It" and later managed his American office. She also worked on Roger Waters' *The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking* and composed music for the boxing documentary *Broken Noses*. Returning to recording in the 1990s, she released *Blue Roses* with Man Parrish and Barb Morrison. Vanilla's autobiography, *Lick Me: How I Became Cherry Vanilla*, was published in 2010, with a launch party featuring Rufus ...