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Marilyn Manson

1987

After graduating from high school in Canton, Ohio, Marilyn Manson, then Brian Warner, moves with his family to Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.

He soon meets Twiggy Ramirez in a local mall.

1987-1988

The two start up the fake Christian death metal bands "Satan On Fire" and "Mrs. Scabtree". They release a few singles that supposedly snagged them

airplay.

Sometime in here, Manson worked as a journalist for a local newspaper covering the local music scene. In his spare time, he wrote fiction and

poetry.

1989

Along with Daisy Berkowitz, Manson starts up Marilyn Manson and the Spooky Kids. Manson tackles the lyrics while Berkowitz takes on writing

the music. This was the first band that Manson got to sing in. The original line-up included Manson on vocals, Berkowitz on lead guitar, Olivia

Newton Bundy on bass, Zsa Zsa Speck on keyboards, and a drum machine.

Speck and Bundy leave and are replaced by Madonna Wayne Gacy on keyboards and Gidget Gein on bass.

1990

Sometimes between 1989 and 1990, Manson meets Trent Reznor while Nine Inch Nails is touring in Florida. The two become friends and begin to

exchange tapes of their music.

Sarah Lee Lucas joins the band, replacing the drum machine. His first show is on July 19,1990.

The band start to incorporate theatrics into their live shows.

1991

The band starts to get noticed and they release their own self-produced cassettes and sell them at their shows and local record stores. Only about

100 copies of each are made.

1992

The band changes their name to just Marilyn Manson on August 1st,1992.

The group is nominated for "Best Hard Alternative Band" and "Band of the Year" at the Slammies, the South Florida Rock Awards. They were also

honored by New Times Magazine as "Best Heavy Metal Band".

1993

The band recieves many nominations at the Slammies and walks away with two awards: "Band of the Year" and "Song of the Year", for "Dope Hat".

Trent Reznor launches nothing records and asks the band to be the first to sign.

The bands records Portrait Of An American Family with producer Roli Mossiman. However, they are unhappy with the results and ask Trent

Reznor to hear the tracks. Both agreed they didn't meet up with the traditional Manson sound and Reznor steps in as producer. For seven weeks,

they hole themselves up at the Record Plant in Los Angeles. Half of the album was mixed at the Sharon Tate house in California, where Reznor was

living.

Ramirez replaces Gein on bass.

1994

The band signs with nothing records.

During the spring, they join Nine Inch Nails on their Self Destruction '94 Tour.

Portrait Of An American Family is released through nothing records. Gein plays all the bass parts on the album. Ramirez's half-brother is the child

on the CD sleeve.

The infamous chicken incident that was supposed to have occured was just a rumor. The band called for the chicken as a joke.

The very infamous Robin Finck encounter occurs on November 20th,1994. Afterwards, Manson's parents shake Robin's hand.

The band starts to gain opposition because of their onstage behavior.

At Salk Lake City, Utah, Manson was not allowed to play, although they were paid, unless they agreed to certain conditions, which they did. During

NIN's set, Trent invited Marilyn on stage and he brought him a Mormon Bible and a letter explaining why they were not allowed to perform that

night. Manson then proceeded to rip up the Bible and tossed it into the crowd. SLC, UH would later band the band from playing there on their

1996/1997 tour.

Manson meets Dr. Anton LaVey at his home in San Frisisco, California. He is then ordained into the Church of Satan and takes on the title of the

Reverend Marilyn Manson.

Manson is arrested twice for public nudity during their mini-headlining tour in Florida.

1995

The band begin their long tour for Portrait Of An American Family. First, they hit small clubs, then they open for Danzig and Korn. They also

headline with Clutch by the end of the year.

On March 10th,1995, Manson sets Sarah Lee Lucas' drums on fire while the drummer is still behind the set. Sarah quits the next day and is replaced

by Ginger Fish, whom the band met in Las Vegas.

The band shoot a video for "Dope Hat". The video features a cameo of Anton LaVey.

During the fall, Portrait Of An American Family hits gold status.

1996

The band releases the EP Smells Like Children which debutes on Billboard's Top 200 Album Charts at #53.

"Sweet Dreams" becomes a hit video and gets active rotation on MTV's Buz Bin.

The band tour in support of Smells Like Children. This tour becomes known as The Snow Tour because of the weather problems. The band

members had several bouts of cols, and an oxygen was on hand for Manson onstage.

One memorable incident on The Snow Tour was when the band had to shack up at a hotel in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Also at the hotel were the

Sesame Street Live tour and the Orlando Magic basketball team.

The recording of Antichrist Superstar takes place in New Orleans.

Daisy Berkowitz gives his recognition and leaves the band early into the recording of Antichrist Superstar. The guitar parts are filled by Marilyn,

Trent Reznor, Nine Inch Nail's Danny Lohner and (of course) Twiggy Ramirez. Daisy did, however, add his licks to a four of the tracks.

Manson auditions many guitarists but decides on Zim Zum, whom he names.

"The Beautiful People" single and video is released.

The band appeared at the "Nothing Night" showcase in New York City, but the show was cut short due to an injury suffered by Ginger Fish.

Those nutty rumors about the band started to spread. Included were such topics as the band committing suicide on their Halloween show, the

removal of ribs and questions regarding the band's sex.

Marilyn Manson are nominated for MTV's "Best Hard Rock Video" for "Sweet Dreams". The single goes platinum and the EP Smells Like Children

reaches gold status.

The band hit the road in support of Antichrist Superstar.

On October 8th,1996, Antichrist Superstar is released. Some stores open at midnight to accomodate fans.

The Halloween show went on, but was delayed due to a bomb threat.

1997

Controversy surrounds the band as religious groups and parents picket shows. Many states attempt to ban the band. The band, however, just gets

more headlines.

The band perform on the Lost Highway soundtrack and the Private Parts soundtrack. Manson and Ramirez also have a cameo in Lost Highway.

New Jersey's Giants Stadium joins the list of states to ban Manson from playing on the Ozzfest '97 bill. Manson files a lawsuit and is backed by Ozzy

Osbourne. The courts decide in the band's favor.

In Washington, DC tradgedy strikes as a member of the lighting crew falls to his death. Later that night, Manson dedicated "Sweet Dreams" to him.

Daisy Berkowitz files suit against the band, the Man(son), the label, and the "band's" attorney.