Studying Sassy: April 92

Sassy April '92 We're Rubber, You're Glue 49

This is the issue that started this whole nostalgia rabbit hole..... The iconic Kurt and Courtney cover story. Ain't love grand indeed? The issue doesn't focus on their story as much as my 2017 self would hope, but it was certainly what reinforced my interest in both of their bands. More on that later.

I thought that the way Sassy bagged on celebrity fashion in the previous issue was a problem as well! Somewhat out of character from a normally inclusive publication

This whole look is so charming to me in retrospect. I get that it's editorial and mean to grab attention, but what does it even have to do with deodorant? I guess that you "roll" it on?

I'm sorry that this photo is out of focus, but it's months later and I'm not going to retake it.

Genie ponytails, fake tattoos, Benetton anything, mustache wax, hairspray that works upside-down, and Kurt and Courtney. Pretty much 1992 in a nutshell.

Also, there's my thumb.

Wait, did jean shorts just become a thing? Like previously you had to cut off your pants?!?!? How far we have come..... Now the jean shorts in stores are mostly cut-off, and it's difficult to find hemmed ones.

I met Johnny Galecki in the early 2000's when I worked at Steppenwolf. He was quite short, and hooked up for a bit with this absolute nutbar chick who looked a lot like many of the women he has dated since: blonde, round-eyed, and thin limbed. I don't remember interacting with him much, I was probably too much of a Darlene, even then.

I wanted those aluminum bracelets and rings reeeeeeeeealy bad! Now, I want pants that fit me like those pants in Anna Sui's design rendering. And cowboy boots are coming back again, after a fleeting love of cowboy boot shoes last year. It's all cyclical.

This story is rough. It's one of those "It Happened To Me" that I wish hadn't happened to anyone.

But, then there's some Fluvog to lighten the mood. I really wanted Fluvog shoes too, but they were so expensive and usually impractical for a tween in suburban California. I got the catalog for a while (probably requested from an ad in Sassy) and dreamed shoe-dreams.

Just like that!

OMG. Ads like this made me think everyone got class rings. By the time I finished high school, I didn't even want to acknowledge that I went to that school, so I surely wasn't going to wear an engagement ring devoted to those four years.

But if I had to choose.... Petite all the way.

This One to Watch seems like a plug his PR people insisted upon. Why, you ask? See the following page for clarity.

Uhhhh, is that an ad for the movie you mention in your interview, DB Sweeny? Why yes it is!

Since What Now stopped changing the direction you had to turn the page to read it, now it's almost always on a black background. Which makes it harder to photograph. I just can't win.

Playful spring fashion ahead!

Here we go, the main event:

Honestly, the article is fairly short and these are the only photos. Courtney comes off as loud and kooky, naturally, but Kurt comes across as sweet and unassuming. I believe that at the time of this article, I didn't own music from either band. That changed within a year or so. I had a Hole tee shirt at one point, from the Live Through This album, that I'm pretty sure I ordered from the back of Sassy. I still listen to both bands, more Hole to be honest, but it holds up. I remember I was in 7th grade when Kurt's body was found, and going to class where Karen DeBenedetto was incredibly distraught. She was a huge fan. Also, separately, she also dared to me to become vegetarian. (Which I did that year, and kept up with until I was about 23 or 24.) I bet she wouldn't even remember me if I found her on Facebook or something, but I remember her so well. Funny, right?

Especially with what is happening in 2017 America, the fact that this story gets more pages than K&C makes me really happy. Especially living in Los Angeles, it's beautiful to celebrate a female rite of passage in Latino communities like this.

There was a second double-page spread, but it didn't photograph as well.

Please, can we go back in time so I can have all of these dresses? Thanks!

This was interesting, to learn more about the duties of pageant winners like Miss America, and what the duties entail. Typically, the prize seems to be the main focus of the competition, but there is a whole year of service expected while the winner holds the crown. It seems like a lot, but I suppose she did sign up for the experience, and gets to say for the rest of her life, that she won.

Love, love LOVE this story about different types of braids. I have always thought that braids like this are so beautiful, and have always been fascinated by the process of putting them in. At one point, I thought about getting them, and without even explaining to me why that would be culturally inappropriate, someone explained that while curly, my hair isn't the same texture and they wouldn't work out like I thought that they might. I've tried to learn more about the care of black hair, out of respect but also because I feel strongly that it is important as a hair stylist to be as educated as possible about all types of hair. This photo story was a nice reminder of how much more I could learn.

This story is fucked up. It seems like it's going one way, but then it gets super dark and cruel.

Oh boy. Or girl.

These cookies remind me of a cookie my mom still bakes at Christmas, but from the Polish side of our family. Ours has cream cheese in it instead of sour cream, and they're round with a thumbprint of jam. And they don't go with a fun story about a hanging, and wearing costumes. Oh well.

Ok! May is coming soon, and then perhaps June at some point. Thank you for your patience while we sort through the situation.