Nancy Spungen

Nancy Spungen
Photograph by Mary Ellen Mark
Background information
Birth name	Nancy Laura Spungen
Born	(1958-02-27)February 27, 1958 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Died	October 12, 1978(1978-10-12) (aged 20) New York City, New York, U.S.
Genres	Punk rock
Associated acts	Sid Vicious, Vicious White Kids, The Sex Pistols

Nancy Laura Spungen (February 27, 1958 – October 12, 1978) was the girlfriend of Sex Pistols bassist Sid Vicious and a figure of the 1970s punk rock scene. Spungen's life, and her death, has been the subject of controversy among music historians and fans of the Sex Pistols.

Raised in Philadelphia, Spungen was an emotionally disturbed child who was diagnosed with schizophrenia at the age of 15. After being expelled from college, she went to London at the height of the punk rock craze and became involved with Sid Vicious. Their relationship was punctuated by bouts of domestic violence and drug abuse. The press soon labelled Spungen "Nauseating Nancy" for her shocking behavior. After the Sex Pistols disbanded, the couple moved to New York City and checked into the Hotel Chelsea. They spent their days consuming drugs and were regularly visited by drug dealers.

In October 1978, Spungen was found dead in the bathroom of the couple's room of a single stab wound to the abdomen. Sid Vicious was charged with her murder but died of a heroin overdose in February 1979 before the case went to trial. In the ensuing years, there has been speculation by various authors and filmmakers over Vicious' role in Spungen's death and the possibility that Spungen was killed by a drug dealer who frequented their room.

Early life

Spungen was born at the University of Pennsylvania Hospital in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to Franklin "Frank" and Deborah Spungen. She was born with severe cyanosis and nearly died of oxygen deprivation after being choked by her umbilical cord during delivery. She did not suffer from brain damage and released from the hospital eight days after birth. The Spungens were a middle class Jewish family that resided in Lower Moreland Township, a suburb of Philadelphia. Her father was a traveling salesman; her mother later owned an organic food store called The Earth Shop in nearby Jenkintown, Pennsylvania.

She was a difficult baby, throwing crying fits and temper tantrums late into childhood. At three months old, she was prescribed a liquid barbiturate by a pediatrician, but her violent behavior persisted. In an interview, Deborah Spungen stated, "I know it's normal for babies to scream, but Nancy did nothing but scream."

She scored "superior" on an intelligence quotient test at five years of age, and was allowed to skip the third grade. Though she excelled academically, she had few friends during her elementary school years.

She was a temperamental child who exhibited violent behavior toward her younger sister, Susan, and brother, David. She allegedly threatened to kill a babysitter with scissors, and attempted to batter her psychiatrist, who accused her of "acting out" for attention. At age 11, she was expelled from public schooling when she was absent from class more than two weeks. Her parents, weary of her erratic behavior, enrolled her at the Devereux Glenholme School and Devereux Manor High School. In January 1972, she ran away from Devereux Manor and attempted suicide by slitting her wrists with scissors. When Spungen was 15, her psychiatrist diagnosed her with schizophrenia.

Education

Spungen graduated at Devereux Manor High School in April 1974, and her application to attend the University of Colorado at Boulder was accepted two weeks earlier. She began attending the university at the age of 16; however, five months into her freshman year, she was arrested for purchasing marijuana from an undercover police officer. She was later arrested for storing stolen property in her dorm room, and she was then expelled from the University of Colorado. Her father traveled to Boulder and accepted a plea bargain for Nancy, which resulted in her being banished from the state of Colorado.

After being fired from her first job on the first day, she began financing herself by stealing from her family and dealing drugs.

Relationship with Sid Vicious

Spungen left home at age 17 and moved to New York City. She worked as a stripper and prostitute. She followed bands such as Aerosmith, The New York Dolls and The Ramones. In 1976, she moved to London, allegedly to win over Jerry Nolan of the Dolls and The Heartbreakers, but met The Sex Pistols instead. When lead singer Johnny Rotten did not show interest in her, she pursued bassist Sid Vicious and they soon moved in together.

During a tumultuous 23-month relationship, Spungen and Vicious became addicted to heroin and other drugs. Vicious was already abusing multiple drugs before he met Spungen.

The tabloids dubbed Spungen "Nauseating Nancy" for her frequent public displays of verbal abuse and violence. After the Sex Pistols broke up in January 1978, Spungen and Vicious moved to the Hotel Chelsea in New York City. They stayed in room 100 and were registered under Mr. and Mrs. John Simon Ritchie, Vicious's real name. Vicious tried, with limited success, to continue his musical career.

Death

Over the next few months, Vicious and Spungen spiraled into deeper drug abuse, punctuated by domestic violence within which Vicious allegedly attacked Spungen. Their relationship ended violently on October 12, 1978 when Spungen's body was found under the sink in the bathroom of their hotel room at Hotel Chelsea. Spungen had suffered a single fatal stab wound to the abdomen. The knife that made the wound was reportedly owned by Vicious. This was reportedly a "007" hunting knife he had obtained after seeing Dee Dee Ramone give one to The Dead Boys' Stiv Bators, although conflicting reports claim the knife to be a Jaguar K-11 with a five-inch blade.

Vicious was immediately arrested and charged with second degree murder. Vicious pleaded not guilty and was released on bail. Four months after Nancy's death, incarcerated at Riker's Island before bail and drug rehabilitation, he overdosed on heroin, and died before the trial could take place. After Vicious died, the police closed the case. Spungen was buried in her hometown in Philadelphia. Her Hebrew name is inscripted on her gravestone: "Haya-Leah daughter of Ephrayim-Aharon."^{[citation needed]}

Aftermath

There are several theories that Spungen was murdered by someone other than Vicious, usually said to be one of the two drug dealers who visited the apartment that night, and involving a possible robbery, as certain items (including a substantial bankroll) were claimed to be missing from the room. In his book, Pretty Vacant: A History of Punk, Phil Strongman accuses actor and stand-up comic Rockets Redglare of killing Spungen. Redglare had delivered 40 capsules of hydromorphone to the couple's room at the Chelsea Hotel the night of Spungen's death.

Redglare steadfastly denied any involvement in the murder of Nancy Spungen throughout his life. He stated that the other dealer known to have been there that evening had left before him to obtain more heroin, and was due back after he had left the building. He said he believed that the other dealer returned, found Vicious out cold, and attempted to steal the remaining drugs, leading to a confrontation with Spungen.

In his review for director Alex Cox's film Sid and Nancy, critic Roger Ebert speculated that Spungen's stab wound was not severe enough to cause death, but she was a hemophiliac, and because her blood wouldn't clot, she bled to death. He further stated that he didn't believe Vicious' intention was to kill Spungen, but rather that it was an accident.

Other media

In 1983, the book And I Don't Want to Live This Life was published. It was written by Spungen's mother, Deborah. The title of the memoir is taken from a poem written by Sid Vicious soon after Spungen's death.

In 1986, the Samuel Goldwyn Company released the biopic Sid and Nancy, directed by Alex Cox. The film portrays the life of Vicious and his relationship with Spungen. It stars Gary Oldman as Vicious and Chloe Webb as Spungen. Critics praised Webb's performance as Spungen. In the film, Cox also put forth the theory that Spungen and Vicious had a suicide pact, but they got into an argument when Vicious reneged. The argument escalated when Spungen assaulted Vicious, who was trying to leave the apartment, and that she was actually stabbed accidentally when she charged him when his knife was out. Subsequent scenes show Spungen sleeping with Sid even while she is bleeding to death.

Rats by Veronica Schanoes, appeared in the 2007 Interstitial Arts Foundation anthology Interfictions. The story is a punk rock fairytale inspired by Spungen's life. About her work, the author said "I wrote Rats because I was angry with the way the recent coffee-table histories of punk seem to have no problem demonizing a dead, mentally ill, teenage girl."

In 2010, the British documentary Who Killed Nancy? directed by Alan G. Parker was released. The film that includes interviews from those associated with Vicious and Spungen, including Glen Matlock, Don Letts, John Holmstrom, and Howie Pyro, among others.

External links

• Nancy Spungen at the Internet Movie Database
• Photos of Spungen's gravestone in King David Cemetery, Bensalem, Pennsylvania