Left Hand Smack: Photographer Claims Glenn Danzig Beat Him Up Over Forbidden Photos
Every dark and brooding thrash fan knows that Glenn Danzig has some serious vocal chops, but apparently when it comes to throwing down, he’s no slouch either. A photographer is accusing the 60-year-old rocker of roughing him up during a post-show altercation in Montreal earlier this week. Neal Danton, a shutterbug from Ireland, was on hand for the stop on the Danzig and Superjoint Ritual “Blackest of the Black” show when he reportedly ran afoul of the former Misfits frontman after violating Danzig’s well-known “no photos” rule.
Danton shared his account of the incident via Facebook in a post that has now been removed. Along with a picture of his bloodied face — ostensibly due to injuries sustained in the alleged assault — Danton described his dust-up with Danzig and company.
“So I went to Danzig last night. Including the 100 dollars I spent on his merch plus the tickets time of work and traveling to Montreal to see him this is the price you pay for taking a photo of Danzig. He called me up on stage got … his p***y security guards to rough me up and held me back me back so he could hit me himself. Cops can’t do f**k all because we’re both not Canadian and they did it off camera and said I fell … could all my friends please share this because I want the world to know what a p***y the guy is. Superjoint f******g ruled [though].”
Music site Gigwise spoke with a number of fans who also attended the show and seemingly refuted Danton’s version of things. Indeed, the site ascertained that there was a general consensus among those interviewed that Danton was the one causing a brouhaha during the show, noting that he was “called out” for causing problems but no assault was witnessed.
Heavy metal news repository Metal Injection ultimately succeeded in digging up an eyewitness account to Glenn Danzig laying into his one-time fan, though. The witness, who asked to remain anonymous, claims to have seen Danton carried outside of the venue by Danzig’s security guards. Although he was apparently ejected from the show, Danton apparently made his way back inside, only to be tossed once again, this time bearing visible injuries. As he verbally harangued the security contingent, Glenn Danzig himself allegedly emerged from the building and things got physical.
“Right after the show ended, Glenn came running out and engaged Neil and threw a kick to Neil’s ribs, and connected. He also swung a couple punches that missed before security got Glenn on his bus. Glenn kept calling Neil a motherf****r.”
Glenn Danzig, who purportedly practices various forms of martial arts, is notoriously hot-tempered. And although he’s tough talking in interviews and on stage, not all of Danzig’s forays into fisticuffs end with the singer’s head held high. Danzig’s 2004 confrontation between Danzig and North Side Kings lead singer Danny Marianino, captured on video and disseminated in grand fashion via the Information Superhighway, caught the metal legend biting off a bit more than he could chew. In fact, after being knocked to the floor by a single blow from Marianino, it’s a safe bet that Danzig had considerable trouble chewing at all in the days that followed his on-camera drubbing.
While Marianino had a lot to say about his infamous run-in with Glenn Danzig – he even published a book about how the one-sided fight changed his life and career – Danzig himself hasn’t had much to say about that night. Except, of course, for Glenn’s 2011 re-telling of the tale in which he asserts that he “allowed” Marianino to get the better of him to avoid a lawsuit for hitting him back. Ironically, that version of the incident also seems like a great way to save face when a guy gets his keister thoroughly, completely, and utterly kicked. Go figure.
Given the overwhelming evidence that Glenn Danzig doesn’t have much in the way of a sense of humor, it’s probably a good idea for the diminutive dark lord to steer clear of Facebook for the foreseeable future. He’s regularly skewered by a satirical page entitled “Danzig Memes” which inserts Glenn’s face and lyrics into bizarrely hilarious comic strips.
Then again, if Glenn Danzig does decide to check out “Danzig Memes” and decides he doesn’t like what he sees, he will probably fare better than he did against Danny Marianino. After all, computers can’t hit back.
[Photo by Greg Campbell/Getty Images for SiriusXM]
