Marilyn Manson (b. 1969)

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Biography

Brian Hugh Warner, known professionally as Marilyn Manson, is an American rock musician. He is the lead singer and the only original member remaining of the same-titled band he founded in 1989. The band members initially created their stage names by combining the first name of an American female sex symbol, Marilyn Monroe, and the last name of a male serial killer, Charles Manson.

In Their Own Words (5)

To me, anything that is a church is really just far too close minded.

As quoted in Ultimate Guitar (2007). , 2007

Is adult entertainment killing our children? Or is killing our children entertaining adults?

As quoted in MarilynManson.com (2000). , 2000

… I don't expect everyone to get something deep out of it. Some people can just listen to the music, or get their aggressions out, but I think with any great painting or movie, album or whatever it is, it's better if people can take what they need from it. That they're not forced to get some particular message.

As quoted in "Headbanger's Ball" (10 December 1996), MTV Europe. , 1996

Understand this, tell others: in my dream vultures chase me into my burning house. There, they pick out the brains of my family, dismember them, devour. I emerge from my home and I am burning, skin falling away like a snake as the structure crumbles into a black skeleton. I cannot fight off the vultures. A young man or woman emerges from the ashes. He/she doesn't save me, because he/she is holding my cracked and swollen heart in one hand and a piece of paper in the other. I can read it. It discusses and compares in great detail the differences between me and the vultures. He wraps my heart in the paper and tosses it to the ground. Can you see?

As quoted in MarilynManson.com (6 February 1999). , 1999

Hopefully, I’ll be remembered as the person who brought an end to Christianity.

As quoted in Spin (August 1996), p. 34. , 1996

Timeline

The story of Marilyn Manson, told in moments.

1969 Birth

Born Brian Hugh Warner in Canton, Ohio. Raised in a strict Episcopal household. His grandfather kept a basement full of pornography and unusual objects. Brian discovered it as a child. He later said it shaped his worldview more than church did.

Did your grandfather's basement shape your worldview more than church? Was growing up in strict Episcopalian household the thing you rebelled against? What was Canton, Ohio like for a future provocateur?

1994 Event

Releases Portrait of an American Family, the debut Marilyn Manson album. The name combines Marilyn Monroe and Charles Manson. The band's gimmick is America's twin obsessions: glamour and violence. He's a music journalist from Florida playing a character. The character takes over.

Was combining Marilyn Monroe and Charles Manson the ultimate American statement? Did the character take over or did you let it? Was being a Florida music journalist the last normal thing about you?

1996 Event

Antichrist Superstar hits number three on the Billboard 200. He's banned from venues across America. Religious groups protest outside his concerts. He thrives on it. The more they protest, the more tickets he sells.

Did being banned from venues feel like victory? Was Antichrist Superstar the peak of provocation? Do religious protests outside your concerts fuel or exhaust you?

1999 Life

Falsely blamed for the Columbine shooting. The killers listened to his music, reporters say. He cancels tour dates. In a later interview, when asked what he'd say to the Columbine students, he answers: "I wouldn't say a single word to them. I would listen to what they have to say."

Was being falsely blamed for Columbine the worst moment of your career? Did 'I would listen to what they have to say' surprise even you? How did the blame change your public persona?