New York Massage Parlors: Wild About Harry
Wild About Harry
Harry Nilsson pioneered his own special genre of the rock ’n’ roll bender. It often began with a phone call at an odd hour and ended, in the case of Micky Dolenz of the Monkees, three days later at a massage parlor in Phoenix. Robin Williams, whose 1980 film ‘‘Popeye’’ was scored by Nilsson, covers his face when recalling a similar spree with the songwriter: ‘‘Did I really? A weed whacker?!’’
There’s no end of booze and drugs — and famous friends — in John Scheinfeld’s documentary ‘‘Who Is Harry Nilsson (And Why Is Everybody Talkin’ About Him?),’’ which will open on Sept. 10 in New York. But the film is more than a catalog of the singer’s exploits, the extent of which almost certainly contributed to his early death, in 1994 at age 52. Randy Newman compares him to Schubert. ‘‘John loved him, too’’ Yoko Ono says.