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Collecting and Reverend Jen's Other Pursuits
Q. Trolls seem like an unusual thing to collect. Do many people ask you why you collect them?
A. I've met many troll collectors and they all get asked "Why trolls?" a lot. It's weird because trolls are an unusual thing, but I've been to auctions at Christie's where someone will buy a $200,000 pile of candy because it's a conceptual art piece and no one asks them why. I think my habit of buying 50 cent trolls is completely harmless in comparison.
Q. And with trolls, no one will ever say, "Yes, but is it art?"
A. That's true.
Q. You said you've met a lot of fellow troll collectors. How did you meet them? Do they have conventions?
A. They don't have conventions that I know of. The way I have met most troll lovers is through eBay. Anytime you go on, there are usually about ten pages of trolls for sale and you know it's the troll lovers who are out there. I know trolls, and I know which trolls I want to look at and they're always the ones that have eleven bids on them. And then the boring ones like the plain old naked Russ troll that was made in 1991, that one wouldn't have any bids on it because, well, you could get that one for 10 cents at a flea market.
Q. Have you bought any trolls on eBay?
A. No. I did buy two things: a troll seesaw and troll swings. I try not to let it get out of control. I've heard of people being horrible eBay addicts and I don't want to go there. Anyone with a major collecting habit should stay away from eBay, I think. It could lead to immediate eviction.
Q. What do troll collectors generally look for?
A. Troll lovers look for trolls that are really vintage, say from the 60s or from one of the first companies that made trolls, or else trolls that have some kind of special outfit.
Q. Vintage is really in style right now, in fashion and elsewhere. Steven "Cojo" Cojucaru (the TV style guru) says it's because it reminds people of their childhoods and of simpler times. Do you agree?
A. I agree partially, but what most women are wearing now are dresses from the 60s and the dresses were just a more flattering cut in general: pretty and feminine, not skimpy or sleazy. People are sick of wearing band-aids. Also, most of my clothes are vintage because if you find a vintage dress, you know nobody else is going to be wearing it if you go to a party.
Q. You have trolls. You have vintage clothes. Is there anything else from the past that you collect?
A. I have a lot of elf figurines. And I think I have all of the Dark Crystal merchandise that was made; there was not a lot of it made. I have vintage Woolworth items—I was obsessed with Woolworth's when it was open. When they were going out of business, I bought some baskets and some snow globes. And I have a thing I bought from the lunch counter that's a picture of the cheese steak. I miss Woolworth's so much.
Q. What made you decide to turn your troll collection into a museum?
A. I was trying to take a nap one day when an entire shelf of trolls in my bedroom fell and almost hit me on the head and I thought, "I can't take this! I have to put all my trolls in one room!" I'd been depressed that day and went out with a friend that night to Luna Lounge. We were drinking beer and I said, "I'm going to start a troll museum." We were in hysterics thinking about different ways we could adopt things that happened in bigger museums, like security guards and ribbon cutting ceremonies; and how they would be made even funnier by the fact that they were happening in a tiny room in an apartment in a six-floor walkup. And I like the weird aspect of it—of people asking, "Do you really live in a troll museum?" or just being able to say I live in a museum.
Q. Were you also poking fun of museums like you did with Web site companies?
A. A little bit. I came from an art background and worked in an art gallery—it seemed like there wasn't much fun going on in museums. They were like mausoleums; people were expected not to speak loudly. Why? Are the paintings talking that you have to listen to them? So I wanted to do something where people could laugh and have fun and get a little crazy in a crazy environment.
Q. Why don't you charge people?
A. I do. I have a piggy bank that says "Suggested Donation $3000."
Q. When people ask what you do, do you tell them you're a museum curator?
A. The number one thing I am is a writer and I make adventures for myself to write about—not necessarily consciously, but subconsciously I create these adventures to make each book more interesting than the last. I'm also a performance artist, but it's all driven mostly by my writing and all of that is driven by my life. Part of my life is having a troll museum.
Q. If someone came up to you and said, "I don't know what to collect but I want to start collecting something," what would you tell them?
A. Trolls are a good thing to collect because they're so inexpensive and you can be a person who doesn't make a lot of money and still have a good collection. You go to a flea market you're bound to find one or two. Some people just have the inclination to collect. I'm Year of the Rat; I've heard rats are natural collectors.
Q. You didn't actually set out to be a collector?
A. I've never really set out to do anything in my life. I just tend to think to do stuff. But I always take it to its illogical, comical extreme. I'd had a few beers when I decided it would be fun to open a troll museum. A lot of people would leave it at that but I went and started one. A friend of mine once said that a lot of people go out of their way to avoid boredom, but I go too far out of my way. My whole life is an overwhelming mission to avoid boredom.
Q. When's the last time you were bored?
A. I don't remember. When I was a child, my mom said that I could watch Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck throw poop at each other for 15 hours on TV and never turn my head away. I think she was right. I don't get bored easily.
Q. I understand you were part of the movement to protest New York's cabaret laws forbidding dancing in bars...
A. You mean the Dance Liberation Front? We did it when no one was paying attention to the cabaret laws. Consumer Affairs and the government thought that people didn't realize what was going on so they were behaving badly. We wanted to build up some resistance and make a stink about it, which we did. Consumer Affairs finally admitted that the laws were antiquated and unworkable but I don't trust them. I think they're going to introduce some new legislation that's even more frightening and damaging to New York nightlife. And when they do, I'll be there to stop them.
Q. What have you been up to lately?
A. I just finished a book called My Life as an Elf. It's sort of a memoir but it's jokey. Now I'm working on a series called Electra Elf. It's a TV series starring J.J. and me as superheroes. I plan to make about ten half-hour episodes and put it on the Manhattan Neighborhood network in the fall. I love cable access because it's the fairest kind of medium. I've also been writing a lot of scripts for short movies.
Q. What kind of movies do you make?
A. I made a movie called Lord of the Cock Ring. I had originally written it as a musical and then it turned into an underground movie. I also made a movie called Elf Panties. It was just me hanging out in my panties and talking. I thought it would be a good thing to sell on elfpanties.com but... Well, we know what happened with that.
Saint Reverend Jen's Lower Eastside Troll Museum, located on Orchard Street in the Lower East Side of Manhattan, is by appointment only. To make an appointment, call 212-560-7235 or write to revjen@revjen.com. Admission is free (or $3000 if you wish.)
To learn more about Saint Reverend Jen, visit her Web site: www.revjen.com.
Reverend Jen's Anti-Slam has been running for nine years. It is an open mike for Performance Artists, Writers, Comedians, Sketch Comics, Actors, and Musicians. Shows are Wednesday nights at 8:00 p.m. Sign up for performers is at 7:30 p.m.
Collective Unconscious is located at 145 Ludlow Street in Manhattan. Admission is $3. Show times and prices are subject to change. Call 212-254-5277 for updates or go onto the Collective Unconscious Web site at www.weird.org.
You can buy books by Reverend Jen online at www.printedmatter.org/ or in person at Printed Matter, 535 W. 22nd Street, New York NY 10011.
The story of Three Billy Goats Gruff: http://www.surlalunefairytales.com/billygoats/notes.html
Magic: The Gathering is a fantasy-inspired card trading game of strategy that is played by many people, some of whom are very attractive and desirable. For more information, check out www.mtggame.com .
It was the Goblin King, and not a troll that kidnapped Jennifer Connelly's brother in Labyrinth. For more information on that movie as well as Trilogy of Terror, Troll, and Dark Crystal, go to the Internet Movie Data Base, www.imdb.com.
Features: Travel: Finding Harmony | Collecting: Reverend Jen and the Troll Museum | Decorating: Vintage Wallpaper | Photo Gallery: Vintage Fashion | Home: Vintage Kitchen | Manners: Interview With Etiquette Expert Letitia Baldrige | Lifestyle: Where Did You Get That?
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