I've always had a thing for Debbie. Sure, she's hot and she's been in some truly spectacular and outrageous movies, but I had no idea that she was once a cute punk rock girl (anyone else hearing the Dead Milkmen right about now?), and that just makes her even more awesome. She would have been the girl that the 15 year old me followed around at shows, hoping for a chance to catch her eye and impress her with some stupid and absolutely ridiculous behavior. Even more awesome is that it turns out she's also really cool. She was really friendly and very receptive to a tiny website with nothing to offer but a fawning appreciation. Maybe it's a child of the 80s thing. Regardless, Debbie answered our questions with candor, honesty and humor and for that I thank her, and I feel my crush grow even stronger.

Normally, I'd tell you all about Debbie, but honestly, if you don't know who Debbie Rochon is, I have to wonder what you're doing on this site in the first place. Her story is amazing and truly shows her for the singular woman she is, and gives proof that with enough determination you can overcome anything.

Well, that got a little serious. Poop, titties, ass. Okay, I feel better now. Here's Debbie's 20 Questions.

I loved The Police, Black Flag, and Madness, a really bizarre grouping that only made sense then. The cherished albums that I bought in 1986 where The Cure’s compilation album Standing on the Beach, Kate Bush’s The Whole Story and the self titled They Might be Giants albums!

2. Someone offers you the choice between a brand-new state of the art hybrid or a cherry 1960's muscle car, which do you choose?

I would have to go with the cherry 1960’s muscle car. Two reasons. One: Way cool. Two: I don’t know how to drive (25 years in NYC) so it would stay cherry and would just be a showpiece anyway! So it would then be considered ‘green’! No gasoline would be used. Brilliant! It would be my cherry green 1960’s muscle car showpiece. Vintage gold.

3. Dee Snider in full Twisted Sister gear: scary, creepy (in that 'what the hell is this old guy doing' way) or just kind of cute?

Totally falls in the cute category. Now in all fairness I would not have come to this conclusion had I not seen him perform a few times over the past couple of years. He is so strong on stage, kicks ass, puts on a show better than anyone I have seen and has enough energy to fill a stadium. He’s the real deal. I’ve learned a lot from the man. Plus it doesn’t hurt that he’s got a big heart too. Good family. Nothing to diss there. Honestly.

4. Does Lloyd Kaufman project that 'dirty old man' vibe in person (not necessarily in an uncle bad-touch sort of way, but in a 'slap a cute chick on the ass, buy underage kids beer' sort of way)?

HAHAHA! One person’s dirty old man is another person’s hot comely stud-muffin! I would say Lloyd has a way, no doubt, but dirty old man is not the description I would use. I might say he is expressive with his hands. I might say he is generous with dropping the soap. But I wouldn’t go down and dirty on any description of the man. He’s been a big part of my life and I hope it will always be that way. If there’s something I hear that I don’t like or think I am seeing that I don’t like then I turn a blind eye, cry in the bath then recover and live in super sweet denial!

5. What was the first thing that went through your mind when you were stabbed?

Whatever you do… DO NOT PASS OUT. This ain’t over yet. Luckily, due to the miracle of adrenaline I was very much aware and conscious till I got out of the situation and to the hospital. THEN I couldn’t stand up for a month from the blood loss but before that I was running on energy from outer space.

6. When was the last time you shop-lifted, and what was it?

I was a wee little minor and I think I did the old switching the price tags. I wanted something that was a dollar but I had 50 cents so I switched the ticket so I could afford it. It was maybe lip-gloss? A huge hand slammed down on my shoulder, scared the shit outta me, and told me to put it back and not to come back to the store for 6 months. I still haven’t gone back to this day! Maybe I should. Maybe I should try re-pricing the lip-gloss again. This time I would be arrested as an adult. The newspapers would print BOTCHED PRICE SWITCH RETRIED DECADES LATER, GETS 25 YEARS.

7. What role that you didn't get left you the most disappointed?

I would say that after my hand injury on a film set where I cut off my four fingers on my right hand, sans the bones, forced me to cancel a shoot that would have been REALLY amazing for me. I came up with an idea to work with American Nightmare director Jon Keeyes again. We wrote the story together for Blood and Roses, which was re-titled by the distribution company Suburban Nightmare to gain attention from the first film we did together. I wrote the lead character exactly to the specs of a character I wanted VERY much to do, every nuance was created to fit me and what I wanted to express/act. I even raised the money to make the movie with a friend of mine Zack Snygg. The injury occurred two weeks before shooting began on the film. Whether it was possible to push off the shooting and wait for me or not is yet to be clear, regardless, it was re-cast and was shot without me. That was one time I was so close to a character and created something that was tailored exactly for me and then I didn’t get to do it. That was my biggest disappointment I think.

8. In your opinion, who is the sexiest person (male of female) in mainstream Hollywood?

Tough question. Have to go with the old standard Johnny Depp. He always looked good. Great actor. Ages really well. I really enjoy his work a lot.

9. Who was the first person that broke your heart?

My dad. Yeah I know get the Kleenex out! LOL. And NO I don’t mean in a perverted way either! He became a different person because of his drinking and because of that and many other factors I ended up in the foster care system.

10. If you could pick one person in the film industry to work with for the rest of your life, who would it be?

Well I refuse to hurt anyone’s feelings I know and care about so I will pick someone I don’t know! I think if I were to partner up creatively for life with one genius filmmaker it would be maybe P.T. Anderson or Larry Fessenden (I know him but have never worked with him so it’s fair game!). Really, just a director who is completely into the work and the power of film and someone who has something to say, a voice. A style. Vision. That’s what interests me.

11. When was the last time you woke up and the first thing that went through your mind was "oh, fuck"?

Last Friday. I realized the amount of work that still needed to be done on the radio show and my co-producer was away, my co-host Dee Snider was off and I was ISDNing the show from anther country! Yeah that will wake you up! The show went fine but it was a hell of a day!

12. Would you give up acting if you could have a lucrative career in writing?

Funny. I have often pondered that. For the most part yes but I do get some really kick ass roles that I could never turn down. My first love has always been acting. I lived for it, trained for it and took crappy roles in the beginning just to be able to do it! I want to always act. The roles have to be good for me to get excited. I am lucky because I have been getting great roles the past couple of years as well. But writing is becoming more and more fun and important to me so I feel the winds of change. Not completely changing my world but shaking it up and revamping it for sure!

13. Who was more influential, The Sex Pistols or The Ramones? Brits always say The Pistols, Americans always say The Ramones. You're a (North) American who knew The Pistols, so I'm curious to hear your take on it.

OK. TOUGH question. I prefer the Sex Pistols by far. I tend to like a little angrier style of punk sounds. BUT we have to be realistic here. The Ramones were around first and actually, in their own way, influenced the Pistols I think. Now The Ramones are more of a ‘fun’ punk group and the Pistols were completely angst riddled. Both had an important place in punk history. But… how many bands can put out ONE ALBUM (Sex Pistols) and influence SO MANY??? That is mind boggling, no?

14. If you could have a role on any show on television, current or in the past, what show would it be?

I would love to be on Dexter, to have been on Carnivale and in an episode of The Twilight Zone. On a cheesier side: Charlie’s Angels, Wonder Woman and The Bionic Woman.

15. Do you have a favorite charity?

Yeah I give yearly to The North Shore Animal League. Any authentic animal charity is good. I chose them because I have adopted there before. Feels good even if you can only afford 20 or 50 bucks a year it’s really an amazing thing to do. A good habit to get into. Especially for people in this business. We are all trained to take and need and want (in the me, me, me sense) but it’s in the giving that you can actually experience some joy and do something important.

16. Your house is on fire and you only have time to save one thing, what is it?

My 1975 vintage Les Paul guitar. No doubt about that. No question.

17. When was the last time you slapped someone?

Hmmm. The gag order demands that I answer that question in this way… I was just in Germany a couple weeks ago making a really brutal horror film called Game Over and I did ‘connect’ as they say on a couple of the punches I threw. I warned them I was not a professional stunt person. I have done my own stunts for my entire career but if you have to fake punch someone 20 times there’s a decent chance you’ll connect your knuckles with their jaw at least once. I know that’s a punch not a slap but that’s the closest. As I mentioned, the slap to the stewardess on the plane is still an ongoing case I can’t elaborate on yet.

18. It's 2AM and you're drunk, pissed, and need to scream at someone. Who do you call to vent to?

Probably my friend Jamie. He’s bound to be up at that time for starters. Plus he’s heard everything you could possibly imagine from me so I wouldn’t have to spend the first 30 minutes catching him up on whatever story line I am bitching about!

19. I have a huge thing for Diane Lane, mostly because of the movie 'Streets of Fire' (one of the greatest movies of all time), but also partly because of 'The Fabulous Stains'. Crap, that's not a question. Um...Okay, I got it: Was a 16 year old Diane Lane cool, or was she kind of a little snot? I can totally see her being kind of...how should I put it...difficult.

Does it make sense that she was a very cool snot? She WAS cool but you have to understand how frustrated she was! She was being chaperoned by her mother. She was 16 years old and around the most intense and cool partying people on the planet; The Clash, The Sex Pistols, The Tubes, Ray Winstone etc. The drinking, music, drugs were all flowing. She was a sequestered 16 year old and we all know how mad you are at that age anyway - for no reason! Imagine being denied all of that fun at that age? Who could blame her? She was obviously frustrated at times, but was she a snot? I would probably not go that far.

20. Name one thing a fan has done that's completely creeped you out.

The weirdest thing is when someone tried to threaten me with if I didn’t ‘hang’ with them during the few off hours I had to rest up at a convention; they would post shitty things about me on the internet. Being a rebel my whole life I really, really hate being threatened. So I made a point to bump into him even less than before. Told him to post when he liked. Negative posts now a days are a dime a dozen and just come off as crybaby stuff anyway in my opinion. So even though it was weird being given an ultimatum by a stranger that was trying to emotionally blackmail me somehow, in the end he was completely laughable. I have dealt with bigger bullies. They’re a dime a dozen on the internet.



Be sure to visit Debbie at: www.DebbieRochon.com