Lorna Doom, a Legendary Presence in LA Punk, Has Died
Lorna Doom, bass player for the Germs and one of the original and most important figures in the LA punk scene, died January 16. Her precise age and cause of death are unknown.
There is very little biographical information about Lorna Doom, although she does appear vividly in The Decline of Western Civilization, Penelope Spheeris’ groundbreaking documentary about the LA punk scene; and she is widely credited as a musical influence in Under the Big Black Sun: A Personal History of L.A. Punk, X-cofounder John Doe’s memoir that includes contributions by Exene Cervenka, Jane Wiedlin, Henry Rollins, Dave Alvin, and others.
Born Teresa Ryan, she was in high school in Thousand Oaks, California, when she met Belinda Carlisle and, later, Darby Crash and Pat Smear. In 1976, Crash (born Paul Beahm) and Smear (born Georg Ruthenberg) started what became the Germs. The line-up changed, but Darby, Pat, Lorna, and Don Bolles were the core. In 1979, the band recorded their debut album, GI, with Joan Jett producing. It was the first full-length indie punk album in LA. (The Dickies’ debut, The Incredible Shrinking Dickies (1978), was first, but that was on a major label.)