Gerard Damiano’s The Story of Joanna had opened to critical acclaim less than a year before, but by 1976 “Porno Chic” had reached its peak, and VHS tapes were making their way into the home. While he pondered his next move, Damiano met a group of puppeteers, who by day, performed individually at the highest levels of film, television, and theater, but by night, had formed a troupe who would come to be called “Kumquats”. Together with writer Cosmo Richard Falcon and composer Gus Motta they developed a bawdy musical review and performed it around the gay cabaret scene of New York City’s Greenwich Village. Waylon Flowers and his snarky puppet madame had been members of the group before leaving to take Hollywood by storm. Inspired by their show, Damiano envisioned incorporating it into a movie, a “film within a film”, that would showcase the musical numbers, but tell a story that skewered not only the adult film industry, but Hollywood itself. The fantastical nature of the puppets freed Damiano to share truths about his own life and career. This unlikely collaboration resulted in a ribald, genre blending musical comedy, that mixed live actors with puppets, and featured cameos from stars of the “Golden Age of Porn”. Let My Puppets Come opened and closed quickly in Times Square to a bewildered audience. It was definitely not for children and the “Raincoat Crowd” was not prepared for a “dirty” puppet show. Distributors didn’t know what to do with it. Ultimately, they cut scenes at random to reduce its runtime to just under an hour. It ran as a short before the feature presentation of Damiano‘s next film, Odyssey, and was soon forgotten. But when VHS and DVD versions appeared, the film steadily gained a cult following. It is said to have inspired Peter Jackson’s Meet the Feebles, and other films featuring puppets with adult content. In honor of its 50th anniversary, my sister Christar Damiano and I will present the complete version of the film with all missing scenes intact.

Gerard Damiano Jr.