Angelenos recognize Harry Perry by sight, but there is so much more to this Venice Beach icon than we ever imagined
In the early 90s, I went with a group of friends to hang out on Venice Beach, and hopefully, meet some boys. Yes, there were boys everywhere, as well as street performers.
Buskers abounded alongside a man who made sand sculptures and another who walked on glass. I was amazed and a little scared, especially when a band of wandering Harre Krishnas threatened to give me a new name.
Imagine my horror when a man in a turban followed me, a sheltered and shy child, for 15 whole minutes, plucking an electric guitar while singing at the top of his voice. I was positive the man was crazy. He wore a turban and didn't make any conversation. He only sang, and he smiled. My supposition couldn't have been more wrong.
My instincts told me he wanted money. So I dug through my purse and pulled out a crumpled five-dollar bill. When I handed it to the stranger, he nodded his head in appreciation and skated away down the boardwalk.
"Did you have fun? Did you meet any weirdos?" My uncle asked when I returned home. I relayed the story about the turban-clad homeless guy. My uncle, a lifelong resident of Los Angeles and a relic of the hippy era, looked at me from the side of his squinted eyes and said, in the most California way possible, "That was no homeless guy, man, that was Harry Perry! Did you give him some cash?"
His name is Harry Perry
Who in the world was Harry Perry, I wondered. My family gave me a crash course on Venice Beach Culture and history. I became intrigued.
Harry Arthur Perry is a Venice Beach institution, and I knew nothing about him. He was born in Washington DC on May 19, 1951. His Sikh parents called him Har Nar Singh Khalsa, but he answers to Harry Perry, or his stage name Kama Kosmic Krusader. Harry grew up in Detroit before coming to California as a teen.
He first came to Venice Beach in 1974 at the suggestion of a friend. He almost declined since he was hanging out in The Rainbow Room with the likes of Ozzy Osbourne, trying to sell his music. Peter Townsend bought him a drink only moments earlier, and Harry was trying to make the big time slinging his 45s, Hitchhiking Hollywood, and Put Your Trust in Love Dust.
If Harry Perry never left the bar that day, he would have either become wildly famous or, like most aspiring musicians, a guy who once dipped his toe in stardom. Thankfully, as much as Harry is talented, he is also enterprising. He did go to Venice Beach that day and couldn't believe what he found.
Performing Art
The beach was crawling with teens eager to buy his records. He encountered a busker. His buddy told Harry to give the guy a dollar, and he'd go away. Harry did, and as predicted, the guy rushed off to perform for someone else. And here's where Harry had his "Aha Moment," as Oprah would put it.
Harry saw a market on the boardwalk. He could pursue a musical career the traditional way and never make it. But, as we know, if a person makes it in Hollywood, it is often because old, rich WASPy men decided it would happen.
There were no gatekeepers on the boardwalk. Harry could make his music his way and still reach millions of folks who came to see Venice Beach, reputed home of the California nuts. Most of them would be willing to part with a dollar or twenty.
Before long, Hollywood finally took notice of the musician. Harry appeared in a long list of films and music videos, including Point of no Return and Red Hot Chilli Peppers' music video The Adventures of Rain Dance Maggie.
As a musician, Harry played with bands such as Jane's Addiction and The Grateful Dead. Long before that, he played and sang with various bands. Most recently, Harry acted as a frontman for The Harry Perry Band as Kama Kosmic Krusader.
Harry did well for himself and was not homeless. Instead, he built a name and a brand busking for money. I was in no danger when I met Harry, a Sikh practitioner who doesn't smoke, fight or drink. He simply wanted to make his music his way while enjoying other hobbies like running 20 miles a day to prepare for the Los Angeles Marathon and winning fights with the Federal Court.
Activism
In the 1990s, LA County attempted to gentrify Venice Beach. As a result, houses that were once affordable by most suddenly cost millions of dollars. Folks who live in multi-million dollar homes don't appreciate the convenience of having live entertainment in the front yard. So ordinances against street performances were made and ignored.
Harry recalled to the Los Angeles Times, "It just came to the point where [police were] telling people who were doing art that if they collected money, they were going to jail. It just forced our hand. We felt all along that we had the right to do our art."
Harry led a group of 27 Venice Beach performers to Federal Court to defend their 1st Amendment Rights to freedom of speech and assembly. They won that fight, but when they came back to the beach, the city had developed rules of its own. One of those rules condemned skating on the beach. Harry must have taken that personally since skating was part of his act.
There were signs everywhere in those days. Skating on the boardwalk was the worst, next to selling art and tarot card readings without a vending license. Never mind vendors who operated above the board but sold counterfeit merch; they were paying the right people.
Eventually, Harry and crew were victorious. After all, 10 million annual visitors don't visit Venice Beach over other beaches because it is pristine and quiet. No, they come to see the tarot card readers, street performers, and artists. And they come to see Harry Perry. Still, the city decided to fill the skate park with sand.
Rumors and Truth
Recently, rumors of Harry's death circulated all over the internet. Those familiar with his work were devastated and then elated when the stories turned out to be false. Yet, while Harry Perry is very much alive, all is not well.
On July 18, 2020, Harry made the following post to his Facebook page:
"I was informed yesterday by a kidney specialist that I have cancer. The mass in my left kidney..."
Harry's journey to becoming cancer-free has been a rough one, as with any cancer therapy. He's needed to circumvent the global Covid-19 pandemic while receiving treatment.
Harry has spent the money he's earned on getting better. As a result, he has lost his place to live. Still, the living legend offers updates to his supporters as often as he can. On May 20, 2021, he wrote to commemorate 31 years of sobriety:
"Today, I am officially 31 years clean and sober. Thanks to a special friend for my gold medallion. If you would have told me ten years ago I'd be homeless, beaten down, broke, carless, and have an abundance of life-altering health issues, I would have called you insane. However, as life would have it, that's how my world is today."
His friends have created a fundraiser to get Harry well again and secure a safe place to recover. I am indeed not alone when I wish Harry Perry well. The world needs his music, laughter, and activism.