Editing New York Dolls (section)

=== Individual endeavors: 1975–2004 ===
Shortly after returning from Florida, Thunders and Nolan formed [[The Heartbreakers]] with bassist [[Richard Hell]], who had left Television the same week that they quit the Dolls. Thunders later pursued a solo career. He died in [[New Orleans]] on 23 April 1991, reported to be an overdose of both [[cocaine]] and [[methadone]]. An article in the ''[[Orlando Sentinel]]'' states: "[He] died of an overdose of [[cocaine]] and [[methadone]], according to the coroner's office in New Orleans. Chief investigator John Gagliano said tests completed last week found substantial amounts of both drugs."<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/os-xpm-1991-06-11-9106110457-story.html|title=AUTOPSY SHOWS THUNDERS DIED OF DOUBLE OVERDOSE|newspaper=[[The Orlando Sentinel]]|date=June 11, 1991|access-date=May 11, 2025}}</ref> It also came to light that he suffered from t-cell [[leukemia]]. Nolan died on 14 January 1992 following a [[stroke]], brought about by [[bacterial meningitis]].  In 1976, Kane and [[Blackie Lawless]] formed the Killer Kane Band in Los Angeles. Immediately after the New York Dolls' second breakup, Johansen began a solo career.  By the late 1980s, he had achieved greater commercial success under the pseudonym [[Buster Poindexter]]. Sylvain formed The Criminals, a popular band at [[CBGB]].

A posthumous New York Dolls album, ''[[Lipstick Killers]]'', made up of early demo tapes of the original Dolls (with Billy Murcia on drums), was released in a cassette-only edition on [[ROIR Records]] in 1981, and subsequently re-released on CD, and then on vinyl in early 2006. All the tracks from this title – sometimes referred to as ''The Mercer Street Sessions'' (though actually recorded at [[Blue Rock Studio]], New York) – are included on the CD ''Private World'', along with other tracks recorded elsewhere, including a previously unreleased Dolls original, "Endless Party". Three more unreleased studio tracks, including another previously unreleased Dolls original, "Lone Star Queen", are included on the ''Rock 'n' Roll'' album. The other two are covers: the "[[Courageous Cat]]" theme, from the original ''Courageous Cat'' cartoon series; and a second attempt at "Don't Mess With Cupid", a song written by [[Steve Cropper]] and [[Eddie Floyd]] for [[Otis Redding]], and first recorded independently for what was later to become the Mercer Street/Blue Rock Sessions.

Johansen formed the David Johansen Group, and released a self-titled LP in May 1978, recorded at the Bottom Line in NYC's Greenwich Village, on [[Blue Sky Records]], a label created by [[Steve Paul]], formerly of The Scene. The album featured Sylvain as a guest on the track 'Cool Metro', and the pair frequently collaborated on subsequent albums. Johansen continued to tour with his solo project and released four more albums,  ''In Style,'' 1979; ''Here Comes the Night'', 1981; ''Live it'' ''Up,'' 1982; and ''Sweet Revenge'', 1984. During the later 1980s, Johansen, ever-evolving, decided to try to liberate himself from the expectations of his New York Dolls perceived persona, and, on a whim, created the persona Buster Poindexter. The success of this act led him to be invited to appear in multiple films: ''Scrooged'',<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.google.com/search?kgmid=/m/03lrqw&hl=en-US&q=Scrooged|title=Scrooged - Google Search|website=Google.com|access-date=June 20, 2021}}</ref> ''[[Freejack]]'', and ''Let it Ride'', among others. He also formed a band called [[David Johansen and the Harry Smiths]], named after the eccentric ethnomusicologist, performing jump blues, Delta blues, and some original songs.

Sylvain signed to [[RCA Records|RCA]] and released [[Sylvain Sylvain (album)|his self-titled debut solo album]] to minor success, peaking at #123 on the [[Billboard 200]] during an eight-week chart run, and a second album under the name of ''Syl Sylvain and the Teardrops'', while also working with Johansen. Following this, he became a taxicab driver in New York, and formed the band The Criminals, releasing a third album, ''78 Criminals'' in 1985 on Fan Club Records. In the early 1990s, Sylvain moved to Los Angeles and recorded the album ''(Sleep) Baby Doll'' on Fishhead Records. His band, for that record, consisted of Brian Keats on drums, [[Dave Vanian]]'s Phantom Chords, Speediejohn Carlucci (who had played with the [[Fuzztones]]), and Olivier Le Baron on lead guitar. Guest appearances by [[Frank Infante]] of [[Blondie (band)|Blondie]] and Derwood Andrews of [[Generation X (band)|Generation X]] were also included on the record. It has been re-released as ''New York A Go Go,''.