Johnny Thunders would turn 59 Friday (7/15) and his birthday is being celebrated tonight (7/14) at D-Generationer Jesse Malin's LES club Bowery Electric. There will be a number of artists performing including Heartbreaker Walter Lure's The Waldos, Oddball Alison Gordy, Pillbox who are apparently reuniting, and many others that are listed below. There will also reportedly be some special guests including ex-Dead Boy Jeff Magnum (NOT TO BE CONFUSED WITH JEFF MANGUM OF NEUTRAL MILK HOTEL), Jesse Malin, Andy Shernoff of The Dictators, Lenny Kaye and many others.

Many of those playing appeared on the 2009 "Skykrebs Records"-released "Born To Lose" tribute 3CD Boxed set. That includes Krebs & The Maynard G's, The Waldos and Alison Gordy.

Trouser Press writes of Pillbox:

Before there was a Strokes to make it safe as milk, the snarly glam punk spirit of the Stooges, New York Dolls and Dead Boys lived for a time in the skinnyassed tattooed bodies of Pillbox, a New York quartet which offered a skankier, more menacing and less theatrical alternative to the likeminded and better-known D Generation.

D Generation plays reunion shows in September at bigger venues.

Lenny Kaye, who will supposedly be a special guest at the show tonight, is a longtime member of the Patti Smith Group. Patti Smith plays a free show at Castle Clinton tonight (7/15). Don't forget that, "FREE TICKETS AVAILABLE FIRST-COME, FIRST-SERVED AT THE GATE STARTING AT 5PM. DOORS OPEN AT 6PM." People are already in line as of 2pm. It would be cool of Patti ended up at the Johnny Thunders party afterwards too.

Full Bowery Electric lineup and the Pillbox video below...

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David Johansen w/ NY Dolls @ MHOW in June (more by Tim Griffin)

The New York Dolls will be playing an eight show UK tour in December, but before that, Dolls frontman David Johansen will bring the David Johansen Band to NYC's Highline Ballroom for a show on Saturday, November 28th. Tickets are on sale.

The NY Dolls went on a North American tour earlier this year to promote their Todd Rundgren-produced album Cause I Sez So. Recently, Johansen contributed harmonica to the new record from Steve Conte, NY Dolls' guitarist since their 2004 reunion. That album Steve Conte and the Crazy Truth (produced by Steve Lillywhite) came out out October 20th on the Varese Sarabande label.

Johnny Thunders died 18 years ago in New Orleans. The hotel room he shot up in before ODing is now a tourist attraction.

In other old-guy rock news, Iggy & the Stooges will be playing Raw Power in full at ATP NY in 2010.

Some choice videos (including David Johansen taking on music critics and the idea of old New York & CBGBs...) and all Dolls tour dates are below...

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