Lux Interior (born Erick Lee Purkhiser) and Poison Ivy (born Kristy Marlana Wallace) met in Sacramento, California , in 1972. In light of their common artistic interests and shared devotion to record collecting, they decided to form the Cramps. Lux took his stage name from a car ad, and Ivy claimed to have received hers in a dream (she was first Poison Ivy Rorschach, taking her last name from that of the inventor of the Rorschach test ). In 1973, they moved to Akron, Ohio , and then to New York in 1975, soon entering into CBGB ‘s early punk scene with other emerging acts like Suicide , the Ramones , Patti Smith , Television , Blondie , Talking Heads , Mink DeVille , and fellow Ohio transplants Dead Boys . The lineup in 1976 was Poison Ivy Rorschach, Lux Interior, Bryan Gregory (guitar), and his sister Pam “Balam” (drums).
Lux Interior (born Erick Lee Purkhiser) and Poison Ivy (born Kristy
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