Anya Phillips

Anya Phillips (1955 – 1981) was the manager and girlfriend of New York-based musician James Chance (aka James White). She even sings in Chance's album Off White (under the pseudonym of Ginger Lee). Better known for having co-founded the Mudd Club in New York in 1978, Anya (born in Taiwan in 1955) was also an actress, fashion influencer, photographer, sometime alternative dominatrix. She played a couple of roles on no-wave films such as Rome '78, Kidnapped and The Foreigner. A clothing design enthusiast, she dedicated her life on making some of the most remarkable punk/no-wave costumes, including the pink dress worn by her friend Debbie Harry on the cover of Blondie's second album (Plastic Letters). Although she was one of the most glamorous and innovative girls of her time, Anya never had the opportunity to achieve the fame she had so longed for, especially because of her premature death. On the 19th of June 1981, Anya died at the age of 26 after losing a two-year battle against a brain cancer.