This fall, The Rocky Horror Picture Show will turn 50, and a new book is set to take fans back to the very beginning of the cult phenomenon. The movie made famous the gender bending character of Dr. Frank-n-furter and his song loudly proclaiming “I’m just a sweet transvestite.” Now HarperPop has announced the release of Rocky Horror: A Behind-the-Scenes Look at the Cult Classic, arriving September 30. The 256-page volume showcases never-before-seen photographs from the late Mick Rock, the photographer famously known as “the man who shot the seventies.” Rock was the only photographer granted full access to the 1975 film set, and his camera captured everything from Tim Curry’s dazzling transformation into Frank-N-Furter to Susan Sarandon’s ingénue moments. Speaking of his behind-the-scenes work, he said, “I could snap whatever caught my eye, stirred my imagination.” The book, priced at $50, pairs his images with reflections from cultural icons like Joan Jett, Courtney Love, Karen O, Juliette Lewis, and drag stars Jinkx Monsoon and Trixie Mattel. Richard O’Brien — who wrote the original stage musical — provides the foreword, while journalist Tim Mohr, who passed away in March, compiled the project. Though the film bombed on release, it went on to gross nearly $225 million and became the longest-running theatrical release in history with midnight screenings that embraced queerness, camp, and rebellion. For generations of queer fans, Rocky Horror wasn’t just a movie; it was a movement.
