Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

“Somewhere between Meat Loaf and King Louis XIV”

Valentino Frankenstein was a colorful goth

Frankenstein was anything but a monster, but he definitely appreciated them.
Frankenstein was anything but a monster, but he definitely appreciated them.

Roger Shy, aka Valentino Frankenstein – who for a time called himself Raven White – has reportedly passed away from Covid. The Escondido musician played keyboards and guitar, and sang alongside his longtime love Cher Stroble with the 1980s new wave group Atomic Blondes, as well as with Duran Duran cover bands Nite Romantics and Hungry Like the Wolf. He also turned up in local tribute acts, playing the music of the Cars, Klaatu, and Gary Numan. He was featured earlier this year in a Reader article about his cover of Numan’s “Cars,” which earned him airplay on Australia’s WOW FM 100.5.

Sponsored
Sponsored

Shy was always easy to spot in a crowd. He stood six foot four, and possessed a gothic affectation that included snowy peroxide hair, heavy makeup, and a sartorial sense that rested colorfully somewhere between Meat Loaf and King Louis XIV. He was a regular presence at San Diego Comic-Con back before it tagged itself as “International,” with an annual booth in movie memorabilia row, where he unloaded crates of bootlegged sci-fi and horror TV shows and films — first on Beta, then VHS, and eventually upgrading (usually from the same original source) to DVDs. The side business was very lucrative until convention officials cracked down on unauthorized media and issued what was effectively a lifetime ban that covered all three of his names.

“Our friendship was steeped in an appreciation of pop culture, music and of all things Godzilla and monster movies,” recalls longtime Comic-Con film programmer John Field. “His talents musically were natural, leading to several very clever songs. His appearances publicly were always met with happy fans who were never disappointed. Dancing and laughter filled his venues. He had one show I attended where he told the owner I was the group’s manager, so I would get comped a meal! He always did spontaneous, unselfish things. My great regret is not sitting and watching the latest restoration of a vintage film [with him]. I told him how excited I was to show him Dr. X on blu-ray. It just came out; we had planned to watch it. Then fate stepped in and delivered my friend to Prince Sirki. Classic monster fans know who that is and what that means.”

An avid monster toy collector, Shy’s annual Halloween celebrations regularly included setting up a home drive-in theater to screen classic horror films for the entire neighborhood, a tradition that stretched as far back as the 1990s, when he was booking films for underground North Park theater screenings. As an actor, he played bit roles in films like Dinosaur Valley Girls.

The Valentino Frankenstein album Monster at My Window was released in 2018, preceded by a single and video for “Metrotube City.” “I always remembered him from back when we all played the Distillery East,” recalls guitarist Stevie Salas, who went on to play with Mick Jagger and others. “He used to talk with me a lot and he really stood out with true star power.”

Shy had just recently helped his mother relocate to a new residence from Denver, Colorado, which he told friends had become “a criminal war zone.” He received the Pfizer vaccine several months ago, but apparently suffered a “breakthrough” infection. He told several people close to him that he believed he contracted the virus while caring for a friend who was sick with Covid, assuming that his own vaccination would protect him. He was in a coma for some time before his passing.

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Why did Harrah's VP commit suicide last summer?

Did the fight the Rincon casino had with San Diego County over Covid play a part?
Next Article

Why did Harrah's VP commit suicide last summer?

Did the fight the Rincon casino had with San Diego County over Covid play a part?
Frankenstein was anything but a monster, but he definitely appreciated them.
Frankenstein was anything but a monster, but he definitely appreciated them.

Roger Shy, aka Valentino Frankenstein – who for a time called himself Raven White – has reportedly passed away from Covid. The Escondido musician played keyboards and guitar, and sang alongside his longtime love Cher Stroble with the 1980s new wave group Atomic Blondes, as well as with Duran Duran cover bands Nite Romantics and Hungry Like the Wolf. He also turned up in local tribute acts, playing the music of the Cars, Klaatu, and Gary Numan. He was featured earlier this year in a Reader article about his cover of Numan’s “Cars,” which earned him airplay on Australia’s WOW FM 100.5.

Sponsored
Sponsored

Shy was always easy to spot in a crowd. He stood six foot four, and possessed a gothic affectation that included snowy peroxide hair, heavy makeup, and a sartorial sense that rested colorfully somewhere between Meat Loaf and King Louis XIV. He was a regular presence at San Diego Comic-Con back before it tagged itself as “International,” with an annual booth in movie memorabilia row, where he unloaded crates of bootlegged sci-fi and horror TV shows and films — first on Beta, then VHS, and eventually upgrading (usually from the same original source) to DVDs. The side business was very lucrative until convention officials cracked down on unauthorized media and issued what was effectively a lifetime ban that covered all three of his names.

“Our friendship was steeped in an appreciation of pop culture, music and of all things Godzilla and monster movies,” recalls longtime Comic-Con film programmer John Field. “His talents musically were natural, leading to several very clever songs. His appearances publicly were always met with happy fans who were never disappointed. Dancing and laughter filled his venues. He had one show I attended where he told the owner I was the group’s manager, so I would get comped a meal! He always did spontaneous, unselfish things. My great regret is not sitting and watching the latest restoration of a vintage film [with him]. I told him how excited I was to show him Dr. X on blu-ray. It just came out; we had planned to watch it. Then fate stepped in and delivered my friend to Prince Sirki. Classic monster fans know who that is and what that means.”

An avid monster toy collector, Shy’s annual Halloween celebrations regularly included setting up a home drive-in theater to screen classic horror films for the entire neighborhood, a tradition that stretched as far back as the 1990s, when he was booking films for underground North Park theater screenings. As an actor, he played bit roles in films like Dinosaur Valley Girls.

The Valentino Frankenstein album Monster at My Window was released in 2018, preceded by a single and video for “Metrotube City.” “I always remembered him from back when we all played the Distillery East,” recalls guitarist Stevie Salas, who went on to play with Mick Jagger and others. “He used to talk with me a lot and he really stood out with true star power.”

Shy had just recently helped his mother relocate to a new residence from Denver, Colorado, which he told friends had become “a criminal war zone.” He received the Pfizer vaccine several months ago, but apparently suffered a “breakthrough” infection. He told several people close to him that he believed he contracted the virus while caring for a friend who was sick with Covid, assuming that his own vaccination would protect him. He was in a coma for some time before his passing.

Comments
Sponsored

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

The vicious cycle of Escondido's abandoned buildings

City staff blames owners for raising rents
Next Article

Tijuana sewage infects air in South Bay

By September, Imperial Beach’s beach closure broke 1000 consecutive days
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader