The Story Behind Secrets!

Wow, where to begin. Well, first off- I've been an avid music fan and collector since I was a little kid. I literally started collecting records before I was out of diapers! I think my first album that I remember owning was Glen Campbell "Rhinestone Cowboy" which I got when I still lived in Oklahoma in probably '75-'76 when I was 2 or 3 years old! From there it just kept going.

Flash forward a decade, and I discovered The Runaways. Well, first I discovered Cherie. It was through a picture they had of her in the back of a "16 Magazine", which is a goofy teen mag which I only read because it always had KISS in it (I swear!). But anyway, they had a picture of her from FOXES, and talked about her, and mentioned that her birthday was November 30th (same as mine!), and that she used to sing in a band called The Runaways.

I didn't actually get around to buying any Runaways albums or anything for about another decade after that because I was on a metal crusade, but in the early 90's I finally bought a record by them and the rest is history. Through an article in Record Collector in England I discovered how much stuff had been released on them, and set out to find it all.

Through the crazy times of my life back then, I kept on searching for those Runaways treasures! I was amazed at how much stuff there was on a band who was around for only about 3 years and really only released 4 studio LP's and a live album!

As time went on, I really decided to try and compile the most complete collection of Runaways stuff ever, and was coming close to it. After making some, um, 'lifestyle changes' when I was 24, I had a lot more time on my hands to search for things, and that's what I did. Collecting the Runaways was a great place to channel my obsessive energies!

Then came the internet and Ebay! That opened up a whole world. Under the Ebay tag 'obsesso' (a combination of my name and my obsessive nature), I set out to find even more! And I would also get contacted by fans who were getting "out" of it, and buy them out. So, slowly my home was becoming Runaways central!

During this time I also became friends with Cherie, who I've gotten to meet and visit with on numerous occasions. She was always amazed and supportive of my dedication to collecting the band, which was great. I had told her I wished I could do more with this stuff than just collect it and have it, I don't get much satisfaction in that. And unfortunately I can't have everyone over to my house, oh wait I live in a studio apartment!

In the end, a few years ago- I realized I really want to be able to share this stuff and the results of my collecting with those who would care to see it. So I decided to try and do a fan book documenting all this material. Not like I have EVERYTHING either, so I've asked other fans to submit photos/info about items I don't have too.

But the book is taking longer than expected, and so in the meantime I've set up this web site to share my finds with you all! Hope you enjoy!

-Omid, NYC, 1.27.04