November 03

Stuart Leslie Goddard's  Birthday
 

Better known as Adam Ant, Stuart Leslie Goddard took his new name after he suffered a nervous breakdown which led to a suicide attempt and hospitalization. Upon his discharge from the hospital, Stuart renamed himself Adam.  He formed the Adam and the Ants in 1977 which started off by becoming part of the new punk rock movement.

Stuart  later acted in Derek Jarman's film Jubilee (1978) as Adam and the Ants were beginning to gig around London.  His debut as a recording artist was the song "Deutscher Girls," which featured on the film's soundtrack, along with "Plastic Surgery" which was performed in the film itself, and was re-released as a single in 1982. Stuart reorganized his band in 1980 and band signed a major record deal with CBS Records and recorded Kings of the Wild Frontier during the summer of 1980 which was an enormous hit in the United Kingdom .

In November 1981, Adam & the Ants released another highly successful album, "Prince Charming." The album featured two UK #1 singles — "Stand and Deliver" and the title track "Prince Charming" — as well as the #3 UK hit "Ant Rap". In March of 1982, Stuart disbanded the group and  launched a solo career. He also continued acting both in England and in the United States where he appear in several TV shows and subsequently moved to Hollywood.


Stuart  was constantly disabled with episodes of  bipolar disorder/  A television special titled "The Madness of Prince Charming" was aired in the UK in 2003 documenting Stuart 's career and his struggle with mental illness. Stuart  was arrested several time for  erratic and destructive behavior and in 2003 was sentenced to several months of in-patient psychiatric care.

In his December 31.2010 interview for The Sun, Stuart discussed the side-effects of medication for his bipolar condition: "In the past I've been a robot. It's been an out-of-body experience. Bipolar means up and down and that's me... Music has always been the best medication. I was on Sodium Valproate for seven years. ... I couldn't get to sleep and I didn't make love for seven years. My hair fell out and I couldn't pick up a book as I couldn't concentrate. I didn't write a song or pick up a guitar in that time - and piled on the weight. I might as well have been dead. I work very closely with my GP and any decisions I make are made with him."

So to celebrate Stuart s birthday, what could be more appropriate than the classic Ants in a Tree? Also known as Ants Climbing a Tree, or Ants Climbing Up a Tree, this recipe is a one of the glories of Sichuan cuisine consisting of of ground meat cooked in a sauce and poured over bean thread noodles. It is so called because the bits of ground meat clinging to the noodles evoke an image of ants walking on twigs. Get a double does of Ants by watching Stuart in the vampire flick Loves Bites (1993)
 

 

Ants in a Tree

 
 

Ingredients
Salt
1 lb. cellophane noodles (bean threads)
2 lb. ground pork
1/2 cup soy sauce
2 tablespoons Asian (toasted) sesame oil
1&1/2 TB cornstarch
10 scallions, white and green parts, thinly sliced
1/2 cup vegetable oil
 		 2 (2-inch) piece fresh ginger, peeled and finely grated
1 tsp sugar
8 garlic cloves, minced
1 mild red chilies, seeded and chopped
1 TB chili sauce
1&1/3 cups chicken stock
Freshly ground black pepper

 
Instructions
 
 
  1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the noodles and bring back to a boil. Boil for 1 minute  Drain in a colander and rinse under running water. Set aside.
  2. In a small bowl, .mix the pork with 2 TB of the soy sauce, the sesame oil, the cornstarch, and 1/2 of the scallions .
  3. Heat the oil in a wok or large skillet over high heat until almost smoking.
  4. Add the ginger, sugar, garlic, chopped chile, and chili sauce. Cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the meat mixture and cook for 1 minute longer.
  5. Add the cooked noodles and cook, cutting them slightly with the side of the spatula, until the meat is no longer pink, about 1 minute.
  6. Pour in the chicken stock and add the remaining scallions. Season with salt and pepper and reduce the heat to medium-low.
    Cover loosely with foil and simmer until the noodles have absorbed some of the stock, about 3 minutes
  

 Serves 6

© 2011 Gordon Nary and Tyler Stokes