Recently, finally, writers are finding out exactly who JA is. Already known widely throughout the graffiti community, Jonathan Avildsen has already been “tagged” Mr. Parascandola. Better luck with “tagging” other writers next time. Nice read though, by the way.
There, at the side of the Long Island Expressway, on a retaining wall of Calvary Cemetery in Woodside, is one of the more significant graffiti tags: JA.
It’s not especially fancy or artistic, but it is a reminder that JA – Jonathan Avildsen – is still out there, leaving his mark and reaffirming his reputation as perhaps the city’s most elusive tagger.
“He’s tough,” says a police source familiar with JA. “He’s not always out there. He’s not easy to find, not easy to catch. He’s like a ghost.”
While graffiti still is scorned by public officials, it is increasingly part of the cultural mainstream, and JA, 38, remains one of the city’s most prolific taggers and possibly its most interesting case study.
If the name Jonathan Avildsen sounds somehow familiar, there’s a reason for that. JA’s father, John Avildsen, is a director who won the Oscar for “Rocky” and also directed “The Karate Kid” and “Lean on Me,” among other films.
JA himself is no stranger to Hollywood, with a handful of minor roles on television and in films, including “The Karate Kid Part III” and “Rocky V,” both directed by his dad. In “Rocky V,” JA plays a drug addict – a case, police sources say, of art imitating life, as drugs have long been JA’s problem.
That might explain why he is said to be estranged – or at least not all that close – to his father. Father and son made headlines in 1989 when JA was sued by the city for tagging subway cars and signs along the Henry Hudson Parkway.
Read More: Tagging legendary graffiti artist JA
