Summertime over now and a few (belated) notes on two summer-time conferences – ESBN (the European Beat Studies Network) 2, which took place in Aalborg (the University of Aalborg), Denmark, August 28th-30th, and Out of The Shadows (focusing on Beat Women Writers), which took place at the University of Agder, Norway, September 2nd-4th.
At the former, you would have been treated to Professor Jason Lee – “Buddha With A Melody: Evolution, Sex and Ginsberg’s Influences”, Luke Walker – “Exchanges Between Ginsberg, Dylan and Blake” and Rebecca Evans – “Kaddish – Tribute To My Father” (and a whole lot more). Here’s a video postcard:
The welcome focus of the Agder event (we’ve reported and will continue to report on this central issue) made, naturally, for a lively gathering. Post-doctoral researcher/student Kate Maxwell reviews the event here.
We’d draw your attention also (again!) to Kimberly J Bright’s piece, from a few months back, on Dangerous Minds (and don’t miss out on the Comments section!) – “The Feminist Backlash Against The Beat Generation: Cool Finger-Poppin’ Daddies or Misogynist Jerks”
Meanwhile, Realidad o Mito en la Beat Generation (‘Reality and Myth in the Beat Generation), a Beat Generation” colloquium/symposium, was recently held at the Universidad Católica (Catholic University) in Lima, Peru
And, continuing our global trip”
Carol Vogel of the New York Times reports on the recent sale of the Richard Avedon Ginsberg mural to the Israel Museum in Jerusalem, (part of a 74 Avedon images bequest) Reason enough to (once again) reproduce it here:
and, while we’re at it, here’s Allen’s portrait of Avedon:
More on the Avedon-Ginsberg relationship here.
Kill Your Darlings – Scott Feinberg in The Hollywood Reporter, following a screening at the Toronto Film Festival, pronounces the film, “certainly noteworthy”, and singles out both Radcliffe and Dane DeHaan (Lucien Carr) for, “clearly investing a great deal of heart in their (respective) performances, which really shows”. Earlier, Robbie Collin in London’s Daily Telegraph, had opined, “he (Radcliffe) never plays Ginsberg as an icon-in-waiting. Unlike Walter Salles’ recent adaptation of On The Road, which embraced the Beat philosophy with a wide and credulous grin, Kill Your Darlings is inquisitive about the movement’s worth, and the genius of its characters is never assumed”. Matt Joseph at We’ve Got This Covered is even more enthusiastic – “Kill Your Darlings is “”an excellent look into the time period and quite possibly the best film yet to deal with the Beat Generation”, he writes, “an energetic, stylish and engrossing look at the formative years”.
Huston who plays Jack Kerouac is interviewed about what it was like to be playing that part.
Interesting speculations on Jack Kerouac’s football injuries here.
Next Wednesday (September 18th at 7) at the wonderful Bird & Beckett bookstore in San Francisco – !Viva Lamantia! – the publication party for The Collected Poems of Philip Lamantia – poetry and jazz, poets Clark Coolidge, Garrett Caples and Andrew Joron (the latter two, editors of the book), bibliographer Steven Fama, plus music from Ouroborus (Sheldon Brown and Joseph Noble on reeds, Andrew Joron on theremin, Clark Coolidge on drums)