October 7, 1849 -the death of Edgar Allan Poe.
More Allen-Ginsberg-on-Poe postings here, here and here
October 2017 marks the Centennial of the English poet David Gascoyne. Enitharmon, his English publisher, have taken the occasion to reprint a 1986 letter/memoir/note he wrote to Allen – See here
October in the Railroad Earth – October is Kerouac month… (every month is Kerouac month! – but this month (this weekend) in Lowell, Massachusetts, it’s the annualLowell Celebrates Kerouac). Full details about the weekend’s activities – here
“Allen Ginsberg En Route to G(h)ent” (from 1979) – another rare cassette just out from Counter Culture Chronicles – “An intimate look, Allen Ginsberg on tour in 1979 (in Belgium/ Holland), featuring Peter Orlovsky, Harry Hoogstraten
Steven Taylor – Allen and his party travel by bus to Ghent after a successful reading at the Leeuwerik in Eindhoven. They are joined on the trip by organizer Benn Possett, Simon Vinkenoog and a clueless journalist. Harry’s beau Suze Hahn is at the wheel. Allen talks about politics, his relationship with Jack Kerouac, recites poetry, and gives a crash course on traditional and modern verse. The conversation continues at a local bookshop. We follow Allen to the concert hall and the tape concludes with a couple of songs on stage.”
David S Wills has an interesting article over at Beatdom this week – Chinese Kerouac covers!
Here’s one (but he features many):
Andy Clausen is interviewed by The Sunflower Collective on the Beats and Allen, and shouldn’t be missed – here
Jeanne Hodesh interviews Hettie Jones (on the occasion of the publication of her
correspondence with Helene Dorn (Love H), and, similarly, shouldn’t be missed – here
Martin Scorcese‘s 2005 Bob Dylan documentary, No Direction Home (featuring, amongst other things, this interview with Allen) receives a 10th anniversary digital/Blu-Ray box-set release (available in the coming weeks) – See more about that upcoming release – here
More anniversaries – October 7, 1955, Allen performs “Howl” for the first time at the Six Gallery (” I saw the best minds of my generation…”)