Here’s something not-to-be-missed, Jill Hershorin, Archivist of the Jewish Historical Society of New Jersey on Processing the Ginsberg Family Collection.
We reported on the donation by local politician, Pat Sebold back in 2016
Hershorin: “Although the official repository of the Allen Ginsberg papers is Stanford University, the Ginsberg Family Collection resides in our small archives in Whippany, New Jersey, which holds materials representing Jewish life in the nearby counties of Essex, Morris, Sussex, and Union. Because the Ginsberg family has its roots in Newark, we thought it fitting that the collection should be with us….When the materials arrived at JHS there were six large boxes with no discernible arrangement or order. Three of the boxes held hardbound and paperback books, while the other three contained a number of documents. I began to sort through the latter, a large portion of which related to Allen Ginsberg, but I soon discovered other family members’ documents as well. there were correspondence and writings penned by Louis (Allen’s father), postcards from Allen’s aunts and uncles, a handwritten family tree and other treasures. Throughout the sorting process, I thought about the connections this family shared – activism, appreciation for the written word, and a deep love for one another. After two weeks of sorting the materials, the direction of the collection began to take shape..”
Hershorin goes on (including quoting directly from some of the materials). The full article can be accessed – here
Belated birthday greetings to ruth weiss, nonagenarian survivor of the Beat Generation. Her birthday was yesterday. Tomorrow, the Beat Museum in San Francisco is planning a “ruthFest” to celebrate the occasion. For more on ruth weiss – see here , here and here
August sees the newly-designed Penguin paperback Franz Kline-Jack Kerouac covers
from the screenplay for Beat Angel, written and performed by Vincent Balestri
“The third part of the definition of Bop Spontaneous Prose” ..and (which) forms the circle of the definition is Franz Kline. He was an abstract impressionistic painter friend of mine. He would squeeze paint out of the tube and capture his emotional state of mind. So, if I went over to visit him, “Hey Franz, I bought some whiskey, I thought… Oh, Oh, I’m getting out of here you’re in a horrible mood!” I’d ask him how can you do that? How can you squeeze paint out of a tube and capture your emotional state of mind? He said to me, “Jack, you’re an artist, man. An artist always speaks the truth from your heart. When you create, make sure you create from your heart, from the bottom of the pureness of your soul because it’s up to the artist to present to their culture a picture of who they are, and if you lie, the culture and the people wlll look at their culture as being untruth and the walls will come tumbling down, baby, like the Roman Empire. Speak the truth. As an artist it’s your responsibility to speak the truth. Open your heart and create the true beauty of your country and who you are.”
Revisiting classic Beat haunts in San Jose and San Francisco – see here and here.
Updating our story about Walt Whitman’s sole surviving NYC home –
A new Bob Dylan gathering of vintage material.
Good news. Diane Di Prima’s Revolutionary Letters is getting revised and reprinted by City Lights, early next year.