Friday’s Weekly Round-Up – 399

Ken Van Sickle‘s intimate portrait of Allen, circa mid-‘Sixties, reading, surrounded by a group of charmed, attentive listeners,  inaugurates the first “Round-Up” of this, the New Year.  Van Sickle, now 87, has just had his first book of photographs published. See the New York Times announcement of it – here, ( – and Van Sickle speaking (unpretentiously) about his photography – here) . He (Van Sickle) is also an accomplished tai chi practitioner, a sometime student (as was Allen’s teacher, Bataan Faigao) of the great master, Cheng Man-Ch’ing – see here 

Iron Curtain Journals makes it to The Advocate‘s “Best Books of 2018 list”  –  “His (Allen’s) writings here”, the author writes, “are a travel guide through the mind of the Beat Generation’s best”….”this work is a must-read for those looking to better understand Ginsberg and his times” – We agree.  And we too are looking forward to the publication of the next two volumes, South American Journals and The Fall of America Journal, in this exciting three-part publication from the University of Minnesota Press.

And, in case you missed it, from the end of last year, the end of an era – RIP (at age 92) – Al Hinkle –“Big Ed Dunkel” of On The Road  (“Slim Buckle” in Visions of Cody and Desolation Angels, and “Ed Schindel” in John Clellon Holmes’ Go) –  “The Last Man Standing”, as he ruefully, but not unhappily, recognized – Read Sam Whiting’s obituary note in the San Francisco Chronicle and Brian Hassett’s thoughtful recollections of the beloved Beat survivor – here