I’m not sure where I first read about Grant Morrison‘s 18 Days, only know I was in China at the time. When I got back to ATL, I went looking at Oxford comics (lame site I’m afraid), discovered it hadn’t come out yet, so pre-ordered. When it arrived a few weeks later, I was surprised to find it closer to an elongated, thin coffee table book than a graphic novel. No problem, but if you get one, beware looking through the pages unless the book is completely horizontal, as the long pages will fall, fold, and can be creased easily.

I haven’t read the entire thing yet, am sort of slowly savoring it. And Mukesh Singh’s art is beautiful (he worked on Devil, among other things I have yet to see). It’s a retelling of India’s Hindu epic Mahabharata. The actual story is better than Morrison’s uber-pop “notes” in the beginning. Not to judge him too harshly: despite whatever other genius he may posses, the guy is essentially a comic book writer. But as he mentions, name dropping from Star Wars and LOTR help give readers a reference in trying to keep up with the multitude of strangely (to western minds) named characters. And ultimately to understand the story, we will have to go beyond the western duality of good guys/bad guys.

If, down the road, this is turned in an animated feature film – or more likely a multi-part franchise – it could kick supreme ass. But for now, let’s be just as please to enjoy it in this form.

Shout out to Michel Houllebecq for winning the 2010 Prix Goncourt with his novel The Map and the Territory, which I have not yet read. I did enjoy Platform though, and frank talk about sex tourism in the 21st century. Creepy perv types still get mad props in France.

Halloween post time: I missed it last year, at least an H themed post. So here is some animation relating to comic artist, musician, actress, and all around kook – Dame Darcy. She did the audio montage too.

Also be sure to check out Golden Shoes (embedding disabled).

Missed out on an obit. last Friday, and this one is a little different as I actually once “met” and interacted with him. He read on the UGA campus in what I’ll guess was ’95, but I can’t reference a month right now. Some friends and I owned a bookstore in Athens at the time and when I walked up to him after the reading, maybe I was being a bit “glory”, but I couldn’t help but throw out the idea that, had he time, it might be cool if he came by. My intention was truly just for him to see and enjoy the place, as it was a bookstore like no other, I wasn’t trying to cash in on some “celebrity appearance”.

But how exactly to spontaneously pitch this?
I guess he wasn’t too impressed, for his response came, and I’ll never forget,
“You have a bookstoaahh?” like a junkie Elmer Fudd doing an impersonation of a New Yorker.

And then quickly some student union handler whisked him away with a promised carrot juice. Surely he was tired after the reading, surely wackballs approached him constantly, and as the sage N. Peart reminds us “one must put up barriers to keep oneself in tact.” I’m not bitter or anything, that’s just my little Jim Carroll story. He came of age in a great city at a unique time in it’s history and wrote some great stuff. I first saw this photo on the inner sleeve of J. Giorno’s compilation “Your a hook”.

J Carroll and P Smith in 1969. photo by Wren D’Antonio

This film has gotten much hype and acclaim, all of it deserved. It stands now as a further memorial to the demolished towers, and a beautiful quixotic event in another bleak economic period. I also think it’s really interesting that there was another toll or cost from the event, in terms of the lost friendships and love, which are honestly discussed. A must see! I’ll probably read Philipe’s pick pocket book at some point as well.

When I was traveling around Northern Italy in the Spring of 2004, I kept seeing a book by this American con. Thus began my introduction to Edward Bunker. I read a few of his books soon after, including The Animal Factory. I knew Steve Buscemi made a film version in 2000, but I only recently got around to seeing it. Why this film, with Willem Dafoe and Edward Furlong, wasn’t better received I can only count to the prison subject matter. But I thought it was really well done, including a soundtrack from the enigmatic John Lurie. One IMDB review I saw complained of the plot being “unbelievable”, but it’s completely true to the novel…I think the real complaint was Furlong was too good looking to not get punked, but whatever.

photo Simon Sellers

Here’s one resource page, and goodreads. A heavy hitter of 20th century outre fiction! Two other BBC articles on JGB references in music and as a Seer of the Atomic Age.

Finally found a great Ballardarian animated tribute. I’ll be doing more research on this filmmaker!

She was found dead in her mobile home in California. I’m a fan of the early Cronenberg film Rabid in which she starred. I’ve never actually seen Behind the Green Door…well maybe it was on a middle school VHS comp I briefly had possession of with Debbie Does Dallas and other “hits” of the era, but I don’t remember any of it.

And here’s a VERY 1977 interview.