Richard Metzger, who’s guestblogging at BoingBoing again, presented me today with a great opportuniy: “Ah Pook is Here”, now finally presented in full-color graphic novelish style after the associated costs of printing production sacked the deal about 30 years ago.

When “Ah Pook is Here” was published in 1979, it was in a form greatly diminished from the authors’ original intent. Originally conceived as a graphic novel in the pictographic format of the surviving Mayan codices, the project –eight years in the making– consisted of over 100 illustrations by Malcolm McNeill, 30 in full color and about 50 pages of text. 

The illustrations from “Ah Pook is Here” have been rediscovered after 38 years and are traveling the world, displayed in various art galleries. On April 4, the exhibit opens at the Track 16 Gallery in Los Angeles. I can’t wait to see this! One of the paintings is 25 feet long! Hopefully the attention the work has received lately will see “Ah Pook is Here” published as Burroughs and McNeill envisioned it.

“Ah Pook is Here”: Unseen William S Burroughs Graphic Novel Art Show [BoingBoing]

(actual photo of a Dream Machine by Andrej_Filev.)

Atlantans: join me Jan. 30 at 8 p.m. at Eyedrum for William Burroughs and Brion Gysin in the Beat Hotel. This show will be presented by Andy Ditzler under the guise of Frequent Small Meals.

“Minutes to Go,” a one-night exhibition and screening, celebrates the fiftieth anniversary of the publication of Naked Lunch by exploring the surprisingly wide range of artistic experiments undertaken by Burroughs and Gysin during their Paris stay. Rare booksand other items from the Danowski Collection at Emory University’s Manuscripts, Archives, and Rare Books Library will be on view. Also featured are the short films The Cut-Ups and Towers Open Fire, two collaborations between Burroughs, Gysin, and filmmaker Antony Balch which encapsulate on film the cut-up technique and its powerful, hallucinatory effects.

Film Love: William Burroughs and Brion Gysin in the Beat Hotel [Frequent Small Meals]

The Edge!!

A WOMENS’ BEAT POETRY WRITING & PERFORMANCE GROUP..bring your mind, your pens, the journey of who you are, the adventure of letting boundaries drop in a safe, exciting space. Boundaries prevent us from searching and opening up the Pandora’s Box of surprises and intense feelings where poetry of the passionate kind dwells.

There is no competition, no criticism, no judgment.

There is only one of YOU in the entire planet!!! and this workshop is for women writers who are searching, writing and need a space to write and perform.

We will write and perform the poetry we write….and then take it to the OPEN MIKES!!! LET YOUR VOICE BE HEARD!!

Sat. Dec. 20. 1 p.m. Where Eagles Dare, 347 W. 36th St. 13th Floor, New York, NY 10001. 

[Meetup]

Bob Kaufman, the beat poet and surrealist, is being honored this Saturday. Presented by The African American Center of the San Francisco Public Library in association with Justin Desmangles, the program features spoken poetry and music by Roscoe Mitchell, Kamau Daahood, David Meltzer and devorah major.

Does the Secret Mind Whisper?
A Celebration of Bob Kaufman.

Saturday, December 13, 2008, 2:00 to 4:00 p.m
Main Library, Lower Level, Koret Auditorium

All programs at the Library are free. Supported by Friends of the San Francisco Public Library. 100 Larkin St. at Grove St. Civic Center, San Francisco. 415-557-4277. www.sfpl.org.

[Empty Mirror Books]

The mainstream artifact of the Beat Generation—the typewritten continuous paper scroll of Jack Kerouac’s seminal On the Road—will very soon be jumping the Atlantic for a stay at the Barber Institute of Fine Arts at the University of Birmingham from Dec. 3 through Jan. 28.

Marking the 50th anniversary of the publication of the novel in the United Kingdom, Jack Kerouac: Back ‘On the Road’ opens on Wednesday 3 December and continues until 28 January 2009. It is curated by Professor Richard Ellis, of the University’s Department of American and Canadian Studies, in collaboration with its Research and Cultural Collections.

The exhibition, which is supported financially by the University of Birmingham, its US Alumni Fund and by Waterstones, is accompanied by catalogue, a two-day academic conference, and other public events including gallery talks, poetry readings and workshops. For further details of the conference and events, visit the Universrity of Birmingam and Barber.

Kerouac’s Iconic Scroll On The Road To Barber Exhibition

What do you get when you combine Tom Waits, Robert Wilson and William S. Burroughs? According to Playbill News: one hell of a cool theatrical performance.

In this darkly stylized version of the traditional German tale, a stern and unrelenting father (Ashley Wright) sets the terms for his daughter Katchen’s (Rachael Johnston) marriage: he will not yield her to anyone other than an accomplished hunter,” according to Tarragon. “This presents a problem to the young and feckless clerk, Wilhelm (Kevin Corey), who is besotted by Katchen. Help arrives in the form of the devilish Peg Leg (Michael Scholar Jr.), a mysterious and sinister visitor. He offers Wilhelm magic bullets with this one proviso: ‘Six are yours and hit the mark; one is mine, and hits the dark.’ Wilhelm ignores this ominous warning with dire consequences.

The Black Rider opens Oct. 15 and runs through Nov. 16 at November Theatre in Toronto. Directed by Ron Jenkins. 416-531-1827. www.tarragontheatre.com.

(photo by marklarson)

In light of the fact that I just added a lot of new material to his page—with at least twice as much still in the queue—and the fact that our presidential election is now less than a month away, I thought it only prudent to find out a little bit about what Amiri Baraka might think about our generation’s theoretical shoe-in, Barack Obama.

In a piece entitled “The McKinney Choice,” Kevin Alexander Gray very succinctly explains a lot of what I think Obama is doing with his campaign. From calling him a “status quo politician” to suggesting that he’s trying to align himself more closely with white voters. Baraka is quoted as saying that ”all those not supporting Obama are ‘rascals.’”

Over at the Washington Post, there’s a quote from Baraka saying that the only choice in our election is between Barack Obama or “that patient from the Vietnam War.” Unfortunately, this isn’t so much pro-Obama as it is anti-McCain, which seems to follow the rhetorical lesser-of-two-evils line of thought.

To conclude: it’s clear that Baraka does not like McCain. But what’s a little muddled is what (if anything) he actually supports about Barack Obama. So…

In other news, Amiri will be speaking at Slave Routes: Resistance, Abolition and Creative Progress, a symposium being held Oct. 9-11 at Harlem’s Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture.

From now until the end of November, there are several events being held in and around the city of Chicago:

• Jack Kerouac: ON THE ROAD
• Beat Cafe
• Museum of Contemporary Photography
• American Alphabet
• Off the Beaten Road
• Columbia College Chicago Library
• The Beat Look: Nonconformist Fashion

If anyone attends these and takes photos or feels like writing about it, please contact me to have your work included here.

(photo by JimmyOKelly)

Oh, what I wouldn’t give to be in New York City this weekend for the Howl! Festival. From theatre events to art shows, live music to late night parties, it looks like they’ve got it all covered. I found the full rundown over at The Gothamist:

 

EVENT: It’s a return of the Beats this weekend, as the annual Howl! Festival returns. The celebration runs for five days, so check out the details, man.

All Weekend // Various Locations // Free

FAIR: Before the weather ruins everything this weekend, head over to Governors Island for sound installations, outdoor sculptures, and portraits created on site as part of the4heads Collective’s First Annual Governors Island Art Fair. The fair will be running every weekend, starting today and lasting through October 12th. “The fair unites more than 40 of New York City’s best independent artists under one roof, showcasing hundreds of new works.”

All Weekend // Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturday and Sunday 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. // Governors Island // Free