You're viewing everything posted on September 19, 2008
Cool masculinity, 1950s style: Chet Baker, 1953, after a Los Angeles recording session Photographer: Bob Willoughby…

Cool masculinity, 1950s style:

Chet Baker, 1953, after a Los Angeles recording session

Photographer: Bob Willoughby…

Cool femininity, 1950s style Audrey Hepburn in window with flowers, 1953 Photographer: Bob Willoughby

Cool femininity, 1950s style

Audrey Hepburn in window with flowers, 1953

Photographer: Bob Willoughby

Two aspects of cool 1960s femininity: Mama Cass Elliot, born Sep. 19, 1941 - d. 1974 (heart attack) Cass sang w. The Mamas & the Papas on beautiful summer hits such as ‘California Dreamin”, ‘Monday, Monday’, and ‘Dream a Little Dream of Me’

Two aspects of cool 1960s femininity:

Mama Cass Elliot, born Sep. 19, 1941 - d. 1974 (heart attack)

Cass sang w. The Mamas & the Papas on beautiful summer hits such as ‘California Dreamin”, ‘Monday, Monday’, and ‘Dream a Little Dream of Me’

Two aspects of cool 1960s femininity: Twiggy, born Sep. 19, 1949… The first supermodel, Twiggy became the ‘Face of 1966’, first sweeping England, then becoming a global (i.e. Western) icon.

Two aspects of cool 1960s femininity:

Twiggy, born Sep. 19, 1949…

The first supermodel, Twiggy became the ‘Face of 1966’, first sweeping England, then becoming a global (i.e. Western) icon.

Born on this day in 1911 (d. 1993), English novelist William Golding, who (belatedly) won the Nobel Prize in 1983. During his acceptance lecture he showed himself to possess more of a sense of humour than one might have expected, judging him on the pessimistic and didactic tone of novels such as Lord of the Flies: “The very day after I learned that I was the laureate for literature for 1983 I drove into a country town and parked my car where I should not. I only left the car for a few minutes but when I came back there was a ticket taped to the window. A traffic warden, a lady of a minatory aspect, stood by the car. She pointed to a notice on the wall. “Can’t you read?” she said. Sheepishly I got into my car and drove very slowly round the corner. There on the pavement I saw two county policemen. I stopped opposite them and took my parking ticket out of its plastic envelope. They crossed to me. I asked if, as I had pressing business, I could go straight to the Town Hall and pay my fine on the spot. “No, sir,” said the senior policeman, “I’m afraid you can’t do that.” He smiled the fond smile that such policemen reserve for those people who are clearly harmless if a bit silly. He indicated a rectangle on the ticket that had the words ‘name and address of sender’ printed above it. “You should write your name and address in that place,” he said. “You make out a cheque for ten pounds, making it payable to the Clerk to the Justices at this address written here. Then you write the same address on the outside of the envelope, stick a sixteen penny stamp in the top right hand corner of the envelope, then post it. And may we congratulate you on winning the Nobel Prize for Literature.”“

Born on this day in 1911 (d. 1993), English novelist William Golding, who (belatedly) won the Nobel Prize in 1983. During his acceptance lecture he showed himself to possess more of a sense of humour than one might have expected, judging him on the pessimistic and didactic tone of novels such as Lord of the Flies:

“The very day after I learned that I was the laureate for literature for 1983 I drove into a country town and parked my car where I should not. I only left the car for a few minutes but when I came back there was a ticket taped to the window. A traffic warden, a lady of a minatory aspect, stood by the car. She pointed to a notice on the wall. “Can’t you read?” she said. Sheepishly I got into my car and drove very slowly round the corner. There on the pavement I saw two county policemen. I stopped opposite them and took my parking ticket out of its plastic envelope. They crossed to me. I asked if, as I had pressing business, I could go straight to the Town Hall and pay my fine on the spot. “No, sir,” said the senior policeman, “I’m afraid you can’t do that.” He smiled the fond smile that such policemen reserve for those people who are clearly harmless if a bit silly. He indicated a rectangle on the ticket that had the words ‘name and address of sender’ printed above it. “You should write your name and address in that place,” he said. “You make out a cheque for ten pounds, making it payable to the Clerk to the Justices at this address written here. Then you write the same address on the outside of the envelope, stick a sixteen penny stamp in the top right hand corner of the envelope, then post it. And may we congratulate you on winning the Nobel Prize for Literature.”“

Missed since Sep. 19, 1973: Gram Parsons

Missed since Sep. 19, 1973: Gram Parsons

Eva Hesse Repetition Nineteen III1968Museum of Modern Art, New York…  Eva Hesse was born in Germany in 1936. She and her sister escaped Nazi persecution by fleeing on a children’s train and were later reunited with their parents and moved to New York. She studied painting and drawing at Cooper Union and Yale University. In 1964, she and her husband, the sculptor Tom Doyle, were invited to make art in a German factory by the textile manufacturer and collector F. Arnhard Scheidt. While she and Doyle shared a floor of the factory, Hesse began creating her first sculptures. She began by making reliefs, inspired by the qualities of string and plaster. From reliefs she moved to objects, using papier mâché, paint, tubing, dyed nets and dangling string. Following these sculptures she made a greater use of repetition and began to incorporate metal into her work. In 1967, Hesse discovered latex (a material that she knew would eventually deteriorate), fiberglass and polyester resin. Hesse loved the irregular shapes and surfaces that these materials produced, and also the translucency. Hesse often created elaborate, handmade pieces involving obsessive repetition. However, she was not interested in certain technical aspects of sculpture. For many of her later pieces made of metal and fiberglass, she left the fabrication to outside companies. During the late ‘60’s, it was popular to remove the appearance of the artist’s hand from the work. For Hesse, it was more for practical reasons than intellectual ones. During this period, when she was creating some of her most well known pieces, she developed brain tumors and continued to work until she became too ill. Then, she directed assistants to create and install her work. Hesse died in 1970 at the age of thirty four. (Source: oneroom.org ) Eva Hesse circa 1959 [Stephen Korbet]

Eva Hesse

Repetition Nineteen III
1968
Museum of Modern Art, New York… 

Eva Hesse was born in Germany in 1936. She and her sister escaped Nazi persecution by fleeing on a children’s train and were later reunited with their parents and moved to New York. She studied painting and drawing at Cooper Union and Yale University. In 1964, she and her husband, the sculptor Tom Doyle, were invited to make art in a German factory by the textile manufacturer and collector F. Arnhard Scheidt.

While she and Doyle shared a floor of the factory, Hesse began creating her first sculptures. She began by making reliefs, inspired by the qualities of string and plaster. From reliefs she moved to objects, using papier mâché, paint, tubing, dyed nets and dangling string. Following these sculptures she made a greater use of repetition and began to incorporate metal into her work.

In 1967, Hesse discovered latex (a material that she knew would eventually deteriorate), fiberglass and polyester resin. Hesse loved the irregular shapes and surfaces that these materials produced, and also the translucency. Hesse often created elaborate, handmade pieces involving obsessive repetition. However, she was not interested in certain technical aspects of sculpture. For many of her later pieces made of metal and fiberglass, she left the fabrication to outside companies. During the late ‘60’s, it was popular to remove the appearance of the artist’s hand from the work. For Hesse, it was more for practical reasons than intellectual ones. During this period, when she was creating some of her most well known pieces, she developed brain tumors and continued to work until she became too ill. Then, she directed assistants to create and install her work. Hesse died in 1970 at the age of thirty four. (Source: oneroom.org )

Eva Hesse circa 1959 [Stephen Korbet]

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Eric Andersen: I Ain’t Marchin’ Anymore (Phil Ochs)

My brother-against-arms, the great Norwegian-American singer/songwriter Eric Andersen, has a message from Phil Ochs that he would like to deliver to war-mongers everywhere….

“It’s always the old to lead us to war

It’s always the young to fall…”

Phil Ochs - missed since April 9, 1976 (dead at 35, suicide by hanging) “Show me the country where bombs had to fall,Show me the ruins of buildings once so tall,And I’ll show you a young land with so many reasons whyThere but for fortune, go you or go I…” Photo: © Robert Corwin, courtesy Sonny Ochs

Phil Ochs - missed since April 9, 1976 (dead at 35, suicide by hanging)

“Show me the country where bombs had to fall,
Show me the ruins of buildings once so tall,
And I’ll show you a young land with so many reasons why
There but for fortune, go you or go I…”

Photo: © Robert Corwin, courtesy Sonny Ochs

Peter LaFarge, missed since October 27, 1965 (dead at 34 by misadventure - possibly a drug induced heart attack) LaFarge, a former rodeo performer, was of the inner circle of Greenwich Village folk singer/songwriters. His fame rests largely on songs sympathetic to the plight of Native Americans, “The Ballad of Ira Hayes” being the chief case in point. This song was a big country hit for Johnny Cash in 1964. LaFarge continually claimed an Indian heritage for himself, but this now seems to have been definitively exposed as a fabrication. Click thru the image for a truly remarkable article on LaFarge’s ‘Indian-ness’… Towards the end of his life LaFarge was apparently living a happy, stable life with Danish folk-singer Inger Nielsen, with whom he had a child, Karen. LaFarge’s liner notes for her Folkways album of Danish songs are incredibly tender and sincere in expressing his love and admiration for her. How did he end up dead so soon after, his daughter just two months old? See also my further work on LaFarge…

Peter LaFarge, missed since October 27, 1965 (dead at 34 by misadventure - possibly a drug induced heart attack)

LaFarge, a former rodeo performer, was of the inner circle of Greenwich Village folk singer/songwriters. His fame rests largely on songs sympathetic to the plight of Native Americans, “The Ballad of Ira Hayes” being the chief case in point. This song was a big country hit for Johnny Cash in 1964. LaFarge continually claimed an Indian heritage for himself, but this now seems to have been definitively exposed as a fabrication.

Click thru the image for a truly remarkable article on LaFarge’s ‘Indian-ness’…

Towards the end of his life LaFarge was apparently living a happy, stable life with Danish folk-singer Inger Nielsen, with whom he had a child, Karen.

LaFarge’s liner notes for her Folkways album of Danish songs are incredibly tender and sincere in expressing his love and admiration for her. How did he end up dead so soon after, his daughter just two months old?

See also my further work on LaFarge…

David Blue (b. Cohen), missed since December 2, 1982 (dead at 42, heart attack) Blue was in the inner circle of the Village folkies. He played the chords one night in Feenjon’s folk club at 4 a.m. as Dylan composed the verses to Blowin’ in the Wind… Click thru image of Dylan and Blue for bio.

David Blue (b. Cohen), missed since December 2, 1982 (dead at 42, heart attack)

Blue was in the inner circle of the Village folkies. He played the chords one night in Feenjon’s folk club at 4 a.m. as Dylan composed the verses to Blowin’ in the Wind…

Click thru image of Dylan and Blue for bio.

Fred Neil, missed since July 7, 2001 (dead at 65 from skin cancer) Fred got out of the Village alive and spent many years in Florida, out of the limelight, still singing his song for the dolphins…

Fred Neil, missed since July 7, 2001 (dead at 65 from skin cancer)

Fred got out of the Village alive and spent many years in Florida, out of the limelight, still singing his song for the dolphins…

Paul Siebel, silent since 1971… Siebel was a key songwriter in the folk circles in Greenwich Village, and a musicians’ musician. Bouts with depression contributing to silencing his songwriting after two brilliant LPs in 70/71. He was a bread-baker for a number of years and when last heard of he worked for the county taking care of local parks. He is now 71.

Paul Siebel, silent since 1971…

Siebel was a key songwriter in the folk circles in Greenwich Village, and a musicians’ musician. Bouts with depression contributing to silencing his songwriting after two brilliant LPs in 70/71. He was a bread-baker for a number of years and when last heard of he worked for the county taking care of local parks. He is now 71.

Richard Fariña - missed since April 30, 1966 (dead at 29, motorcycle accident) Fariña’s multiple talents included literary, political and musical ones… His novel Been Down So Long It Looks Like Up to Me is a rollicking good read. Most of his recordings were made with his wife Mimi (sister of Joan Baez)…

Richard Fariña - missed since April 30, 1966 (dead at 29, motorcycle accident)

Fariña’s multiple talents included literary, political and musical ones… His novel Been Down So Long It Looks Like Up to Me is a rollicking good read. Most of his recordings were made with his wife Mimi (sister of Joan Baez)…

Paul (‘Pablo’) Clayton - missed since March 30, 1967 (dead at 36, suicide by electrocution) Clayton is largely unknown today, but his songs were inspiration for some of Dylan’s best songs such as “Don’t Think Twice”… Here is Clayton’s “Who’s Goin’ To Buy You Ribbons When I’m Gone?”“It ain’t no use to sit and sigh now, darlin,And it ain’t no use to sit and cry now,T’ain’t no use to sit and wonder why, darlin,Just wonder who’s gonna buy you ribbons when I’m gone.”Clayton’s best-loved song is called “Gotta Travel On”…

Paul (‘Pablo’) Clayton - missed since March 30, 1967 (dead at 36, suicide by electrocution)

Clayton is largely unknown today, but his songs were inspiration for some of Dylan’s best songs such as “Don’t Think Twice”…

Here is Clayton’s “Who’s Goin’ To Buy You Ribbons When I’m Gone?”

“It ain’t no use to sit and sigh now, darlin,
And it ain’t no use to sit and cry now,
T’ain’t no use to sit and wonder why, darlin,
Just wonder who’s gonna buy you ribbons when I’m gone.”

Clayton’s best-loved song is called “Gotta Travel On”…