Jennifer Elizabeth wrote:
>
> Dear Mr. Kesey,
>
> I have enclosed a list of questions for The
> American Muse. The questions are about your thoughts
> on life, art, the past, present and future. Some are
> universal and some more personal. Again, I did not
> want to be too invasive, so I have included a variety
> of questions. If there is anything that makes you
> feel uncomfortable, please feel free to skip it. The
> interview questions are followed by a few questions
> for the opening paragraph. I would like you to be
> part of--and satisfied with--the entire presentation
> of yourself in this article. If you have any
> questions or comments, please feel free to e-mail me.
> If you can return the responses to me by July 30, it
> will be greatly appreciated. Thank you for your time
> and for the honor of learning from you.
>
> Sincerely,
> Jennifer Elizabeth
> West Coast Director
> The American Muse
>
> 1. As a novelist whose work was adapted for the
> screen, how do you feel about the value society places
> on writers compared to that which is placed on
> other--and more visible--artists, such as actors?
. Jennifer--
Fine with me, especially since I think
of myself as an artist, whether I'm
writing or acting or doing a magic
show.
>
> 2. How do you feel about the screen and theatrical
> adaptations of your book, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's
> Nest?
>
I feel okay except for the fact that
I'm always at the bottom when the money
is divided up.
> 3. I once read that, from time to time,
you have the
> desire to do "something weird." Would you care
to
> elaborate on this quote?
Nope.
>
> 4. Are there any regrets you have about your days as
> a Merry Prankster, in the sense of adventures you wish
> you had or hadn't taken?
>
Anybody who says they have no regrets
is either a dimwit or a lier-- probably both.
> 5. Today, how do you relate to the person
who decided
> to participate in legal, hallucinagenic drug
> experiments? What would you say to a person who would
> suggest that such a decision can forever alter the
> core of a human being?
I would be forced to say "far out."
>
> 5. Do you consider fame to be worth the consequences
> that come with it, especially in the ways it can
> affect your private life?
>
Sure fame is worth it. Clumsey and
crippling, but certainly worth it.
> 6. What would you say to young writers
who feel driven
> to experiment with hallucinagenic drugs as a way of
> enhancing their art, taking into consideration the
> chemical differences between that which was and is
> available then and now, respectively?
>
Eh?
> 7. I met one of your former students from your days
> in Colorado who says you very positively changed his
> life. How do the people with whom you interact as a
> literary mentor affect your life?
>
All the Beats affected my life, and
I am eternally grateful.
> 8. For the record, who coined the term "The Merry
> Pranksters"?
>
Ken Babbs.
> 9. What was your attraction to The Grateful Dead?
> Did you maintain contact with Jerry Garcia until the
> time of his death?
>
We have always been in league with
the Dead. What league? I couldn't say,
but I know it's more important than
the National League. Maybe not as big,
but jucier.
> 10. I see that there is a replica of "The Further"
in
> Oregon. Where is the original, and are there any
> plans--or daydreams-- of another trip?
>
Sure. Our last run was to England. Our
next (hopefully) will be to Cuba. And
there is only one Further, just like there
is only one Enterprise.
> 11. What was the relationship between the east coast
> and west coast counterculture in the 1960s?
> Furthermore, what was the relationship--if
> any--between other members of the west coast
> counterculture, such as Hunter S. Thompson and Timothy
> Leary, and your own movement ?
>
Well, the east coast usually thinks
of itself as The World. The west coast
has bigger visions.
> 12. Our summer issue features a retrospective
about
> Julian Beck and The Living Theater. Were the Merry
> Pranksters in contact with or interested in the
> adventures and trials of Beck and his company?
>
I met Beck in England, with his theater.
Musta been about '66 or '67. They were
good, in their east coastish way.
> 13. Do you think it is true that every artist must
> eventually trade in their wilder--and perhaps more
> romantic--days for a somewhat normal life in order to
> preserve their sanity?
>
Nope.
> 14. Is there anything else that you would like known
> about which I have not asked?
>
Not that I can think of.
> The following are questions for the opening:
> 1. Current writing projects
A jail journal called CUT THE
MOTHERFUCKERS LOOSE!.
An unfinished novel SEVEN PRAYERS.
A psortabiography called MEAT & MAGIC.
A 2000+ GARAGE SALE.
And probably a bunch of other stuff
that I can think of...
> 2. Books or short stories you would like
to have
> identified in the article
I've been laboring for a couple of years
on the film and recordings we have accumulated.
Episode One of INTREPID TRAVELLER AND HIS
MERRY BAND OF PRANKSTERS LOOK FOR A KOOL PLACE
has been out for about a year, 29 bucks.
Episode Two NORTH TO MADHATTEN is only a couple
weeks shy of completion. The real importance
on this stuff is all the Cassada footage and
dialogue. Neal was the real trip, the farthest
out anybody I know has ever encountered.
> 3. The core people to be identified as the Merry
> Pranksters (perhaps there are some who are not as well
> known as yourself?)
The people I see every day or so are the
most active Pranksters. Ken Babbs, Simon
Babbs, George Walker, Mike Hagen, Mountain
Girl, Anonymous, Zane Kesey, Phil Dietz, my
wife, Faye... the old crew.
And now the kids of the old crew. We
still stick pretty close together. When
you don't know where your going you have to
stick together, just in case someone gets
there.
> 4. Web site addresses you'd like me to
mention
kenk@efn.org, keyz@key-z.com, intrepidtrips.com
> 5. What you do now, in your own words
Try to behave as a writer, film-maker,
farmer, father, and grandfather... while
keeping my ear cocked to the whispering
sparks in the sky.
> 6. How you would like to be identified,
as a figure in
> the 1960s counterculture, in summary, in the opening.
Garcia once said to me "The '60s won't be
over till the fat lady gets high."
> 7. Anything you would like to mention
about Ken Babbs
> or intrepid trips.
Hey, Babbs... you got anything you want
to pass on to the American Muse?
Yeah, I do. Take this:The American Muse is a tough one to summon but once summoned is even tougher to get shunt of, so one must assume the mantlepiece position and once aloft proclaim, "Freedom, Freedom for all!"
> Thank you!