In the 1930’s, William S. Burroughs spent a good four years in our beautiful city of Boston.
Bookforum recently reviewed Barry Miles’ biography of the author, titled Call Me Burroughs: A Life. Here is an extract:
William S. Burroughs lived the kind of life few contemporary American novelists seek to emulate. A roll call of his sins: He was a queer and a junkie before being either was hip; he was a deadbeat father and an absent son; he was a misogynist, a gun lover, and a drunk; he was a guru of junk science and crank religion; he haunted the most sinister dregs of Mexico City, Tangier, Paris, London, and New York; he was an avant-garde writer with little affection for plot and none at all for epiphany; he wore his Americanness like a colostomy bag, shameful but essential. When he died at age 83 in 1997, his last words were: “Be back in no time.” At least he wasn’t a liar.
A worthy listen is Burroughs’ own spoken word album, Call Me Burroughs. It is available on Amazon, and probably elsewhere in the deeper recesses of the web. Do check it out!
Also, a valuable film is David Cronenberg’s Naked Lunch, based on Burroughs’ novel of the same name. The trailer:
What do you think of the Beat generation? Let us know!
