Connect with us

Event Plans for Jack Kerouac’s 101st birthday on March 12th

Avatar

Published

on

Join the Friends of Jack Kerouac’s event highlighting the 101st anniversary of Jack Kerouac’s birthday on March 12th with two film screenings at 2:00 and 5:00 PM at Green Light Cinema – 221 2nd Ave N, St. Petersburg, FL 33701. Followed by Q & A’s with Judy and Riva Sharples (Cottonwood Productions – wife and daughter of the film-maker) along with special guests Ken Burchenal (owner of the St. Pete Kerouac House) and Erik Deckers (President of the Orlando based Kerouac Project).

“Go Moan for Man: The Literary Odyssey of Jack Kerouac” is a comprehensive, feature-length documentary about the life and times of American writer Jack Kerouac created by acclaimed film-maker Doug Sharples (1945-2021). The film contains rare footage of many famed Beats who appeared on and off the page in Kerouac’s writings and life. The film showcases the apartment buildings, houses, schools, churches, mountains, cities, and roads of Kerouac’s life and books.

Retracing and recreating Kerouac’s travels over two-lane highways of Iowa and Nebraska enroute to fabled Denver, or through the mountains of Fellaheen, Mexico, on the Pan American Highway, or on a ship to Greenland or Tangier, the film reviews the life of Kerouac as the author himself did in his great autobiographical works, including On the Road, Visions of Cody, The Dharma Bums, Desolation Angels, and more.

Actor Bill Mabon, as Jack Kerouac, heads a small cast portraying Kerouac and the Beats in black-and-white sequences that alternate with interview and other documentary scenes to tell the story of Kerouac’s life and literary development. Experts and scholars speak about the importance of Kerouac’s work, a literary form which he called “modern spontaneous prose.” Footage from important moments in preserving Kerouac’s legacy – like the dedication of Kerouac Park in Lowell, Mass., or the opening of his archives to scholars – are included.
The film includes appearances by many famous poets, scholars, and Kerouac characters, including: Steve Allen, David Amram, William S. Burroughs, Ann Charters, Gregory Corso, Brian Foye, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Allen Ginsberg, Joyce Johnson, Jan Kerouac, Stella Sampas Kerouac, Ken Kesey, Timothy Leary, Michael McClure, Gerald Nicosia, Peter Orlovsky, Edie Parker, Jim Sampas, John Sampas, Gary Snyder, John Tytell, Joy Walsh. Regina Weinreich, including footage of Jack Kerouac himself and more!!

The film is distributed by Cottonwood Productions and Riva Sharples.

FOJK are also hosting events throughout the month of March in honor of Kerouac including a Literary Trivia Night on March 8th at The Studio Public House from 7-8:30pm. On March 26th we will host a bike tour called the Tour de Kerouac that highlights various landmarks the Kerouac interacted with during his time in St. Pete (1964-66 & 1968-69) starting at The St. Pete Bike Co-op. The tour was created in 2021 thanks in part to grant funding from Florida Humanities Council and extensive research from our board members, Margaret Murray, Tom Hallock and James Hartzell. Since then we have partnered with the interactive technology Pixelstix (found on SHINE mural plaques) to bring another level of engagement and new worlds of possibilities to this educational bike journey.

Events are hosted by local 501(c)3 non-profit organization Friends of Jack Kerouac, founded in 2013. Visit our website for more ways to support our mission.

FriendsofJackKerouac.org

Continue Reading

The St. Pete Catalyst

The Catalyst honors its name by aggregating & curating the sparks that propel the St Pete engine.  It is a modern news platform, powered by community sourced content and augmented with directed coverage.  Bring your news, your perspective and your spark to the St Pete Catalyst and take your seat at the table.

Email us: spark@stpetecatalyst.com

Subscribe for Free

Share with friend

Enter the details of the person you want to share this article with.