Customer Reviews

Bob Flanagan: Supermasochist (Re/Search people series)

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This collection of interviews with Flanagan and his wife along with some of his creative work is a great tribute to a man who had so much to overcome and did it in a way that most of society could not understand. It would have been easy for someone to give up or to become self focused, but Flanagan used his body and his mind to push himself, push his illness, and try to educate the rest of the world about his struggle and about kink. A lot of what is written and shown will disturb you, it should distrub you, but you'll walk away thinking he was a very brave man.

Meet Bob Flanagan, devoted SM enthusiast and cystic fibrosis patient. Andrea Juno and V. Vale collected a series of intervies with Flanagan and his partner/mistress Sheree Rose about his life and their alternative lifestyle choices. Flanagan is a poet, writer, performance artist and musician, along with trying to create a 24/7 submissive and masochistic life scenario with Rose, all while trying to survive the ever increasing damage to his lungs and body from cystic fibrosis. He fights his pain with pain, and overall, has a very powerful, rich life. The presentation of such intense erotic detail comes across as natural and normal in the relaxed conversations of Vale and Juno with Flanagan, his friends and family.

the book i felt is a very good explanation of how he got into the bondage scene [not that i know bob flanagan or anything] and his felings on having cystic fibrosis if you lick the book then i suggest watching SICK: life and death of bob flanagan

Bob Flanagan opens your eyes to a world of pain transferred into pleasure. Just shows you not to take anything for granted, and to never give up.

Well, if you're interested in this weird stuff, "the romantic attachment that goes to THE exotic", this perhaps is the best book. It expands your view of life to where you never want to go.

Although the photos in the book (and there're lots and lots of them) have enough shock value, I find myself seldom read the text. Not that the text is bad, I guess, just bacause I am blown away by the pictures.

I have friends commenting on this book as "American depravity at its darkest". I happen to agree. But hell, it's an excellent book anyway.

Bob was definately out there. And that's coming from a musician who lives in NY. The mold was certainly destroyed when he was made.