The Holy Goof: A Biography of Neal Cassady [Paperback]

William Plummer (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1990

Criminal ... Saint ... Lunatic ... Genius ... Muse .... Once described by Jack Kerouac as "more like Dostoevsky than anyone I know," Neal Cassady lived what others could only write about. Serving as the model for Kerouac's frenetic hero, the hip, Noble Savage Dean Moriarty in On the Road, and "N.C., the secret hero" of Allen Ginsberg's provocative poem "Howl," Cassady was a genius of life lived on the edge of the abyss. Now, William Plummer strips away the mystery surrounding this enigmatic figure. Plummer brings Cassady to life: his coming of age in a Denver flophouse, his hustling across America, the car thefts that landed him in jail, his meeting with Kerouac and their mad-cap cross-country adventures, his experiments with sex and drugs, his second marriage to Carolyn Cassady, his teaming with Ken Kesey and the Merry Pranksters on an epochal acid trip, and finally his bizarre death. Black-and-white photographs add to this engrossing biography of an outrageous but fascinating life.

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

"Writing with the cloyingly intense passion of the newly converted, Plummer eulogizes Neal Cassady, the long-since enshrined Beat saint aka Dean Moriarty in Kerouac's On the Road and N.C. in Ginsberg's Howl ," reported PW. Photos.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

"Marvelous, an enthralling account of one of the outrageously signal lives of our time, creative, destructive, always compelling." --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 162 pages
• Publisher: Marlowe & Co; 1st paperback edition (June 1990)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1557782873
• ISBN-13: 978-1557782878
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 6 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,777,924 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars a love poem biography, May 15, 2002

By 

"piscojoe" (Rohnert Park, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Holy Goof: A Biography of Neal Cassady (Paperback)

Neal Cassady was a very interesting and multi-faceted muse of the Beat writers and Kesey's Merry Pranksters, certainly an integral part of both generations. Anyone with an interest in these writers must familiarize themselves with Cassady. In this respect Plummer does an adequate job of presenting both Cassady's life and providing some background into the lives of those literary geniuses who immortalized him in their writing.
In all biographies one finds bias, it is an integral and valid part of the art. However, Plummer's bias is almost overwhelming. Constantly comparing Cassady to Chirst, lauding his virtues and beauty, Plummer creates a Cassady that becomes unbelieveable to the reader. Instead of getting to know an amazing man, one finds oneself reading a hero story, the immaculate life of Plummer's Cassady. Even Kerouac, in his works, presents a more balanced view of Neal, whom he loved as his best friend for years.
It is well written and is a decent read but if you are familiar with Cassady's life, you find your self reading a book about Willam Plummer, if you are unfamiliar you find your self reading a story about a man as realistic as Captian America.
There is so much more written on the man, and most is far superior. Read it if you must but you could do better. If adoration of Cassady is what you're looking for, read "Howl" or "On The Road" or "Visions of Cody" or even Cassady's own post-humously published autobiography "The First Third" (especially his letters) and get some great literature under your belt at the same time.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars An Unbiased Reflection, January 18, 2003

By 

Kae (Somers, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Holy Goof: A Biography of Neal Cassady (Paperback)

Neal Cassady is a man both revered and despised. This book, which anyone interested in the given time period should read, gives an unbiased look at Neal (the Holy Goof and fastestmanalive) and the people who surrounded him: his family, lovers, and friends (Jack Keruoac, Ken Kesey, Allen Ginsberg, etc). It neither praises nor degrades him, presenting him merely as a remarkable man and letting you decide for yourself.

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Pure magic...a captivating snapshot of a true American icon, December 30, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: The Holy Goof: A Biography of Neal Cassady (Paperback)

The absolute finest of all the Neal biographies....you gain a true appreciation of what it was like to know--to experience-- this crazed, "fastestmanalive" from the people who lived in that special time. Read "On The Bus" by Keasy, and Neal's "First Third"....and THEN read Plummers bio.