Josh Kilmer-Purcell and Eric Poole: Author One-on-One Josh Kilmer-Purcell is the bestselling author of the memoirs The Bucolic Plague and I Am Not Myself These Days, the novel Candy Everybody Wants, and the star of Planet Green's documentary television series The Fabulous Beekman Boys. He and his partner, Brent Ridge, divide their time between Manhattan and the Beekman Farm. Recently he sat down with Eric Poole to discuss their work. Read the resulting interview below, or turn the tables to see what happened when Eric interviewed Josh.
Josh: Is your mother still terrorizing you? And if so, does she do it slower now?
Eric: Fortunately, she has her original hips, so I can outrun her. But she’s a completely different person now. Oh, she still vacuums the garage, but I haven’t heard her go ballistic over a kitchen infraction (Why, God, why is there water in this sink?!) in decades. Although this is purely a hypothesis since we prefer to speculate wildly rather than ask, my sister and I think that Mother’s behavior when we were young stemmed from perhaps not wanting children, at least at the young age she had us. She wanted to be a career woman, like Gloria Steinem, but without all the protesting and ponchos. But that wasn’t what you did in the 60’s. Anyway, she’s absolutely amazing now. A sensational mother. People can change.
Josh: As a young boy, with the help of a bedspread, you believed you were a witch. Exactly how did that work?
Eric: I found this old white bedspread in the back of a closet; and I would stand in the basement––when no one was home, naturally, since all I needed was for somebody to find this out––close my eyes, and wave my arms like Endora from Bewitched. And voila, my miserable world would change. Not always as fast as Endora’s. And not always the way I had asked. But––at least in the beginning––it really did seem to change.
Josh: So you idolized – and emulated - Endora from Bewitched. Granted, she had the sassiest lines, but come on, she was a middle-aged broad in a caftan. Why Endora?
Eric: She was Darth Vader with Dippity Do. She took no prisoners. And I desperately wanted to co-opt that fearlessness. (The makeup and big hair, not so much.)
Josh: You used a bedspread as a magical cape. Did you ever consider bedazzling it to up the glam factor?
Eric: Are you kidding? I had to hide that thing behind a rocker in the basement. I couldn’t take the chance on rhinestones reflecting the light. Besides, I wasn’t trying to be Liberace, just a simple, everyday, all-powerful witch.
Josh: As you got older, your belief in magic morphed into the idea that magic is actually “miracles” that come from God. Do you still believe in magic, and if so, does that mean Jesus is a warlock?
Eric: I’m not touching that last part with a ten foot bible. Yes, I do still believe in magic, but I believe that it’s something that comes from within. I like to think of it as believing in yourself, with a dollop of help from God/The Universe/[your higher power here].
Josh: You spent a lot of time getting bullied. Why did you make them hit you?
Eric: I’m sure if you met me, you’d want to hit me, too.
Josh: Do you ever worry that people you wrote about will hunt you down and kill you? (I personally have a delightful collection of restraining orders.)
Eric: A few have already tried. I’m writing this from a secure location.
Josh: Your book is hilarious; but there are also moments that are incredibly moving, like when you lose your family friend to cancer. Do you think real life is sort of like that, careening from the hilariously awkward to the tragically sad?
Eric: Yes. Often in the same day. I was at a funeral recently, laughing with some friends at all the hilarious things our friend had done in his short life, when I suddenly saw his mother lean over the closed casket, put her cheek to the lid, and whisper quietly to her dead son. Whew. Life is full of whipsaw turns. You gotta hold on tight for the ride.
Josh: You have such compassion for the people who were horrible to you. Is it because you're looking back at the experience? Did you actually want them dead at the time?
Eric: I can enjoy imagining a fiery car crash as much as the next person, but I’ve just always had this desire for benevolence, this belief that if you treat people kindly, they will eventually treat you the same way. Although this seems to work better on some people than others.
Josh: Is it true that your book is being developed as a TV series, and if so, is there a part for my alter ego, Aqua?
Eric: Yes, it is, but casting could be an issue. Although a few of my teachers did have questionable gender identities, and probably a few more drank on the job, I don’t recall any of them wearing bustiers with live goldfish in them. But really, that would have made science class infinitely more interesting.
