Beat Culture and the New America 1950-1965 (Hardcover)

~ Allen Ginsberg (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Now that Francis Ford Coppola is making a film of Jack Kerouac's On the Road, the beats--Kerouac, Ginsberg, Whalen, Cassady, and others, some gone but not forgotten--are due for another in a series of periodic rediscoveries by the mainstream media. This heavily illustrated book does the work of several tomes. It analyzes beat culture from a historical viewpoint, showing its growth in the Cold War as an expression of alienation on one hand and utter artistic joy on the other. It also charts the rise of a postwar African American intellectual movement whose influence remains strong; examines the effect of beat sensibilities on the hippies who followed a decade later, and on youth culture generally; and traces the path of beat ideas in the arts, especially film. Most of all, it makes you want to turn to Desolation Angels and Howl for the first or the hundredth time for a righteous dose of bebop delight.

From Library Journal

Containing ten essays and over 250 illustrations, this impressive catalog of the controversial show at the Whitney Museum (Nov. 9, 1995-Feb. 4, 1996), put together by the curator, documents the pervasive influence of the Beat Generation on American art and culture. The exhibit includes manuscripts, photographs, and artwork by Jack Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg, and Gregory Corso, as well as work by several West Coast artists, including Bruce Conner, Jay DeFeo, and Robert Lavigne. Essay topics, stressing shared artistic and cultural concerns, range from African American influences on the Beat Generation to the aesthetics of Beat filmmaking. A detailed chronology rounds out the book. Highly recommended for contemporary art and literature collections.?William Gargan, Brooklyn Coll. Lib.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 279 pages
• Publisher: Whitney Museum of American Art; 1st edition (May 15, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 2080136135
• ISBN-13: 978-2080136138
• Product Dimensions: 11.3 x 8.7 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,243,770 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Beat Generation in various forms, March 28, 2000

By A Customer

This catalogue has excellent photographs that gives one a sense of the attitude of the Beat Generation. Everyone is familiar with the writers of the period, but not everyone knows about art generated during those years. This catalogue gives a review of art, film, and writing being created at the time. Not only that but it devotes a chapter to women and a chapter to minorites working during the time period. A good source of information for anyone interested in the 1950's to the early 1960's.