Part 41 (1/2)
pages 172173 ”cultural artifacts of ambivalent status”; ”A baby blue styrofoam chrysanthemum”: ”cultural artifacts of ambivalent status”; ”A baby blue styrofoam chrysanthemum”: Cited in Kevin Cunningham, ”L'Eclat du Hazard,” Cited in Kevin Cunningham, ”L'Eclat du Hazard,” Gulf Coast: A Journal of Literature and Art Gulf Coast: A Journal of Literature and Art, vol. 4, no. 1 (1991): 73.
page 173 ”belong in the show”: ”belong in the show”: ibid. ibid.
21. Dangling Man pages 174175 ”myth that every Texan is in some sense a cowboy”; ”ritual demands of the [cowboy]”: ”myth that every Texan is in some sense a cowboy”; ”ritual demands of the [cowboy]”: Donald Barthelme, ”Culture, Etc.,” in Donald Barthelme, ”Culture, Etc.,” in Not-Knowing: The Essays and Interviews Not-Knowing: The Essays and Interviews, ed. Kim Herzinger (New York: Random House, 1997), 132135.
page 175 ”tiny, vaguely Southern American republic”: ”tiny, vaguely Southern American republic”: Helen Moore Barthelme, Helen Moore Barthelme, Donald Barthelme: The Genesis of a Cool Sound Donald Barthelme: The Genesis of a Cool Sound (College Station: Texas A & M University Press, 2001), 98. (College Station: Texas A & M University Press, 2001), 98.
page 175 ”establishment of a perfect state” ”establishment of a perfect state” to ” to ” One of the disadvantages of being the richest man in the country One of the disadvantages of being the richest man in the country” : : Donald Barthelme, ”Mr. Hunt's Wooly Utopia,” in Donald Barthelme, ”Mr. Hunt's Wooly Utopia,” in Not-Knowing Not-Knowing, ed. Herzinger, 8385.
page 176 Don submitted his formal application: Don submitted his formal application: For the full text of the application, see For the full text of the application, see Gulf Coast: A Journal of Literature and Art Gulf Coast: A Journal of Literature and Art, 4, no. 1 (1991): 38.
page 176 ”Don relished the challenge of it”: ”Don relished the challenge of it”: Helen Moore Barthelme, Helen Moore Barthelme, Donald Barthelme Donald Barthelme, 112.
page 176 ”Every year something almost takes me to Texas”: ”Every year something almost takes me to Texas”: Harold Rosenberg, letter to Donald Barthelme, April 5, 1961, Research Library, Getty Research Inst.i.tute, Los Angeles, California. Harold Rosenberg, letter to Donald Barthelme, April 5, 1961, Research Library, Getty Research Inst.i.tute, Los Angeles, California.
page 176 ”The life-style in Texas”: ”The life-style in Texas”: This and subsequent quotes from these two articles are in John Bainbridge, ”The Super-American State,” This and subsequent quotes from these two articles are in John Bainbridge, ”The Super-American State,” The New Yorker The New Yorker, March 11, 1961, 4780, and March 18, 1961, 79.
page 176 ”It's cheering to find that you're not intimidated”: ”It's cheering to find that you're not intimidated”: Donald Barthelme, letter to Harold Rosenberg, April 13, 1961, Research Library, Getty Research Inst.i.tute, Los Angeles, California. Donald Barthelme, letter to Harold Rosenberg, April 13, 1961, Research Library, Getty Research Inst.i.tute, Los Angeles, California.
page 177 ”free a.s.sociate[s], brilliantly, brilliantly”: ”free a.s.sociate[s], brilliantly, brilliantly”: This and subsequent quotes from ”Florence Green Is 81” are from Donald Barthelme, This and subsequent quotes from ”Florence Green Is 81” are from Donald Barthelme, Come Back, Dr. Caligari Come Back, Dr. Caligari (Boston: Little, Brown, 1964), 316. (Boston: Little, Brown, 1964), 316.
page 177 ”several prominent Houstonians”: ”several prominent Houstonians”: Helen Moore Barthelme, Helen Moore Barthelme, Donald Barthelme Donald Barthelme, 94.
page 177 ”Bloomsbury could now play”; ”word would frequently disclose”: ”Bloomsbury could now play”; ”word would frequently disclose”: Barthelme, Barthelme, Come Back, Dr. Caligari Come Back, Dr. Caligari, 6781.
page 178 ”hotel and its setting were bleak”; ”treat”: ”hotel and its setting were bleak”; ”treat”: Helen Moore Barthelme, Helen Moore Barthelme, Donald Barthelme Donald Barthelme, 113.
page 178 ”miserable...slipshod, shambling piers”: ”miserable...slipshod, shambling piers”: Melville quoted in Phillip Lopate, Melville quoted in Phillip Lopate, Waterfront: A Journey Around Manhattan Waterfront: A Journey Around Manhattan (New York: Crown Publishers, 2004), 21. (New York: Crown Publishers, 2004), 21.
page 179 ”This was Don's first intimate contact”; ”uncomfortable in the role of student”: ”This was Don's first intimate contact”; ”uncomfortable in the role of student”: Helen Moore Barthelme, Helen Moore Barthelme, Donald Barthelme Donald Barthelme, 114115.
page 179 ”heart wasn't in it” ”heart wasn't in it” to to ”106 degrees”: ”106 degrees”: James Atlas, James Atlas, Bellow Bellow (New York: Random House, 2000), 309310. (New York: Random House, 2000), 309310.
page 179 ”saw him as the major American novelist of our time”: ”saw him as the major American novelist of our time”: Helen Moore Barthelme, Helen Moore Barthelme, Donald Barthelme Donald Barthelme, 114.
page 179 ”[T]hat summer, no one in the world mattered more”: ”[T]hat summer, no one in the world mattered more”: This and subsequent Dworkin quotes are from Susan Dworkin, ”The 'Great Man' Syndrome: Saul Bellow and Me,” This and subsequent Dworkin quotes are from Susan Dworkin, ”The 'Great Man' Syndrome: Saul Bellow and Me,” Ms. Ms., March, 1977, 7273.
page 179 ”I've lived in dirt”: ”I've lived in dirt”: Atlas, Atlas, Bellow Bellow, 311.
page 179 ” 'The Big Broadcast' and Don's reading of it”: ” 'The Big Broadcast' and Don's reading of it”: Helen Moore Barthelme, Helen Moore Barthelme, Donald Barthelme Donald Barthelme, 113.
page 179 ”Do you really believe”: ”Do you really believe”: Atlas, Atlas, Bellow Bellow, 311.
page 180 ”I myself have often been indignant”: ”I myself have often been indignant”: ibid. ibid.
page 180 women writers who ”wore their ovaries”: women writers who ”wore their ovaries”: ibid. ibid.
page 180 ”Don might have had”: ”Don might have had”: Helen Moore Barthelme, Helen Moore Barthelme, Donald Barthelme Donald Barthelme, 115.
page 180 ”filled with anguish”: ”filled with anguish”: ibid., 116. In a letter to Elizabeth Bishop, Lowell described his conference experience: ”Saul Bellow goes off for a long killing fiction-discussion meeting with the conference nymphomaniac, leaving me with the conference leech, who invites me to dinner. Supper: at six, after two minutes for drinks-more laundered food....From the next room belonging to my other colleague, Edward Albee, a playwright-the low endless Tennessee voice of the conference nymphomaniac reading aloud a play. At about four-thirty, all is quiet.” (See Robert Lowell to Elizabeth Bishop, August 7, 1961, in ibid., 116. In a letter to Elizabeth Bishop, Lowell described his conference experience: ”Saul Bellow goes off for a long killing fiction-discussion meeting with the conference nymphomaniac, leaving me with the conference leech, who invites me to dinner. Supper: at six, after two minutes for drinks-more laundered food....From the next room belonging to my other colleague, Edward Albee, a playwright-the low endless Tennessee voice of the conference nymphomaniac reading aloud a play. At about four-thirty, all is quiet.” (See Robert Lowell to Elizabeth Bishop, August 7, 1961, in The Letters of Robert Lowell The Letters of Robert Lowell, ed. Saskia Hamilton [New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2005], 387.) page 181 page 181 ”I saw Don as more insecure”: ”I saw Don as more insecure”: ibid., 114. ibid., 114.
page 181 ”alluded to our marriage”: ”alluded to our marriage”: ibid., 113114. ibid., 113114.
page 181 ”I don't believe Sterling”: ”I don't believe Sterling”: Lynn Nesbit, in an E-mail to the author, September 9, 2004. Lynn Nesbit, in an E-mail to the author, September 9, 2004.
page 181 ”recommended Don”: ”recommended Don”: Helen Moore Barthelme, Helen Moore Barthelme, Donald Barthelme Donald Barthelme, 115.
page 181 ”had just been promoted ”had just been promoted by by Sterling”: Sterling”: Lynn Nesbit, in an E-mail to the author, September 9, 2004. Lynn Nesbit, in an E-mail to the author, September 9, 2004.
pages 181182 ”I was awed by the controlled madness”; ”summon up the courage to publish”; ”I was awed by the controlled madness”; ”summon up the courage to publish”; ”radically different approach”: ”radically different approach”: Herman Gollob, Herman Gollob, Me and Shakespeare: Adventures with Me and Shakespeare: Adventures with the the Bard Bard (New York: Doubleday, 2002), 169. (New York: Doubleday, 2002), 169.
page 182 ”sounds of intimacy, outrage and drinking”: ”sounds of intimacy, outrage and drinking”: Robert Lowell to Elizabeth Bishop, August 7, 1961, in Robert Lowell to Elizabeth Bishop, August 7, 1961, in The Letters of Robert Lowell The Letters of Robert Lowell, ed. Hamilton, 387.
page 182 ”alcoholic's attention span”: ”alcoholic's attention span”: Pat Goeters, ”Pulitzer Parable,” an unpublished essay, in an E-mail to the author, April 22, 2004. Pat Goeters, ”Pulitzer Parable,” an unpublished essay, in an E-mail to the author, April 22, 2004.
page 182 ”tendencies”; ”serious”; ”had more possibilities to do what he wanted”: ”tendencies”; ”serious”; ”had more possibilities to do what he wanted”: Marilyn Gillet, in a conversation with the author, November 17, 2004. Marilyn Gillet, in a conversation with the author, November 17, 2004.
page 182 ”was addicted, as was I”: ”was addicted, as was I”: Gollob, Gollob, Me and Shakespeare Me and Shakespeare, 167.
page 183 ”insight into the New York literary world”; ”I could see that”: ”insight into the New York literary world”; ”I could see that”: Helen Moore Barthelme, Helen Moore Barthelme, Donald Barthelme Donald Barthelme, 116.
22. The Emerging Figure page 184 ”in the work of the children of the de Kooning generation”: ”in the work of the children of the de Kooning generation”: This and subsequent quotes from the catalog's introduction are from Donald Barthelme, ”The Emerging Figure,” in This and subsequent quotes from the catalog's introduction are from Donald Barthelme, ”The Emerging Figure,” in Not-Knowing: The Essays and Interviews Not-Knowing: The Essays and Interviews, ed. Kim Herzinger (New York: Random House, 1997), 168169.
page 185 ”barbaric yawp of American painting”: ”barbaric yawp of American painting”: Mark Stevens and Annalyn Swan, Mark Stevens and Annalyn Swan, De Kooning: An American Master De Kooning: An American Master (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2004), 338. (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2004), 338.
page 186 ”A remarkable number of advertis.e.m.e.nts”: ”A remarkable number of advertis.e.m.e.nts”: This and subsequent quotes from ”The Case of the Vanis.h.i.+ng Product” are from Donald Barthelme, ”The Case of the Vanis.h.i.+ng Product,” in This and subsequent quotes from ”The Case of the Vanis.h.i.+ng Product” are from Donald Barthelme, ”The Case of the Vanis.h.i.+ng Product,” in Not-Knowing Not-Knowing, ed. Herzinger, 136139.
page 186 ”flew by the seat of [his] pants”: ”flew by the seat of [his] pants”: Marion Knox Barthelme, in an E-mail to the author, October 13, 2004. Marion Knox Barthelme, in an E-mail to the author, October 13, 2004.
page 186 ”structural katzenjammer”: ”structural katzenjammer”: Hubert Roussell quoted in Helen Moore Barthelme, Hubert Roussell quoted in Helen Moore Barthelme, Donald Barthelme: The Genesis of a Cool Sound Donald Barthelme: The Genesis of a Cool Sound (College Station: Texas A & M University Press, 2001), 120. (College Station: Texas A & M University Press, 2001), 120.
page 187 ”Don had a nice bunch of friends”: ”Don had a nice bunch of friends”: Kenneth Koch, ”Getting to Know Donald Barthelme,” Kenneth Koch, ”Getting to Know Donald Barthelme,” Gulf Coast: A Journal of Literature and Art Gulf Coast: A Journal of Literature and Art, 4, no. 1 (1991): 142.
page 187 ”This job at the museum”: ”This job at the museum”: Barthelme quoted in Herman Gollob, Barthelme quoted in Herman Gollob, Me and Shakespeare: Adventures with the Bard Me and Shakespeare: Adventures with the Bard (New York: Doubleday, 2002), 169. (New York: Doubleday, 2002), 169.
page 187 He was ”serious, older”: He was ”serious, older”: Helen Moore Barthelme, Helen Moore Barthelme, Donald Barthelme Donald Barthelme, 124.
page 187 ”[Don and I] spent a lot of time in the car”: ”[Don and I] spent a lot of time in the car”: Koch, ”Getting to Know Donald Barthelme,” 142143. Koch, ”Getting to Know Donald Barthelme,” 142143.
page 188 ”[We] were severely strained”: ”[We] were severely strained”: Helen Moore Barthelme, Helen Moore Barthelme, Donald Barthelme Donald Barthelme, 126.
page 188 ”pick up the check”; ”pick up the check”; to to ”Now you have something you can tell our grandchildren”: ”Now you have something you can tell our grandchildren”: ibid., 124. ibid., 124.
page 188 ”The E. de Kooning idea sounds fine”: ”The E. de Kooning idea sounds fine”: Donald Barthelme, letter to Harold Rosenberg, March 28, 1962, Research Library, Getty Research Inst.i.tute, Los Angeles, California. Donald Barthelme, letter to Harold Rosenberg, March 28, 1962, Research Library, Getty Research Inst.i.tute, Los Angeles, California.
page 188 ”Congenial and a good teacher”: ”Congenial and a good teacher”: Helen Moore Barthelme, Helen Moore Barthelme, Donald Barthelme Donald Barthelme, 112.
pages 188189 ”Elaine was vivacious” ”Elaine was vivacious” to to ”sometimes looked like a boorish drunk”: ”sometimes looked like a boorish drunk”: Stevens and Swan, Stevens and Swan, De Kooning De Kooning, 213, 229, 277, 576577.
page 189 ”I love Texans”: ”I love Texans”: Elaine de Kooning quoted in Lee Hall, Elaine de Kooning quoted in Lee Hall, Elaine and Bill: Portrait of a Marriage Elaine and Bill: Portrait of a Marriage (New York: HarperCollins, 1993), 235. (New York: HarperCollins, 1993), 235.