Beat Generation - Kerouac & Ginsberg - New York 1959

This 5-minute film by Robert Frank was no doubt shot around the time Frank was working with Alfred Leslie on the Beat classic 'Pull My Daisy' featuring Jack Kerouac & Allen Ginsberg. In this short clip we see Lucien Carr & his wife Francesca & their three sons Simon, Caleb & Ethan as well as Mary Frank with her & Robert's children Pablo & Andrea. I put a live version of Dave Brubeck's 'Take Five' behind this Beat meet-&-greet at E 9th Street & 3rd Avenue because"Take Five' came out the same year, 1959, & it seems to go with the upbeat mood among all those kids & smiling Beats.

[@alonenjersey]

"Take Five" by The Dave Brubeck Quartet always puts me in a good mood. Especially if the weather is lousy outside my humble home.

[@John-n5v1r]

Pipe smoking (Tobacco), music.

[@jamesanthony5681]

Always a good choice.

[@anthonyvincentfazio-writer]

Lucien Carr is on the screen at 1:22 and his son, the author Caleb Carr is on Jack's lap in the same frame. It's not just Kerouac and Ginsberg. There is also Lawrence Ferlinghetti in the beginning as they walk into the bar.

[@Rhonlynn]

This is perfect seeing Jack like this!

[@robbydor]

‘Released as a promotional single in September 1959, the track would not achieve commercial success until it became a sleeper hit in 1961. "Take Five" went on to become the biggest-selling jazz single of all time and still receives significant radio airplay.’

[@misterkefir]

What a bizarre little film we have here.. Great piece of history.

[@Gil-io3zn]

Nice document. Jack Kerouac wears the same striped shirt and black trousers in an interview given to journalist Pierre Nadeau on 29 November 1959 for Radio Canada. Jack, the heavenly hobo. I love it!

[@RicardoMartinez-oh9sq]

In American poetry there is nothing like the Beat Generation.

[@davisworth5114]

Thank God for that.

[@OwenMeatballsOfficial]

@@davisworth5114No thank's the beat

[@StefanoConti-]

This is it, spontaneous creations, beat generation

[@stevennorfolk830]

The very Harmony Bar and Grill of early sketches of Visions Of Cody;the Old beat shoe repair shop;the employment office,the Elevated waiting room,and across the street will be the factory whose walls Doctor Sax climbs.

[@1kindsoul636]

This is gold

[@luislaplume8261]

If only I was an adult instead of a child at that time, I was only 3.I loved in Woodside Queens just a15 minute ride on the LIRR.

[@alonenjersey]

Pure gold without question.

[@8176morgan]

I'm pretty sure that is Lucien Carr seen at 4:25. Kerouac's friend from Columbia back in the mid 1940's who later moved to New York City in the early 50's and apparently stayed there for a while. Nice to see him here and looking quite a bity different from his college years.

[@JoshSmith222]

Jack looks totally bombed and it seems like it's early afternoon at the latest.

[@jakermausofficial]

I mean, that tracks. RIP Ti Jean

[@monicaperezyavicoli8961]

Que guapo era Jack Kerouac...

[@vc2958]

no mames

[@sitbone3]

I think the woman in the white peasant blouse with long hair is Diane Di Prima. Her book of poetry, "Revolutionary Letters" is must reading.

[@MikeGervasi]

This is a ripping version of Take Five. Like any band they had good and great nights. THIS was an excellent night.

[@Alexander-tj2dn]

I saw in Google maps a lot has changed a in all these years, since the building under construction on the other side of the street was demolished and built again in 2012. And the building where the restaurant was located is now a totally different building. It´s amazing to see these famous beatniks in their every day life. I just read about Ginsberg´s stay in Paris, in the so called "Beat hotel" in 1957 and 1958.

[@guadalupeiorio1216]

Enamored of Kerouac 🖤🤎🩶

[@MrWallybones]

This is Fantastico!

[@ezequielvega3120]

Great musical choice: Dave Brubeck Quartet.

[@jeremyharple4567]

Would be real cool if a lip reader transcribed what some of them were saying . What a treasure this little clip is , though- wow

[@andredahlmeyer4488]

thanx!🙂

[@stephengholson6543]

My favorite beat was Diane di Prima, one of the few women within the circle and a prolific writer/poet.

[@jeffreyhanc1711]

Thanks for saying this. She’s actually an aunt of mine (sort of a distant complex relation from my mom’s Italian side, predominately Sicilian). According to my mom she had a horrible relationship with her conservative old-school Italian dad, this playing a big part in her social rebellion.

[@vc2958]

@@jeffreyhanc1711thats cool as heckkkk. Without your aunts influence where the hell would us artists have been and would have we had that swing... Bless the Beats

[@CatElse]

Only time will tell if you are an artist....bit too much ego here

[@vc2958]

@@CatElse either ego or nothing. The stars or the moon?

[@jakermausofficial]

DiPrima, Joyce Johnson, Elise Cowan ... the women in the Beat orbit have always been minimized. Johnson's book, Minor Characters, is a wonderful book - I highly recommend it ❤

[@Misserbi]

JK was a little shy. I almost said a little crazy. I think that is why? He still holds a little bit of virtue he does not want to lose. He is a great teacher. I almost never fall out when I tune in. I appreciate that. A great inspiration!

[@jennifergalberth1240]

James Baldwin warned US

[@vc2958]

@@jennifergalberth1240can u elaborate more? What exactly about what did Mr. Baldwin (love him) have said that i have missed??

[@if6was929]

@@jennifergalberth1240 Elaborate please.

[@bradforddavis6497]

Great clip!

[@nassersari2797]

j'adore cette scène

[@sprucecoastpress]

That was amazing

[@statichousemusic9855]

They were gone; now that whole scene is gone.

[@MrKmanthie]

pretty hip scene!!

[@umbrella0326]

I like how Ginsberg is nearly the only one with a beard. If around then, I sooop would've been a Beat.

[@stephengholson6543]

It was so easy to be counterculture in those days. Just grow facial hair and people thought you were a bit peculiar.

[@vc2958]

@@stephengholson6543no you ignorant swine. It takes more than looks. I didnt even have to explain it, but your cluelessness made me. Thanks.

[@nuArk-eq9mq]

​@@stephengholson6543as opposed to nowadays

[@RobCummings]

Initially, I thought, 'What's with all the kids and strollers? It looks like Saturday afternoon in Park Slope.' But in 1959 Kerouac was 37 and on the cusp of middle age. On The Road had been published a couple years before, and his friends were starting to see some literary success too. If this film had a soundtrack, we'd probably hear the youngish authors talking about publishers, book deals, new projects and maybe moving to Montclair.

[@jakermausofficial]

Crazy that we'd lose him 10 years later. RIP Ti Jean

[@wonder6789]

Fantastic

[@rma3_3_3]

#OUTSTANDINGLY #Good !

[@bobbymirabueno]

a few years later, it would be bob dylan storming the scenes...

[@retthok]

Looks like George Maharis with the disposition of Oliver Reed.

[@lenhummel5614]

Existentialist Momentos ❗💎

[@MitchellMaichak-ze7mr]

So Hip of you to observe !!!

[@janetmichaels5040]

I noticed how the more you ignored your children, the more they clung to you, sweet.

[@maryanneelliott97]

Sweet? Hope they all grew up to be stable human beings.

[@MyPiggieWorld]

The author Caleb Carr is the little boy holding on to his mom, his last book is "My beloved monster, Masha the rescue cat who rescued me".

[@brian_nirvana]

He's got 10 years to live.

[@cobra5088]

That's what I thought when I saw the year this was taken. I was thinking if only jack knew he had 10 years. Imagine the poetry/prose that would of come out of that knowledge.

[@danif.9414]

And your point is..?

[@joejones9520]

@@danif.9414 so this is what you do?

[@MitchellMaichak-ze7mr]

But he DOESN'T KNOW IT !!!

[@napadave58]

0:37 Neal Cassaday also appears in this although he's not mentioned. (Looks like him, anyway)

[@tombombadinho]

03:09 Jack... passion guy.

[@vc2958]

lol

[@tombombadinho]

Ginsberg alert...

[@michaelsamueldantonio]

This is what cool sounds and sees like.

[@8angst8]

Au contraire: They "thought" they were cool. Looking at them today, they look like everyday schlubs, all of them.

[@Tomas-to9kz]

The irony of the "Beats" is their focus on individual expression, but gravitating to the collective-left. They couldn't, and still can't, see the forest from the trees...

[@zarquondam]

The major Beats were all over the political spectrum. You couldn't call Kerouac or Burroughs "collective left."

[@Tomas-to9kz]

@@zarquondam Good point

[@Tomas-to9kz]

@@zarquondam Good point . Like C. Wright Mills...

[@Goosebone]

What live version of take 5 is this?

[@brianwarner308]

i've been trying to find that out myself, no luck yet, shazam just calls it live....

[@Transcendent-Economics-101]

I would guess all these young and good-lookin' folk are old now?! or in their 90s..

[@jamespenido404]

One of the blond kids is Caleb Carr, Lucien's Carr son. He's a good writer and in his 70's now, I guess.

[@padfootparrish4539]

when everyone was dark academia

[@LaTachyna]

Que sentido tiene

[@user-lq3qi3ge8f]

It's so shallow to define the generation with an aesthetic that superficial social media influencers pursue

[@harrychapin808]

Best place 2 B

[@stevennorfolk830]

​@@user-lq3qi3ge8fwow we're you tied down while all that was poured into you from an upended text book?

[@herecomesforego1787]

​@@user-lq3qi3ge8fbut predictable

[@ustheserfs]

both men in their mid 30s looking very much in their early to mid 30s. fast forward a decade and Kerouac looked infinitely more aged some saying looking well into his 60s. He drank like we breath the natural air. Horrifying what alcohol can do. Ginsburg did much less of the drinking if he did any and lived nearly twice as long.

[@danif.9414]

So?

[@NewZman23]

@@danif.9414 So, people observe; people think; people comment; people opine; people ask So?

[@oldestgamer]

Except you can already see that Jack is looking bum-like, the effects of alcoholism is already showing on him, slovenly, distracted, etc.

[@theoakmontsage1172]

​@PoPpUnKdOtCoMHe was hanging in Paris/London/Tangiers around this time I think, working on Naked Lunch/Nova Express/Soft Machine.

[@rossriver75yukon27]

@MarkAndrews71565 Yeah, I’m re-reading Dharma Bums now (for about the fiftieth time). That was 1958 I think and peak-exuberance of young Kerouac, yet transitioning from youth to middle age. Yeah, in this video he is obviously starting to decline, maybe getting cynical - on the way to that nearly unwatchable interview with WF Buckley on stage with Ed Saunders of Fugs. What a decline. But it was more than just alcohol that brought him down. A bandaid for a psychological decline already in place even in Dharma Bums. Kerouac had total disdain for the hippie era whereas Ginsberg and Cassidy went with it. Kerouac peaked early, too soon, too bad.

[@darylcumming7119]

Time capsule.

[@bradlock76]

Wow..

[@monicaperezyavicoli8961]

Época lo a de tabaquismo drogas y locura...comienzo de un nuevisimo capítulo en la historia

[@bluechapstick8037]

Yeah well I was a beatnick b4 it was cool.

[@clownpaint20]

2:33 is that Lucian carr ?

Yes, it is

[@missmovember]

always wondered what happened to him after the, well,,, 🩸🩸💀💀

[@clownpaint20]

@@missmovember I think he went on to work for a university

[@zardozy]

Lot's of little kids here. Did the beats have really big families, or are they the first beat groupies (or first embryonic hippies?) btw, I like the woman choking Ginsberg. I wish women could choke him a little more often...(make of that comment what ye will...)

[@Frank289100]

THERE HAS TO BE SOMEONE HERE LOOKING AT THIS VIDEO THAT LIVED THROUGH THE BEATNICK ERA. I KNOW MARIJUANA WAS THE DRUG OF CHOICE, AND WOULD LIKE TO KNOW JUST HOW POPULAR WAS THE USE OF COKE. DURING THIS ERA COKE WAS CALLED "THE RICH MAN'S HIGH".

[@fortybelow1973]

I think more of nasal tube inhalers and/or bennies. So the cats can wail like, forever...

[@Olivia-lk9oq]

I wasn't alive then but you should read junkie by William Burroughs, he was close friends with Ginsburg. basically Burroughs was a heroin addict and the book is about his interactions with various drug dealers in the 40s. He talked about using amphetamines in times square at one point because coke was so hard to come by. I can't recommend it enough, It's one of the best books I've ever read

[@Frank289100]

@@Olivia-lk9oq COKE HIT THE SCENE IN A OFFICIAL STATUS IN NEW YORK CITY IN 1980 WHERE IT WAS AFFORDABLE. A 1/2 GRAMS WAS $20 AND A GRAM WAS $40-50. THE 8 BALL WAS $100-120.

[@davisworth5114]

@@Olivia-lk9oq Burroughs was a murderer, I believe. You have terrible taste.

[@RobertodelaVega-t3w]

NYU destroyed the East Village and around Washington Square Park with their Real Estate intrusion and their connections to developers, so much was destroyed and continues today.

[@joejones9520]

he had ten more yrs exactly...

[@borges9009]

Benzedrim times

[@kervilou5905]

!!!!!!!

[@nathalieau4821]

Il me semble à un moment voir neal cassady?

[@kervilou5905]

possib !......

[@dalejosephdesoiza4089]

Kids in adult conversations! not like nowadays shifted to one side with their iPads 😞

[@8angst8]

Wow! Very interesting clip. Thank you! That said: Carr and Ginsberg are creepy. The women hanging around are creepy. Brubeck is hardly the theme to "On the Road" or anything, though associated with Kerouac. They're all a lot better on paper.

[@wraithstrongopark]

hahahahahaa i can dig it! they're creepy on paper too. you look at carr and wonder, how many women has he murdered? and we all know ginsberg just loved to rape the shit out of boys. . . yeah, they were fine on paper, because off of it they were a bunch of grungy, intellectual, eastern establishment, STD infested malcontents, who bitched about everything during one of america's most prosperous times while being white.

[@CatElse]

Why is it creepy? Explain or are you jncapable of understanding another time?

[@wraithstrongopark]

they're creepy on paper too. you look at carr and wonder, how many women has he murdered? and we all know ginsberg just loved to rape the shit out of boys. . . yeah, they were fine on paper, because off of it they were a bunch of grungy, intellectual, eastern establishment, STD infested malcontents, who bitched about everything during one of america's most prosperous times while being white. @@CatElse

[@if6was929]

@@CatElse Don't be upset, he's partly correct. Ginsburg was a lech, indiscreet and compulsive, contemporarily he'd be classified as a pedo.

[@davisworth5114]

@@CatElse Hey lady, creepy is creepy anytime, what does "another time" have to do with it?

[@nightrider12soul]

Think Neal Cassidy is in too.He did not write,but was the man of action.Jack look a bit like a boy next too Neal.

[@martinbenson5821]

Is that Cassidy too?

[@nathalieau4821]

Yves i am think to in the begining

[@balsamicvinegar5789]

It's scary to see Ginsberg in close proximity to children.

[@AmorionPax]

Why?

[@padfootparrish4539]

@@AmorionPax he was a part of nambla

[@DarrenCondron]

Why is that?

[@padfootparrish4539]

@@DarrenCondron he supported nambla!!

[@vastwasteland77]

Trying to be funny and making a really stupid and nasty comment. He was NOT a pedophile.

[@eduardjozefgregor5103]

4. min. - Paľo Habera !

[@clovergrass9439]

AG, the tribe member who did boys.

[@stealthsadhu306]

Yes he defended underage male teenagers getting sexually and romantically schooled by older gays, as in Ancient Greece and many other cultures. In that , by our standards at least, he was wrong. But don't reduce his genius to that, and the legacy of the work he left behind. Or the morality of his politics so far ahead of his time. Reply

[@sitbone3]

Di Prima did boys and girls.

[@AnaroseSalamanes]

Even the baby is bored

[@momouhtimomouh2218]

Il a un air à la Mel Gibson ce jack kerouac

[@ichmich6803]

provocative: they just drugged in daytime and filmed?

[@ichmich6803]

Before suckler ltd company time

[@ichmich6803]

Suckler is primitive

[@ichmich6803]

Are we allowed to Name this bussshit family: suckler!

[@wwbuirkle]

Kerouac looks like a complete drunk

[@kervilou5905]

anciens beat devenus petits bourgeois, c'est pathétique !!!! poor jack, my friend !!!

[@Bru.B]

En fait Kerouac était défoncé ou bourré H24...

[@danif.9414]

So what

[@Bru.B]

@@danif.9414 Et alors? Zorro est arrivéééé héhé! Sans se pressééé héhé !

[@danif.9414]

@@Bru.B That's right! (hehe)

[@figurefiguras4104]

Stfu w that cucked language

[@kervilou5905]

exact ! très tôt alcoolique et plus.............;

[@andresoutomaior-to5zt]

ACABOU JA ERA FICOU O JAZZ WEST COAST.

[@robertmartinez4174]

and Kerouac hated Dave Brubeck.

[@goback3spaces]

The long haired chick ... is that a guy in drag?

[@seferdude1]

No…It’s Mary Frank, under appreciated artist and wife of Robert Frank, Swiss photographer and filmmaker.

[@saltrock2002]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/aJulqWtom66dj6M

[@delavan9141]

Neanderthal.

[@joejones9520]

@@seferdude1 and she's still alive, she's 90, probably reading these comments, hello mary!

[@sepijortikka]

I think she is beautiful

[@edigabrieli7864]

When I was hoping that twisted generation had finally disappeared here the Woke generation showed up worst than the one before.

[@503punxoioioi9]

It's just some middle-aged people hanging out outside of a bar.

[@CatElse]

Famous Middle aged people ignoramus

[@martkell6469]

Jack was a square.

[@davisworth5114]

To bad they wasted such a great tune on these grimy, depressing losers.

[@Thirdgen83]

And they all died of cancer & heart disease...

[@billburwood7047]

You think you live as you choose...... Too bad you're headed for the blues

[@miltoncat]

Kerouac died of an intestinal rupture brought on by decades of drinking. He pretty much drank himself to death.

[@patricktruchon9153]

@@miltoncat Truth! Died vomiting blood into his toilet. He was not happy, I think. Success didn't suit him. That OTR was a great success was due to the fact that the usual TIMES reviewer (who disliked Jack) was on vacation. He got a great review from the sub, who liked Jack. And so a great book was launched! Kismet played a large role.

[@wraithstrongopark]

but, somehow, they'll live on . . . unlike you, buzz killington. you're already dead inside.

[@kervilou5905]

@@wraithstrongopark pfffffffffff

[@marianne22222]

Cool but he was over hyped

[@joejones9520]

he was hyped just the right amount, they werent a real big deal in their time, only a certain segment of society knew who the beats were even after tv appearances. My parents who were teens in late 1950s never heard of the beats until I told them about them.

dull, duller, dullest