William Gaddis in Conversation

From 1986: William Gaddis in Conversation with Malcolm Bradbury.
Apologies for the poor(-ish) quality; I'm not a technical fellow, and this interview is only available on VHS. Hopefully you'll be able to hear the interview well enough.

[@crucialstogie]

More cigarettes in this half hour than an episode of Mad Men

[@Johnconno]

Great isn't it?

[@CasperLCat]

But without the handsomeness and witty dialogue.

[@LabourOfTheNegative]

wrong, Bill was handsome@@CasperLCat

[@ExxylcrothEagle]

Mmmmm minty flavor. I like Kools

[@JWD1012]

I saw it glaring at me in its big pink majesty from a pile in the stockroom of an Oxfam and, rather pathetically, recognised it from a distance and asked if the lady behind the counter could go and fetch it for me. She looked at me like I was a total weirdo. £2, brand new. The charity shop find of the century, for me.

[@motherfinestudios]

One of the most underused (by what seems to be most people) authors of the last century.

[@suledrake]

Exactly! I've seen so many amazing interviews with artists on here. Frankly, it's an education.

[@1kislandstare]

this just made my day. thank you so much. :)

[@HerrTillman]

thank you so much for posting this, good ol Willie.

[@DireKwanzaaquences]

Dalkey Archive just put out a new edition a short time ago (with a fine introduction by William Gass), which is widely available here in the U.S., but perhaps less so abroad. Bookfinder dotcom will help you find the cheapest available options of both new and used copies internationally, though there are fewer copies out there than one would think. I'd strongly suggest saving up and splurging though-- well worth it!

[@sirsurfalot2012]

Thanks for uploading. The audio can be heard clearly and picture is fine. Very interesting.

[@rubberplasticmetal]

wonderful upload! thanks!

[@Abraxas3]

Thank you very much!

[@nuclear5641]

Oh sweet Jesus, THANK YOU!

[@dondraper2850]

Steinbeck was older by a generation -- 1902 -- and Updike born in '32. You're right about Vonnegut, Heller and Mailer, who served and wrote, along with James Jones and others.

[@classy_dweller]

Malcolm Bradbury is a greatly learned Brittish man!

[@andrews527]

+Krassimir de Slavonian ...Who doesn't know which camera is on.

[@classy_dweller]

+David Andrews ...or maybe only do not wish to meet any other's eyes''s look...out of utter shyness or out of a feeling of icy aloofness ...

[@DireKwanzaaquences]

A little research shows he was exempted from service for medical reasons, though I've not been able to track down the nature of the condition. Incidentally, of the five writers you mentioned originally, only Kurt Vonnegut was born in 1922. The others were born in 1923, 1902, 1923, and 1932, respectively.

[@gaddisthegreat313]

Gaddis The Great!

[@craigpsimpson]

Smoking makes you articulate.

[@BlantonDelbert]

Why was Gaddis not in WWII? He was born in 1922. This was a great year of birth for witers. I think Vonnegut, Mailer, Steinbeck, Heller, and John Updike were all born in this year but I am not sure. I am sure that Vonnegut and Mailer were in WWII.

[@cliffdariff74]

Sadly cigs took the lives of many authors

[@alcoholya]

Death takes 'em all eventually.

[@nem0763]

His prosody reminds me of Hunter S Thompson's. Not a common way of speaking.

[@laserodds6289]

interviewer is wicked Anglo

[@HomeAtLast501]

No "ish" --- it's bad.

[@samferguson9171]

Ingrate

[@nledaig]

He was a very poor speaker.

[@ashwin1322]

Some are more literary than oratory

[@grsvfdsvgvr1]

This interview represents all that is good about youtube. Thanks a lot for posting.

[@bawbtherevelator6445]

Gawd Damn! Gaddis' image or the two 7-year old with a stolen car - 1 steering, 1 working the gas and brakes - fits the 2021 USA perfectly. I need to read "JR" and "Carpenter's Gothic" ASAP. LOL!!!

[@ajithpr4909]

True❤️

[@Johnconno]

​@@bawbtherevelator6445Is it about the long 2:5 s it about the long running television series Dallas? Set in your America.

[@micah_mudflaps]

“The NRA is incredibly strong, and I don’t understand why any congressman won’t stand up and say ‘Why don’t we license guns the way we license dogs and cars’” Oh, Will, you ain’t seen nothin yet.

[@hanpfaall]

The Recognitions is a masterpiece!

[@cometcourse381]

indeed it is, and JR is even better

[@VisualFeast7557]

It is always great to hear that great writers like Jean-Paul Sartre, Thomas Mann, and William Gaddis had visited my country (Lithuania).

[@ballerinawallenberg]

You're the best for posting this. I love William Gaddis and I never thought I'd get to see him being interviewed. You're as amazing as him for posting this.

[@rickallen9099]

That's a bit much.

[@JOHNNYBOYCIVIELLO]

gaddis è stato un grandissimo scrittore. Mi dispiace molto che in italia sia sconosciuto.

[@enigma9306]

I love the way he talks. The stuttering and in between it a brilliant eloquence which is just so gravitating

[@nightjarflying]

During high school, he contracted an unidentified disease that dropped his weight to 79 pounds. The treatment for this caused kidney dysfunction, which rendered him unfit to serve in WWII.

[@drexvo5544]

The same disease Wyatt from the recognitions has in chapter 1

[@eskybakzu712]

@@drexvo5544 I think he goes by Stephan now, or was it Stephen ...

[@MrDomenic1974]

this is a special thing to view for me for many reasons... many thanks for making it available on YT

[@sdlkfjhhdfjg]

I can't believe I'm finally hearing him talk... Great upload.

[@Resenbrink]

I wonder how many people bought one of his novels and never finished reading it.

[@sirsurfalot2012]

He influenced Pynchon they say which would make him one of the majors in that feat alone wouldn't it?

[@OttoIncandenza]

sirsurfalot2012 if you read the recognitions i think a serious argument can be made that it’s superior to gravity’s rainbow.

[@Abhishek-fe3zs]

@@OttoIncandenza I haven't read either but how would you say it stacks up against Infinite Jest in terms of difficulty as of course artistic merit is all very subjective

[@NKRevolution]

@@OttoIncandenza oh hell no

[@BlantonDelbert]

Thank-you very much for explaining that situation to me.

[@ScisMacGillicutty]

-THANK YOU! the man threatened. ;)

[@scottbowers8497]

Thank you very much

[@spookydakota]

GREAT!

[@cerzule]

Thank you!

[@d.m.palmer9900]

Thanks for sharing this.

[@quagapp]

Gaddis wasn't in WW2 because he WAS WW2.

[@xenos82]

Thanks for posting this.

[@robertsendrovskis6368]

Crispin Glover.

[@NorthCentralDogWalker]

finally!

[@wasteyelo1]

Is Recognitions out of print or something? Surely not. I ask because I can't find it any where for less the £11. I realise I probably sound like a right cheapskate but, times is hard. :-)

[@MrBINGEBOY]

Love hear the lighter flicks. These dudes don’t stop smoking.

[@genewakefield3757]

...America to be the way I want it...instead of the way you want it?

[@adexperutrade]

Amazing they both smoking in this interview....

[@MJB0625]

Heller was in World War II. Updike was twelve when the war ended.

[@mrJohnDesiderio]

Damn! I need a smoke!

[@mattmacneil3424]

28:50 hell yeah

[@ryanjavierortega8513]

Ha! A Crimson Man, I believe.

[@orchestralmaneuversinthelight]

thanks for this!

[@BlurryDilemma]

One of my great ancestors. Such a strong bloodline that it feels you with pride.

[@DireKwanzaaquences]

Gaddis graduated from high school in 1941, and then attended Harvard, where he Lampooned rather than bayonetted.

[@BlantonDelbert]

So, he graduates in the spring of '41 then there is Pearl Habor and we enter WWII. Why was Gaddis not in WWII?

[@dirtycelinefrenchman]

Gaddis speaking elsewhere: “My only real advice is to stop smoking and take care of your teeth. That’s the only tangible advice I can give to any young person.”

[@dirtycelinefrenchman]

No gun control but at least America reigned in its Pentagon spending and curved the grossest excessives of its rapacious finance sector

[@traplordhentaimaster1633]

Yoooo he just straight up lit that match and started smoking lmfaoo o🤣🤣 what a G