Merry Pranksters..

[sconnie420]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merry_Pranksters

i just posted about these guys in another thread and I have only recently heard about them.. I thought i would share the info w/ anyone interested. i have yet to watch the documentary.

these guys are a Ok in my book..

 

[laugh]

yeh im yet to get a copy of the bus trip vid which is apparently now available, one day il cough up the money.
have you read 'the electric kool-aid acid test' by tom wolfe? if you have not i highly recommend it! 'hells angels' by hunter s thompson is another good read about them.

 

[biffhenderson]

Definitely track this documentary down about the original LSD-fueled bus trip in 1964. For you youngsters who don't know your history, this is where the term "trip" came from.

 

[Incunabula]

fuck the movie, read the book:
wikipedia.org/The_Electric_Kool-Aid_Acid_Test

 

[ParappaTheRapper]

Definitely track this documentary down about the original LSD-fueled bus trip in 1964. For you youngsters who don't know your history, this is where the term "trip" came from.

Yea. My favorite scene is when they trip out and film the invention of tye-dye in that pond.

 

[TangerinO]

Yea. My favorite scene is when they trip out and film the invention of tye-dye in that pond.

They invented tye-dye? That's awesome.

 

[PriestTheyCalledHim]

fuck the movie, read the book:
wikipedia.org/The_Electric_Kool-Aid_Acid_Test

Yes, also read biographies about the bisexual Neal Cassady.

Ken Kesey's literature is pretty cool too and it goes beyond "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest".

 

[laugh]

what a scene maaan.
imagine seeing that bus rolling through your town today with speakers blaring, could only imagine what it would have been like way back then haha

Yes, also read biographies about the bisexual Neal Cassady.

i never heard that before, i bet it was ginsberg, or burroughs that turned him.

 

[sconnie420]

what a scene maaan.
imagine seeing that bus rolling through your town today with speakers blaring, could only imagine what it would have been like way back then haha.

Hell yeah it would.

Especially, knowing what's to come..

 

[sconnie420]

Ya, I know lsd distribution wouldve happened w/ or wo them... I just find it interesting is all..

 

[Roger&Me]

fuck the movie, read the book:
wikipedia.org/The_Electric_Kool-Aid_Acid_Test

Meh, Tom Wolfe totally didn't get it. The whole book centers on Kesey, who he imagined to be the driving force of the whole scene, but the lifeblood of the pranksters was really Neal Cassady... Kesey was more of a benefactor and facilitator. That key point doesn't come across at all in the book, and in fact the reader comes away from it thinking that Kesey was some type of messiah to the other pranksters. Which is far from the truth.

Of course the book is a classic, and I give it props for what it is. But accurate it is not.

Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test is by Kesey, not Wolfe.

Dafuq are you talking about?

The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test is a work of literary journalism by Tom Wolfe

But yeah, fuck the documentaries

"Magic trip" isn't a documentary, its the footage that was actually shot by the Pranksters on their trip across the country. The very same trip that Electric Kool Aid Acid Test talks about for the majority of the book. There are people who have literally been waiting 40+ years for that footage to be released, so mad props to Zane Kesey for getting it made into a feature film.

All this talk of "yeah documentary/video/youtube clip"... The Merry Praksters were an off-shoot of the Beats, some of whom produced some excellent literature (Kesey's example cited by another user is my favourite of the lot).

The pranksters were technological optimists in every sense of the word, and their whole purpose in shooting their film was to move beyond written literature as a primary means of artistic expression. I think they would delight in how the internet provides instant access to video footage.

 

[sconnie420]

Oh man don't get me wrong I wasn't telling you you'd re-invented the wheel at all, just saying that their literature IMO is more interesting than a documentary. But then reading isn't for everybody...

As lame as I may be , I only heard about the pranksters maybe a week ago.. Ill take any suggestions for a good read on them, I just haven't looked in2 it as much as I want to..

 

[lastest]

i never heard that before, i bet it was ginsberg, or burroughs that turned him.

In On the Road Keroac heavily implies that Dean Moriaty (based on Cassady) had a sexual relationship with Carlo Marx (based on Ginsburg). It's something that is made more explicit in the recent film adaptation. Checking wikipedia just now confirms that it's undisputed and Cassady and Ginsburg were lovers for a long time. I'm not aware of any suggestion of such a relationship between Cassady and Burroughs - WSB wasn't as enamoured of Cassady as the other beats were.

I wouldn't say Ginsburg 'turned' Cassady - I'm pretty sure Cassady was always someone that'd fuck anyone that interested him, without consideration of gender.

 

[sconnie420]

Only reason I actually heard about them is because I just acquired a piece of art from kesey's son.. We've also bought blotter art from him..

 

[Foreigner]

I want to watch this, and read the books too. In today's world that bus would be confiscated and they'd be thrown in jail by the DEA, or Homeland Security!

 

[sconnie420]

I could be wrong but I heard they're still active, although I'm sure the bus isn't in use anymore.
Wish they would come 2 my town..
I agree though, I want to read the books and watch the movies..

 

[laugh]

Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test is by Kesey, not Wolfe.

wrong...it's mainly about kesey once he gets out of jail for growing hemp but it is written by wolfe.

"Hell's Angels" is, strangely enough, about the eponymous motorcycle gang.

who would have thought hey, its about the angels...there is also a whole chapter dedicated to an acid test at keseys farm in la honda...worth a read if you are into the pranksters.

pontifex you sound like a real douche...you have only contributed to this thread to cut people down and imply you are past and beyond beat literature...your location reads; on a forum full of paranoid crack addicts...you sir are an idiot! i mean sorry i just got past my teens, not sure that wiki is the best reference but yeh...haha wow, i just re read all your posts and you seriously come across as a clown...do you attempt to come across as stuck up and arrogant or its just natural for you. i can safely say you would have never been 'on the bus'.
i doubt you would be able to wrap your ego around any of the beat literature...kerouac would be pissing himself to hear a little prick like you doesn't get his work haha.

In On the Road Keroac heavily implies that Dean Moriaty (based on Cassady) had a sexual relationship with Carlo Marx (based on Ginsburg). It's something that is made more explicit in the recent film adaptation.

i couldn't remember that part, its been a while since i read on the road and haven't seen the flick. cassidy what a freak he had squeezes all over the place!

i agree with Roger&Me that cassidy was no doubt the spark of the group and probably the scene but i imagine kesey as the father figure that kept some stability which allowed the group to carry on for as long as it did...hell his son zane is still pushing the scene now and so he should!

 

[Delsyd]

Magic Trip is available on Netflix instant streaming thing. It was an awesome movie to watch. I love the part where they go swimming at a black beach without realizing it at first.
If you've read the electric kool aid acid test you'll love the movie.

I love the pranksters and what they stood for. Ive had the opportunity to meet ken Keseys son Zane and some of the modern pranksters and they're a lovely bunch. Still very much huge fans of good LSD

 

[Delsyd]

Yes, also read biographies about the bisexual Neal Cassady.

Ken Kesey's literature is pretty cool too and it goes beyond "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest".

Cassidy did have sexual experiences with Ginsberg (so did Kerouac). But he also loved poontang. I believe him and Kerouac even shared women. It was a time of exploration and the lines between gay and straight were very blurry.

 

[effingcustie]

Yes, also read biographies about the bisexual Neal Cassady.

Ken Kesey's literature is pretty cool too and it goes beyond "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest".

Kind of off topic with the rest of the thread but IMO "Sometimes a Great Notion" blows away Cuckoo's Nest.. just takes a little longer to get through, but it is definitely one of my alltime favorite novels.