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p.s. Hey. ** Steve Erickson, Hi. Oh, is that true about Gordon’s doc about Jonas Mekas? What a shame and a golden wasted opportunity. What’s awful about it? I saw on FB that your mom had to stay in the hospital overnight. I really hope she’s much improved today. Everyone, Mr. Erickson thoughts are now weighed in on the new conversion therapy-focused film ‘Boy Erased’ here, and on the new project by Again Me! singer Laura Jane Grace aka Devouring Mothers and their first LP ‘Brought to Rot’ here. As always, do yourselves a couple of favors and click those green ‘heres’. ** David Ehrenstein, Hi, D. Oh, nice that you know Molinaro’s work. Yes, yes, the Thousand Oaks shooting was all over the news here. It just never ends. ** Tosh Berman, Howdy, Tosh! My great pleasure, as always in those new discovery situations. Brit Pop had some keepers. Two or three of the Blur albums are most excellent, for instance. ** Keyaon, I can’t remember the last time I drank a singular coffee. It seems to have come down to solid or not. Over here, given France’s high standards on the coffee front, Starbucks’ wannabe status is fully exposed as shit. I feel like when I get neurotic now, it’s more like I’m in a situation where my standards are too high. To me Jesus has always seemed like the bass player of some 1970s blues-rock band like Foghat or whoever that got sent back to ancient-ville in a Time Machine or something. What kind of business? Mine is the same old same old same old. ** _Black_Acrylic, Okay, interesting about your current assignment. What a face on that fascist. He doesn’t look like a guy who would have been a leader, but Gerry of Gerry and the Pacemakers doesn’t look like he would have been a pop star and yet he sort of briefly was. Curious to hear what he does too your words. ** Bill, Hi! Ah, good, I’m glad the post was interesting to you in very particular. Cool, Whew. Yes, I can tell you that the SF ‘PGL’ screening will occur in early February. That’s locked down, but the actual date and venue, etc. remain mysterious. So, it’s happening! ** Corey Heiferman, Great, thank you, score. A VIP movie thing with an unlimited buffet! Wow, I know the comfy chairs, no ads, plus personal film introduction by an usher kind, but a bottomless buffet, that’s sweet. Ah, the custom game is a really good gift. Can hardly think of anything better really. That guy’s a keeper. My weekend? Lots of TV script work. Coffee with my literary agent who’s popping through Paris. She always wants to meet at Cafe Flore, which is so corny and literary tourist-y, but sweet. Seeing the new Claire Denis film. That’s the totality from my currently forward looking perspective. Enjoy your reading and wandering. Ricardo Montalban! Ha ha, no, I have not, but I will give it a shot. Huh. Usually when I devote posts to characters like that — I did a Don Knotts Day, for instance — the subject needs to have had a surprising career in some way and ideally have at least briefly dipped into doing their thing in art/serious films, which RM could easily have done. Okay, yes, I’ll go hunt. Thanks for the curious idea! ** Okay. I made a new gif fiction work. As always with my gif fiction works, they make their world debuts here for better or worse. If you’re the type who finds my gif fictions interesting or exciting or curiously vexing or pleasant or so on, please enjoy. Feedback of any sort is always lovely but in no way required or expected. See you tomorrow.
Now available in North America 
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Here (at last) is my piece on “The Other Side of The Wind”
This Blog is The GIF that Keeps On GIFING
Though this is focused around rhythm and the interaction between motion in GIFs which are next to each other, some of the lines here are great: “Thanks for reblogging my nudes,” “I have death in a coffin.”
When I interviewed Pascal Greggory yesterday, he seemed most animated either talking about CEUX QUI ON’AIMENT or cinephilia. (He likes Carax and Hong a lot, and he thinks debut films are often directors’ best.) However, he didn’t reveal much about his life with Patrice Chereau. When I asked him why his performance sticks to Chereau’s work as an artist and doesn’t address their life together, he said “Because I’m a prude…the letters about our relationship together are only interesting to me and him.” His one performance in a music video took place when rapper Diam’s approached him first about acting in it. He said he doesn’t like most French hip-hop, but her music is an exception, and he liked breaking a TV at the end of the video. I haven’t finished transcribing the interview, but this will be published in Kinoscope a week from today.
My mom is doing better. Her heartbeat finally slowed back to normal yesterday evening. She’s waiting for a doctor’s evaluation now, and hopefully she can be released this morning. But she’s 82, and at that age ordinary surgery can have unforeseen consequences. Last February she fell off a ladder and broke her knee, which might not have happened were she younger.
The Gordon film starts in complete darkness with Mekas reading from his book I HAD NOWHERE TO GO. But it quickly starts messing with the soundtrack, putting weird, possibly dub-inspired effects on Mekas’ voice and throwing in sound effects that sound like they were copied from a Michael Bay war film. This feels grossly manipulative and obscures one’s ability to actually listen to his prose, which is the most interesting part of the film. Then the film starts including seemingly random images to break up the darkness. The aesthetic behind that isn’t thought out at all.
One more review published this week, on the Coen brothers’ THE BALLAD OF BUSTER SCRUGGS (barely getting an American theatrical release despite the Coens’ track record, thanks to the fact that Netflix produced and distributed it): https://www.gaycitynews.nyc/stories/2018/23/scruggs-film-2018-11-08-gcn.html
I live in one of my parents lake places right now and I have all the second-best appliances, like my wee-little coffee-pot. It makes awful tasting coffee. I try to not drink coffee after noon or I will be up all night. Paris is a funny place, I usually get the best coffee from the multi-purpose machines in the hotels, probably because the machines are new and I like a very clean espresso. Haha, last time I was there, I kept getting that my Sauconys were haute-coiture lol. I was like, “Yes hunty, werk.” Also my new favorite character, the helpful, probably servent-girl or exchange student, “Can I help you?” I would go to buy milk every morning and the man at the grocery thought I was ill. J’adore. “to find all things, killed…” and “so much for the afterglow…” A subject is typically “hysterisized” or “neurotized” in the presence of a phobic object, or a situation that reveals the devouring mother or das ding. Basically a lack of control in the mastery/repetition game or the recreation of trauma game. No need, leaves demand and desire. The demand drives will typically create a feeling of disappointment. It’s probably just because so much stuff sucks so bad. That’s why here at the Keaton Institute for Analicktic Cures, there is a candy-bowl of various candies at the office door and several new sexual-objects waiting as you leave. Haha, I get wound up and play with weapons these days. Haha, Jesus as Leeland Skylar. Love it, thats so funny. I saw a young Tom Petty playing bass in the background one time and almost pooed. Back to life business, new job, new town. If things work out I’ll be right back on the Gulf but in a more southern and smaller city. I hope it all works out. I’m ready to be a beach bum again without all the bar stuff and all that. I’m calling my sex-life a success and giving up the drinking and chasing. A little vampire will lock on in no time. Also writing a new story, its a tough one because its potentially highly racist and im not racist but the story is, so im writing it very carefully and also its a decor heavy kind of story. Gifs! I’m down. I’ll bet youre doing crazy shit with these now.
Well, Dennis, when it comes to these GIF days, I usually prefer to wait until they’re released in the GIF book format (and can be appreciated in a larger context) before I comment on them. Nice to see some GIFS from the film IT in today’s entry though, ha ha.
After a 6 month hiatus, I’m back to creative writing again. I’ve decided to start small, and plan on adding one or two more short stories to my 3rd short story collection (which I won’t be able to seek a publisher for for awhile, because one of the stories is being published as a chapbook next year, and I’ll have to wait a year after that until it can be published elsewhere… you know how these things work, though). The one I’m doing now is called “The Quadrivial Stigmata” though that might change at some point. I’ve only done a few pages so far but already it’s shaping up to be pretty deranged, ha ha.
(One reason I was on such a long hiatus was because the hour or so a day I usually devote to writing was being spent watching things like Dennis Potter shows or TWIN PEAKS, but having finished watching TWIN PEAKS earlier this week I have more free time now).
Magnificent work Dennis! This may sound odd, but for the first time going through your GIF novel (or short story/GIF) I thought of is my dad’s (Wallace Berman, for those who are reading the comments) work with his grid transistor radio pieces – they have a similar editing that reminds me of your work. The works are totally different, theme and format, but I feel that there is a sense of movement in Wallace’s work, specifically his grid-like handheld transistor radio with the images bouncing off each other. This, is my perspective. But for me, it’s a nice thought of a relationship between two works. Great blog today!
Blur is overall, fantastic. Which comes to mind I just heard the new ‘The Good, The Bad & The Queen’ songs/video, which I find interesting. I think due to my interest in post-war London culture. Have you seen their video? Puppet imagery in a very British Music Hall sensibility.
Hi!!
First of all, it was such a treat to return here and find a new GIF piece! And what a GIF piece! I loved it so, so much – it gave me tons of SCAB feelings and I mean it as the utmost praise, really! Congratulations!!
How are you, Dennis? How was your week? How’s the TV script coming along?
I do hope you’ll like Dragula if/when you get around to checking it out! I don’t actually like the whole reality show thing, I mean the genre itself, but Drag Race and Dragula are sweet exceptions.
Holy crap! What chocolates! Which one was your favorite? How was the one from Ecuador?
Eh, my foot is finally better but I’m still sick. I’m coughing like crazy, etc. I’m pretty bored of having all these health problems like… ALWAYS but otherwise I’ve been in a good mood all week. It’s hard to understand how my brain works, haha. Anyway, now it’s even better because it’s Friday night and I have two whole days to read and watch movies and maybe even write a little.
Have you read ‘So Sad Today’ by Melissa Broder?
Have an amazing weekend, Dennis! See you on Monday!!
Ooh a new gif fiction! The Charges seems a little more playful although having just reread it, maybe only a very little. I say playful because I was really drawn to the bouncing cartoony lovehearts that pop up partway through. Those and the middle finger gestures, to my eyes it reads as fun.
The short story writing course notes that we were given make mention of characterisation, setting and plot, so I’m thinking a more conventional approach might be in order. It could still be a fun exercise, though. I’ve spent much of the day contemplating this and will get a few more words down over the coming weekend. An honest hard working tradesman who’s really a wannabe fascist, maybe that’s a story idea there?
Dennis, I really enjoyed that. But you know I love your gif fiction. This one made me laugh – your most comical one so far I think. Having a coffee with your agent at Cafe Flores sounds very charming to me. I would have loved to have been there, touristy or not. My last visit with my former agent on MERCURY’S CHOICE (before she left town) was at French Roast outside, so we could smoke. Those were the days. Amazon has been having some delays, but it says your copy should arrive on Tuesday – I hope that’s true. They sold out of their first batch, my publisher told me. Very exciting time here. Feeling so good and will try to sleep through your response today…I need my sleep desperately, haha. Even posting this is a big risk…I’m such a vulnerable being these days, but enjoying it.
Hey Dennis, your approach to the gif pieces continues to evolve in interesting ways. I do like how the whitespace guides the pacing. There are some standout lines this time, and more still images than I remember from previous pieces? I tend to pause at these; wonder if that’s what you intended.
We’re getting choked with smoke from the wildfires today. At least it’s conducive to staying indoors and reading, haha. Just finished Charles Lambert’s The Children’s Home, very enjoyable. And a long weekend coming up, yay.
There’s a pretty decent chance I’ll be around in February. Will you be in SF for the screening?
Bill
I just googled to see if anyone had said anything about The Children’s Home recently and when I saw a link to Dennis Cooper’s blog I was thrilled because I’ve loved DC since I first read him in the early 80s – Idols (I have a signed and dedicated copy, where he tells me to read John Wieners. Believe me, I do!). I’m a little disappointed the comment didn’t come from the man himself, but I’m delighted to have got this close. Thank you for liking the book, Bill.
I really enjoyed this! At first I was thinking of writing about a few GIFs that stood out to me,, but each time I go back to it something new stands out. The quick takeaway that’s bubbling to mind is that to me it portrays cute suffering. It reminds me of times when I semi-consciously wished more suffering on other people or myself just to make things cuter and more interesting–a “no pain no gain” attitude that I guess is the aesthetic equivalent of the gym, though I guess the idea with the gym is you make yourself suffer for like 5% of your life so you can walk around like a demigod the rest of the time, while aesthetic suffering seems like the opposite ratio.
I hope your meeting with your agent did/will go well. I always find myself enjoying touristy spots I normally avoid like a plague when I’m there with somebody else from out of town who enjoys them. Ooh new Claire Denis film, I’ll have to keep on the lookout.
Yesterday I spontaneously decided to do a deep cleaning and rearranging of my flat. While I doubt many people besides Martha Stewart actually enjoy this process, I feel like it’s especially hard for me because I’m an indecisive person with poor spatial skills and motor coordination. Thus, I block out several more hours than necessary even though it’s a small flat. Nevertheless it’s done, and I woke up this morning with a weird feeling that somebody else was here rearranging, as if it were somehow somebody besides me who put the things where they best serve me rather than wherever chaos deposits them.
Now I’m about to get off my screens, enjoy the quiet, and keep finding fun ways to get better at Hebrew. My street is extremely noisy during the week because it’s a very densely populated narrow one-way street that many drivers use as a shortcut, there’s construction everywhere, and an elementary school full of screaming children who add higher-pitched wavelengths to the mix. However, on Shabbat (Friday afternoon/early evening through Saturday evening) you can hear a pin drop. It’s not a particularly religious neighborhood, but that’s just the way Shabbat is in Jewish neighborhoods in Israel (except for perhaps the very center of Tel Aviv) because most stores are closed, there are many fewer vehicles on the road (no trucks, the religious people don’t drive at all, and the secular people are likely chilling at home anyhow, and if they are driving it’s like to a movie theater or to visit family, not like they’re circling around running errands and honking at each other).