Jack Kerouac

12 Stories

Letter That Inspired Beat Lit Resurfaces After 50 Years

Kerouac thought Cassady letter fell off houseboat

(Newser) - The letter that Jack Kerouac says inspired the spontaneous style of On the Road and later works—spawning the genre of Beat literature in the process—has resurfaced after having been believed lost for nearly 50 years. Kerouac believed the 16,000-word letter Neal Cassady wrote describing a drug-fueled visit...

On the Road's 'Camille' Dead at 90

 On the Road's 
 'Camille' 
 Dead at 90 
obituary
Sep 24, 2013 9:37 AM CDT

On the Road's 'Camille' Dead at 90

Carolyn Cassady was married to Neal for roughly 15 years

(Newser) - Carolyn Cassady, a key figure in the Beat Generation of writers—both as character and author—has died at age 90 after slipping into a coma following an emergency appendectomy, the New York Times reports. Cassady, who inspired the character of Camille in Jack Kerouac's On the Road, was...

On the Road Debuts at Cannes

Kerouac adaptation 30 years in the making debuts

(Newser) - The film adaptation of On the Road has finally reached the screen, more than 30 years after producer Roman Coppola bought the rights to Jack Kerouac's Beat Generation classic. The movie, which stars Sam Riley, Garrett Hedlund, Kristen Stewart, and Kirsten Dunst, made its debut at the Cannes film...

Lost Jack Kerouac Novel 'The Sea Is My Brother' Published
 Lost Kerouac 
 Book Published 
Nov 25, 2011 3:54 AM CST

Lost Kerouac Book Published

Author was just 20 when he penned The Sea Is My Brother in 1942

(Newser) - Jack Kerouac's first novel is hitting bookstores 42 years after the death of the Beat Generation icon and nearly 70 years after he wrote it. The On the Road author was just 20 years old when he wrote The Sea Is My Brother, which deals with his experiences as...

The Strange Story of Jack Kerouac's Estate

A mama's boy, a will that's a forgery, and '100 Greek relatives'

(Newser) - When Jack Kerouac died, wallowing in alcohol and obscurity, the bank estimated his estate’s value at $1. He left everything to his mother, and when she died, she left it to Kerouac’s third wife, Stella Sampas—or so everyone believed. Recently a Florida court ruled Gabrielle Kerouac's will...

5 Sexiest Writers in History

(Newser) - The Pulitzer is fine and all, but James Brady Ryan issues a different sort of a honor in Nerve. The five sexiest authors of all time:
  • Sylvia Plath: A tragic figure for sure, but still a beauty.
  • Jack Kerouac: So he’s a little bit of a cliché at this
...

Need a Blurb? Meet the Usual Suspects
Need a Blurb?
Meet the Usual Suspects
OPINION
Jan 7, 2009 5:43 PM CST

Need a Blurb? Meet the Usual Suspects

New writers' book jackets reveal the top 10 lazy comparisons

(Newser) - Blurbs for hot new writers' books unfailingly liken them to a handful of known quantities, Chris Rovzar observes in New York. Here are some of the most-abused blurb comparisons:
  • F. Scott Fitzgerald or Edith Wharton. Writing about crumbling, decadent high society? "If you're a boy, you're Scott; if you're
...

Would Kerouac Be a Nuppie?
 Would Kerouac
 Be a Nuppie? 
OPINION
May 25, 2008 2:53 PM CDT

Would Kerouac Be a Nuppie?

Designers making it easier for nomadic urban professionals to get on the road

(Newser) - The evolving lifestyle of nuppies—nomadic urban professionals—and upscale designers' efforts to outfit them catch the attention of Greg Beato, writing in Reason. Casulo, a trunk "crammed with enough stylish furniture to outfit a studio apartment," is one such easily transported option; a pair of mobile homes...

50 Favorite Cult Books
50 Favorite
Cult Books 
Apr 27, 2008 10:53 AM CDT

50 Favorite Cult Books

From Hunter to Ayn, the Telegraph lists books you can 'wear like a leather jacket'

(Newser) - It’s hard to define the "cult" book, but the Telegraph compiled 50 of the top contenders that “rewire your head.”
  • The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test by Tom Wolfe (1968)
  • Baby and Child Care by Dr Benjamin Spock (1946)
  • Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse (1922)
  • The Fountainhead by
...

On the Road Scroll on Display
On the Road Scroll on Display
Mar 9, 2008 6:30 PM CDT

On the Road Scroll on Display

Visitors can see the scroll of Kerouac's classic novel

(Newser) - Beat lovers can check out the manuscript of Jack Kerouac's classic novel On the Road at the University of Texas, where it is displayed complete with scribbles and scratch outs. A long glass case allows visitors to view about a third of the book, which was written uninterrupted in a...

Kerouac Was Klutzy Fatalist, Tragic Goofball

For On the Road 's 50th, friends remember the real Jack

(Newser) - For today’s 50th anniversary of On the Road’s publication, Slate canvassed some of Jack Kerouac’s associates, creating a dramatic and nostalgic picture. The poet’s agent remembers he was thrown for a loop by the “demon” of “public reaction, celebrity,” and Carolyn Cassady recalls...

Texas Builds an Ultimate Archive
Texas Builds an Ultimate Archive
Jun 17, 2007 4:00 PM CDT

Texas Builds an Ultimate Archive

(Newser) - Start with 48 Gutenberg Bibles—yes, count 'em, 48. Move on to the corrected proofs of Joyce's Ulysses and then to part of Kerouac's original manuscript for On the Road.  Then finish up with Woodward and Bernstein's Watergate notes. These items and much, much more are in the Harry...

12 Stories