>>> > Okay, for starters, Jack Kerouac was born and raised in a culture where
>>> > alcohol consumption was a part of everyday life... his parents were both
>>> > alcoholic AND devout Catholics.
>>> >
>>> > For starters.
>>> >
>>> > Yes, I can verify this with references, I've read and studied the poetry and
>>> > life of Jack Kerouac steadily since 1973.
>>> >
>>> > So, a little history on the French-Canadian culture Kerouac was born into,
>>> > and raised in, that included that element from Europe that placed alcohol
>>> > consumption as part of everyday life in the family:
>>> >
>>> > ===========================================================
>>> >
>>> > From: Subterranean Kerouac: The Hidden Life of Jack Kerouac
>>> > By Ellis Amburn ISBN: 0-312-14531-4
>>> >
>>> > https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/books/first/a/amburn-kerouac.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
>>> >
>>> > "Kerouac, who began life as a poor mill-town boy in Lowell, Massachusetts,
>>> > unfortunately never lived long enough to see his... claims borne out [...]
>>> > Ms. Wood came upon the coat of arms at Chateau de Kerouartz, she discovered
>>> > a silver sable, three iron crosses, and the motto, "Tout en l'honneur de
>>> > Dieu" ("All in the name of God") [...] sum up Kerouac's brief but
>>> > fascinating life, which was passionate, productive, painful, and pious. But
>>> > neither begins to suggest the transformative effect that Kerouac had on
>>> > modern society. Only in the 1990s, nearly forty years after the publication
>>> > of On the Road, would he come to be recognized as one of the major novelists
>>> > of the twentieth century... Unfortunately, when I knew him in his last
>>> > years, he was unread and forgotten."
>>> >
>>> > Early spiritual beliefs and eclectic style of Jack Kerouac's family:
>>> >
>>> > "According to Jack Kerouac's certificate of baptism, Rev. D. W. Boisvert
>>> > baptized him as Jean Louis Kirouac on March 19, 1922, at the Parish of Saint
>>> > Louis-de-France, in Centralville. This odd-looking subterranean church was
>>> > originally the basement of what had been planned as a grand cathedral, but
>>> > the poor Franco-Americans of Centralville had never been able to complete
>>> > it. As a result, one walks down to the auditorium, rather than up, as if
>>> > entering hell rather than heaven..."
>>> >
>>> > "Kerouac's mother Gabrielle was convinced that his brother Gerard was a
>>> > saint [...] Kerouac was still talking about it in the mid-1960s, when he
>>> > told his Florida friend, Ron Lowe, 'I swear to God, small birds would even
>>> > light on Gerard's outstretched hands as he stood at the window.' [...]
>>> > Gerard absolutely doted on Ti Jean...Gerard was convinced that the Virgin
>>> > Mary herself had appointed him Ti Jean's protector [...] Just before the
>>> > end, Gerard said he'd seen a vision while sitting in catechism class at
>>> > Saint Louis-de-France. The Virgin Mary appeared to him, her robes billowing
>>> > behind her, held aloft by thousands of bluebirds. Then he saw himself
>>> > ascending to heaven in a white wagon pulled by snowy lambs. Coming out of
>>> > his trance, he told a startled nun that she should never again be afraid of
>>> > anything, because everyone was already in heaven, though no one knew it.
>>> > "All is well," he added. "Practice kindness. Heaven is nigh." [...]
>>> > Convinced he was a saint, nuns from school hovered about his bed and
>>> > recorded his dying words, which concerned "the unreality of death (and life
>>> > too)... the calm hand of God everywhere slowly benedicting." Gerard's
>>> > "visions," as filtered through Gabrielle's superstitious Canuck mind, became
>>> > the bedrock of Kerouac's adult philosophy, bolstered by his discovery of
>>> > Buddhism and his continuing faith in what he called "my sweet Christ."
>>> >
>>> > "Jack Kerouac forged his belief that the ultimate answer is to be found in
>>> > the shimmering golden emptiness of the here and now, a concept in which
>>> > eternity and the present moment are one and the same. In the 1960s, as
>>> > Kerouac evolved into the spiritual leader of the Beat Generation (along with
>>> > Allen Ginsberg), he returned again and again to Gerard, his childhood
>>> > inspiration. "I marvel at my love for him," he wrote thirty years after his
>>> > brother's death. According to Gerard's death certificate, he expired at
>>> > 11:45 P.M. on June 2, 1926. It was a significant date in American letters,
>>> > for Gerard would haunt the life and work of Jack Kerouac..."
>>> >
>>> > Alcoholic culture of the Jack Kerouac's family. This section is significant,
>>> > and helps understand Kerouac, where he came from and his tragic fate:
>>> >
>>> > "Jack Kerouac's ancestors emigrated from France to Canada. Then, in 1890,
>>> > tired of scratching potatoes from the frozen soil of Quebec, they drifted to
>>> > New England and found work in the mill towns along the Concord and Merrimack
>>> > Rivers, where the Industrial Revolution had begun earlier in the nineteenth
>>> > century... The French Canadians were called Canucks, and spoke a crude
>>> > patois, joual, which led to their being scorned as outsiders. They lived in
>>> > ghettos called 'Little Canadas'... For the despised Canucks, survival became
>>> > a mystique. They called it 'la survivance.' [...] Drinking was one method of
>>> > survival, and alcoholism ran in the Kerouac family. Jean-Baptiste loved
>>> > vodka, and made it from potato peels. His son, Leo, Jack Kerouac's father,
>>> > born in 1889, was also a drunk. Leo was blue-eyed, black-haired, and
>>> > handsome--five-foot-seven and two hundred pounds of solid muscle, including
>>> > a neck worthy of Atlas, and thick eyebrows that darted straight across his
>>> > nose..."
>>> >
>>> > "Cecile Plaud once commented on the striking physical resemblance between
>>> > Jack and his father, citing their black hair, pensive expressions, and
>>> > 'beautifully cut' features. Realizing that Jack was a 'star-crossed victim
>>> > of heredity' filled her with a feeling of 'tragic deja vu.' She feared that
>>> > a hard life was ahead for Jack as the son of an alcoholic [...] Jack's
>>> > mother Gabrielle was also a heavy drinker, and the Kerouac home was often
>>> > the scene of boisterous celebrations, especially after the move from Lupine
>>> > Road to Maiden Lane. On New Year's Eve in 1924, at the stroke of midnight,
>>> > Ti Jean awoke from a deep sleep as his room filled with drunks wearing party
>>> > hats. Laughing and yelling..."
>>> >
>>> > ====================================================

This would go well on the I.S. thread about The Golden One...!

General-Zod wrote:

>>>> > Okay, for starters, Jack Kerouac was born and raised in a culture where
>>>> > alcohol consumption was a part of everyday life... his parents were both
>>>> > alcoholic AND devout Catholics.
>>>> >
>>>> > For starters.
>>>> >
>>>> > Yes, I can verify this with references, I've read and studied the poetry and
>>>> > life of Jack Kerouac steadily since 1973.
>>>> >
>>>> > So, a little history on the French-Canadian culture Kerouac was born into,
>>>> > and raised in, that included that element from Europe that placed alcohol
>>>> > consumption as part of everyday life in the family:
>>>> >
>>>> > ===========================================================
>>>> >
>>>> > From: Subterranean Kerouac: The Hidden Life of Jack Kerouac
>>>> > By Ellis Amburn ISBN: 0-312-14531-4
>>>> >
>>>> > https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/books/first/a/amburn-kerouac.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
>>>> >
>>>> > "Kerouac, who began life as a poor mill-town boy in Lowell, Massachusetts,
>>>> > unfortunately never lived long enough to see his... claims borne out [...]
>>>> > Ms. Wood came upon the coat of arms at Chateau de Kerouartz, she discovered
>>>> > a silver sable, three iron crosses, and the motto, "Tout en l'honneur de
>>>> > Dieu" ("All in the name of God") [...] sum up Kerouac's brief but
>>>> > fascinating life, which was passionate, productive, painful, and pious. But
>>>> > neither begins to suggest the transformative effect that Kerouac had on
>>>> > modern society. Only in the 1990s, nearly forty years after the publication
>>>> > of On the Road, would he come to be recognized as one of the major novelists
>>>> > of the twentieth century... Unfortunately, when I knew him in his last
>>>> > years, he was unread and forgotten."
>>>> >
>>>> > Early spiritual beliefs and eclectic style of Jack Kerouac's family:
>>>> >
>>>> > "According to Jack Kerouac's certificate of baptism, Rev. D. W. Boisvert
>>>> > baptized him as Jean Louis Kirouac on March 19, 1922, at the Parish of Saint
>>>> > Louis-de-France, in Centralville. This odd-looking subterranean church was
>>>> > originally the basement of what had been planned as a grand cathedral, but
>>>> > the poor Franco-Americans of Centralville had never been able to complete
>>>> > it. As a result, one walks down to the auditorium, rather than up, as if
>>>> > entering hell rather than heaven..."
>>>> >
>>>> > "Kerouac's mother Gabrielle was convinced that his brother Gerard was a
>>>> > saint [...] Kerouac was still talking about it in the mid-1960s, when he
>>>> > told his Florida friend, Ron Lowe, 'I swear to God, small birds would even
>>>> > light on Gerard's outstretched hands as he stood at the window.' [...]
>>>> > Gerard absolutely doted on Ti Jean...Gerard was convinced that the Virgin
>>>> > Mary herself had appointed him Ti Jean's protector [...] Just before the
>>>> > end, Gerard said he'd seen a vision while sitting in catechism class at
>>>> > Saint Louis-de-France. The Virgin Mary appeared to him, her robes billowing
>>>> > behind her, held aloft by thousands of bluebirds. Then he saw himself
>>>> > ascending to heaven in a white wagon pulled by snowy lambs. Coming out of
>>>> > his trance, he told a startled nun that she should never again be afraid of
>>>> > anything, because everyone was already in heaven, though no one knew it.
>>>> > "All is well," he added. "Practice kindness. Heaven is nigh." [...]
>>>> > Convinced he was a saint, nuns from school hovered about his bed and
>>>> > recorded his dying words, which concerned "the unreality of death (and life
>>>> > too)... the calm hand of God everywhere slowly benedicting." Gerard's
>>>> > "visions," as filtered through Gabrielle's superstitious Canuck mind, became
>>>> > the bedrock of Kerouac's adult philosophy, bolstered by his discovery of
>>>> > Buddhism and his continuing faith in what he called "my sweet Christ."
>>>> >
>>>> > "Jack Kerouac forged his belief that the ultimate answer is to be found in
>>>> > the shimmering golden emptiness of the here and now, a concept in which
>>>> > eternity and the present moment are one and the same. In the 1960s, as
>>>> > Kerouac evolved into the spiritual leader of the Beat Generation (along with
>>>> > Allen Ginsberg), he returned again and again to Gerard, his childhood
>>>> > inspiration. "I marvel at my love for him," he wrote thirty years after his
>>>> > brother's death. According to Gerard's death certificate, he expired at
>>>> > 11:45 P.M. on June 2, 1926. It was a significant date in American letters,
>>>> > for Gerard would haunt the life and work of Jack Kerouac..."
>>>> >
>>>> > Alcoholic culture of the Jack Kerouac's family. This section is significant,
>>>> > and helps understand Kerouac, where he came from and his tragic fate:
>>>> >
>>>> > "Jack Kerouac's ancestors emigrated from France to Canada. Then, in 1890,
>>>> > tired of scratching potatoes from the frozen soil of Quebec, they drifted to
>>>> > New England and found work in the mill towns along the Concord and Merrimack
>>>> > Rivers, where the Industrial Revolution had begun earlier in the nineteenth
>>>> > century... The French Canadians were called Canucks, and spoke a crude
>>>> > patois, joual, which led to their being scorned as outsiders. They lived in
>>>> > ghettos called 'Little Canadas'... For the despised Canucks, survival became
>>>> > a mystique. They called it 'la survivance.' [...] Drinking was one method of
>>>> > survival, and alcoholism ran in the Kerouac family. Jean-Baptiste loved
>>>> > vodka, and made it from potato peels. His son, Leo, Jack Kerouac's father,
>>>> > born in 1889, was also a drunk. Leo was blue-eyed, black-haired, and
>>>> > handsome--five-foot-seven and two hundred pounds of solid muscle, including
>>>> > a neck worthy of Atlas, and thick eyebrows that darted straight across his
>>>> > nose..."
>>>> >
>>>> > "Cecile Plaud once commented on the striking physical resemblance between
>>>> > Jack and his father, citing their black hair, pensive expressions, and
>>>> > 'beautifully cut' features. Realizing that Jack was a 'star-crossed victim
>>>> > of heredity' filled her with a feeling of 'tragic deja vu.' She feared that
>>>> > a hard life was ahead for Jack as the son of an alcoholic [...] Jack's
>>>> > mother Gabrielle was also a heavy drinker, and the Kerouac home was often
>>>> > the scene of boisterous celebrations, especially after the move from Lupine
>>>> > Road to Maiden Lane. On New Year's Eve in 1924, at the stroke of midnight,
>>>> > Ti Jean awoke from a deep sleep as his room filled with drunks wearing party
>>>> > hats. Laughing and yelling..."
>>>> >
>>>> > ====================================================

> This would go well on the I.S. thread about The Golden One...!

That's true.

General-Zod wrote:

>
>>> > Okay, for starters, Jack Kerouac was born and raised in a culture where
>>>> > alcohol consumption was a part of everyday life... his parents were both
>>>> > alcoholic AND devout Catholics.
>>>> >
>>>> > For starters.
>>>> >
>>>> > Yes, I can verify this with references, I've read and studied the poetry and
>>>> > life of Jack Kerouac steadily since 1973.
>>>> >
>>>> > So, a little history on the French-Canadian culture Kerouac was born into,
>>>> > and raised in, that included that element from Europe that placed alcohol
>>>> > consumption as part of everyday life in the family:
>>>> >
>>>> > ===========================================================
>>>> >
>>>> > From: Subterranean Kerouac: The Hidden Life of Jack Kerouac
>>>> > By Ellis Amburn ISBN: 0-312-14531-4
>>>> >
>>>> > https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/books/first/a/amburn-kerouac.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
>>>> >
>>>> > "Kerouac, who began life as a poor mill-town boy in Lowell, Massachusetts,
>>>> > unfortunately never lived long enough to see his... claims borne out [...]
>>>> > Ms. Wood came upon the coat of arms at Chateau de Kerouartz, she discovered
>>>> > a silver sable, three iron crosses, and the motto, "Tout en l'honneur de
>>>> > Dieu" ("All in the name of God") [...] sum up Kerouac's brief but
>>>> > fascinating life, which was passionate, productive, painful, and pious. But
>>>> > neither begins to suggest the transformative effect that Kerouac had on
>>>> > modern society. Only in the 1990s, nearly forty years after the publication
>>>> > of On the Road, would he come to be recognized as one of the major novelists
>>>> > of the twentieth century... Unfortunately, when I knew him in his last
>>>> > years, he was unread and forgotten."
>>>> >
>>>> > Early spiritual beliefs and eclectic style of Jack Kerouac's family:
>>>> >
>>>> > "According to Jack Kerouac's certificate of baptism, Rev. D. W. Boisvert
>>>> > baptized him as Jean Louis Kirouac on March 19, 1922, at the Parish of Saint
>>>> > Louis-de-France, in Centralville. This odd-looking subterranean church was
>>>> > originally the basement of what had been planned as a grand cathedral, but
>>>> > the poor Franco-Americans of Centralville had never been able to complete
>>>> > it. As a result, one walks down to the auditorium, rather than up, as if
>>>> > entering hell rather than heaven..."
>>>> >
>>>> > "Kerouac's mother Gabrielle was convinced that his brother Gerard was a
>>>> > saint [...] Kerouac was still talking about it in the mid-1960s, when he
>>>> > told his Florida friend, Ron Lowe, 'I swear to God, small birds would even
>>>> > light on Gerard's outstretched hands as he stood at the window.' [...]
>>>> > Gerard absolutely doted on Ti Jean...Gerard was convinced that the Virgin
>>>> > Mary herself had appointed him Ti Jean's protector [...] Just before the
>>>> > end, Gerard said he'd seen a vision while sitting in catechism class at
>>>> > Saint Louis-de-France. The Virgin Mary appeared to him, her robes billowing
>>>> > behind her, held aloft by thousands of bluebirds. Then he saw himself
>>>> > ascending to heaven in a white wagon pulled by snowy lambs. Coming out of
>>>> > his trance, he told a startled nun that she should never again be afraid of
>>>> > anything, because everyone was already in heaven, though no one knew it.
>>>> > "All is well," he added. "Practice kindness. Heaven is nigh." [...]
>>>> > Convinced he was a saint, nuns from school hovered about his bed and
>>>> > recorded his dying words, which concerned "the unreality of death (and life
>>>> > too)... the calm hand of God everywhere slowly benedicting." Gerard's
>>>> > "visions," as filtered through Gabrielle's superstitious Canuck mind, became
>>>> > the bedrock of Kerouac's adult philosophy, bolstered by his discovery of
>>>> > Buddhism and his continuing faith in what he called "my sweet Christ."
>>>> >
>>>> > "Jack Kerouac forged his belief that the ultimate answer is to be found in
>>>> > the shimmering golden emptiness of the here and now, a concept in which
>>>> > eternity and the present moment are one and the same. In the 1960s, as
>>>> > Kerouac evolved into the spiritual leader of the Beat Generation (along with
>>>> > Allen Ginsberg), he returned again and again to Gerard, his childhood
>>>> > inspiration. "I marvel at my love for him," he wrote thirty years after his
>>>> > brother's death. According to Gerard's death certificate, he expired at
>>>> > 11:45 P.M. on June 2, 1926. It was a significant date in American letters,
>>>> > for Gerard would haunt the life and work of Jack Kerouac..."
>>>> >
>>>> > Alcoholic culture of the Jack Kerouac's family. This section is significant,
>>>> > and helps understand Kerouac, where he came from and his tragic fate:
>>>> >
>>>> > "Jack Kerouac's ancestors emigrated from France to Canada. Then, in 1890,
>>>> > tired of scratching potatoes from the frozen soil of Quebec, they drifted to
>>>> > New England and found work in the mill towns along the Concord and Merrimack
>>>> > Rivers, where the Industrial Revolution had begun earlier in the nineteenth
>>>> > century... The French Canadians were called Canucks, and spoke a crude
>>>> > patois, joual, which led to their being scorned as outsiders. They lived in
>>>> > ghettos called 'Little Canadas'... For the despised Canucks, survival became
>>>> > a mystique. They called it 'la survivance.' [...] Drinking was one method of
>>>> > survival, and alcoholism ran in the Kerouac family. Jean-Baptiste loved
>>>> > vodka, and made it from potato peels. His son, Leo, Jack Kerouac's father,
>>>> > born in 1889, was also a drunk. Leo was blue-eyed, black-haired, and
>>>> > handsome--five-foot-seven and two hundred pounds of solid muscle, including
>>>> > a neck worthy of Atlas, and thick eyebrows that darted straight across his
>>>> > nose..."
>>>> >
>>>> > "Cecile Plaud once commented on the striking physical resemblance between
>>>> > Jack and his father, citing their black hair, pensive expressions, and
>>>> > 'beautifully cut' features. Realizing that Jack was a 'star-crossed victim
>>>> > of heredity' filled her with a feeling of 'tragic deja vu.' She feared that
>>>> > a hard life was ahead for Jack as the son of an alcoholic [...] Jack's
>>>> > mother Gabrielle was also a heavy drinker, and the Kerouac home was often
>>>> > the scene of boisterous celebrations, especially after the move from Lupine
>>>> > Road to Maiden Lane. On New Year's Eve in 1924, at the stroke of midnight,
>>>> > Ti Jean awoke from a deep sleep as his room filled with drunks wearing party
>>>> > hats. Laughing and yelling..."
>>>> >
>>>> > ====================================================

> This would go well on the I.S. thread about The Golden One...!

Except for the fact that the "Golden One" thread seems just about defunct.

Remember to try to skip and ignore the troll threads created by NancyGene and Pendragon, or any other of the malicious scumbag trolls.

HTH and HAND.

Will Dockery wrote:

> General-Zod wrote:

>>
>>>> > Okay, for starters, Jack Kerouac was born and raised in a culture where
>>>>> > alcohol consumption was a part of everyday life... his parents were both
>>>>> > alcoholic AND devout Catholics.
>>>>> >
>>>>> > For starters.
>>>>> >
>>>>> > Yes, I can verify this with references, I've read and studied the poetry and
>>>>> > life of Jack Kerouac steadily since 1973.
>>>>> >
>>>>> > So, a little history on the French-Canadian culture Kerouac was born into,
>>>>> > and raised in, that included that element from Europe that placed alcohol
>>>>> > consumption as part of everyday life in the family:
>>>>> >
>>>>> > ===========================================================
>>>>> >
>>>>> > From: Subterranean Kerouac: The Hidden Life of Jack Kerouac
>>>>> > By Ellis Amburn ISBN: 0-312-14531-4
>>>>> >
>>>>> > https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/books/first/a/amburn-kerouac.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
>>>>> >
>>>>> > "Kerouac, who began life as a poor mill-town boy in Lowell, Massachusetts,
>>>>> > unfortunately never lived long enough to see his... claims borne out [...]
>>>>> > Ms. Wood came upon the coat of arms at Chateau de Kerouartz, she discovered
>>>>> > a silver sable, three iron crosses, and the motto, "Tout en l'honneur de
>>>>> > Dieu" ("All in the name of God") [...] sum up Kerouac's brief but
>>>>> > fascinating life, which was passionate, productive, painful, and pious. But
>>>>> > neither begins to suggest the transformative effect that Kerouac had on
>>>>> > modern society. Only in the 1990s, nearly forty years after the publication
>>>>> > of On the Road, would he come to be recognized as one of the major novelists
>>>>> > of the twentieth century... Unfortunately, when I knew him in his last
>>>>> > years, he was unread and forgotten."
>>>>> >
>>>>> > Early spiritual beliefs and eclectic style of Jack Kerouac's family:
>>>>> >
>>>>> > "According to Jack Kerouac's certificate of baptism, Rev. D. W. Boisvert
>>>>> > baptized him as Jean Louis Kirouac on March 19, 1922, at the Parish of Saint
>>>>> > Louis-de-France, in Centralville. This odd-looking subterranean church was
>>>>> > originally the basement of what had been planned as a grand cathedral, but
>>>>> > the poor Franco-Americans of Centralville had never been able to complete
>>>>> > it. As a result, one walks down to the auditorium, rather than up, as if
>>>>> > entering hell rather than heaven..."
>>>>> >
>>>>> > "Kerouac's mother Gabrielle was convinced that his brother Gerard was a
>>>>> > saint [...] Kerouac was still talking about it in the mid-1960s, when he
>>>>> > told his Florida friend, Ron Lowe, 'I swear to God, small birds would even
>>>>> > light on Gerard's outstretched hands as he stood at the window.' [...]
>>>>> > Gerard absolutely doted on Ti Jean...Gerard was convinced that the Virgin
>>>>> > Mary herself had appointed him Ti Jean's protector [...] Just before the
>>>>> > end, Gerard said he'd seen a vision while sitting in catechism class at
>>>>> > Saint Louis-de-France. The Virgin Mary appeared to him, her robes billowing
>>>>> > behind her, held aloft by thousands of bluebirds. Then he saw himself
>>>>> > ascending to heaven in a white wagon pulled by snowy lambs. Coming out of
>>>>> > his trance, he told a startled nun that she should never again be afraid of
>>>>> > anything, because everyone was already in heaven, though no one knew it.
>>>>> > "All is well," he added. "Practice kindness. Heaven is nigh." [...]
>>>>> > Convinced he was a saint, nuns from school hovered about his bed and
>>>>> > recorded his dying words, which concerned "the unreality of death (and life
>>>>> > too)... the calm hand of God everywhere slowly benedicting." Gerard's
>>>>> > "visions," as filtered through Gabrielle's superstitious Canuck mind, became
>>>>> > the bedrock of Kerouac's adult philosophy, bolstered by his discovery of
>>>>> > Buddhism and his continuing faith in what he called "my sweet Christ."
>>>>> >
>>>>> > "Jack Kerouac forged his belief that the ultimate answer is to be found in
>>>>> > the shimmering golden emptiness of the here and now, a concept in which
>>>>> > eternity and the present moment are one and the same. In the 1960s, as
>>>>> > Kerouac evolved into the spiritual leader of the Beat Generation (along with
>>>>> > Allen Ginsberg), he returned again and again to Gerard, his childhood
>>>>> > inspiration. "I marvel at my love for him," he wrote thirty years after his
>>>>> > brother's death. According to Gerard's death certificate, he expired at
>>>>> > 11:45 P.M. on June 2, 1926. It was a significant date in American letters,
>>>>> > for Gerard would haunt the life and work of Jack Kerouac..."
>>>>> >
>>>>> > Alcoholic culture of the Jack Kerouac's family. This section is significant,
>>>>> > and helps understand Kerouac, where he came from and his tragic fate:
>>>>> >
>>>>> > "Jack Kerouac's ancestors emigrated from France to Canada. Then, in 1890,
>>>>> > tired of scratching potatoes from the frozen soil of Quebec, they drifted to
>>>>> > New England and found work in the mill towns along the Concord and Merrimack
>>>>> > Rivers, where the Industrial Revolution had begun earlier in the nineteenth
>>>>> > century... The French Canadians were called Canucks, and spoke a crude
>>>>> > patois, joual, which led to their being scorned as outsiders. They lived in
>>>>> > ghettos called 'Little Canadas'... For the despised Canucks, survival became
>>>>> > a mystique. They called it 'la survivance.' [...] Drinking was one method of
>>>>> > survival, and alcoholism ran in the Kerouac family. Jean-Baptiste loved
>>>>> > vodka, and made it from potato peels. His son, Leo, Jack Kerouac's father,
>>>>> > born in 1889, was also a drunk. Leo was blue-eyed, black-haired, and
>>>>> > handsome--five-foot-seven and two hundred pounds of solid muscle, including
>>>>> > a neck worthy of Atlas, and thick eyebrows that darted straight across his
>>>>> > nose..."
>>>>> >
>>>>> > "Cecile Plaud once commented on the striking physical resemblance between
>>>>> > Jack and his father, citing their black hair, pensive expressions, and
>>>>> > 'beautifully cut' features. Realizing that Jack was a 'star-crossed victim
>>>>> > of heredity' filled her with a feeling of 'tragic deja vu.' She feared that
>>>>> > a hard life was ahead for Jack as the son of an alcoholic [...] Jack's
>>>>> > mother Gabrielle was also a heavy drinker, and the Kerouac home was often
>>>>> > the scene of boisterous celebrations, especially after the move from Lupine
>>>>> > Road to Maiden Lane. On New Year's Eve in 1924, at the stroke of midnight,
>>>>> > Ti Jean awoke from a deep sleep as his room filled with drunks wearing party
>>>>> > hats. Laughing and yelling..."
>>>>> >
>>>>> > ====================================================

>> This would go well on the I.S. thread about The Golden One...!

> Except for the fact that the "Golden One" thread seems just about defunct.

> Remember to try to skip and ignore the troll threads created by NancyGene and Pendragon, or any other of the malicious scumbag trolls.

> HTH and HAND.

Yo...!

Good read...

General-Zod wrote:

> Will Dockery wrote:

>> General-Zod wrote:

>>>
>>>>> > Okay, for starters, Jack Kerouac was born and raised in a culture where
>>>>>> > alcohol consumption was a part of everyday life... his parents were both
>>>>>> > alcoholic AND devout Catholics.
>>>>>> >
>>>>>> > For starters.
>>>>>> >
>>>>>> > Yes, I can verify this with references, I've read and studied the poetry and
>>>>>> > life of Jack Kerouac steadily since 1973.
>>>>>> >
>>>>>> > So, a little history on the French-Canadian culture Kerouac was born into,
>>>>>> > and raised in, that included that element from Europe that placed alcohol
>>>>>> > consumption as part of everyday life in the family:
>>>>>> >
>>>>>> > ===========================================================
>>>>>> >
>>>>>> > From: Subterranean Kerouac: The Hidden Life of Jack Kerouac
>>>>>> > By Ellis Amburn ISBN: 0-312-14531-4
>>>>>> >
>>>>>> > https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/books/first/a/amburn-kerouac.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
>>>>>> >
>>>>>> > "Kerouac, who began life as a poor mill-town boy in Lowell, Massachusetts,
>>>>>> > unfortunately never lived long enough to see his... claims borne out [...]
>>>>>> > Ms. Wood came upon the coat of arms at Chateau de Kerouartz, she discovered
>>>>>> > a silver sable, three iron crosses, and the motto, "Tout en l'honneur de
>>>>>> > Dieu" ("All in the name of God") [...] sum up Kerouac's brief but
>>>>>> > fascinating life, which was passionate, productive, painful, and pious. But
>>>>>> > neither begins to suggest the transformative effect that Kerouac had on
>>>>>> > modern society. Only in the 1990s, nearly forty years after the publication
>>>>>> > of On the Road, would he come to be recognized as one of the major novelists
>>>>>> > of the twentieth century... Unfortunately, when I knew him in his last
>>>>>> > years, he was unread and forgotten."
>>>>>> >
>>>>>> > Early spiritual beliefs and eclectic style of Jack Kerouac's family:
>>>>>> >
>>>>>> > "According to Jack Kerouac's certificate of baptism, Rev. D. W. Boisvert
>>>>>> > baptized him as Jean Louis Kirouac on March 19, 1922, at the Parish of Saint
>>>>>> > Louis-de-France, in Centralville. This odd-looking subterranean church was
>>>>>> > originally the basement of what had been planned as a grand cathedral, but
>>>>>> > the poor Franco-Americans of Centralville had never been able to complete
>>>>>> > it. As a result, one walks down to the auditorium, rather than up, as if
>>>>>> > entering hell rather than heaven..."
>>>>>> >
>>>>>> > "Kerouac's mother Gabrielle was convinced that his brother Gerard was a
>>>>>> > saint [...] Kerouac was still talking about it in the mid-1960s, when he
>>>>>> > told his Florida friend, Ron Lowe, 'I swear to God, small birds would even
>>>>>> > light on Gerard's outstretched hands as he stood at the window.' [...]
>>>>>> > Gerard absolutely doted on Ti Jean...Gerard was convinced that the Virgin
>>>>>> > Mary herself had appointed him Ti Jean's protector [...] Just before the
>>>>>> > end, Gerard said he'd seen a vision while sitting in catechism class at
>>>>>> > Saint Louis-de-France. The Virgin Mary appeared to him, her robes billowing
>>>>>> > behind her, held aloft by thousands of bluebirds. Then he saw himself
>>>>>> > ascending to heaven in a white wagon pulled by snowy lambs. Coming out of
>>>>>> > his trance, he told a startled nun that she should never again be afraid of
>>>>>> > anything, because everyone was already in heaven, though no one knew it.
>>>>>> > "All is well," he added. "Practice kindness. Heaven is nigh." [...]
>>>>>> > Convinced he was a saint, nuns from school hovered about his bed and
>>>>>> > recorded his dying words, which concerned "the unreality of death (and life
>>>>>> > too)... the calm hand of God everywhere slowly benedicting." Gerard's
>>>>>> > "visions," as filtered through Gabrielle's superstitious Canuck mind, became
>>>>>> > the bedrock of Kerouac's adult philosophy, bolstered by his discovery of
>>>>>> > Buddhism and his continuing faith in what he called "my sweet Christ."
>>>>>> >
>>>>>> > "Jack Kerouac forged his belief that the ultimate answer is to be found in
>>>>>> > the shimmering golden emptiness of the here and now, a concept in which
>>>>>> > eternity and the present moment are one and the same. In the 1960s, as
>>>>>> > Kerouac evolved into the spiritual leader of the Beat Generation (along with
>>>>>> > Allen Ginsberg), he returned again and again to Gerard, his childhood
>>>>>> > inspiration. "I marvel at my love for him," he wrote thirty years after his
>>>>>> > brother's death. According to Gerard's death certificate, he expired at
>>>>>> > 11:45 P.M. on June 2, 1926. It was a significant date in American letters,
>>>>>> > for Gerard would haunt the life and work of Jack Kerouac..."
>>>>>> >
>>>>>> > Alcoholic culture of the Jack Kerouac's family. This section is significant,
>>>>>> > and helps understand Kerouac, where he came from and his tragic fate:
>>>>>> >
>>>>>> > "Jack Kerouac's ancestors emigrated from France to Canada. Then, in 1890,
>>>>>> > tired of scratching potatoes from the frozen soil of Quebec, they drifted to
>>>>>> > New England and found work in the mill towns along the Concord and Merrimack
>>>>>> > Rivers, where the Industrial Revolution had begun earlier in the nineteenth
>>>>>> > century... The French Canadians were called Canucks, and spoke a crude
>>>>>> > patois, joual, which led to their being scorned as outsiders. They lived in
>>>>>> > ghettos called 'Little Canadas'... For the despised Canucks, survival became
>>>>>> > a mystique. They called it 'la survivance.' [...] Drinking was one method of
>>>>>> > survival, and alcoholism ran in the Kerouac family. Jean-Baptiste loved
>>>>>> > vodka, and made it from potato peels. His son, Leo, Jack Kerouac's father,
>>>>>> > born in 1889, was also a drunk. Leo was blue-eyed, black-haired, and
>>>>>> > handsome--five-foot-seven and two hundred pounds of solid muscle, including
>>>>>> > a neck worthy of Atlas, and thick eyebrows that darted straight across his
>>>>>> > nose..."
>>>>>> >
>>>>>> > "Cecile Plaud once commented on the striking physical resemblance between
>>>>>> > Jack and his father, citing their black hair, pensive expressions, and
>>>>>> > 'beautifully cut' features. Realizing that Jack was a 'star-crossed victim
>>>>>> > of heredity' filled her with a feeling of 'tragic deja vu.' She feared that
>>>>>> > a hard life was ahead for Jack as the son of an alcoholic [...] Jack's
>>>>>> > mother Gabrielle was also a heavy drinker, and the Kerouac home was often
>>>>>> > the scene of boisterous celebrations, especially after the move from Lupine
>>>>>> > Road to Maiden Lane. On New Year's Eve in 1924, at the stroke of midnight,
>>>>>> > Ti Jean awoke from a deep sleep as his room filled with drunks wearing party
>>>>>> > hats. Laughing and yelling..."
>>>>>> >
>>>>>> > ====================================================