A half-century ago, in 1957, "crazy dumbsaint of the mind"
Jack Kerouac published the book that was to crack open
postwar American literature and society and become a blazing
iconic beacon of the Beat Generation and a light that never
goes out for playful, seeking dreamers everywhere, then and
since. Three generations have dug the passionate jazzbo
language of On the Road, stuffed a copy in a backpack and hit
the highway in search of enlightenment. No other contemporary
literary work can claim such an immediate and enduring impact.
After five decades, it still sells up to 130,000 copies a year. As
part of its own 50th anniversary celebration, SFIFF and
Litquake pay homage to Kerouac’s golden book with a
portmanteau program of readings, testimonials and images
honoring Sal Paradise, Dean Moriarty, Carlo Marx, Ed Dunkel,
the lost city of San Francisco and, of course, Kerouac himself,
the "writer-director of Earthly movies Sponsored and Angeled
in Heaven." Peter Coyote, Michael McClure and Diane DiPrima
will take part in this cultural celebration, with more Beat
Generation aficionados expected to join them.
Graham Leggat
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