Several empty bottles of wine and beer are scattered about the table in front of Charles Bukowski. Click on the image and his deeply creased mug leans forward to give you a piece of his (miraculously lucid) mind. "Reading the poets has been the dullest of things," he slurs with that unmistakable, second-pack-of-the-day rasp. "All I get is a goddamn headache and boredom. The reason poetry is not appreciated is that it hasn't shown any guts, it hasn't shown any dance, it hasn't shown any moxie."
No moxie, huh? Well, for those in the Bukowski camp, give Voyager's Poetry in Motion II CD-ROM a whirl. It delivers enough QuickTime clips of poetry readings and interviews to hook an MTV junkie.
I've long since given up attending bohemian salons where poets read at Mach 2 speeds, making it impossible to discover any intricacies or nuances. At last, there's a format that kills two bards with one stone. This disc sets poems and transcribed interviews side by side with videos of the author in action - like subtitles for free-verse newbies.
Director Ron Mann (Comic Book Confidential) prefers the loud and lascivious to the austere and introspective. Among the cream of the Beat crop featured here are Robert Creeley, Alan Ginsberg, and Gary Snyder, plus Spalding Gray, Anne Waldman, Jim Carroll, Amiri Baraka, and others. Their poetry is wonderfully racy. Witness, for example, Peter Orlovsky chanting about the joys of dildos.
The poetry readings possess entertainment value, but seeing poets in their homes, without the staged trappings of public readings, allows you to glean a sense of these writers as people - full of foibles, attitude, and sources of inspiration.
Asked to give his opinion on the various poets in the lineup, Bukowski peers into the camera, forcing back a grin, and snaps, "The poets? They stink. They write badly. They are idiots you see, because the strong people don't write poetry.... They become hit men for the Mafia. The good people do the serious jobs." - Shoshana Berger Poetry in Motion II Mac CD-ROM: US$29.95. Voyager: (800) 446 2001, +1 (914) 591 5500, on the Web at www.voyagerco.com.
STREET CRED
Engaging GageCream of Beats
