tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2455126179375366490.post3163016608643520741..comments2023-12-20T11:32:15.997-05:00Comments on Billevesées: Decoding Kirkwood’s ‘Good Times, Bad Times’William V. Madisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18120331095634473021noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2455126179375366490.post-12465062723951064882015-10-27T21:37:32.205-04:002015-10-27T21:37:32.205-04:00Thanks, Eric! I wonder whether there's some wa...Thanks, Eric! I wonder whether there's some way for me to take credit for the reissue, two years after I posted this essay....William V. Madisonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18120331095634473021noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2455126179375366490.post-59262538403708022662015-10-27T20:57:09.223-04:002015-10-27T20:57:09.223-04:00And just a heads up to anyone who stumbled across ...And just a heads up to anyone who stumbled across this blog rather late like me--the book was reprinted back in 2013 and seems to be still in print...EricMontreal22https://www.blogger.com/profile/11536437939711295435noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2455126179375366490.post-68270635901119005722014-11-29T13:26:36.410-05:002014-11-29T13:26:36.410-05:00Thanks so much for sharing your perspectives on Go...Thanks so much for sharing your perspectives on <i>Good Times</i>. I suspect the book is out of print because prospective publishers think there's no market for it, but if the comments on this essay are any indication of reader interest, then maybe someone will get the bright idea to reissue the novel after all.William V. Madisonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18120331095634473021noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2455126179375366490.post-60365796581201545722014-11-29T13:06:03.931-05:002014-11-29T13:06:03.931-05:00In 9th or 10th grade English Lit., we were given t...In 9th or 10th grade English Lit., we were given the choice to read one of three books: Catcher in the Rye, A Seperate Peace or Good Times, Bad Times. After we read it, we had to give a small dramatic presentation on part of the book. Suprisingly, and to my dismay, I was the only one in the class who chose Kirkwood's book. I say dismay, because I had to give a solo performance (the others got to do scenes together) with several of the characters in a passage from the novel. <br />Classroom stage fright aside, I loved the book and it had become one of my favorites, to the extent that I bought a copy and gave it to a buddy of mine in the Navy, years later. At the time I first read it, I was a total innocent-I didn't even know what a homosexual was. A few years later, I was accosted by a pervert in a movie theater (no, it wasn't a porno movie-it was in a theater showing The French Connection) and I didn't understand why a grown man would be attracted to and hit on a 17-year-old boy. Fortunately, the experience didn't turn me into a homophobe.<br />The sentiments, the friendship in Good Times, Bad Times stuck with me over the years, and I've grown nostalgic to read the book again for what will be a fourth time. I'm not sure why the book isn't currently in print-I suspect it has to do with some asinine publication rights-but I hope to see it come out again, and in e-book form, so I can have a copy on my Kindle.<br />Thanks so much for having this blog on this much loved book.<br /><br /><br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2455126179375366490.post-58553015523230948002013-06-01T17:44:09.393-04:002013-06-01T17:44:09.393-04:00There is a new biography of James Kirkwood out cal...There is a new biography of James Kirkwood out called "Ponies & Rainbows:the Life of James Kirkwood" by Sean Egan which is interesting.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2455126179375366490.post-45984700005659364742012-12-30T18:51:28.711-05:002012-12-30T18:51:28.711-05:00although I live at the back of beyond , The Great ...although I live at the back of beyond , The Great Joker one day put on my way this book ,which stay with me for the rest of my life, anyway the same as "Catcher in the Rye", "Other Country" by James Baldwin( which I read being 15 years old ) , movie "Barton Fink" or "Midnight Cowboy" ...some values are universal , especially if somebody appears it in his own life ( not only by the same name as main hero ...)<br />every my visit in New York - this is like solemn visit to the Opera where I know that sometimes I will not hold back tears <br /><br />greets<br />Jordan (odysseus)odysseus https://www.blogger.com/profile/09144911141727116532noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2455126179375366490.post-16173960577701743202012-07-29T09:51:29.688-04:002012-07-29T09:51:29.688-04:00Thanks, Ron. It sounds as if William Russo is work...Thanks, Ron. It sounds as if William Russo is working exceedingly hard to make <i>Good Times, Bad Times</i> more interesting than it really is — but if I have a chance to look at the book, I shall.William V. Madisonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18120331095634473021noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2455126179375366490.post-51249623941880402502012-07-29T03:25:39.629-04:002012-07-29T03:25:39.629-04:00Glad to see others enjoyed this book too. Sure, it...Glad to see others enjoyed this book too. Sure, it's dated and a bit coy but it is fascinating - and to some extent autobiographical, apparently. Have you read William Russo's book "Riding James Kirkwood's Pony"? Russo, a friend of Kirkwood's, argues that Peter in the book is "rough trade" and Jordan his "sugar daddy" and that Peter did in fact murder Mr Hoyt - he uses a complex decoding of symbols eg the name JORDAN, the river on which Sodom and Gomorrah were located, Jordan "coming out of the closet" in one scene etc. I liked the book a lot and still do. I read it at university too but nobody gave it to me: I read about it somewhere and found it in the library. <br />best wishes, RonAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2455126179375366490.post-4066659454671410352012-05-20T23:33:49.487-04:002012-05-20T23:33:49.487-04:00I'm so glad I came across this entry! I'm ...I'm so glad I came across this entry! I'm reading the book for the second time right now. I found out about it back in the spring when I was looking for gay-themed books to read (being young, in Texas, and in a smaller city, so that's about the only gay culture I'll get!). I feel conflicted, too, about how the book treats homosexuality, but at least it talks about it, and openly.<br /><br />That said, I love Peter and Jordan's friendship. Jordan's character in particular I adore. I was actually seeing a guy I was head-over-heels for when I first read the book, and the way Kirkwood described Jordan reminded me of him. Then I looked up a picture of Jean-Paul Belmondo, and the similarity is very striking! So, when I picture Jordan, I think of this guy. Good memories I enjoy reliving.<br /><br />I also think, I want a friend like that. Actually, I have one, and I want it to move beyond this stage, like you and your the other commentators want to happen with Peter and Jordan. It only makes sense for it to.<br /><br />No, this book isn't a neglected classic, but it's wonderful reading and so comforting to me. I know I'll come back to it for the rest of my life as I think back to my 20s.petit garsnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2455126179375366490.post-34297202752364018772012-04-16T13:29:02.721-04:002012-04-16T13:29:02.721-04:00Thanks, Mark! I read your essay with great interes...Thanks, Mark! I read your essay with great interest, too. Kirkwood appears in James Gavin's <i>Intimate Nights</i>, the indispensable history of New York's nightclub scene, which I've been rereading lately as part of my ongoing research for my biography of Madeline Kahn. While, as you observe, Kirkwood's homosexuality is no surprise, I was intrigued to learn of his background in a nightclub comedy duo.William V. Madisonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18120331095634473021noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2455126179375366490.post-90279507269143409722012-04-16T13:17:20.141-04:002012-04-16T13:17:20.141-04:00Hi - found your blog by chance and look forward to...Hi - found your blog by chance and look forward to reading lots more of it! I have linked to your post, and discussed Good Times/ Bad Times, at my own blog, this morning --<br />http://markbringelson.tumblr.com/post/21215309194/secret-personal-talisman<br /><br />Wanted to let you know.<br />Best Wishes -<br />MarkMark Bringelsonhttp://markbringelson.tumblr.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2455126179375366490.post-68540913072158888482011-11-21T21:04:48.871-05:002011-11-21T21:04:48.871-05:00I read the book as a teenager too.
Yes, I believe ...I read the book as a teenager too.<br />Yes, I believe if Peter and Jordan had been able to graduate and move on with their lives, they would have become lovers. Probably during that Europe trip they were planning.<br />What woman could ever compete?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com