an erasure of a conversation between Tony Hoagland and James Franco
my mind is Frank Bidart’s Metaphysical Dog. I might be cheating a little
ecently, and I read drafts of that book as he was writing it. In fact, the I met him—we met in Cambridge over
y film adaptation of his poem, “Herbert White”—he showed me a poem he had written about Heath Ledger that used a
t getting into character. That was about three or four years before the book actuall I have some other
connections
I like the form so much,
I have talked about Frank’s work often. You said that you appreciate the dark inner weavings,
fire and venom at each other. In some ways, I think that is exactly right.
Metaphysical
in his work. His work is unique. And as you say, scary.
I’ll turn the focus onto your work. I have your poem
I jump rope every day, in large print,
definitely references his. One of the things I love
contemporary life: television, blue hair dye, advertising,
metaphysics.
you are getting the chance to be an ambassador for poetry, and an explainer of what it is as you
travel among the Philistines. I wonder have you come up with any good sound bites
I know that you spend a lot of your time answering that question
I do feel like I am the student again trying to come up with the right answer. I think I’ll jump
I think it is true, I am an ambassador, in a lot of ways. This is because I do a lot of things,
my thing. It’s great because in my life I get to have conversations with my favorite poets like you, and my favorite
, and my favorite artists like Paul McCarthy. And because I walk in
—in almost everything I do, there is a conjunction of at least: when I direct I always adapt , when I write I
as a subject or metaphor, when I perform I
uses film and performance as a way to look at life. So, the crossover is what gets me, what gives me
if I found my “voice,”
To answer the question about poetry and what it’s good for, I’d say
attached to the hearts and minds of others. I suppose the best
you use the word spiritual, and to hear you speak of spiritual energy
your personal calling
ith elements of each other. Maybe you’re a pollinator, James,
Don’t you think silence,
Before I answer, I’m going to pull out
You asked me,
I love
epigrammatic fragments broken by asterisks,
I think
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