And the same birthdate.
I have written about my father's twin before. Not his real twin however.
Last night Dennis and I went to see the movie 'Howl' which is a biopic about the poem Howl and its author Alan Ginsberg.
The beat poet and public figure.
The homonym name with the same birthday is, of course, my father, Allen Ginsburgh. Both born June 3, 1926. Both deceased :(
So somehow, I've felt connected to this other A. G. guy. But Dennis points out that the connection between them is tenuous.
Movie was loosely built around a taped interview that Alan Ginsberg gave around the time of Howl obscenity trial (judge ruled it non obscene), re-creation of the courtroom drama and coffeehouse reading and some weird animation set to the poem itself.
Dennis reminds me that we went and heard Alan Ginsberg speak and sing. I looked at him blankly. We did? How come sometimes I can't remember things? Dennis said it was 'before kids' and he sang songs and got rotten reviews. Some shreds of recollection returned. I remember saying that he was coming to town and we must go. I remember Meany Hall. I remember wanting to talk with him about the other Alan/Allen maybe afterwards but that was not possible.
Interesting to look at what this Alan was doing at certain times and thinking what the other Allen was doing at the same time. Some kind of parallel between them.
We saw our sixth and final film today on the last day of the festival. "Last Train Home" about migrant labor in China today. Parents often leave their children in the care of relatives in the countryside and travel to the city to work at dreadful low paid jobs. They send their money home in the hope that their children will go to school and be in a better position. The only time they usually return home is during the New Year celebration when 150 million migrant workers try to return to their own homes at the same time.... Good documentary, enjoyed it. The director was there, gave a little talk before the movie and answered questions afterwards.
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