2023-09-10 04:30:00
dear friend,
You must have listened to interviews with people from various walks of life like writers, film stars, musicians etc. This book is written with a desire to introduce it to those who have not noticed it. From superficial interviews to in-depth Q&As are regularly published in newspapers. You must have read superficial questions and answers of the same level to those questions. Sensational interviews have more market value, so many people try to avoid intellectual questions. A journalist cannot approach Godard or Manikoul with low quality questions. But most will give interviews out of respect for the name of the journalist and the organization they work for, or because they hope their reputation will benefit the media outlet.
Duncan Fallowell is a journalist and writer. He writes for more than a dozen magazines around the world, including Paris Review and Playboy. He also has a reputation as one of the number one interviewers. Duncan Fallowell’s collection of interviews with famous people of the 20th century (Twentieth Century Characters, Iconic Meetings) has not been written in Malayalam for some reason. It has about twenty nine dialogues. The nature of the magazines in which the interviews were published is evident in the questions. Most of the questions are focused on personal experiences. The nature of questions can be summed up as curiosity that peeks inside one’s inner self.
Here’s an excerpt from Duncan Fallowell’s interview with Beat Writers legend William Burroughs.
Q: What about your relationship with your son these days?
Answer: He died.
Q: Oh, how did that happen?
Answer: He had liver cirrhosis. After the liver transplant, he lived another five years. Medicines used after the transplant may cause you bad side effects.
Q: Was ‘Speed’ written by him a success?
Answer : I hate speed (drug).
William Burroughs, Image credit: Harold Chapman/allenginsberg.org
Here is an excerpt from the interview with Jiddu Krishnamurthy:
Q: Do you know sexual love?
Answer: A little bit
Q: But isn’t that what you follow?
Answer: No
Q: Do you believe in celibacy?
Jiddu Krishnamurthy, Image credit: kfoundation.org
Answer: No. No.
Loneliness, drugs, and depression are recurring themes in all interviews. In this question perhaps the life of the seventies can be read as evidence, as Duncan Fallowell experienced and chose himself (Duncan Fallowell was one of the group that conducted the drug experiments).
Duncan Fallowell uses headlines that appeal to the general reader. The beauty of the narrative complex built up by the descriptions that come and go before and between the interviews must have made this collection a favorite of many readers. The title of the interview with famous film actresses Claudia Cardinale, Liza Minnelli and Sean Morrow is: ‘Three women smoking cigarettes in three hotels’. After reading their interviews, readers will be in awe of how intelligent and witty they are. All three answer the questions with no hint of the evil hidden inside them. Here, some contexts in the interviews have been freely translated for familiarity only. Only one or two lines of long answers are written.
Let’s start with Claudia Cardinale, the troubled actress in Italy.
Claudia Cardinale, Image credit: Allstar Picture Library Limited/Alamy Stock Photo
They are hysterical when asked why you caught me in the woods with the foxes, Herzog and Klosinski, when Fitzcarraldo was shot. Fun ones. I like short ones. Claudia replies that they will keep us motivated. In an interview with Herzog (not in this book) he describes an interesting case. Italian media reported that Claudia was fatally injured after being hit by a truck during Herzog’s shooting. A journalist from Italy (Herzog describes him as a hysterical journalist) called and investigated the matter. Herzog replied calmly that we had just parted, but he refused to believe it. Two days later, the same journalist called again. Then Herzog felt a trick. “Sir, it’s not as simple as you think. The truck driver was drunk and hit the road. Not only that, he also raped Claudia, who was unconscious after hitting her,” Herzog knew the long silence on the other end of the phone. With that the call ended. Those of you who have read the Herzog interview know how true this is! You don’t have to tell me Herzog’s skill at juxtaposing contradictory things. An excerpt from the interview with Claudia:
Q: Did you like the sixties?
A: I always enjoyed it. I wasn’t unhappy.
Q: Drugs?
A: No—has smoked some marijuana.
Q: Do you use a lot of nicotine?
A: Yes, when done by hand, it is dramatic.
Q: Are you married?
A: No. I am not interested in getting married. I like to be free.
Q: Did you want to be a mother without getting married?
A: No. It was a mistake. After that incident, I felt that I wanted a child.
Q: Were you alone in London?
A: I am used to being alone. As a girl I was an introvert. But my mother used to visit me in London from time to time.
From a conversation with American actress and singer Liza Minnelli:
Q: Who surprised you among the actors you worked with?
A: Robert DeNiro
Q: Your most prized possession?
A: My goosebumps
Q: What do you like in a man?
A: Intelligence
Q: Have you attempted suicide?
A: No
Q: Have you had to see a psychiatrist?
A: No. I think I’m lucky in that regard. I haven’t needed it.
I know you are familiar with the films of Sean Moreau, Antonioni, Truffaut, Peter Brook, Bunuel, Fassbinder and others. When Fassbinder Shenay’s novel was made into a film, Shaun Morrow was the heroine. Born in Paris in 1928. Louis Malle’s films made him famous.
Q: Ever had a relationship with a gay man?
A: Of course. I was with Pierre Cardin for five years.
Q: What is the difference? That is..
A: Fuck off! Homosexual, heterosexual I never thought about it.
Q: Do you have a relationship with any woman?
A: No
Q: Have you ever been romantically involved with a man younger than you?
A: Of course. I don’t think about their age; they are mine. I had a relationship with a 19-year-old French boy. We never had that age in our eyes. We were so much the same, never thought about age.
Q: What problem do you face as you get older?
A: No problem
Q: Have you seen Shane?
A: I know very well. He is the type of person who captures us. But it is a good place to take people with us. No one knows where he is now.
Q: Have you ever been single?
A: No
Liza Minnelli, Image credit: Larry Ellis, Vertical
Now let’s come to Marquez. This is evident in Marquez’s interviews. Many articles related to Marquez have been published in Malayalam such as interviews and studies. For some reason I don’t recall seeing any mention of the long Marquez interview with Duncan Fallowell anywhere. This conversation took place in 1982 after Márquez was awarded the Nobel Prize. The interview is written by describing the country of Mexico and the life there. If Mexico is a scary country for Duncan Fallowell, it is the country that gives the most peace and happiness to Marquez. Marquez makes this reply when referring to his relationship with Castro. Let’s write some questions and answers:
Q: Is loneliness a problem for you?
A: Personally? Yes. A part of my personal life has always been solitude. It is impossible to be alone there. Isolation is sad. The time I’m most alone is when I’m writing. At this time it is impossible to ask for someone else’s help. It’s so sad!
Q: Do you suffer from depression?
A: No. never I have a psychiatrist friend who says I’ve never suffered from depression and he doesn’t believe me.
Q: Are you a smoker?
A: Until ten or eleven years ago. I stopped it overnight. He used to pull up to four packets a day.
Q: Do you write with a pen?
A: No. On the typewriter. In the electronic typewriter.
Q: Do you write every day?
A: Every day. Today is a day without writing. Because you are here while I write. Nice to meet you. does not matter. does not matter.
Marquez.
Q: Has existentialism influenced you?
A: My problem is not existentialism. My problem is the difference between Europe and Latin America. People in Europe don’t understand anything about Latin America.
Q: Are you interested in avant-garde art and experimental literature?
A: No. I am not interested in experiments.
Q: Are you related to any living English writer?
A: I know Graham Greene. He’s a friend of mine. He is a person who should get Nobel long ago. I wonder why not. I like his books very much.
Q: Favorite poets?
A: Cavafy, Pessoa, Neruda
Q: Favorite historical hero?
A: Julius Caesar, troubled by omens
Q: Favorite job?
A: Subterfuge
Q: Favorite writers
A: Sophocles, Conrad
Q: Favorite quality in a woman?
A: Pampering
Q: In men?
A: Tenderness
Q: How do you want to die?
A: In bed. Surrounded by good friends.
Q: Do you believe in life after death?
A: No. Only complete darkness after death.
Hopefully someone will translate this interview for Malayalis. If possible, I hope you will undertake the translation task.
lovingly
UiR
Content Highlights: Book Bum | Unni R | Malayalam Literature | Manorama Literature
1694320997
#Book #Rare #Interviews #Book #Bum #Unni #Malayalam #Literature