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HST is the Key
Feb. 20th, 2010 08:50 amFor a time I wondered how I would write this post, and it occurred to me a few months ago when I bought a copy of Lynn Goldsmith's Rock and Roll photography book. Lynn, as you may recall, photographed HST several times over the years. I realized then, had it not been for HST, that I would have missed out on so much.
I can think of a dozen things about myself that would not have prospered if it wasn't from the natural progression from reading Hell's Angels to collecting old magazines. I looked up all the names that seemed to flutter around him, from Annie Leibovitz to Tom Wolfe and discovered a treasure trove of art, history, movies, photography and writing that I couldn't have imagined.
In some ways he was a lynchpin between the beats and new journalists, and I see that influence all over my bookshelves. If it wasn't for HST, I probably wouldn't have become a web developer; I'd still be loading book trucks at the public library*.
But you don't come to this website to read about me. The personal impact that HST has had on so many readers cannot be ignored though. The personal story is the most common sort of email I used to receive (maybe it still is; I haven't checked my gonzo mail in a couple years). Now that everyone and their dog has a blog, I know there will be lots of stories like that this month. I'm not sure what else I can add to these thoughtful stories, except to add my eternal thanks and appreciation for HST's time on this material plane.
*A few years ago I ran into an old co-worker and she raved about how it was a great time to be at the library because they were hiring for so many positions. The trouble with the library is that nobody leaves unless they die or retire, so there must have been a great retirement wave. Or a death wave. The sad thing is that this was 10 years after I left the library. Oooof!
I can think of a dozen things about myself that would not have prospered if it wasn't from the natural progression from reading Hell's Angels to collecting old magazines. I looked up all the names that seemed to flutter around him, from Annie Leibovitz to Tom Wolfe and discovered a treasure trove of art, history, movies, photography and writing that I couldn't have imagined.
In some ways he was a lynchpin between the beats and new journalists, and I see that influence all over my bookshelves. If it wasn't for HST, I probably wouldn't have become a web developer; I'd still be loading book trucks at the public library*.
But you don't come to this website to read about me. The personal impact that HST has had on so many readers cannot be ignored though. The personal story is the most common sort of email I used to receive (maybe it still is; I haven't checked my gonzo mail in a couple years). Now that everyone and their dog has a blog, I know there will be lots of stories like that this month. I'm not sure what else I can add to these thoughtful stories, except to add my eternal thanks and appreciation for HST's time on this material plane.
*A few years ago I ran into an old co-worker and she raved about how it was a great time to be at the library because they were hiring for so many positions. The trouble with the library is that nobody leaves unless they die or retire, so there must have been a great retirement wave. Or a death wave. The sad thing is that this was 10 years after I left the library. Oooof!
