Brother Holland reading “Johnny Depp is Not Coming” at Gonzofest 2023
The new face of the seeker in the crowd, Ben Holland has traversed the globe in search of many things – mostly himself. To now reside in Kentucky after having been chased out of Camelot (some may call it Connecticut), surviving tours of duty in as far away and exotic places as Iraq and Kuwait, is what could be called a small miracle. Belonging now to tribe of transplants that is Louisville, he finds himself square amid a life that is once again evolving into something more fit for his creative spirit. At the urging of his lovely wife, he is finally pursuing an active writing career, and it starts now!
We’ve entered March, it’s starting to warm up outside, and Night Owl Narrative No.3 is officially available! https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CVF469HX (Links to 1 & 2 will be in the comments.)
Issue No. 3 Contributors:
Ben Holland, John Burroughs, Blu K. Boss, Scott Laudati, Jay Passer, A.L. Locke, Michael Duckwall, Ron Whitehead, Jim Murdoch, Wayne F. Burke, Ryan Quinn Flanagan, Joe Szalinski, Efe Tusder, Randy Barnes, Roy Duffield, Dan Flore III, LB Sedlacek, William Teets, William David Pollard, Robert Ragan, Dan Denton, Heath Brougher, Dee Allen, Lynn White, Wendy Cartwright, Sanjeev Sethi, Daniel S. Irwin, Austin Burrows, Wolfgang Carstens, Merritt Waldon, Jonathan S Baker, Rob Azevedo
Details about issue 4 coming soon! All I need to do is button up a few things, and it’ll be ready for April. Michael Duckwall’s artwork will be on the cover!!
7.2 SkullQuake by Michael Duckwall is also available!! Brother Duck offers up pieces of his soul in artistic and poetic form in this beautiful little chapbook! You can get in touch with him for a signed copy or follow this link to find it on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CVG31R8S
I’m also about to start working on the rest of the book manuscript submissions! I wanted to get a few copies of the magazine under my belt first. You’ll be hearing from me soon if you’ve sent one. Hold Fast.
Below is the list of this month’s featured writers. Send 1-3 poems to cajunmuttpress@gmail.com to be considered for a spot. Send work for Night Owl Narrative to the same email. I’m taking art, short stories, flash fiction, poetry, photography, columns, articles, interviews, etc for the magazine. Anything Goes. Please include a bio and author photo with ALL submissions!
“I have long admired Ron Whitehead. He is crazy as nine loons, and his poetry is a dazzling mix of folk wisdom and pure mathematics.”
“When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro.”
“Buy the ticket, take the ride.”
—Hunter S. Thompson
Rest easy, old friend. Happy Birthday, I’ll see you in the aether. Born July 18, 1937, Louisville, KY Died February 20, 2005, Woody Creek, CO
Written by James Dennis Casey IV (JDCIV) On A Mission From God With Eternal Gratitude to Lifetime Beat Poet Laureate, Ron Whitehead Gonzofest Documentary Photography by Michael Duckwall where noted
Thursday, July 13th (Crackshack Blues & The Trip from Hell)
The first day of the trip didn’t go so well. We got there, and the place I booked the room was a hellhole. The photos online looked decent enough for a $69-a-night Motel 6, yet I was deceived. But we weren’t going anywhere. The room was paid for, and I had a barrage of weaponry. Fuck Around And Find Out. THEN . . . I realize that I forgot MY books. I had everything I wanted to bring except that one box. I almost wanted to turn around and go home. I felt the clown makeup being slowly smeared on my face. After that, I called Frogg Corpse, and he made us feel comfortable. Raissa and I hung out with him at his house for a while. Talked about his artwork. Showed me his 1961 Architectural Tapestry of The Hilton at Park Avenue Building. As viewed from Hyde Park in London. Plus, a Michael Alig original (which was beautiful but creepy given his history, but I dig weird shit) titled “Pixelated Hipster.” They were both pretty amazing. We smoked a couple joints, talked about brother Ron’s huge cock—which Rai & I didn’t get to see (inside joke), laughed a lot, and felt better. Got some grub and went back to the crackshack for the night to prepare for the day ahead. Thank you for making us feel at home, brother.
___
—
Nothing like being so excited to have copies of my first book in four years to bring with me, only to forget them at the goddamn house. I was planning on giving them away because I had other Cajun Mutt Press books for the display, and it was the version of the cover I didn’t like with the green text on the back cover. I have 23 of those cocksuckers laughing at me right now on the table behind me in CMP headquarters. Mocking me with their crooked Amazon smile. Other than the copies of Bad Weed Never Dies being left at home and the shithole motel, it all worked out for the better.
“What Are YOU Smiling At, You Bastard!?” The box of Bad Weed Never Dies, still sitting where I left it.
Friday, July 14th (For Educational Purposes Only)
Deep within my soul, I knew that I needed this trip. Severely. I feel like a changed man sitting here writing this. I met so many beautiful people. Friday & Saturday were different types of days, with different types of people. Every single one was a multi-faceted gem. In every way sense and form. I also had to give a good friend some hard truths to make him realize that he was one of those gems, but he was majorly blowing it on Friday. He was an entirely different person Saturday after I gave him a good love slap. In the best of ways. Love you, brother. Hope you dig the Will Mayo books. Cherish Them. It was an honor to work with him for so many years before his passing. We had become good friends. I miss that naked, cat-loving weirdo.
“The calm before the storm.” Merritt Waldon (Friday’s Storm is your new nickname, brother) Standing in front of the Obey Giant at High Horse Bar author of Oracles From a Strange Fire co-authored with Ron Whitehead photo by JDCIV
Friday was all about native son Hunter S. Thompson, and the infamous Kentucky poet and Lifetime Beat Poet Laureate, Ron Whitehead. Both of whom I consider dear friends and mentors, and I’m forever grateful to at least meet one of my three biggest inspirations in my lifetime. I was also able to have Brother Ron sign my copy of Outlaw Poet: The Legend of Ron Whitehead!! A beautiful and insightful documentary about his life’s work. Scholars and experts from all around came to tell stories of our beloved Anti-Heroes. It was also interesting to hear about Hunter’s interactions with the Hells Angels MC and The Hell’s Angels Letters: Hunter S. Thompson, Margaret Harrell and the Making of an American Classic.” I also met the notable John Whiting, who restored Hunter S Thompson’s Courage Vincent. Talk about a drop-dead gorgeous bike! Chrome everything. Even the tank. He inspired a poem that I’m currently working on titled “Fuck You, Jay Leno!” (coming soon) Even explained to him where my love for Hunter began, and my deeply personal connection with the 1998 film adaptation of the book Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. How my parents and I popped in the VHS when it came out. Put some shrooms on a pizza, and had an insane time together. I Miss You, Mom, and Love You Pop.
Mom & Pop, Mardi Gras, circa the early 2000s
While I didn’t make as many personal connections on Friday as I did on Saturday, it was still one hell of a ride. I was honored to witness it in all its glory.
Gonzo Photography by Michael Duckwall (Friday)
Timothy Jack Denevi (Freak Kingdom: Hunter S. Thompson’s Manic Ten-Year Crusade Against American Fascism), Margaret Ann Harrell (The Hell’s Angels Letters: Hunter S. Thompson, Margaret Harrell and the Making of an American Classic), Peter Richardson (Savage Journey), John F. Brick (Annotated Fear & Loathing in Las Vegas), William McKeen (Outlaw Journalist), Ron Whitehead (co-founder of & Chief of Poetics for GonzoFest, Lifetime US National Beat Poet Laureate)
Timothy Jack Denevi is a professor in the MFA program at George Mason University and the past nonfiction editor of Literary Hub. His work has appeared in the Atlantic, Time, the Paris Review, and New York Magazine, to name a few. And he has been interviewed prolifically, across the spectrum of major news outlets, including the Joe Rogan Experience podcast, following the release of his highly successful Freak Kingdom: Hunter S. Thompson’s Manic Ten-Year Crusade Against American Fascism. Denevi grew up in Los Gatos, California, and lives near Washington DC. He is a MacDowell Colony fellow and a fellow of the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts.
Margaret Ann Harrell spent thirty adventurous years abroad in Morocco and Europe, returning to the United States in 2001. She is a three-time MacDowell Colony fellow and has authored eighteen books, including The Hell’s Angels Letters: Hunter S. Thompson, Margaret Harrell and the Making of an American Classic in collaboration with Ron Whitehead (Norfolk Press) and Space Encounters III—Inserting Consciousness into Collisions: A True Fantasy Adventure by the Earth through the Quantum Entangled World. Also, the Keep This Quiet! memoir series and Particle Pinata Poems. She is an editor and an advanced light body meditation teacher as well as a cloud photographer exhibited now and then in Romania, Italy, Bruges (Belgium), and New York City and a mentor to those wanting to go deeper into themselves and their potential.
Dr. John F. Brick teaches English, first-year rhetoric, and creative writing at Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. His scholarship includes a comprehensive annotated variorum of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, which traces the development of Thompson’s 1971 classic across extant texts and archival documents and provides comprehensive historical, cultural, and literary context. The result not only recaptures something of the first blush of Vegas’ satire and profundity but offers unprecedented granularity in examining Thompson’s creative process at the height of his powers. Dr. Brick’s most recent work examines intersections of sports writing and nationalism. In his spare time, he enjoys distance running and cycling, and playing for the Milwaukee Hurling Club.
Peter Richardson teaches Humanities and American Studies at San Francisco State University. His publications include critically acclaimed books about Hunter S. Thompson, the Grateful Dead, Ramparts magazine, and Carey McWilliams, who edited Thompson at The Nation magazine. He is currently writing a book about Rolling Stone magazine for the University of California Press. His newest release is Savage Journey: Hunter S. Thompson and The Weird Road to Gonzo.
William McKeen is a professor and the former Chair of the Department of Journalism at Boston University; he is the author or editor of thirteen successful books, including Outlaw Journalist, Mile Marker Zero, and Everybody Had an Ocean. McKeen teaches journalism history, literary journalism, and rock n’ roll and American culture and previously taught at Western Kentucky University, the University of Oklahoma, and the University of Florida, where he chaired the department of journalism. Before beginning his teaching career, he was a reporter, then associate editor of The American Spectator and the Saturday Evening Post. Mile Marker Zero is “a tall but telescopic-sight-true tale of Hunter Thompson, Jimmy Buffett, Tom McGuane, and a large cavorting cast running around with sand in their shoes at ‘ground zero for lust and greed and most of the other deadly sins,’ [in] Key West,” wrote Tom Wolfe. McKeen spent his early years in England, Germany, Nebraska, and Texas.
Ron Whitehead, co-founder of & Chief of Poetics for GonzoFest, is a Lifetime US National Beat Poet Laureate. His life is newly documented in the film Outlaw Poet: The Legend of Ron Whitehead (2022). “Ron Whitehead is Bodhisattva in Kentucky,” said Lawrence Ferlinghetti. “I have long admired Ron Whitehead. He is crazy as nine loons, and his poetry is a dazzling mix of folk wisdom and pure mathematics,” said Hunter S. Thompson. An award-winning poet and performer, author of 30 books and 40 albums, his words have been translated into twenty languages.
Saturday, July 15th (Happy Birthday JDC.III)
While the first night was more scholarly in nature, Saturday was a whole different creature. It was time to cut loose a little. The atmosphere was more relaxed. Loved hearing friends both old and new recite their work. I started letting my emotions get the better of me and fucked up a bit when I read, then blamed it on the edibles. Got a good laugh. Thanks to my beautiful muse for that advice. I did eat two 50mg gummies. So I was feeling good, I needed to calm my nerves anyway. Would’ve loved to stay longer both nights, but this was a huge trip for us. We’re home now and exhausted, but it was all worth it.
SETLIST: “Potatoes in a Tube Sock,” “Pour Me,” “In Time with the Beat,” “Dump Poetry” (Watch when I go back on stage. I accidentally swiped Ron’s papers, but it was smooth.) I started letting my emotions get the better of me and fucked up a bit, then blamed it on the edibles, got a good laugh.
Gonzofest made me remember Why I Started Cajun Mutt Press. Where I came from and who I am. I do all this for y’all. Out of pure love. Ron was right, this is important work. But it was also said about Ron himself, what are you willing to give up in pursuit of your dream? Well, in my opinion, this IS the Strange American Dream. In Gonzo Journalism form. We’re living it. Ron is living it. Hunter lived it more than anybody. I only wish I could tell HST that the American Dream was found, and in his honor. We Found The Grain Of Sand. The Holy Grail. I’ll just have to tell him somewhere in the aether. Over the proverbial edge of it all.
Poetry & Music Line Up (The Savage Creatures)
12-7 p.m. — Poets, singers, and musicians. In order of appearance: Brent & Brennan Embry (Rosine), Raymond Smith (Bowling Green), Michael Duckwall (Indiana), Mick Parsons (Louisville), Hilton Airall (Louisville), J.b. Wilson (Washington, D.C.), Jean Kizer (Indiana), Dusty Jaggers (Louisville), Ben Holland (Louisville), James Dennis Casey IV (Illinois), Ian Uriel Girdley (Indiana), Merritt Waldon (Indiana), Joseph Fulkerson (Owensboro), Jonathan Baker (Indiana), Johnny Evans (Louisville), Tom Murphy (Texas), Frogg Corpse (Indiana), Kent Fielding (Alaska), Snow Matthews (Indiana), Lindsay Gargotto (Louisville), Mark Berriman (Indiana), Joan Hawkins (Indiana), Joe Kidd & Sheila Burke (Michigan), Dean McClain (Shelbyville), Tony Brewer (Indiana), Elizabeth Nelson (Louisville), Ron Whitehead & Aviv Naamani (Louisville), Tommy Twilite (Massachusetts), Tommy Bays (Indiana)
7 p.m. – 2 a.m. — Bands and poets. In order of appearance: Blind Feline, John Burroughs (Ohio), Frank Messina (New Jersey) & The Storm Generation Band with special guests, ZU ZU YA YA, Mike Hood & Solar Flannel, Night Parade
Progression of BWND book cover (“The Battle of Amazon”)
I ran into some trouble with the cover of Bad Weed Never Dies while trying to prepare for Gonzofest. If KDP would’ve approved the original version, which is the proof copy, everything would’ve been fine. It looked great! They fought me about the green drop shadow. I tried telling them that it was going to pop the text out. They said it wouldn’t look right in print. I’ve been doing this for long enough to know what’s going to look good, and what isn’t. So I made a compromise and put the text in green, and they approved it. Didn’t really like the way it looked, I knew it would be hard to read without the dropshadow but I needed copies for Gonzofest. And it was either order some or not have any at this point. Got them in the mail just in time, and they looked sub-par. Just like I knew they would. So I changed it—AGAIN! and ordered one from Amazon because I knew I wouldn’t have time to order more author copies. Some battles you win, some battles you lose. We’ll call it a tie this time, Amazon. It still doesn’t look exactly how I want it, but I’m not changing it again. None of it mattered anyway. My dumb ass went and left the box at home after all that bullshit. I let The Fear get to me, and I panicked. I was lucky enough to have that ONE copy of the new version with me. Only because I stuffed it in my backpack to read from. So everything turned out to be a blessing in disguise.
V.1
V.2
V.3
In closing (religious experience)
The whole time I was there, it was akin to being at Church—but in a good way. One that everyone belonged to. For extremely personal reasons that we all lay down on the front lines. At War With Life. Fighting the Good Fight. The Church of Gonzo. I’ve had so much undealt with trauma my entire life. I needed a place to transcend. Sweating the demons out of every pore. A place for my voice to be heard. We all need a place like that. It pains me to say this was the 10th & “final” Gonzofest. Hopefully, someone will pick up the torch. This has also inspired me to try and put something together. A tattoo and poetry extravaganza. I have a plan. (more about that later)
“This addictive little book is aptly titled. Mark Berriman’s words open portals into realms where ghostly barbarian voices sing in an indomitable language of the heart. This is poetic expression at its finest. Courageous. Authentic. Vulnerable. Raw. And more fun than a crackhead wedding. Respek!” —Jonathan Shaw (Author of Narcisa – Our Lady of Ashes, and Scab Vendor – Confessions of a Tattoo Artist)
Holding the Door for Barbarians That Turned Ugly Fast Photo by Heather Himli (Mark Berriman’s Twin Flame)
Acknowledgment (Finding My Tribe)
There is an extensive list of people I’d like to personally thank and mention as well. To Ruth Lenora Johnson, I love you, Grandma Sam. You helped put this trip in motion. I miss you, rest in peace. Maris & Søren, thank you for helping us with funds and figuring out the ride situation. We Love Y’all. Brother Frogg!! I fucking love you, man. Thanks for giving my beautiful muse and I a place to Burn Down and unwind. The trip started rough with forgetting my books and realizing the motel I booked was a shithole. After we left your place we felt a lot better. Your girl Jordan is a magnificent catch as well. Rai likes her a lot. Ma Jestical Amorosa & Elizabeth Nelson, you are two of the sweetest and most powerful souls Rai and I have ever met. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for the hospitality, and for being so accommodating. Sister Jes, thank you for hooking us up with a lamp! I saved that copy of Adventures of Brain Man specifically for you. Sorry if there was any confusion about the books. Sister Elizabeth, I got chills when your beautiful child screamed in the name of the spirits. AHO!! To my new friend Michael Duckwall, thank you for doing a fantastic job documenting this historic event and for letting me use your photography. I’m so glad we met. You and Rachel were two of the coolest people we met there. Glad your son is feeling better after surgery. I ordered a copy of The Ramblings of a Recovering Poet. I didn’t feel so bad about not having copies of mine when you told me what happened with your books. To Scott Laudatti, that was some top-shelf reading advice. Thank you. (Happy Birthday, Pop!) Tohm Bakelas, you are an unbelievably cool dude as well. I enjoyed your talk, and you killed your set! Hope we can all hang out again sometime. Thanks for the copy of To Kingdom Come. Great Stuff. Scott, tell Rucci what I said, and no hard feelings. Snow Matthews, you are captivating. I loved your reading. Looking forward to working with you in the future. Mick Parsons, Jonathan Baker, John Burroughs, Tommy Twilite, Dean McClain, Tony Brewer, Chad Horn, and Dean McClain, it was an honor to meet you all. Your sets were some of my favorites. Wish we could’ve talked more. Brother Burroughs, hearing you read taught me a lot. Tom Murphy! Sorry that I was having a hard time remembering your name. I’ve got Bad Brains, brother. Can’t wait to dig into When I Wear Bob Kaufman’s Eyes! Huge thanks for the copy. To the doorman, brother Ralph. You were right about the heat, and huge thanks for buying a couple of books. I truly appreciate everyone else that grabbed copies as well! Hope y’all enjoy the reads. Blind Feline, y’all fucking JAM!! Brother Oliver, wish we had more time to talk. I enjoyed our interview from 2021. Brent Embrey, Brennan Embry, and Tommy Bays, y’all rocked the house as well. Honored to meet y’all. Hi Helens, sorry I didn’t make the show Friday: Ryan, I’ve been checking out your music, I dig it. Very cathartic indeed. Brother Merritt, thank you for behaving the second night. Sorry, not sorry for the tough love. It came from my heart. Leland Locke, looking forward to reading You Can’t Blame Good Sex on A Puppy: Notes from the Night Desk, Volume 3! Sorry that we didn’t get the chance to talk more. Thanks to Grant Goodwin for the killer Gonzofest 2023 poster numbered 13. Frank Messina! You brought a big vibe, my friend! Loved the shoes. I wanted to stay and see your set with The Storm Generation Band & Zu Zu YA YA, but I had to go take care of my beautiful muse. She took care of me earlier that day. Had to return the love. Apologies if I forgot any names or offended anyone in any way or didn’t mention you here. If I did or didn’t, it was unintentional. I have scrambled eggs for brains after my accident. Art and poetry help me keep it focused. I did my best to remember what I could, and Raissa helped me with the rest. I Love Y’all. This was definitely a learning experience. I enjoyed taking away a small piece of knowledge from each of you. About myself and the world around me. I feel like I’m Shining.
But Most Of All, Last But Not Least . . . the biggest credit goes to Lifetime Beat Poet Laureate, Ron Whitehead. THANK YOU!!! THANK YOU!!! THANK YOU!!! Not only from Raissa and I but on behalf of everyone else in attendance for spearheading such an outstanding event for so long. That is a cross no mortal man can bear, but you, sir, are a Living Legend. No mere mortal. I love you, brother. We All Do. I regret not making it to this event every year of its existence. Yet I’m profoundly happy that I made the “last” one. Hunter S. Thompson was most definitely a flawed man, but he was human at his core. And he left an impression on literature as well as the entire world that can never be erased. He was one of, if not THE greatest writers in the known universe. May the spirit of Gonzo Journalism and the Good Doctor live on forever. Be it in art, poetry, music, flying down the highway on a motorcycle, or anywhere else a rare free soul is found. Can I get a Hallelujah!!!
The Cajun Mutt Press table (Poetry & Artwork)
JDCIV, Founder/Editor-in-Chief of Cajun Mutt Press
Finally Home (Exhausted & Transcendent)
James Dennis Casey IV is a poet, artist, and founder/editor-in-chief of Cajun Mutt Press. His work has been published in print and online by several small press venues and literary magazines.
The 2016 La Voce dei Poeti, La Catena della Pace international poetry contest gave his entry “Warriors of the Rainbow” a critic’s choice award, and his poem “That’ll do Pig” was nominated for the Pushcart Prize by New Pop Lit in 2019.
James was born in Colorado, grew up in Louisiana/Mississippi, and currently resides in Illinois with his muse and their three cats.
PS. Raissa would like to thank everyone for the compliments about her bone earrings, and let y’all know they were made by Jess at Quaint Cadaver!!
PPS. Ben HST Holland! Or, is it Bob? I’m joking. Thank you so much for the hand-typed “Robin Williams Was Right” poem. You’ll be hearing from me soon. I have some things to send you. I’m also looking forward to reading your manuscript!
