The award-winning piece from The Walrus “Samson and Delilah,” by Jonathan Goldstein. October 2004. Or, if reading makes you carsick, just listen to the similarly named Wiretap episode.
John Hodgman’s piece “Hello, I’m Famous,” in GQ. Or, if reading makes you carsick, you can just listen to it on This American Life.
K. Bye.
Here are a couple Howard Chackowicz interviews. This one is quite recent, covering the release party of Howie Action Comix, feat. performances by Nutsak and Bug-eyed Monster (both with Howard on the drums).
First, he talks about his first collection of comics, which featured the now-retired autobiographical “Howie”:
“I can’t do Howie-the-fat-kid anymore,” announces the artist from across the table of his Fairmont Street kitchen, while an impressive array of Ray Harryhausen models stare out from their shelf behind his head. “In the past, when I drew [those comix], I used to find them very funny… my childhood was a source of endless comedy for me for an entire decade. ‘Howie’ is autobiographical – he’s naked, he’s impossibly huge, and he’s the ultimate victim of cruelty, and all he wants to be is good, and to be loved.”
He goes on to say this:
“I love life,” says Chackowicz, by way of clarification. “I think life – trees, birds, people, all that shit – is wonderful, but… I feel like the whole world’s on fire, and we’re all part of it. [...] In life, all I give a fuck about is being a good person, and I feel like the angry stuff in the art is an extension of my trying to be a good person.”
“I love life,” says Chackowicz, by way of clarification. “I think life – trees, birds, people, all that shit – is wonderful, but… I feel like the whole world’s on fire, and we’re all part of it.
[...]
In life, all I give a fuck about is being a good person, and I feel like the angry stuff in the art is an extension of my trying to be a good person.”
Much different sentiment then the lyrics in “I Hate Everything.”
Snubdom.com features a bit more darker-toned interview from 2001. Here are some tidbits:
EDIT: AS you can see from the link, this interview has been censored. I can only assume Mr. Chackowicz doesn’t want it to be read any longer. So I’ve also removed the excerpt from here. Thanks
Other than that downer, the article notes that Howard:
Times-Colonist recently ran an article on Jonathan Goldstein and the Genesis of Wiretap.
The article describes Goldstein’s arc as this:
The piece notes some of the reactions to the show, mostly people not knowing if its real or not and then calling and emailing and complaining, and then this:
For the most part, however, Goldstein doesn’t know what people think of WireTap. He works long hours, stitching together every second of every show, and rarely has opportunity to socialize or meet listeners.
They also reference episodes “The New Josh” and the Howard Chackowicz interview with Paul Tough from the episode “Canadian Content” :
But there’s a downside to broadcasting conversations that sound real: Some listeners think they are real. Howard Chackowicz, another contributor, recalls an episode in which he interviewed a writer. He began with a ridiculous question – “When I write, my hand really aches a lot. Do you use an ergonomic pen?” – and things quickly went downhill from there. “We got e-mails from people complaining that the standards of the CBC had degraded beyond repair,” says Chackowicz.
But there’s a downside to broadcasting conversations that sound real: Some listeners think they are real. Howard Chackowicz, another contributor, recalls an episode in which he interviewed a writer.
He began with a ridiculous question – “When I write, my hand really aches a lot. Do you use an ergonomic pen?” – and things quickly went downhill from there.
“We got e-mails from people complaining that the standards of the CBC had degraded beyond repair,” says Chackowicz.
But most exciting is this:
Biblical tales still fascinate Goldstein. His new book, out next spring, contains his take on the lives of Old Testament figures. In the Bible, Jonathan Goldstein Edition, the narratives remain intact but are infused with jokes and a modern sensibility. “I try to imagine what it was like for them,” he says, “and then I impose my own neuroses on them.”
Oh man I’ve been searching for this nonexistent book for years. All I’ve ever found on Amazon.com was this II Macabees (Anchor Bible) by Jonathan A. Goldstein (our heroes’ middle initial is “S”). I hope it won’t be disappointing that I’ve heard a vast majority of the stories already on Wiretap and This American Life.
Anyway, I had more to this post but it was tragically lost due to technical difficulties. Read the article yourself for more info.
Sorry for the recent rash of O’Neill related posts, but I just finished the book and well, there’s a lot out there. She recently read at the Auckland Writers and Readers Festival and they provided a couple links on her bio:
The Christchurch City Libraries Blog also has an account of the event.
Howard does comics. Check it @ conundrumpress.com:
At the Web site, right before you buy it (which you should) you get to see two blurbs from two of his good friends:
“Imagine little old men making swans out of tin foil paper during lunch hour at the factory — Chackowicz’s art captures the same sense of longing for freedom and expression despite the corruption and horror that is everyday life.” — Heather O’Neill, author of Lullabies for Little Criminals
“Chackowicz’s great trick is making us think that he has merely drawn us comics and cartoons both surreal and laugh-out-loud hilarious, but at a closer glance we can see that he has also here crafted honest-to-God poems — lyrical works of poignancy and depth. His art is unexpectedly wistful and warm-heartedly wise.” — Jonathan Goldstein, Host of CBC’s “Wiretap” and author of Lenny Bruce is Dead
I’ve noticed from browsing through old National Post Jonathan Goldstein pieces that he is quite obsessed with melba toast. A cursory search reveals three references to “Jonathan Goldstein” and “Melba toast.” One poignant reference I remember (from “Man is a rope between the ordinary and extraordinary”) was when he was going through the day feeling as if he had something to look forward to, but he couldn’t remember what. So, he goes through the whole day feeling optimistic and hopeful because there was something happy in his near future but later he realized that it was because he had some uneaten Melba toast in his desk. Later, while eating the Melba toast, he didn’t know whether to feel happy about the Melba toast or sad that the thing that he was looking forward to was Melba toast.
This strikes me a very Jewish thing to go through. As an Asian, I feel this way about leftover crispy sesame tofu. All inappropriate stereotypes aside, I think Jonathan may simply reference Melba toast simply because it is such a funny word. He is a poet after all.
Read more about Melba toast.
On another note, Jonathan notes here that he hasn’t cried in 20 years. This was the subject of a Wiretap episode…I can’t remember which one, I want to say it was Fake it Until You Make It? Dunno, I’m probably wrong, but he ends up calling an actor who tells him all about how he can make himself cry, and JG admits, “I’m afraid that if I start crying, I wont’ be able to stop.” This strikes me as a very middle-aged syndrome. We spend so much of our years as fledgling adults beating residual emotions and impulses from our teenaged years into submission (for the sake of “maturity”) that when it comes to finding a healthy outlet, we are at a loss. Victims of our own mastery of our selves. I think it has something to do with 9 to 5 and being an infallible parent, etc. But this really isn’t the proper forum for such personal musings as this. Sorry. I promise the next post will be 150 percent Wiretap-related.
I can’t believe I’ve been overlooking this veritable Goldstein-Mine of Goldstein material! Jonathan Goldstein has a regular column in The National Post where he often discusses our old Wiretap friends or directly lifts material from Wiretap episodes. This week:
“The Truth about Spats and Dogs”
Featuring:
I’m very stressed out that I’m only now realizing that I can read recent National Posts online and that old ones quickly go away.
You should all read these:
“He’s Our Man!”
Ah screw it I was gonna link all of them one by one but just SEARCH for it on the Web site.
At the end of Private Life; Public Performance JG mentions that the first act was a collaboration between him and Mireille Silcoff and appears in Guilt and Pleasure. For the life of me, I can’t find it but I did find some other delectable goodies:
Oh and pictures:
I think you should all go to Guilt and Pleasure and read/buy every issue. David Rakoff has a piece in the newest issue, too.
I think this is an all-Jewish publication. Though it doesn’t mention that any where in its about. Maybe it just so happens that all my favorite authors are Canadian Jews.
Guilt & Pleasure is a quarterly magazine that’s making you talk more . Guilt & Pleasure is based on the belief that a good argument – especially on issues of community and identity in America – has become too rare a thing. We hope our magazine and the DIY section of this website will be used as raw material to spark conversation – be it around the dinner table, a coffee shop, or a bar. Guilt & Pleasure encourages you to talk amongst yourselves.
UPDATE: I emailed the magazine seeking the piece, and apparently it doesn’t exist?:
I’m not sure which article you are referring to. Jonathan and Mireille have both written for the magazine (and Mireille was the editor-in-chief) but I don’t believe they ever did an article together. And the hypnotist doesn’t sound familiar to me although I wasn’t working here for the first four issues so I could be wrong. It sounds like it would be in the Magic issue- there is an article about Hitler’s psychic/hypnotist by Mel Gordon in there- could that be what they were talking about?
Hmm, Guess I’ll ask CBC.
