Oh. So that's Harlan Ellison.

[thehefner]

Ever since the A.V. Club's fascinating two-part interview with the man, I decided to finally check out some Harlan Ellison. I remembered that my library had a collection of Ellison short stories read by the author himself, so I picked it up along with PARADISE LOST* and checked 'em out.

God damn.

Now, I'm sure the stories read on their own would still be great. I imagine I could have just read, say, "I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream," and thinking, "I see why this is a classic, yeah," and I probably would have wrote "Laugh Track" off as amusing but lightweight and likely forgettable.

But Ellison isn't just reading these stories. He's performing them, and in a way no other writer I've ever heard has performed his or her work. He performs these like he knows every inch of them, inside and out, and stretches them to their limits with his energy and rhythm.

Have you ever listened to a piece of music that makes your body contort? More than bobbing your head to a beat, more than singing along, you find your head, neck, hands, etc, twisting and flying in an attempt to follow--to ride--the music. It's like composing a symphony, only backwards. Hopefully you know what I mean. I've had that happen before... but never with spoken word.

I've been describing Ellison's stories on tape as "Ray Bradbury as performed by George Carlin," and on "Laugh Track" especially, I'd throw a healthy dash of Denis Leary in there too. And it's music. It's pure music to my ears, head, neck, hands, wrists, fingers, every part that's as free as can be while I'm driving my car, listening to books on tape.

I'm almost done with "A Boy and His Dog," and while I'm fond of the movie (mainly for the ending), it doesn't quite capture the book's twisted metaphorical nature. Afterward, I'm gonna listen to these stories all over again, which I've never done with any book on tape before. Because seriously, as a performer and a storyteller, I could learn a hell of a lot from this man.

Between this, finishing Matheson's THE INCREDIBLE SHRINKING MAN (incredible indeed!), and old-school EC Comics adaptations of Ray Bradbury short stories, I'm finally starting to catch up on my classic sci-fi. Definitely gonna get to Heinlein one of these days too.



*I figured listening to it would be easier than trying to read it. Ugh, barely got halfway through the first tape. Maybe next year. Maybe if it was actually performed, rather than dryly read. I wouldn't be able to get through even my favorite Shakespeare plays if it was read like this guy did.

... shit, to take it full circle, I'd pay good money to have Harlan Ellison read PARADISE LOST.

Comments

[lariel.livejournal.com]

If you're reading Heinlein, make sure you get the good ones without sex and multiple marriages. Not that I'm philosophically opposed, but it does get old.

[thehefner.livejournal.com]

I'll be starting with STARSHIP TROOPERS, and then/or anything else that Bloo or Duda recommends.

[lariel.livejournal.com]

Yes, Starship Troopers is good. I remember reading one or two others that weren't dreadful, but I can't remember which they were. Heinlein experts would know, as you say.

[mirthical.livejournal.com]

even with the sex and the multiple marriages, I would say "Stranger in a Strange Land" and "The Moon is a Harsh Mistress" are worth the effort.

Most of the other stuff gets a little goofier, though I find it enjoyable enough.

[mirthical.livejournal.com]

Actually, I quite enjoyed "A Tramp Abroad", too - it's a travel memoir in the footsteps of Mark Twain, whom Heinlein idolized (or at least made all his characters idolize).

I'm partial to travel memoirs, myself.

[lariel.livejournal.com]

I'll be honest, I didn't get through Stranger in a Strange Land. It started so good that it pissed me off when it got horrid. I think I tried multiple times, but still couldn't manage it.

Strangely enough, I managed to get through some of the more wretched ones. Never read "The Moon is a Harsh Mistress" though I did read "The Cat Who Walks Through Walls"--I guess that's odd, maybe I would have liked it more if I'd read the former.

[suburbfabulous.livejournal.com]

MEFISTO IN ONYX.
Trust me.
It's pharmaceutical grade Ellison, baby.

Ellison

[american-arcane.livejournal.com]

Good ol' Harlan is a god.

He's written some of the best episodes of anything I've ever seen... and the straight out stories I've read are no less awesome.

I saw him a handful of years ago at DragonCon, it was while he was still going through his copyright lawsuit with AOL. Watched him almost get into a knock-down, drag-out fight with an audience member over copyright issues. He's a fantastically cantankerous old bastard...

And I could listen to him just complain for hours. I'd imagine him reading his own stuff is millions of times as fantastic!

Paradise Lost

[brockulfsen.livejournal.com]

The BBC did an excellent Audiodrama a few years back, a performance of the whole work, with the text comparatively little changed.

I caught a couple of episodes as they aired on Australia's ABC radio, and have it my list of things to buy when I'm not broke.

I vague recall talk of them doing Regained as well.