RIP Jim Carroll

[Joey Deadcat]

RIP, Jim Carroll (September 11, 2009) The Basketball Diaries

Posted by themusicsover on September 11, 2009

Jim Carroll

August 1, 1950 – September 11, 2009

Jim Carroll was a poet, author, purse snatcher, glue sniffer, male prostitute, heroin addict, post-punk rocker and one of the greatest basketball players New York City has ever known. His troublesome early life was documented in his own memoirs, written between the ages of 12 and 16. They were later anthologized in best-selling The Basketball Diaries, which was the inspiration of a somewhat fictionalized film of the same name, starring Leonard DiCaprio as Carroll. He published his first book of poetry at the age of 17 and within a few years he was working for Andy Warhol writing script dialog, and later, co- managing his theater. At one point while still a teenager, Carroll became the youngest person ever nominated for a Pulitzer Prize. He formed the Jim Carroll Band in 1978 with the help of Patti Smith, and soon released Catholic Boy. It’s “People Who Died” was an instant underground hit and is considered a staple of the New York punk scene of the era. The songs eulogizes his real life childhood friends, the “characters” from The Basketball Diaries. Carroll recorded several more albums of music and spoken word over the next few decades, but in recent years he was mostly writing poetry and fiction. Jim Carroll suffered a fatal heart attack on September 11, 2009.

[Slogo]

RIP

[the eternal]

He wrote some great stuff. It's worth checking out.

And if you're in the mood for a good movie that shows Leo pre-Titanic where's he's allowed to act,

Basketball Diaries is a great flick too.

[pomba gira]

He will be missed.

I've owned every single one of his books and albums.

Seen him perform at least 4 times and been to several book signings over the years.

My Jim Carroll story:

Second Hubby Rick & I went to see him at the Magic Stick in the late '90s. After the show he was signing stuff, but instead of the usual setup they had him in this tiny little closet of a room. There was a couch & a couple armchairs, and they were letting people in 4 at a time to get their things signed. Rick had just seen the film Basquiat, and asked Carroll if he'd known the guy. And he launched into 15 minutes of stories about Basquiat (who apparently was a major dickhead). It was so cool... he was so enthusiastic and natural... it was like he was just some guy at a bar telling stories. He talked until the club people came and kicked us out 'cos there were still people waiting.

I will always cherish the memory of this encounter with an artist I felt a deep personal connection with.

[Rev.Reverence]

OOO, snap...I knew he'ld go sooner than later...I did love everything I ever heard or saw of him...

A GENIUS~BARD this man was...His Light will burn bright for a long time to come...

I shall keep him in my thoughts & prayers...