Page 27 Stay in Your Own Movie

THE BLANDNESS OF AMERICAN CULTURE BACK IN 1950 WAS SUMMED UP WHEN SNOOKY LANSON SANG IT’S A MARSHMALLOW WORLD ON THE LUCKY STRIKE HIT PARADE. BUT, BY THE END OF THAT DULL DECADE, A SPIRIT OF CREATIVE ADVENTURE WAS RE-EMERGING ACROSS THE COUNTRY. ELVIS PRESLEY HAD COME UPON THE SCENE, ONLY TO HAVE HIS BOTTOM HALF CENSORED OUT OF CAMERA RANGE ON THE ED SULLIVAN SHOW, EVEN WHILE YOUNG GIRLS AND BOYS WERE BUSY PRACTICING PELVIC THRUSTS WITH THEIR HULA HOOPS THAT WOULD HAVE MADE ELVIS HIMSELF BLUSH. AND THE VOICES OF THE BEAT GENERATION HAD ALSO BEGUN TO BE HEARD. NEAL CASSADY WAS THE LIGHTNING ROD OF THE BEATS. HE LIVED IN A MARSHMALLOW WORLD TOO, EXCEPT THAT HIS MARSHMALLOW HAD BEEN DOSED…
-Paul Krassner

This was one of a great set of photos taken back at the beginning when Pigpen was with the band. Only a few pro photogs covered the band in those days. And they are all awesome people to this day. This one is by Bob Seidemann.

Neal represented a model to me of how far you could take it in the individual way. In the sense that you weren’t going to have a work, you were going to be the work. Work in real time, which is a lot like a musician’s work. I was oscillating at the time. I had originally been an art student and was wavering between one-man/ one-work or being involved in something that was dynamic and ongoing and didn’t necessarily stay any one way. And also, something in which you weren’t the only contributing factor. I decided to go with what was dynamic and with what more than one mind was involved with. The decision I came to was to be involved in a group thing, which was what I was involved in, namely the Grateful Dead, and I’m still involved in it … -Garcia

This is a much loved image of Neal taken by Herb Greene, master photographer at Olompali in 1966. According to ruppi, Master Researcher: this one belongs to the series of pictures Herb Greene took at an Olompali party in May or June 1966.

Photos: Main – Bob Seidemann, Inset – Herbie Greene