Lots of fascinating talks going on in August. Last Thursday I listened to screenwriter and director Larry Kasdan give a talk titled "What Can Reel Life Teach Us About Real Life? Lessons from the Movies" at the Vineyard Haven Hebrew Center. He was very funny. The last question came from an elderly man in a wheelchair, who asked, "Why is there a vacuity in so many of your films' characters?" Kasdan deadpanned, "Because they're mostly based on me."Last night Peter Matthiessen spoke after the screening of Jeff Sewald's documentary "Peter Matthiessen - No Boundaries" at the Vineyard Haven Yacht Club.
I don't always agree with his politics, but Matthiessen has lived a courageous and inspiring life. The film mentioned he did a lot of hallucinogens in the Sixties. During the Q&A I asked him about that. He gave a very animated answer, explaining he had a friend, a medical doctor called John the Night Tripper, who dispensed pharmaceutical Sandoz LSD. Matthiessen said it opened the door to Zen Buddhism which he practices today, adding that if he could get Sandoz LSD now he'd do it again. He's 81.
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