JEREMIAH, SON OF CASSANDRA--LIVE VERSION

Recorded live at the Ugly Mug in Orange, CA in 2003.

Sins forever considered unforgivable: Jane Fonda, Artie Lange and me.

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/jane-fonda-criticizes-qvc-far-212264
http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/jjmnolte/2011/07/16/jane-fonda-blames-canceled-qvc-appearance-on-the-right-wing/
http://www.danpatrick.com/2011/07/15/artie-lange-talks-about-returning-to-radio-to-do-sports/
http://www.tmz.com/2011/07/14/artie-lang-radio-howard-stern-directv-nick-dipaolo-hopfully-supportive-support/
http://poetry-arts-confidential.blogspot.com/2011/04/annual-plea-for-forgiveness-re-ugly-mug.html
http://poetry-arts-confidential.blogspot.com/2011/05/re-ugly-mug-its-all-over-for-me.html

Something that all of us in the poetry community are guilty of.

A couple of nights ago, I went to see a poet at a venue in Los Angeles.  He doesn't do features very often, so I wanted to take advantage of this rare opportunity to see him.

Unfortunately, the turnout was small.  And, I'm assuming that part of the reason was that some of the poet's friends/colleagues don't go or don't want to go to that venue.  And the poet featuring there wasn't going to be enough for those friends/colleagues to make a one-time exception.

This happens a lot.

People don't go to poetry venues for one or more of these reasons:
A. Dislike of the host/hosts
B. Not wanting to travel a long distance
C. Start time of the reading being too early/too late
D. Perception of the venue as being "bad" or "uncool" or insufficiently literate
E. Perception of the venue as being unappreciative of their poetry
F. Dislike of the host/hosts' choice of features


If you're a poet in LA/OC, you've probably nixed going to venues (at one time or another) for at least three of the reasons listed above.

Victor Infante and Ben Trigg explain The Ugly Mug for you.

One last (for the time being) post about how poetry business can get accomplished. A trend in certain venues in both Los Angeles and Orange Counties is to minimize the "growing" of local poets in favor of booking either touring or local "names"--either literary or slam-crossovers.

Here's an excerpt from Victor Infante interviewing his friend, Ugly Mug co-host Ben Trigg nearly two years ago for OC WEEKLY--where this trend is acknowledged on the record. The highlighting is done by me:
And perhaps the Ugly Mug reading is as much an artistic expression for Trigg as his poetry. Certainly, its growth as it enters its seventh year is astounding. Once it catered mostly to featuring local, developing writers, but it's now a frequent destination for touring poets, one where the pass-the-hat paycheck often nets the headliner more cash—as well as book sales—than some LA gigs.

"I like to think we've made this a completely welcoming space," says Trigg. "You're not going to be made unwelcome, no matter how bad your writing is. We're never going to overtly say anything to you. So this is worth doing. There must be some aspect of coming to the reading that's making the poets grow. And that's the vindicating thing."

But how much do the open-mike poets grow if the reading caters mostly to touring or local icons?

The complete interview can be found at:
http://www.ocweekly.com/2007-10-11/culture/nice-guys-finish-last/

OC poet Steve Ramirez and my going-on-five-years banishment from Orange's Ugly Mug.

There are many colorful tales in show business of personalities being 86ed from various venues for behavior or opinions contrary to management.

These include: Andrew Dice Clay's alleged disbarment from Ben Frank's coffee shop on the Sunset Strip (now a Mel's Drive-In), Dick Shawn's incurring of Johnny Carson's wrath when Shawn, guest-hosting THE TONIGHT SHOW, turned over Carson's desk on-camera to use it as a prop for a Washington-crossing-the-Delaware routine and Kathy Griffin being forbidden as a guest on THE VIEW for being Kathy Griffin.

I wish my tale of banishment could be a bit more colorful and extravagant. But, it isn't. It's a small tale of how one bad incident on my part unraveled roughly four-and-a-half years of acquaintanceship--and how the offended party has first justly responded, then flagrantly overreacted in the years since.

Once upon a time, I got along with Steve Ramirez--along with Ben Trigg, one of the two hosts of the TWO IDIOTS PEDDLING POETRY reading series in Orange (located at the Ugly Mug coffeehouse just a few blocks from Chapman University). I even featured there two to three times and, when we were both in Austin for the 2001 AIPF poetry festival, I gave Steve a ride in my rented car. Back then, Steve was nice to me and vice versa.

And then, for awhile, I didn't get down to OC to attend Ugly Mug readings. When I did, it seemed like Steve (who desired respect and parity with the Orange County poetry elite) got a somewhat swelled head and was a bit more distant with me.

To shorten this long story, I misbehaved at the Ugly Mug. I was primarily upset with something dismissive Steve said about me during the reading (which I probably set myself up for). And, after the reading, I couldn't contain my anger and wanted to talk to Steve. He didn't want any kind of conversation with me. I opted for the reaction of yelling at him. Mistake--especially considering some OC and LA Prominent Poets were still in the room. I walked out of the Ugly Mug, followed by the venue owner. The owner and I had words(one of mine fell into the David Mamet category)--and I was told to never come back.

This was nearly five years ago, in the late summer/early fall of 2004. Since then, I've tried to avoid adverse public behavior and have been mostly successful. On a handful of occasions, I've written Steve and asked to return. At first, he would shrug and say "it's up to [venue owner]." And I did write to the venue owner. No dice. As years passed, Steve would respond in a slightly more active-agressive "I wish you wouldn't come back/bother me about this" way.

And I took the hint and have left this subject alone.

But, as the five-year mark rolls around, I just want to go ahead and make my feelings public; I just don't care anymore about the inherent ridiculousness of Steve Ramirez' (plus the venue owner's) determination to hold on to his anger and wariness into infinity and beyond.

I've done my best to atone. Since 2004, I've accomplished a few good things in poetry--including being chosen as part of a publication reading this coming Saturday. And, to put it concisely, I don't care to enter the Ugly Mug for the rest of my life, regardless of whether Two Idiots Peddling Poetry or anyone else happen to host there.

I prefer self-respect instead.