I was sad to learn about the death of Mel Gordon on March 22, but he left the world with an incredible legacy of writing and scholarship. Jack and I decided to discuss the impact Mel had on both of us in our podcast. If you'd like to read my interviews with Mel, you can read them on Heathen Harvest:
In Search of the Extraordinary: An Interview with Mel Gordon [quoted in his New York Times obituary]
Theatre of Fear and Horror - Review and Interview
Jack and Kate take a different approach in this mini episode by paying tribute to author, scholar, theater expert, and collector Mel Gordon. Mel's books had a huge impact on both of your hosts and they discuss his importance and the legacy he leaves us with. Kate talks about her personal encounters with Mel and Jack dives into where he fits within an academic context.
How does one get cast in a Mel Gordon theatrical production? What kind of gift would one receive from him at one's wedding? Why is there no Weimar Berlin simulation for the Oculus Rift and how do we fix that? Where does Werner Herzog fit into all of this? Find out all this and more in this month's mini episode of Bad Books for Bad People.
Books discussed include:
Voluptuous Panic: The Erotic World of Weimar Berlin
Theater of Fear and Horror: The Grisly Spectacle of the Grand Guignol of Paris, 1897 - 1962
The Seven Addictions and Five Professions of Anita Berber: Weimar's Priestess of Depravity
Horizontal Collaboration: The Erotic World of Paris, 1920 - 1946