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Blank on Blank

Famous Names, Lost Interviews

Kurt Vonnegut on Man-Eating Lampreys *

By Blank on Blank

“Nothing means anything — except the artist makes his living by pretending, by putting it in a meaningful hole, though no such holes exist.” – Kurt Vonnegut in 1970

Kurt Vonnegut walked into a class room at NYU in November 1970. He was a guest speaker that day. He’d prepared some handwritten notes on what he wanted to say: there were his thoughts on the art of writing, his childhood, the death of his parents. He jumped from topic to topic as he shuffled through his papers. Sometimes his voice trailed off. He delivered punchlines with perfect timing. The class roared. Listening to this tape, we get to be flies on the wall that day.  So take a seat, but your book bag down and enjoy.

Watch the animated version of this episode from our series with PBS Digital Studios: http://blankonblank.org/kurt-vonnegut

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