Joseph Mitchell told the stories of dozens of New Yorkers, but none more vividly than Joe Gould, the kooky academic of 1940s Greenwich Village. Nearly a century later, Mitchell's essay Joe Gould's Secret remains his most studied and talked about, and if you read anything in Up in the Old Hotel, let it be this and Professor Seagull, the essay about Gould that precedes it.
Did you know that there was a movie made in 2000 by the same name? It's faded into relative obscurity as it's not available to stream or rent anywhere, and even a DVD is hard to come by. You might be surprised to learn, though, that the movie version of this inimitable essay is directed by and stars (as Mitchell) none other than the fabulous Stanley Tucci! Give the trailer a watch here.
As we did for Harriet the Spy back in Nov. '22, I've rented a movie theater for us to watch the movie together! I hope you'll join me on Wednesday, January 31st for the screening at the Village East and drinks at nearby McSorley's Ale House afterward!
