I keep repeating this Jack Kerouac quote from Visions of Cody over and over again.  It sums up my method of existence:

I wish I had ten personalities, one hundred golden brains, far more ports than are ports, more energy than the river, but I must struggle to live it all, and on foot, and in these little crepesole shoes, ALL of it, or give up completely.

ShakinShakinShakinShakinSHAKE

This is another music video of my nieces, set to Darren Hanlon's "Electric Skeleton." The girls are so funny in such a subtle, adorable way.

Look to the right of the screen!

You may now proceed to give me your lunch money...c'mon, it's for art!

This documentary not only asks the question “Who is Connie Converse?” but also, “Where did she go?”  To those who knew her, Connie Converse was a daughter, a sister, a sister-in-law, a friend, a scholar, a writer, an artist, a political activist, a composer, and a musician.  She was indeed all of those things, but as one can tell from the goodbye letter, Connie was much more.  She was a human in a lifelong battle with herself.  Each year brought more disappointment and loneliness as she struggled to connect herself to this world while seeking commercial success for her work.  Faced with major surgery, an impending trip to be spent sober with her mother, and a crippling sense of failure, Connie Converse drove off in her Volkswagen bug leaving only notes of goodbye.  The year was 1974 and she was 50 years old.  Connie was never heard from again, and all we have left is a filing cabinet of papers and her haunting, beautiful Musicks.

Although I am in the research/grant proposal writing/planning stages of the film, tricky circumstances have called for what might be my final chance to go to Michigan and speak with her brother, Phil, and sister-in-law, Jean. While I am in Michigan I will also be gathering materials to aid Lau Derette (the record label who released her album, "How Sad, How Lovely") with the re-release of a special edition. I will be purchasing a portable digital document feeder/scanner to obtain copies of as many treasures from the filing cabinet as I can, including her personal letters, pictures, and drawings.

My trip is scheduled for September 8-10 and I am attempting to raise any amount of money I can to subsidize the cost of travel, equipment, and other production expenses.  If you have a bit of fundage to spare, I would greatly appreciate donations of all denominations, from non-consecutive twenties to kind words.  I don't discriminate!  Soon I will have a website with a better promo video, pictures, an inside look into production, etc.  Of course I will keep you all updated as things progress.

I am so thankful for all of your support.  If it weren't for your belief in me, I wouldn't believe in me!

I need an intern.

3 jobs. Grad school. Documentary. 

More info soon about how YOU can help me spread the Gospel of Connie Converse.

If you would like to know right this second, please email:

connieconversedoc@gmail.com

My First Attempt...

Please disregard the less than perfect video composition and sound quality.  However, I needed to let some of this footage see the light of day!