The atmosphere was wide open in those circles that we traveled in.

Franz Kline, who became known for his black and white paintings, did a whole series of gorgeous landscapes and wonderful portraits that may still hang in Greenwich Village.

Today's trend ends up in tomorrow's landfill.

That is the way a great master carpenter feels, or an architect or composer or anyone who creates anything - people want to be appreciated for what they have done.

I learned from my uncle that jazz, like symphony music, was built to last.

In symphonic music, when you are conducting, you do the same thing. You are feeling the whole orchestra, thinking ahead so you can prepare for a change.

Lawrence Ferlinghetti had a tremendous education as an artist and also an enormous knowledge of literarture.

We met with the poet Frank O'Hara, who was a link between Upper and Lower Bohemia, and who worked at the Museum of Modern Art, where we had hoped to do the readings.

A few years later, my Uncle David took me to the Earle Theatre to hear Duke Ellington.

Allen Ginsberg was a world authority on the writing of William Blake, and had an incredible knowledge of classic literature and world politics.

I wish to share and pass down some of my generation's traits, and encourage young people to create their own art, music, and literature.

Friendly fire was never friendly, and it was coming. Operation Stand-and-Watch was over. Did that mean Operation Bust-His-Balls was on deck?

Letter-writing is the only device for combining solitude with good company.

One of the best ways to keep a great secret is to shout it.

All life is temporary Why worry about anything that's only temporary

Sometimes it is painful to be oneself; at other times it seems impossible to escape oneself.

This is not a museum of tragedy. It is not the museum of difficult moments. It is the museum that says -here is a balanced history of America that allows us to cry and smile.

Surrealism in painting amounted to little more than the contents of a meagerly stocked dream world: a few witty fantasies, mostly wet dreams and agoraphobic nightmares.

In the temple we can find peace. The blessings of the temple are priceless.

One more thing. The people and the friends that we have lost... or the dreams that have faded... never forget them.

No, I'm no enemy to learning; it hurts not me.