Bonnie G.’s Reviews > ART: Why I Stuck with a Junkie Jazzman > Status Update
Bonnie G.
is on page 110 of 382
This is weird and fascinating. It has a sort of punk rock sensibility. There is nothing elegant about it; this has not been workshopped, but its heart and energy are undeniable and compelling. Laurie Pepper (who was a first cousin of Eve Babitz!) is fascinating to me, more fascinating by far than her husband. And all the inside Synanon stuff is amazing. I love a cult!
— Feb 06, 2026 09:41AM
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Bonnie G.’s Previous Updates
Bonnie G.
is on page 290 of 382
I'm finally aware of what I really must do and can't bear to do ... Every day he surprises me or dazzles me or makes me laugh and I feel such tenderness for him and leaving him will be like dying, but staying has become impossible -- he's cruel and demanding and selfish and inconsiderate and false and realy truly nuts, and he's killing me. And I love him. > ~Laurie's diary 4/5/80 -- she left for one day
— Feb 18, 2026 09:09AM
Bonnie G.
is on page 250 of 382
I was recently talking to a student who, for many years, was the girlfriend of a member of a well-known Latin American boy band. In my youth, I dated 2 succesful musicians so we compared notes. When she broke things off, people thought she was nuts. I said, "They don't know, you need to make yourself as tiny as possible, to ignore all your needs." She emphatically agreed. Apparently, Laurie was okay with that.
— Feb 16, 2026 07:47AM
Bonnie G.
is on page 230 of 382
After visiting Art in jail: "I fled from that place to Olvera Street, nearby, to La Luz Del Dia, my favorite cheap Mexican restaurant, where I enjoyed my food outrageously like people fuck when someone has died."
Laurie is a Class A enabler who desperately needs adoration and control, but she is also a delightful raconteur and an honest and talented writer. This is plain fun.
— Feb 11, 2026 09:52AM
Laurie is a Class A enabler who desperately needs adoration and control, but she is also a delightful raconteur and an honest and talented writer. This is plain fun.
Bonnie G.
is on page 193 of 382
"In L.A., we put a gloss on everything, and we insist that gloss is reality. Everything has to be pretty or at least amusing. In New York, it's generally acknowledged that everything is nasty, and when they put a gloss on it, they understand it's just a gloss over nastiness. In New York you can be crippled, stupid, diseased, and not at all amusing and still be a member of the human race."
— Feb 08, 2026 05:51PM
Bonnie G.
is on page 160 of 382
Pepper delivers moments. She creates that sense of being there. Often not great places to be, but reliably fascinating.
— Feb 07, 2026 08:14PM
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Jon
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Feb 06, 2026 10:16AM
Did you read Art's memoir that she helped assemble? Reads like Iceberg Slim; used it for reference when I wrote my spec script on Iggy Pop. Also interested in Synanon as well; finally saw the 1965 docudrama a couple years back; the kind of PSA right-leaning Hollywood squares like Richard Quine and Richard Conte would make because they thought the whole hippie doper culture needed a good kick in the ass.
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Jon wrote: "Did you read Art's memoir that she helped assemble? Reads like Iceberg Slim; used it for reference when I wrote my spec script on Iggy Pop. Also interested in Synanon as well; finally saw the 1965 ..."Thanks for making me think, Jon. I plan to read Straight Life, but haven't done so yet. I believe she wrote it. He just spoke into the recorder at her behest (or at least that is what she said here). I see the Iceberg Slim stylistic parallel here, too, now that you mention it. FWiW, Laurie makes clear that Synanon worked for her, but also discusses the malevolent founder, and says it did later turn into a cult, and I think the evidence points that way. Fascinating stuff. Also, you may want to pick this up because it is very much an LA book, and when done well, I know that works for you.
Sounds great, I might do so. I read STRAIGHT LIFE thirty years ago! And yes, Synanon won heavy public acclaim at first, but unethical leadership sent it spinning down the wrong track almost as fast.
