Vonnegut's first reading of Breakfast of Champions, 1970
Andrew sez, "Here's a recording of Kurt Vonnegut's very first public reading of Breakfast of Champions, 3 years before it was published, at the 92nd Street Y in 1970."Link Coral Cache MP3 mirror (Thanks, Andrew!)VONNEGUT: The best audience in the world is the 92nd Street Y. Those people know everything and they are wide awake and responsive.
HELLER: I was part of a panel there on December seventh. The fiftieth anniversary of Pearl Harbor.
VONNEGUT: Were you bombed at Pearl Harbor, Joe?
HELLER: No.
VONNEGUT: Of course, James Jones was. I was saying this would be sort of a valedictory interview because our generation is taking its leave now. James Jones is gone. Irwin Shaw is gone. Truman Capote is gone.
HELLER: Yeah, but nobody’s replaced us.
VONNEGUT: No. (Laughter)
Share this post
Where not otherwise specified, this work is licensed under a Creative Commons License permitting non-commercial sharing with attribution. Boing Boing is a trademark of Happy Mutants LLC in the United States and other countries.


















VONNEGUT: The best audience in the world is the 92nd Street Y. Those people know everything and they are wide awake and responsive.




