Pink - Softcover

Van Sant, Gus

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0385493533 ISBN 13: 9780385493536

Publisher: Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, 1998

Synopsis

Gus Van Sant goes from auteur to author in an brilliant, inventive, and endlessly entertaining first novel that reads like a Warholian mix of Kurt Vonnegut and Tom Robbins.

In the town of Sasquatch, Oregon, Spunky Davis, middle-aged maker of infomercials, is trying to find his next assignment, finish the screenplay that he hopes will bring him Hollywood glory, and deal with the death of his friend and favorite infomercial presenter, teen idol Felix Arroyo. Enter two young aspiring filmmakers, Jack and Matt, whom Spunky finds strangely familiar--especially as Jack bears an uncanny resemblance to the late Felix. But Jack and Matt are not what they appear to be; they are messengers from a dimension beyond time known as Pink, and they invite Spunky to join them on their voyage of transcendence and recovery.

Using a delirious array of voices signified by different typefaces, a flip cartoon that animates the novel's action, footnotes and line drawings, Gus Van Sant turns the novel into an explosively visual experience, a captivating combination of texture and text. As original and involving as any of Van Sant's films, Pink is both a hip, comic deconstruction of our image-obsessed culture and a genuinely tender story on the classic themes of love, time, and loss.

About this title

From the Publisher:

Gus Van Sant is one of America's most original and celebrated filmmakers, whose credits include three films already considered classics: Drugstore Cowboy, which anticipated the current 90s revival; My Own Private Idaho, with River Phoenix and Keanu Reeves; and To Die For, a black comedy that was a critical and box-office success. With Pink, Gus Van Sant brings his unique and playful genius to the novel, and the result is both delirious and disarmingly tender.

In Sasquatch, Oregon, Spunky Davis, middle-aged maker of infomercials, is trying to find his next assignment, finish the screenplay that he hopes will bring him Hollywood glory, and deal with the death of his friend and favorite infomercial presenter, the teen idol Felix Arroyo. Enter two young aspiring filmmakers, Jack and Matt, who captivate Spunky--especially as Jack bears an uncanny resemblance to the late Felix. But Jack and Matt are not what they appear to be--and are about to take Spunky to the mysterious realm known as Pink, where time and loss can be recovered.

With its riot of typefaces, footnotes and drawings (by the author), its trenchant and ironic deconstruction of youth culture and filmmaking, and its charmingly innocent sensibility, Pink is an absolute delight.

From the Back Cover:

In the town of Sasquatch, Oregon, Spunky Davis, middle-aged maker of infomercials, is trying to find his next assignment, finish the screenplay that he hopes will bring him Hollywood glory, and deal with the death of his friend and favorite infomercial presenter, the teen idol Felix Arroyo. Enter two young aspiring filmmakers, Jack and Matt, whom Spunky finds strangely familiar - especially as Jack bears an uncanny resemblance to the late Felix. But Jack and Matt are not what they appear to be; they are messengers from a dimension beyond time known as Pink, and they invite Spunky to join them on their voyage of transcendence and recovery. Using every means the printed page offers to tell his tale - a delirious array of voices signified by different typefaces, a flip cartoon that animates the novel's action, footnotes, and drawings - Gus Van Sant turns the novel into an explosively visual experience, a captivating combination of texture and text.

About this edition

• Publisher: Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group
• Publication date: 1998
• ISBN 10: 0385493533
• ISBN 13: 9780385493536
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 272