In the current issue of Vanity Fair, a long profile of actor Johnny Depp (written by rocker-writer Patti Smith, no less) delves into Depp's collecting activities (page 3, particularly). Smith asks Depp: "Speaking of books, I was thinking about the letters and manuscripts
you have--Dylan Thomas, Kerouac, Rimbaud. Can you remember the first of
these that you obtained and how that came about?" Depp's response to this question refers to John Sampas, Kerouac's brother-in-law, who invited Depp to the family home to have his pick of Kerouac documents and memorabilia, including Kerouac's raincoat. Where have I heard this before? In "And the Beat Goes On," an article we published last January, all about the controversy surrounding Kerouac's will and how his estate has been/is being handled. Seems like this beat does go on and on...
