English
Letters To Benedikt by Eric Kroll
One of Eric Kroll's many emails to his BOSS and friend Benedikt
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We've been close friends since the moment Benedikt walked into my studio on 28th St in Manhattan almost 10 years ago. Like minded. Forever curious, concentration good, we have travelled by jet to Tahiti, eaten grade `C' Korean barbecue in the bowels of Los Angeles, fought, sought and found the apartment of Man Ray, and generally had a good time. He politely published my "Fetish Girls" and "Beauty Parade" to both our finanacial benefits. It made me famous for fifteen minutes. It could have gotten me laid from the books' notoriety but I'm a serial monogamist and don't seek or do that sort of thing.
Through the years we have sat in Musso & Frank's restaurant on Hollywood boulevard and planned the Elmer Batter's book, the Eric Stanton book, the John Willie reprint, the Natacha Merritt book, the Chas Ray Krider book and the Bill Ward book (one of my two current editorial projects I am doing for TASCHEN). It's a good relationship. It tastes good. Below is one of my many emails to my BOSS and friend Benedikt. I'm along for the ride. Sometimes I even get to drive. Enjoy
August 10, 2003
Benedikt- how are you? Wherrrrrrrrrrrre are you? I had a very great trip East for Ward and Sal Terracino projects. Ward book will be magnificent special book. Anxious to show you the (much) stuff I have. I spent days with Keith, the grandson once removed of Sal Terracino (Keith's grandfather, Captain Tony was Sal's brother) in New Jersey emeshed in an extended Italian family. Pasta ...deserts, kitchen tables. Everyday, Keith played the lotto and other "numbers". I joined in and we lost together. I stayed in a small town in New Jersey outside Manhattan, Clark , N.J. and did interviews with relatives and looked through thousands of photos and negatives. I wasn't convinced it would make a book until I had seen everything. His best photographic work is his reportage street scenes of his neighborhood shot in 4x5 in the late 1930's. The main thing about Sal is he was a CHARACTER. Very attractive in his linen pressed pants posing in a street in Bora Bora or the Kasbah in the 1930's and '40's. Posing with his magnificent paper mache masks as part of the World of Mirth. He is the subject. His gangster portaits are interesting and amusing. His homoerotic are chic but not of Bidgood quality. Give me a bit of time to pull together what I think will make an interesting book, plus I need time to transcribe some of the interviews. We had a very good meeting with David Schonauer of American Photo and Russell Hart, an editor. They want to do something definitely.It will be a good small book UNLESS, as rumored, (hot Hollywood star), the actor decides to do a movie about Sal's life. That would make it a bigger seller for sure but what _________ decides to do is way out of my control. So after four days of work I left Clark, N.J. and went into NYC and took a 3 hour bus trip to meet Gary Ward, son of Bill Ward. He lives in the woods without electricity!!! He had found me room at a bed and breakfast place and I stayed up till 4 am copying Ward art. That night we had dinner with his mom, Judy Ward, wife of Ward. The next day we drove to his x wife's house in the middle of New York state where, in a shed, we selected more Ward to shoot. Then upstairs to a small room in the 1700's house that had boxes of more Ward. Here I found great army shots of a very debonair Ward. Then we headed back south to Gary's storage container he kept in .....CLARK, N.J!!! Strange how the world is. I do two completely separate projects, yet I end up back in the same hotel to shoot both of them!!!!! Shot till 4 am and then up the next day to xerox some fascinating correspondence from "clients". This will be a great great bk.
peace
Eric
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We've been close friends since the moment Benedikt walked into my studio on 28th St in Manhattan almost 10 years ago. Like minded. Forever curious, concentration good, we have travelled by jet to Tahiti, eaten grade `C' Korean barbecue in the bowels of Los Angeles, fought, sought and found the apartment of Man Ray, and generally had a good time. He politely published my "Fetish Girls" and "Beauty Parade" to both our finanacial benefits. It made me famous for fifteen minutes. It could have gotten me laid from the books' notoriety but I'm a serial monogamist and don't seek or do that sort of thing.
Through the years we have sat in Musso & Frank's restaurant on Hollywood boulevard and planned the Elmer Batter's book, the Eric Stanton book, the John Willie reprint, the Natacha Merritt book, the Chas Ray Krider book and the Bill Ward book (one of my two current editorial projects I am doing for TASCHEN). It's a good relationship. It tastes good. Below is one of my many emails to my BOSS and friend Benedikt. I'm along for the ride. Sometimes I even get to drive. Enjoy
August 10, 2003
Benedikt- how are you? Wherrrrrrrrrrrre are you? I had a very great trip East for Ward and Sal Terracino projects. Ward book will be magnificent special book. Anxious to show you the (much) stuff I have. I spent days with Keith, the grandson once removed of Sal Terracino (Keith's grandfather, Captain Tony was Sal's brother) in New Jersey emeshed in an extended Italian family. Pasta ...deserts, kitchen tables. Everyday, Keith played the lotto and other "numbers". I joined in and we lost together. I stayed in a small town in New Jersey outside Manhattan, Clark , N.J. and did interviews with relatives and looked through thousands of photos and negatives. I wasn't convinced it would make a book until I had seen everything. His best photographic work is his reportage street scenes of his neighborhood shot in 4x5 in the late 1930's. The main thing about Sal is he was a CHARACTER. Very attractive in his linen pressed pants posing in a street in Bora Bora or the Kasbah in the 1930's and '40's. Posing with his magnificent paper mache masks as part of the World of Mirth. He is the subject. His gangster portaits are interesting and amusing. His homoerotic are chic but not of Bidgood quality. Give me a bit of time to pull together what I think will make an interesting book, plus I need time to transcribe some of the interviews. We had a very good meeting with David Schonauer of American Photo and Russell Hart, an editor. They want to do something definitely.It will be a good small book UNLESS, as rumored, (hot Hollywood star), the actor decides to do a movie about Sal's life. That would make it a bigger seller for sure but what _________ decides to do is way out of my control. So after four days of work I left Clark, N.J. and went into NYC and took a 3 hour bus trip to meet Gary Ward, son of Bill Ward. He lives in the woods without electricity!!! He had found me room at a bed and breakfast place and I stayed up till 4 am copying Ward art. That night we had dinner with his mom, Judy Ward, wife of Ward. The next day we drove to his x wife's house in the middle of New York state where, in a shed, we selected more Ward to shoot. Then upstairs to a small room in the 1700's house that had boxes of more Ward. Here I found great army shots of a very debonair Ward. Then we headed back south to Gary's storage container he kept in .....CLARK, N.J!!! Strange how the world is. I do two completely separate projects, yet I end up back in the same hotel to shoot both of them!!!!! Shot till 4 am and then up the next day to xerox some fascinating correspondence from "clients". This will be a great great bk.
peace
Eric
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Eric Kroll