Episode · Stuff You Should Know · 2025-03-18
Books mentioned on The Chelsea Hotel
The Chelsea Hotel is one of New York City's landmarks for good reason. It's served as housing for bohemian creatives and addicts, and been through several iterations over its history, from divey residential to high-end hotel.
Josh Clark discussed Spoon River Anthology by Edgar Lee Masters and You Can't Go Home Again by Thomas Wolfe. Chuck Bryant discussed Just Kids by Patti Smith.
Books mentioned, in the order they came up
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Spoon River Anthology
Discussed“and that's great that they did a good job with it because people all the way back to the 1940s um with Edgar Lee Masters the poet author of Spoon River Anthology who lived there for a while was worried about the the the gist of the Chelsea Hotel being Stripped Away by new owners”
Where to get it
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You Can't Go Home Again
Discussed“Thomas wolf was a frequenter there um in fact he died um he spent the last years of his life there in room 829 uh writing things like you can't go home again”
Where to get it
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Just Kids
Just Kids by Patti Smith is a celebrated memoir chronicling the author's profound artistic relationship with photographer Robert Mapplethorpe during their youth in New York City and the Chelsea Hotel.
Discussed“I have that book I haven't read it yet it's on the the Shelf with a bunch of other rock and roll books that I have yet to get to but boy can I tell a quick Patty Smith Bob Dylan story... Patty Smith's book that she wrote about her time with Maple Thorp I think it's called Just Kids”
Where to get it
Other mentions in this episode (1) — ad reads, self-promotion and passing references, never counted
Passing Naked Lunch
“yes we know Naked Lunch was written there thank you thank you sir”