I did the above Tosh Talks about five years ago. I came upon Duncan Hannah’s memoir then and did a show on his book and artwork. I think of Duncan quite often. And I was fortunate to be in communication with him, both in person and through email. Below is my original little essay, plus an episode of Tosh Talks featuring the works of the late and much-missed Duncan Hannah.
Although he is a few years older than me, and we never met until I had him sign his book at a public event, I somehow feel I know Duncan Hannah. I first discovered his artwork through Dennis Cooper's fantastic blog, and his paintings just spoke to me directly. First of all, I have a thing for illustrations from the mid-century, especially drawings from the various titles of the Hardy Boys, and somehow, Hannah's work reminds me of that type of work. But done on a plane, that's serious art but still humorous. In that blog, I saw various photographs of Hannah, and it struck me as a dandy who lived in harsh circumstances yet kept his chin up and hair marvelously cut. His sense of style and some of the artwork reminded me of this dandy art duo, David McDermott and Peter McGough, who not only dressed from the past but also whose artwork went back to the 1920s or even earlier. But their work has a contemporary edge, just like Hannah's paintings. I should have been surprised, but reading Hannah's book, he was or is a friend of McDermott. Still, this is not imitation but meeting the minds at work here. Hannah was born straight and foppish. It's in his nature, which is why his notebooks of the crazed 1970s in New York City are so thrilling. In essence, he has character, or I should say, if I were a movie producer, he has that "It" quality. I feel like I know or should know him. It's uncanny that we have the same taste in literature and music. I know because he regularly lists all his listening and reading material in this book. Which is not tedious to read but essential to know because his taste is very much what Duncan Hannah is. The fact he paints portraits of his literary and cinematic heroes is another self-expression. I suspect that these works are self-portraits more than anything else. And I say that not as a criticism but as praise. "Twentieth-Century Boy" is Hannah's journal and is not a memoir. It reads like one is experiencing these adventures the instant it happened, and his reflection is only seconds or hours after the incident. Sexual in nature and always curious about an adventure, Hannah, from the very beginning, had or still has high standards. His sexual fun is enticing and a joy to read, but also his encounters with the great, from Bryan Ferry to Bowie to Dali to Warhol to Debbie Harry, and beyond, to the various artists who lived and operated in Lower Manhattan during that era are excellent co-stars in his book. What's surprising is that he very much led the life of a desperate alcoholic, yet, by his photographs, he didn't look drunk. He was always well-dressed and had an exceptional self-awareness. Perhaps he's blessed. Nevertheless, he's a hero of mine. I don't have a brother, but in my head, he's the older brother to look up to. Praise Duncan Hannah and his book "Twentieth-Century Boy."
Bought this a year or two back and finally reading it - what a character! I have a few small books of his art that I love, especially one of fake magazine covers (I think through Dashwood Books)
Tosh, I read 20th Century Boy on your recommendation last summer and I really enjoyed it. DH is a sort of Dodger character in the Dickensian sense. Everything seems to be a fantastic accident he can duck and dive his way through with his dandy instincts.
Oddly, I read it on holiday in Orkney and I picked up another book as a freebie at a ferry terminal and the cover art was by Megan Wilson, DH's wife!