Charles Bukowski
My best friend and writing partner, Len Belzer, lived and died by Bukowski and schooled me on the writer until the moment he took his own life.
e e cummings
I credit an ex-girlfriend, who was very passionate about his work, for exposing me to e e cummings. I can point to this time and relationship as my start to being an artist (I was around 20.).
John Lennon
Let’s don’t hold it against the Beatle that he found a way for a poet to make ends meet.
Go, Dog, Go – P.D. Eastman; A Dr. Suess Bright and Early Board Books
My first book by my first author. Dr. Suess still resonates today as it did when it moved me at age 4.
Allen Ginsberg
The first place I was a regular was The Village Voice, which had strong connections to Ginsberg. I have great stories about him (I include one in my bookstores book) and I will unashamedly say my favorite Ginsberg piece is his duet with The Clash, “Ghetto Defendant.”
Bob Eckstein is an award-winning author, New York Times bestseller, New Yorker cartoonist and teaches at NYU. He is also the world’s only snowman expert. He was recently selected Erma Bombeck Humorist of the Month. His new book is Everyone’s A Critic: The Ultimate Cartoon Book by the World’s Greatest Cartoonists. eckstein@pipeline.com