"In 2019, my son and I recorded the brethday event for bill at the Niagara Arts Centre in St. Catherines. Thank you all who spoke with us. We created this video to honor bill in his 82nd year. To bill, thank you for your love and inspiration, and we do love you madly!
I have been friends with poet/painter bill bissett since 2015. He is regarded as the first beatnik and the last hippie. He has published over 60 books of poetry and hundreds of paintings. He has read with Al Purdy, Irving Layton, Allen Ginsberg, Patrick Green and so many others. Leonard Cohen wrote a haiku for him and author Jack Kerouac noted him as a great poet in an interview in 1968. Author Margaret Atwood refers to him as her "astral twin". My time with bill has evolved into a manuscript and hopefully a book. This video was a collaboration with my son Joel Parker, a videographer, in celebrating his 80th birthday in 2019. We now offer it as a celebration of his 82nd birthday. Here it is Joel. Thanks for all the time in editing. Much love, Dad."
- Bruce Parker
***Spelling error at 1:27 Christian Bök
