RECORDANDO ENCONTROS HISTÓRICOS:
LOU REED E VACLAV HAVEL (ex-Presidente
da REPÚBLICA CHECA)



Havel, Lou Reed: A friendship goes public for art

Former President Vaclav Havel points out that when he meets with seminal rock star Lou Reed, they never get much private time. "There are always people present", Havel told a crowd of reporters before the two had a public discussion in front of a standing-room-only crowd at Svandovo divadlo, in Prague's Smichov neighborhood.

Reed, not known for being extremely chatty, did most of the talking at the Jan. 10 show and at the press conference that preceded it. Much of the discussion was about art instead of politics - Havel is, of course, also a playwright. The evening also included music from the Plastic People of the Universe and the Velvet Underground Revival Band.

Reed did condemn U.S. President George W. Bush for planning to spend $40 million (920 million Kc) on his inauguration, when the money could go to support relief efforts in countries devastated by the Dec. 26 tsunamis.

The only disagreement of the evening was over pop star Michael Jackson. Reed said, "I think Michael Jackson is one of the greatest dancers in the world ... the Fred Astaire of our generation".

Havel hosted Jackson at Prague Castle during the singer's 1996 History tour. "I recognize his skills, but I must say I am not a fan", Havel said. He said he had a brief conversation with Jackson and found him to be uninteresting.



At the end, Havel had a chance to ask Reed a question. He asked whether Reed would ever want to be president. Reed said that he wouldn't. "I lack certain people skills", he said. "I'd like to be a kingmaker instead of king".

Reed's question for Havel was much simpler. He asked if Havel still wrote in longhand or uses a computer. Havel now uses a computer. "But I'm afraid if I hit the wrong key I'll delete everything", the playwright admitted.

Reed told Havel, "Remember rule No. 1: Back up, back up, back up". He also recommended that Havel switch to Apple computers.

Earlier, Havel commented that he now has fatigue from writing because he did so much as president, including writing his own speeches. He also worries people would expect too much from a new play.

After the discussion, Havel asked Reed to play "Perfect Day," one of his more moving songs. After a solo rendition of that, Reed joined the Velvet Underground Revival Band for "Sweet Jane". He concluded with "Dirty Boulevard", one of the songs he played when he visited the White House with Havel in 1998. He said he had to provide the lyrics to the White House for advanced screening and that this song caused the most trouble. (The Prague Post, Jan. 13, 2005)

(VÍDEO da Columbia University - em nove partes - onde Lou Reed fala sobre os seus encontros com Vaclav Havel ---> aqui)



(2008)