Around 1940, New Yorker staff writer Joe Mitchell meets Joe Gould, a Greenwich Village character who cadges meals, drinks, and contributions to the Joe Gould Fund and who is writing a voluminous Oral History of the World, a record of 20,000 conversations he's overheard. Mitchell is fascinated with this Harvard grad and writes a 1942 piece about him, "Professor Seagull," bringing Gould some celebrity and an invitation to join the Greenwich Village Ravens, a poetry club he's often crashed. Gould's touchy, querulous personality and his frequent dropping in on Mitchell for hours of chat lead to a breakup, but the two Joes stay in touch until Gould's death and Mitchell's unveiling of the secret.

Joe Gould

Joe Mitchell

Therese Mitchell

Elizabeth Mitchell

Nora Mitchell

Sarah

Alice Neel

Vivian Marquie

Harry Kolis

Chef

Tamar (Hostess)

Francis McCrudden

Monsieur Gerard

Charlie Duell

Mike, Cop at Coffee Shop

Max Gordon
January 21, 2000

Joe Gould

Joe Mitchell

Therese Mitchell

Elizabeth Mitchell

Nora Mitchell

Sarah

Alice Neel

Vivian Marquie

Harry Kolis

Chef

Tamar (Hostess)

Francis McCrudden

Monsieur Gerard

Charlie Duell

Mike, Cop at Coffee Shop

Max Gordon

