An Interview With The Author: Richard Del Connor / The Hippy Coyote
In 2010, before his family's eviction, Coyote spent an entire year writing poetry. Other poetry books written that year include, Rainbow in the Shade, and The Potatoe Valentine & Other Love Poems. The AntiChrist poetry book resulted from his subconscious revisiting the history of his life for a new overall perspective of himself and his destiny. This spiritual quest led to The AntiChrist epic poem.
Question: Why won't you publish this poetry book?
Coyote: I did. I was a member of an online writing club sponsored by a major book publisher. While I was promoting my poetry book Rainbow in the Shade at the publisher website, I wrote The AntiChrist epic poem. So I posted it for peer review -- for free -- in its original draft.
Question: How was it reviewed?
Coyote: As far as I could tell only a few people read it. The reviews were always mixed: "A great poem -- but so dark." "Incredible poetry but very unsettling." No one could compliment it without also striking back at at.
Question: So you were scared to publish it?
Coyote: I should've been scared, but I was desperate. My record albums were only selling a few per week and we'd been evicted. I couldn't support myself or the family.
Question: Why did you write something so dark?
Coyote: I'd been writing books of illumination, spirituality, Kung Fu, Tai Chi, Qigong... for a couple decades. I was desperate to make money. The people of America prefer tales of tragedy than hope or humanism. I had a couple intentions besides soul-searching when I wrote this book. I knew my life contained all the elements of these daytime soap operas plus an incredible amount more of violence, despair, tragedy, and deception. My life has had more goodness in it than most people -- but it's also had more suffering than most people's lives.
Question: So this is a story of your hardships?
Coyote: There are plenty of my hardships in here -- but I expand the story to my parents, children, relatives, and Biblical ancestors.
Question: You have Biblical ancestors?
Coyote: We all do to some extent. Mostly I looked to the Biblical characters for metaphors and parallels to my own life.
Question: So it's a spiritual journey?
Coyote: No. I wouldn't say that. It's about my spiritual journey, but it's about all the mistakes I made, my parents made, and my ex-wives made -- to create my current reality of 2010.
Question: What did you learn or discover?
Coyote: I discovered a lot and I learned a lot but mostly -- it ended up like washing the dishes twice. Once they're clean they don't get any cleaner. I found out I wasn't as dirty, guilty, or wrong as I thought I was. It was kind of like my bass poem, "1,000 Sorrows For A Love" on the LEVEL 3 = I Want You To Love Me album. There's a line in the poem, "Perhaps I'm just looking to place blame so I can know how to fix it."
Question: So is your life fixed? Did it work?
Coyote: Well, maybe not significantly. However, I had a burden of guilt hanging over me. My family was shattered and demoralized. I wanted to know what I had done wrong to end up with such a crappy family.
Question: What did you discover?
Coyote: It removed a lot of my guilt. I saw where a couple of decisions had destroyed my dreams -- but they were very innocent mistakes. Easy to make again. That's the challenge of life. Even inaction or not making a decision will determine many aspects of our future.
Question: Are you The Antichrist?
Coyote: I have two answers for that. One answer is based upon what happened after I completed writing The AntiChrist book.
Question: What happened?
Coyote: Well -- Saten visited me.
Question: Lucifer? The archangel?
Coyote: Yep. But for only one day. I wrote the entire book, History of Zen from A to Z, in one day. It's basically Saten telling me the condensed history of the universe.
Question: Hold on. You're saying Lucifer, Prince of Darkness, King of Lies told you a story?
Coyote: I guess that's what happened. You can decide for yourself after you read it.
Question: Why would Satan be visiting you.
Coyote: If I understand correctly -- he was somehow aware of The AntiChrist book. He wanted me to know the truth.
Question: The Great Deceiver told you the truth?
Coyote: Whether it's the truth -- or isn't the truth -- I think it's a really fun book to read.
Question: So is this History of Zen from A to Z available for purchase?
Coyote: Yes. It needs a new book cover, but the book's on the internet now, available for purchase.
Question: But The AntiChrist book is not available?
Coyote: No, it isn't. Probably never will be -- but that'd be a shame -- it's some of my best poetry.
Question: Why not sell the AntiChrist book.
Coyote: Mostly because it will hurt many of my friends and family.
Question: How would it hurt them?
Coyote: It tells truths and speculations that will damage reputations -- and not really improve anything.
Question: If those people have done terrible things -- shouldn't they be exposed?
Coyote: That's one of the big issues in writing The AntiChrist. I decided I would expose those injustices and horrible crimes perpetrated by my relatives.
Question: But you've changed your mind?
Coyote: Like I said. No one cared about those crimes when they were committed -- and now some of these people are dead -- so what good is maligning their reputation going to do?
Question: The truth should be told.
Coyote: I used to think that. But last year when I was homeless in San Diego I slept on my father's fLoor for six months. He's 91 years old and when I told him about some of these events in my life he had no awareness of them at all. Several times I asked him if he wanted to know about the abuses I suffered as a miNor in Newfoundland. He told me, "It's water under the bridge. Nothing we can do about that now." His lack of interest and concern of how I suffered really shook me up for a couple months. I meditated heavily on all this and started remembering suppressed events that hadn't even surfaced from The AntiChrist book. That's when I realized if my own father doesn't care about how I suffered -- then the rest of the world would be even less interested. I'm still trying to resuppress all these horrible memories that have surfaced this past year.
Question: How is your suppression coming?
Coyote: Really good! I jumped into the movie project, Kung Fu Cowboy Rock & Roll Movie 1, and have been able to focus my mind on recreating myself as The Kung Fu Cowboy.
Question: So this Kung Fu Cowboy movie is your escape from reality or distraction from the truth?
Coyote: Quite the opposite. It's not like I'm Sybil or have a multiple personality disorder -- but I am several people combined into me. Maybe I was born that way. Maybe the traumas of my life have shattered my ego into several personalities -- but I think my desire to be so many things and do so many things has forced me to adapt to several identities -- each with different social rules.
Question: You have multiple personalities?
Coyote: In the Kung Fu Cowboy movie I do. I'd been pretending to be four different people from 1992 to 2012. So these personalities I portrayed kind of came to life on their own.
Question: They say it's unhealthy for actors to take their role playing too seriously.
Coyote: That's why I never wanted to be an actor. I wanted to decide who I was going to portray. And these four characters of American Zen are each at least half me and the other half a blend of individuals, bandmates I'd had over the past forty years.
Question: 40 years? How old are you?
Coyote: I'm 59 now. Since I probably won't be a rock star until next year -- I may be the first rock star to begin his international career at age 60.
Question: No offense... but that doesn't sound right.
Coyote: I've been a hippie since 1967, so I didn't believe there was anything to live for after the age of 30. When I was 20 years old recording my first album, Bonita, I envisioned my career being extended to the age of 35. I thought that would really be pushing my luck to be a 35-year-old rocker.
Question: So why are you still a rocker -- at age 60?
Coyote: Because I've always been a rocker. Since 1967 I've lived each day of life as rock'n'roller. That's why I love life so much. I'm still hungry for applause, drooling on pretty girls, and enjoying sex and drugs.
Question: Drugs?
Coyote: Actually, let's not talk about sex or drugs. I'm too poor to have a girlfriend, and as a Kung Fu artist -- live a healthy life.
Question: When you're not being stung by scorpions.
Coyote: That's right. We wrote that into the screenplay. When director Scott Karahadian contracted me for the Kung Fu Cowboy Rock & Roll Movie 1 I was stung by a scorpion -- in the neck. It laid me up for a few months and injured my left leg really bad -- so we wrote the scorpion sting into the movie and had me get sliced in the left leg to justify my limp I had for four months.
Question: You're not limping any more?
Coyote: Fortunately not. I've just started running again.
Question: You mean jogging?
Coyote: No. Running. I can't stand jogging -- but I love to run. So I'm up to one block now.
Question: So you're running as fast as you can?
Coyote: No. Half-fast. (Coyote laughs.) That sounded funny.
Question: Back to the book. You have to leave for a stagehand job?
Coyote: Yeah. That's how I escaped Las Vegas last year when I was homeless and stranded there. I work as a stagehand to pay my internet, car, and food bills.
Question: What about your book and album royalties?
Coyote: I get those every month too. When I get enough royalties I'll be able to quit being a stagehand. I'm always joking to my fellow Rhinos that, "Next year you'll be working for my concert!"
Question: And they all laugh at you?
Coyote: No. My fellow stagehands are some of my best friends. They believe in me. I called my big boss the other day and told him I couldn't pay my phone bill and that I needed more work. He said, "Oh, I though you'd be making that Kung Fu Cowboy movie already. I didn't know you still needed work."
Question: So if you're never going to publish this book, The AntiChrist, why write it?
Coyote: As I said earlier, I wrote it to soul search and demon hunt my life. When I was writing it I left out many horrible scenes and crimes that would cause lots of trouble for some people and perhaps me also. Every time I read the book I cross out some more lines and paragraphs that I know will be hurtful to some people's reputations. So the best version of the book is probably the rough draft, but since I've now meditated on many of the scenes not included in this book -- perhaps the best version of this book would be the one with all the truths in it. But I really don't want to write that book.
Question: So The AntiChrist is the book you can't buy that hasn't been written and may never exist?
Coyote: Yes. Oh... There is one good thing about having written the AntiChrist book, besides the peace of mind it gave me.
Question: What's so good about writing this book no one will ever read?
Coyote: I don't think Saten would have appeared to me if I hadn't written it.
Question: You pissed him off?
Coyote: No, I never got a sense of that. He seemed more sympathetic -- as if he wanted to help me know the truth.
Question: The King of Lies want you to know the truth?
Coyote: I think so. During The AntiChrist I kind of reached out into the spiritual world for understanding and clarification. But all I found was the stories of my family and the Christian tales I'd been taught.
Question: Were you scared in his presence?
Coyote: Oddly, not much. I never sensed him being malevolent or evil. My son noticed when he was in my room. I included my son's interruption in the book.
Question: Your son is in the AntiChrist book?
Coyote: Well yes. But I was referring to the book, History of Zen from A to Z. When Saten was communicating to me telepathically my son interrupted us and asked me who was in my room talking to me.
Question: Your son heard Satan?
Coyote: Evidently. I wasn't even mumbling to myself. No music. No television. My son said he heard someone.
Question: Okay. Let's wrap this up. Where is this AntiChrist book?
Coyote: It was on my ShaolinRecords.com website. I put up a special page for reviewers and press people to contact me for a copy.
Question: Wow! You must've got a lot of requests!
Coyote: It's been three years and not one single person in the entire world has requested a free copy. I think it is somehow invisible to humans anyway. Hey! Gotta go!
The AntiChrist epic poem book:
http://www.ShaolinRecords.com/RecordStore-R/AntiChrist-R.html
History of Zen from A to Z:
http://www.ShaolinRecords.com/RecordStore-R/HistoryOfZen-R.html
iTunes BAND page (all albums):
http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewArtist?id=7403290
iTUNES: LEVEL 4 = Kung Fu Cowboy PART 1
http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/level-4-kung-fu-cowboy-part-1/id378526106
