Between World War II and the 1980s, Marin County became the unlikely epicenter of a cultural awakening, one whose reverberations would be felt across the country and around the world. In his new book Morning in Marin: Zen, Drugs, and Ewoks on the California Coast, David Perlis delivers the first comprehensive narrative history of this awakening—what he calls the "Marinaissance." In this talk, Perlis will delve into the early figures and cultural influences of this movement, which would give rise to Star Wars, the Grateful Dead, Alan Watts, and much more, seeding a creative revolution that would script the American imagination for generations.
David Perlis is a writer, musician, and filmmaker from Marin County, California. For nearly a decade he co-hosted the late night talk show Night People on WFMU. He has worked for the New York Public Library and the American Museum of Natural History. He now lives in Corrales, New Mexico. Morning in Marin is his first book.