Boulevard Of Broken Dreams Poem by Louis Kasatkin

The photographer ' snaps ' her subject,
Danna, in front of a shuttered building
at 6323 Hollywood Boulevard;
Her story is a familiar one,
the fresh-faced girl who came to
L.A. in hopes of hitting the big-time,
a time that never was,
instead there is this time,
right here and now
lingering in parking lots and windows,
looking into the life that,
once was within her grasp;

The photographer ' snaps ' her subjects,
Zoe, with her cigarettes and coffee,
outside a diner at Fairfax & Willoughby,
geographical surroundings affect emotional behaviour;
Elizabeth, hanging around outside a club
at Sunset & North Poinsettia,
circumstances determine consciousness;
there was something about their small town,
something wasn't satisfactory,
so they moved here,
to embrace a future where
their dreams eluded them.

Saleswomen, dancers, strippers, junkies,
fetishists, unknown actresses, out of towners,
all of them at the end of their rope.

The photographer ' snaps ' her subject,
outside of 4306 Beverly Boulevard,
Kelly, smoking a cigarette,
pensive, reflective, vulnerable,
waiting for her big break;

The photographer ' snaps ' her subject...