From the That Really Sucks department here at Surethings comes news that David Foster Wallace (I never got around to listing him as Living Genius) is dead at the age of 46, apparently having taken his own life on Friday. Aside from the fact the I haven't finished his colossal kaleidoscopic novel Infinite Jest, this is just bad news all around. I'm of the belief that most people who kill themselves are not in their right mind--that if they could just get over that one black moment or point of view, things would look different. I haven't heard news of any note he might have left, or otherwise. With the understanding that he was out of his mind with some depression or other, I am still pissed and saddened for his wife, his students and for all of us. We've lost an intelligent and thoughtful commentator on the American scene.The most intriguing remembrance I've heard so far comes courtesy of Public Radio International's The World: here. The German translator of Infinite Jest is interviewed.
There's also a number of YouTube videos, the best of which I've seen is the Charlie Rose segment. It used to be split out as its own vid, but the version currently up has another segment first. Wallace's interview starts around 23:15.
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