Joe Gould's Teeth

« Joe Gould’s Teeth » by Jill Lepore is a biography of Greenwich Village bohemian Joe Gould (1889-1957). He inspired the book « Joe Gould’s Secret, » by Joseph Mitchell (1965), and film of the same name (2000). Gould was a semi-homeless writer who claimed to be writing an « oral history of the contemporary world, » based on stories he overheard and wrote down in numerous composition books, which he stored with various friends. It is a mystery whether the oral history actually exists, or whether it was a fantasy that allowed Gould to have a grand purpose (and maybe generate donations). He died in a psychiatric hospital.