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The following podcast contains explicit language.

I'm Stephen Metcalfton. This is the Slate Culture Gab Fest Romeo Had Julia edition.

It's Wednesday, October 30th, 2013. On today's show, this is the Slate Culture Gab Fest Romeo Had Julia edition. It's Wednesday, October 30th,

2013. On today's show, we discussed the music and legacy of the great rock and roller Lou Reed.

And then there's a Shakespeare glut these days, and we dipped in our cup and went to Broadway to see Orlando Bloom as Romeo.

And finally, what is the internet doing to poetry? Joining me today is Slate's

deputy editor, Julia Turner. Hello, Julia. Hi, Steve. And of course, Slate's film critic,

Dana Stevens. Hey, Dana. Hello, Steve. The rock musician Lou Reed died this past weekend at the age of 71,

most likely from complications from a liver transplant he had back in May.

He was along with John Kale, of course, the founder of the rock group, the Velvet Underground, in the 1960s,

after which he went on to have a long and varied and storied and quite remarkable solo career.

It's almost impossible not to begin with Lou Reed by discussing his influence, which was felt immediately

by David Bowie, Patty Smith, Brian Eno. They all understood that the Velvet Underground had done

something astonishing, and they took it themselves and ran with it long after the group had disbanded.

And what's flying around the internet quite justifiably in the wake of Lee Reed's

death is the wonderful quote from Brian Eno, which is that only 30,000 people bought that first

Velvet Underground album, but every one of them went and started a rock band of their own. I mean,

...