In 2009 I discovered that the site Lee Streiff had built to house his data about the Wichita Beats was no longer available on the internet. The domain name Wichita Vortex had lapsed. I wrote emails to the Wichita State University suggesting that they acquire the rights to the content in order to keep it available on the web, but did not hear back from them. Similarly my questions to Lee’s family went unanswered.In December 2010 I discovered that much of the content was again available – archived by the Way Back archive.
Not all the content survived – many of the images and the film clip of Days of Wrath are not available.I took a decision to capture such content as there was and put it on a new and more stable platform. Hopefully this means that it will exist for all time, or as near as dammit.
When Lee built his site he used the knowledge and tools available to the amateur at that time. Since then, of course, we now all worship the Great God Google and must obey his command. Therefore, with an eye on the Dark Art of Search Engine Optimisation I have renamed some sections and pages and inserted images with the relevant text. Lee’s original site had few internal or external links and rudimentary navigation. I have tried to display the wonderful content in a more visible way – so that the motivated visitor can find what he or she is looking for without too much trouble and visitors just browsing can see more easily what is on offer.
If you are connected with the original site or are a copyright owner, please contact me at naomi_klein@yahoo.co.uk to discuss your needs. I have no commercial interest in the content – it is purely emotional. My mother, Nancy Hurst, was from Wichita and was part of the Beats group. I would hate for this site, which provided me with so much hitherto unknown information, to fall by the wayside.Note: Where I have included data not in Lee’s original site, I have made this clear.
Naomi Klein
London
December 2010