Vonnegut, Kurt Easter Egg - Kilgore Trout

In every book written by Vonnegut there is either a character named Kilgore Trout or a reference to a character named Kilgore Trout. It is not one character who shows up in all his books. It is many different characters in all his books that are all called Kilgore Trout.

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Contributed By: Brendan on 10-10-1999
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Comments

il_cat writes:
I don't believe that is true. Kilgore Trout is one character- the writer of many obscure science fiction novels and short stories. Though he shows up in Vonnegut's books many, many times, it is always a reference to the fictional author or one of his many works; never anyone else.
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Beatnik_poe writes:
Actually, Vonnegut's character Kilgore Trout is a reference and nod to the Science Fiction writer Theodore Sturgeon!
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aufdawall writes:
I believe(if this fragile thing that is my memory doesn't fail me)that K.V. stated in an interview in Crawdaddy magizine in 1974 or '75 that Kilgore Trout was indeed a bow to Theodore Sturgeon. The article by the way was terribly done and extremly obcene.
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Janice writes:
I own a paperback book written by Kilgore Trout. The title is "Venus on the Half-shell", published in 1975. It is a complete send-up of a science fiction novella. According to the inside cover page, Trout wrote 16 other books.There is a murky photo of the author on the back cover. Looks like Vonnegut in disguise to me.
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Vic Kipper writes:
If I remember my facts correctly, Philip Jose Farmer wrote Venus on the Halfshell, and used the pseudonym Kilgore Trout as a nod to Mr. Vonnegut.
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Adversary writes:
P. J. Farmer wrote VotH-S, using Trout as a Pen Name, after getting full permission from both KV and Ted Sturgeon. These guys go way back in the Science Fiction world together.
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Richard writes:
I also have 'Venus on the Half Shell" that I noticed many years ago in the Sci Fi section at the MIT book store in Cambridge. The author is given as Kilgore Trout. It reads like bad Vonnegut (really more like a lot of real Vonnegut since a lot of Vonnegut is not so gut) - so I figured it was real Vonnegut 'planted' as a joke. Could just as well be somebody else I guess doing a take off on Vonnegut. It would be nice to know. Somebody ought to ask Vonnegut.
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Rubbercheque writes:
Somebody did ask Vonnegut. The answer is at http://www.duke.edu/~crh4/vonnegut/kt.html , a Kilgore Trout page.
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Dan writes:
Kilgore Trout is Kurt Vonnegut's alter ego. His book Time Quake mentions this many times, and he has said so all through out his career. Kilgore Trout, as you migh know, is Vonnegut's way of making a quick, important point in a science fiction story. He is a master of thinking up short stories very quickly.
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Neo writes:
Thank you Dan! As a fellow Timequake reader and a longtime fan of Vonnegut's, I'd like to say that Kilgore Trout is K.V.'s alter ego, nothing more.
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Steph writes:
Just wanted to point out that there's no Kilgore Trout in "Deadeye Dick", which surprised me. I don't necessarily recommend reading it, though there are some funny parts.
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Kat writes:
Actually, I remember reading that Kilgore Trout is how Vonnegut aired the short stories he would write periodically and didn't want to/felt embarrassed trying to publish. Kat
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azathoth writes:
Kilgore Trout is also excluded from The Sirens of Titan. Most likely because this was his first book and hadn't considered Trout yet.
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stimpy writes:
There's a book called "Snail" by Richard Miller in which a character named Kilgore Traut(correct spelling) plays a prominent part.
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Fleshwerx writes:
It seems as though the vast majority of you (judging by your comments) have a problem putting two and two together. Kilgore Trout IS Vonnegut.
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frozenviolet writes:
actually, KV did not approve of the fake kilgore trout book. the author lied and said that he did, but KV later stated that he didnt know the guy & didnt like the book, etc.
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Jeff writes:
He is obviously the same character in each book, his personality or physical characteristics never change. I always assumed it was Vonnegut's alter ego, I don't know about this Theodore Sturgeon thing. Could be, could be not.
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Adam L. writes:
The Trout book Venus on the Half-Shell is described in one of Vonnegut's fictional books. I think it may have been in The Sirens of Titan, although azathoth says there is no reference to Kilgore Trout there. The excerpt printed at the beginning of Venus... is almost the same as the one described in the Vonnegut book that refers to it, but slightly different.
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WooWooWoo writes:
as far as i can remember, mighty mighty Kilgore was not mentioned in "mother night" either. or "player piano" which came before "sirens of titan".
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GFiendish writes:
Re:Venus On the Half Shell The spoof paperback with this title, was written by the S.F author Philip Jose Farmer, as a homage/spoof/parody (Delete as Applicable) of Kurt Vonnegut's writing. I had this paperback once, but it was damaged by a flood. Hope this helps.
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dankeshanks writes:
Where is Kilgore Trout in Cats Cradle? I looked, but didnt find one...
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djlyons2 writes:
What about Clinton Street? I've read a few Vonnegut novels and I remember there being a Clinton St. mentioned in both Galapagos and Hocus Pocus.
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Josh writes:
It seems that this thread has strayed from the point of the original egg. That is to say that Kilgore Trout is Vonnegut's alter ego and appears in every Vonnegut novel. While it is true that Trout is indeed Vonnegut's alter ego, he does not appear in every novel. Period.
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KV FAN writes:
As a longtime Vonnegut fan and biography researcher, I would just like to mention that yes, indeed, Kilgore Trout is Vonnegut's alter-ego. The character is mentioned in many of his books, and is exactly the same person in all encounters. The Duke website is extremely informative, compiling most of the details about Trout in KV's books. My favorite book with Kilgore Trout is Champions of Breakfast. Here, Trout is a main character and his interaction with Vonnegut (also a character in the book) will perhaps sort out any difficulties you have with the concept of an alter ego.
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