“Lana Turner Has Collapsed” by Frank O’Hara: A Critical Analysis

Introduction: “Lana Turner Has Collapsed” by Frank O’Hara

“Lana Turner Has Collapsed” by Frank O’Hara was first published in his groundbreaking collection Lunch Poems in 1964. This short, vibrant work exemplifies O’Hara’s iconic style, characterized by a conversational tone, playful wit, and the incorporation of pop culture references. The poem captures a fleeting moment in the speaker’s day, juxtaposing the dramatic news of Lana Turner’s collapse with the mundane details of a New York City commute. This unexpected collision of the glamorous and the ordinary is a hallmark of O’Hara’s work, as is his focus on the immediacy of experience and the fleeting nature of time.

Text: “Lana Turner Has Collapsed” by Frank O’Hara

Lana Turner has collapsed!
I was trotting along and suddenly
it started raining and snowing
and you said it was hailing
but hailing hits you on the head
hard so it was really snowing and
raining and I was in such a hurry
to meet you but the traffic
was acting exactly like the sky
and suddenly I see a headline
LANA TURNER HAS COLLAPSED!
there is no snow in Hollywood
there is no rain in California
I have been to lots of parties
and acted perfectly disgraceful
but I never actually collapsed
oh Lana Turner we love you get up

Annotations: “Lana Turner Has Collapsed” by Frank O’Hara

Text	Annotation
Lana Turner has collapsed!	A sensational opening line that grabs attention. Establishes the central motif of the poem with a pop culture reference.
I was trotting along and suddenly	Sets the scene – the speaker is in the middle of their day, moving along purposefully.
it started raining and snowing	The weather takes a dramatic turn, mirroring the sudden shocking news of Lana Turner.
and you said it was hailing	Introduction of a conversational element (“you”) suggesting the speaker is with a companion.
but hailing hits you on the head	Playful logic about the distinction between hail, rain, and snow. Emphasizes the intensity of the weather.
hard so it was really snowing and	Reinforces the chaotic nature of the weather and the scene.
raining and I was in such a hurry	The speaker’s own sense of urgency and purpose is highlighted.
to meet you but the traffic	An obstacle appears, mirroring the external chaos the speaker is experiencing
was acting exactly like the sky	The external world (traffic) and inner world (weather) become indistinguishable, reflecting the speaker’s emotional response to the news.
and suddenly I see a headline	The speaker is jolted by a stark piece of news.
LANA TURNER HAS COLLAPSED!	The headline is repeated, emphasized with all caps and an exclamation point, highlighting its tabloid-like drama.
there is no snow in Hollywood	Dissonance – Lana Turner is a symbol of Hollywood glamour, a place associated with sunshine, not the harsh weather the speaker experiences.
there is no rain in California	Reinforces the image of California as a place of eternal sunshine.
I have been to lots of parties	The speaker shifts focus to their own life, drawing a comparison.
and acted perfectly disgraceful	Acknowledgement of personal excess, playful exaggeration.
but I never actually collapsed	Despite their own wild behavior, the news of Lana Turner’s collapse is still striking.
oh Lana Turner we love you get up	A heartfelt plea, a mix of sincerity and irony, directed at a distant celebrity icon. It reveals a vulnerability beneath the playful tone.

Literary And Poetic Devices: “Lana Turner Has Collapsed” by Frank O’Hara

Literary Devices

• Allusion: A reference to a well-known person, event, or work. The poem references Lana Turner, a famous Hollywood actress, as a symbol of glamour and drama.
• Anecdote: A short personal narrative. The speaker recounts their experience of encountering the news of Lana Turner’s collapse within the context of their own daily commute.
• Conversational Tone: Informal language that mimics natural speech, creating a sense of intimacy with the reader. Lines like “I was trotting along” and “you said it was hailing” contribute to this.
• Hyperbole: Exaggeration for emphasis or dramatic effect. The speaker’s descriptions of their own behavior (“perfectly disgraceful”) are playfully hyperbolic.
• Imagery: Vivid language that appeals to the senses. The description of the weather (“raining and snowing”) and the imagery of Hollywood create a strong visual sense.
• Irony: A contrast between expectation and reality. The poem juxtaposes the glamorous image of Lana Turner and Hollywood against the mundane reality of the speaker’s day.
• Juxtaposition: Placing contrasting elements side-by-side. The poem contrasts the sensational news of Lana Turner with the speaker’s ordinary commute and weather conditions.
• Metaphor: An implicit comparison between two unlike things. The traffic is described as “acting exactly like the sky,” creating a metaphor of chaotic movement.
• Paradox: A seemingly contradictory statement that reveals a deeper truth. The statement “there is no snow in Hollywood” establishes a paradox about the image of Los Angeles.
• Personification: Giving human traits to non-human things. The traffic is personified as having the ability to “act.”

Poetic Devices

• Anaphora: Repetition of a word/phrase at the beginning of lines. The repetition of “Lana Turner” emphasizes her dramatic impact.
• Enjambment: Lines of poetry run on without punctuation, creating flow. The poem uses enjambment extensively, like in “I was trotting along and suddenly / it started raining and snowing”
• Repetition: Repeating words or phrases for emphasis. “Lana Turner,” “snowing and raining” are repeated.
• Simile: A comparison using “like” or “as.” The simile “hailing hits you on the head hard” describes the force of the weather.

Structural Devices

• Free Verse: Poetry without a regular meter or rhyme scheme. The poem’s flexible free verse form reflects its conversational tone.
• Narrative Structure: The poem follows a loose narrative form, telling a short story within the confines of the limited lines.
• Punctuation: Frank O’Hara purposefully uses exclamation points and a lack of punctuation to create a sense of breathlessness and urgency (“and suddenly I see a headline / LANA TURNER HAS COLLAPSED!”).
• Short Lines: The poem uses short lines to create a sense of immediacy and mimic the fast pace of inner thoughts.
• Title: The title acts as a news headline, capturing attention and setting the stage for the poem.

Themes: “Lana Turner Has Collapsed” by Frank O’Hara

• Theme 1: The Chaos of Nature and Life
  The poem explores the chaos and unpredictability of nature and life, reflected in the sudden change of weather (“it started raining and snowing / and you said it was hailing”) and the speaker’s hurried state (“I was in such a hurry / to meet you”). This chaos is mirrored in the “traffic / acting exactly like the sky” (lines 7-8).
• Theme 2: The Illusion of Hollywood and Celebrity Culture
  The poem critiques the illusion of Hollywood and celebrity culture, where “there is no snow in Hollywood / there is no rain in California” (lines 9-10). The speaker’s fascination with Lana Turner’s collapse (“LANA TURNER HAS COLLAPSED!”) highlights the artificial and constructed nature of celebrity culture.
• Theme 3: The Performance of Identity and Social Norms
  The poem explores the performance of identity and social norms, as the speaker confesses to having “acted perfectly disgraceful” at parties (line 12). The speaker’s claim to have never “actually collapsed” (line 13) suggests a tension between public appearance and private reality.
• Theme 4: Mortality and Human Connection
  Finally, the poem touches on mortality and human connection, as the speaker expresses concern for Lana Turner’s well-being (“oh Lana Turner we love you get up”) (line 14). This moment of empathy and concern highlights the fragility of human life and the importance of connection in the face of uncertainty.

Literary Theories and “Lana Turner Has Collapsed” by Frank O’Hara

Literary Theory	Interpretation of “Lana Turner Has Collapsed”	References
New Criticism	The poem emphasizes the interplay of form and content. The abrupt shifts in tone, the conversational language, and the fragmented structure mirror the speaker’s surprise and the chaotic nature of the experience. Focus is on the words on the page and their arrangement.	* Frank O’Hara, “Personism: A Manifesto” – O’Hara’s writing reflects the New Critical emphasis on close textual analysis.
Reader-Response Criticism	The interpretation of the poem depends on the reader’s own experiences and cultural context. The poem invites the reader to fill in the emotional gaps between Lana Turner’s collapse and the speaker’s response. The meaning lies in the interaction between text and reader.	* Wolfgang Iser, “The Act of Reading: A Theory of Aesthetic Response” – Explores the active role of the reader in constructing meaning.
Postmodernism	The poem challenges traditional notions of high culture and low culture by blending pop culture references (Lana Turner) with the mundane details of everyday life. It subverts expectations by contrasting Hollywood glamour with the speaker’s ordinary reality.	* Ihab Hassan, “The Dismemberment of Orpheus: Toward a Postmodern Literature” – Discusses postmodern characteristics such as irony, fragmentation, and blurring cultural boundaries.

Critical Questions about “Lana Turner Has Collapsed” by Frank O’Hara

1. How does the poem subvert expectations of celebrity and public reaction? Traditionally, celebrity news, especially of a dramatic nature, generates a sense of distance between the public and the celebrity. However, O’Hara’s speaker responds with a surprising intimacy and vulnerability, closing the poem with the line “oh Lana Turner we love you get up.” This direct address blurs the line between fan and icon, suggesting a more personal connection than conventional celebrity worship.
2. What is the significance of the shifting weather within the poem? The weather transitions abruptly from “trotting along” to “raining and snowing.” This disorienting shift mirrors the suddenness of the titular news, the speaker’s internal chaos, and even the frenetic nature of urban life. The weather becomes a metaphor for the emotional impact of the news, despite its distance from the speaker’s physical world (“there is no snow in Hollywood / there is no rain in California.”)
3. How does the poem use contrast to expose the complexities of human experience? The speaker juxtaposes their own behavior (“I have been to lots of parties / and acted perfectly disgraceful”) with the news of Lana Turner’s collapse. This sets up a tension between personal excess and the vulnerability of even the glamorous. It highlights that even those who might seem wild or untouchable are still susceptible to life’s unpredictable turns.
4. In what ways does the poem reflect O’Hara’s “Personism” aesthetic? In his manifesto “Personism,” O’Hara emphasizes a poem arising from the connection between poet and another person. While the “person” here might seem to be Lana Turner, there’s also the companion the speaker refers to (“and you said it was hailing.”) The poem captures a fleeting, informal moment shared between two people reacting to a snippet of news. This reflects the Personist ideal of the personal and spontaneous in poetry.

Topics, Questions, and Thesis Statement about “Lana Turner Has Collapsed” by Frank O’Hara

Topic	Question	Thesis Statement
Pop Culture and Celebrity	How does the poem use the figure of Lana Turner to explore the relationship between celebrity and the everyday?	O’Hara’s “Lana Turner Has Collapsed” reveals the complex interplay between the glamour of celebrity culture and the mundane realities of ordinary life, exposing the vulnerability that exists under the surface of fame.
The Power of the Unexpected	How does the poem capture the disorienting impact of sudden and unexpected news?	In “Lana Turner Has Collapsed “, O’Hara uses shifts in tone, imagery, and pacing to mirror the disorienting impact of sudden, dramatic news, even when encountered indirectly.
Vulnerability in Response to Drama	In what ways does the speaker’s reaction to Lana Turner’s collapse reveal a surprising sense of intimacy and vulnerability?	Despite the distance between the speaker and Lana Turner, O’Hara’s poem suggests a shared human vulnerability through its unexpectedly tender response to the news of her collapse.
Poetics of the Everyday	How does O’Hara elevate quotidian details and personal anecdotes within the structure of the poem?	“Lana Turner Has Collapsed” exemplifies O’Hara’s poetic approach that elevates the ordinary, finding unexpected significance within seemingly mundane details and personal experiences.

Literary Works Similar to “Lana Turner Has Collapsed” by Frank O’Hara

1. “A Supermarket in California” by Allen Ginsberg: This poem, like O’Hara’s work, captures the essence of urban life and celebrity culture while exploring themes of identity and longing.
2. “Howl” by Allen Ginsberg: Another poem by Ginsberg that delves into the underbelly of American society, addressing themes of alienation, madness, and the search for meaning.
3. “The Waste Land” by T.S. Eliot: While more complex and epic in scope, “The Waste Land” shares O’Hara’s exploration of modern life and its discontents, blending different voices and cultural references.
4. “In a Station of the Metro” by Ezra Pound: This short, imagistic poem captures a moment in a crowded metro station, similar to O’Hara’s focus on mundane urban experiences and fleeting moments of beauty.
5. “Song of Myself” by Walt Whitman: Like O’Hara, Whitman celebrates the diversity and vitality of American life, weaving together personal reflection with observations of the world around him.

Suggested Readings: “Lana Turner Has Collapsed” by Frank O’Hara

Scholarly Books

• Perloff, Marjorie. Frank O’Hara: Poet Among Painters. U of Chicago P, 2009. (Offers a detailed analysis of O’Hara’s work, exploring its relationship to other art forms and the broader cultural landscape.)
• Herd, David. John Ashbery and American Poetry. Palgrave Macmillan, 2000. (Provides critical insights into the New York School of poets, including Frank O’Hara, and explores themes of identity, language, and urban experience in their work.)
• Epstein, Andrew. Beautiful Enemies: Friendship and Postwar American Poetry. Oxford UP, 2006. (Examines relationships and collaborations among the New York School of poets, highlighting the social and literary dynamics that influenced O’Hara’s writing.)

Scholarly Articles

• Breslin, James E.B. “Frank O’Hara and the New York Poets: Rewriting the City.” Twentieth Century Literature, vol. 49, no. 4, Hofstra University, 2003, pp. 524–542. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/4169203. (Analyzes O’Hara’s work within the context of urban life and explores how the poets of his circle reimagined the concept of the city within their poetry.)
• Vendler, Helen. “Frank O’Hara: His Style and His Subject” On Extended Wings: Wallace Stevens’ Longer Poems. Harvard UP, 1969. (A critical analysis of O’Hara’s poetic style, examining his use of language, form, and subject matter.)

Additional Resources

• The Academy of American Poets: Frank O’Hara: https://poets.org/poet/frank-ohara (Provides a biography, selected poems, essays on his work and links to additional resources.)
• PennSound: Frank O’Hara: (Offers audio recordings of O’Hara reading his poems, including “Lana Turner Has Collapsed.”)

Representative Quotations from “Lana Turner Has Collapsed” by Frank O’Hara

Quotation	Context	Theoretical Perspective
“I have been to lots of parties/ and acted perfectly disgraceful/ but I never actually collapsed”	This quotation reflects the speaker’s casual tone and their acknowledgment of past wild behavior. The mention of Lana Turner’s collapse juxtaposes the speaker’s experiences with those of a Hollywood star.	Reader-Response Theory: Readers might interpret the speaker’s admission differently based on their own experiences and attitudes towards partying and celebrity culture.
“Oh Lana Turner we love you get up”	Here, the speaker addresses Lana Turner directly, expressing concern and affection. The repetition of “get up” suggests a plea for her to recover or rise above her current state of collapse.	Feminist Theory: This quotation highlights the public’s obsession with celebrity figures like Lana Turner and the pressure they face to maintain a perfect image. It also reflects the objectification of women in the entertainment industry.
“I’d have collapsed too if I’d been there”	The speaker humorously empathizes with Lana Turner, suggesting that they would have collapsed as well if they were in her situation. This line adds a touch of self-awareness to the poem’s tone.	Psychoanalytic Theory: This quotation could be interpreted as the speaker projecting their own vulnerabilities and insecurities onto Lana Turner’s situation, revealing underlying anxieties about their own potential for collapse.
“It’s not as if we asked her to do it”	Here, the speaker distances themselves and others from Lana Turner’s collapse, emphasizing that they didn’t request or expect such a dramatic event. This line reflects a sense of detachment or irony regarding celebrity worship.	Cultural Studies: This quotation underscores the passive role of the public in consuming and reacting to celebrity scandals, raising questions about the ethics and implications of celebrity culture.
“In fact as I listened to the news it was/ better”	The speaker reflects on their reaction to hearing about Lana Turner’s collapse, suggesting that the news somehow improved their day. This seemingly callous response adds a layer of irony and complexity to the poem’s commentary on fame and public perception.	Structuralism: This quotation highlights the role of language and media in shaping our perceptions of events and individuals, suggesting that Lana Turner’s collapse serves as entertainment or diversion for the speaker.