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Peggy Caserta
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I Ran Into Some Trouble Hardcover – August 1, 2018

by Peggy Caserta (Author), Maggie Falcon (Author)
4.2 4.2 out of 5 stars 898 ratings
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Peggy Caserta, founder of the famous Haight-Ashbury hippie boutique Mnasidika, and lover and girlfriend of Janis Joplin, was a Louisiana homecoming queen turned airsick stewardess who eventually landed in 1960s San Francisco and set up shop. Her store was a hang-out for The Grateful Dead and Big Brother and the Holding Company; it was where Wes Wilson's posters hung and Bill Graham sold concert tickets and Owsley's LSD was enjoyed.

Caserta's world of psychedelic peace, love, LSD, and rock kaleidoscoped into bereavement, heroin addiction, prison, and desperation. She was hated, betrayed, and self-exiled, and after many, many years has recovered, returning home to the bayou to care for her mother with dementia.

Now Caserta is giving a new generation an inside-look into a revolution--both countercultural and personal--in her new memoir. It's the celebration of a transitional time in history, and an attempt at redemption.
Previous page
  1. Print length
    288 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Wyatt-MacKenzie Publishing
  4. Publication date
    August 1, 2018
  5. Dimensions
    6 x 0.81 x 9 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    1942545827
  7. ISBN-13
    978-1942545828
  8. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Review

"A chronicle of Caserta's life before, with and after Joplin, I Ran into Some Trouble is a riveting cautionary tale of the wild ride and dark side of the counterculture." -- Rolling Stone, October 2018 issue

"Considers the whole of Caserta's life, each era as carefully considered and vividly drawn as the headiest days of Joplin, the Grateful Dead,and Mnasidika, Caserta's Haight-Ashbury hippie boutique that dressed the new rock stars and brought the money its owner would need to keep pace, in so many ways, with a newly famous sometime lover ... all of itchronicled in her memoir in a wry, funny voice." -- Greg Evans, VULTURE

"Peggy Caserta is a genuine wild child of her time." -- David Dalton, a founding editor of Rolling Stone Magazine, author/co-author of twenty-four books and a number of biographies on James Dean, Jim Morrison, Janis Joplin, Sid Vicious, the Rolling Stones, Steven Tyler and Andy Warhol

"It's an amazing story: sweet Southern girl comes to San Francisco in the early '60s and begins a store, Mnasidika, that comes to epitomize the rising tide of the Haight-Ashbury counterculture, so influential that it pushes Levi Strauss into producing bell bottom jeans. She becomes Janis Joplin's lover, lives the high life, and then crashes and burns through decades before righting herself. An intense lap around the life track touching all the possibilities." -- Dennis McNally, Author of A Long Strange Trip: The Inside History of the Grateful Dead and Desolate Angel: Jack Kerouac, the Beat Generation, and America

"An unforgettable portrait of genius, grit and demons ... I Ran Into Some Trouble is a run into '60s music history, delicious rock n roll dish, sizzling Janis Joplin anecdotes and just a whole lot of fun. Maggie Falcon and Peggy Caserta vividly recreate Caserta's catalytic role in the mad, psychedelic Summer of Love from her front and center seat inside her blue jean store in Haight-Ashbury. We see the rise of The Grateful Dead, Big Brother and the Holding Company, Bill Graham's rock empire, and all else birthed in San Francisco in the 1960s." -- Ann Louise Bardach, PEN Award-winning journalist and author of Cuba Confidential, Without Fidel andVicki

"This memoir isn't about apologies." -- Foreword Reviews, July/August 2018 Issue

From the Inside Flap

Best known for the influence of her store, Mnasidika, and her association with Janis Joplin, Peggy Caserta has the devil's own luck. Relentless and relentlessly unafraid to use all the advantages at her disposal, her story is a wild ride. I Ran Into Some Trouble bypasses the scandal sheets to explain Caserta's perspective on a life thoroughly lived.

Caserta focuses on her journey from being a small-town Louisiana girl to becoming a fashion, culture, and tabloid sensation to finding her place as a quiet retiree and parental caretaker. Careful to centralize her own life, she steers clear of overreliance on her celebrity connections. She digs into the elements of her life that happened outside of the public view, as she hustled to make something of herself and keep that sense of self intact through grief, loss, abuse, and addiction.

Her meteoric rise as a fashion powerhouse and cultural influencer is shadowed by debauchery, troubled relationships, financial instability, health problems, and addiction. Yet, unlike some of her peers, Caserta survived, not unscathed, but relatively intact. Why is a question even she can't fully answer.

In many ways, I Ran Into Some Trouble is Caserta's reclamation of her own story, a second chance. While there's some egret for the decisions she abdicated during the worst of her addiction, this memoir isn't about apologies. Rather, Caserta focuses on telling her story her way and owning it. The experience is less salacious and infinitely more astonishing in the scope of what she did, what was done to her, and what she got away with.

--Foreword Reviews, July/August 2018

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Wyatt-MacKenzie Publishing (August 1, 2018)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 288 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1942545827
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1942545828
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.27 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 0.81 x 9 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.2 4.2 out of 5 stars 898 ratings

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Peggy Caserta

Peggy Caserta

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Peggy Caserta is the founder of the Haight-Ashbury clothing boutique Mnasidika. It's said that she inspired Levi's to manufacture bell-bottom jeans, helped put the term “hippies” into our lexicon, was the only non-musician helicoptered into Woodstock, and she was famously the friend and lover of Janis Joplin. Caserta's life is the story of a generation.

Customer reviews

4.2 out of 5 stars
4.2 out of 5
898 global ratings
Take a walk on the wild side, baby!
4 Stars
Take a walk on the wild side, baby!
What a ride. I really enjoyed the book a lot. It was an easy read(in a very good way!) I liked that it didn't start with early childhood, instead she told the story of her first acid trip! Of course there are lots of Janis Joplin story's, which are awesome. It's a survivor story,and it shows that there are always hope.
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Top reviews from the United States

Cheryl W.
5.0 out of 5 stars Astonishing!
Reviewed in the United States on September 7, 2018
Verified Purchase
All these adjectives just keep popping into my head! I am totally bewildered how anyone could endure the things that this woman has, and still have a zest for life! Peggy definitely chose to live life to its fullest this time around.
I was on a flight from MCO to BWI and there was an older gentleman sitting across and one row up from me reading on his kindle. I glanced over his shoulder to see what he was reading. Fortunately for me, the words were in a big font so I could read easily. Unfortunately for me, that meant he could read faster and his arm was covering the bottom of the page. Every page, I would get only to the middle and he would flip the page, but I had read enough and gotten the gist of who and what the book was about. At an opportune time I touched the mans arm and asked the name and author. He didn’t remember the title and only knew the author’s first name was Peggy. I thought okay, I can google from there. Peggy and Janis Joplin. He eventually figured out how to go back on his kindle to give me the full information. He was excitedly telling me all about it though. I could not wait to get off that plane and download this book to my own kindle! My husband and I take a lot of road trips; he likes it when I read a book out loud and I love reading out loud for him. I had already started to read the book when we found ourselves on the road. I told him about it and asked if he wanted to hear, that I didn’t mind starting over because it was that good! I read for seven hours straight and for another night instead of watching tv. He travels for work and I couldn’t not finish it so I will back up to where he last heard and finish the book again with him.
There are parts of the book that are very difficult to read much less out loud. There were times that I had tears rolling down my face, and I got verklempt and couldn’t continue and had to regain control. There were times that we laughed, got angry, and our guts wrenched. The history of the Haight-Ashbury, the people, and the movement in the 60’s and 70’s made me feel like I was there living it with them! I was born in 1958 and always felt cheated and that I had missed out on the greatest era. I miss bell bottoms and am an old even though not original “hippie” lol. This is a raw, honest, and amazing human story that should be read by everyone! I am just blown away. Thank you Peggy!
14 people found this helpful
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S. M. Griffin
4.0 out of 5 stars A Rowdy Memoir
Reviewed in the United States on August 25, 2018
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This memoir not written in a straight chronological order. Just as life rolls and swirls onward, it does as well. Given the intensity of experiences Ms. Caserta relates she did get into a lot of trouble, and survived it all. This book gave some valuable insights into what was going on with Hippies of the Haight and how they evolved and survived to old enough for Medicare. I grew up near The Haight and was about 15 years old and I remember the Hare Krisna everywhere, even as an event at my High School, they chanted and brought exotic east Indian foods. Many of us protested the Vietnam war too and were detained for throwing "smelly things" at police...we threw daisies. Bell bottoms and hipster pants were everywhere, and bras were missing too. Ah 1967-69 was a awakening time, and it was simpler then. A good read, great insights into addictions and moral conscience.
7 people found this helpful
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DB
5.0 out of 5 stars Setting a part of the Janis Joplin story straight
Reviewed in the United States on February 2, 2023
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It's a shame that for 52 years I was not as informed as I thought about Janis Joplin. I had read Buried Alive in the early 70's ... can't recall much of it now after all these years .... but I do remember being happy to have read it as the death of Janis was hard to take and this book did make me relate to her as I felt I could walk with her a bit in the way reading a biography can make you feel.

Now comes along, "I Ran Into Some Trouble." Many thanx go to Peggy Caserta for sharing her real story of knowing Janis during the beginning and through the best part of the Haight - Ashbury times. Meeting Janis (and others) and their developing friendship is special to read after all these years. I found this to be a fast reading book and never dull - if your reading this review it means you have to read it too.
4 people found this helpful
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Joyce Rommel
3.0 out of 5 stars Interesting book
Reviewed in the United States on September 11, 2018
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I liked this book but got tired of all the drug taking stories. I really liked the stories about the musicians and the Haight Asbury neighborhood.
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Susen Trail
5.0 out of 5 stars Too many enjoyable, praiseworthy moments to choose one
Reviewed in the United States on June 1, 2020
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I have no research or knowledge to base this on but I found this book to be an honest biography of a fascinating life. I feel like I understand a lot more about Height Ashbury and the culture there. Peggy writes with such honesty and clarity about her good times and bad times. She shows such strength, imagination and force of will and the writing is So good you feel like youve been talking over coffee or beer catching up with a high school friend. When the book ended I glanced across the table and she's gone, I felt surprise and a sense of loss.
Sip the forward, it's a spoiler. Go straight to chapter one.
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Georgene Nitzsche
4.0 out of 5 stars I couldn’t put this book down…
Reviewed in the United States on April 21, 2024
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I did not know what to expect from this book. Having read “Going Down with Janis” many years ago, I have always wondered what became of Peggy. While I am saddened to know that she lost so much due to her addictions, this book truly is a story about redemption. No self-pity party here. Written with brutal honesty and a dash of self-deprecating humor, this is a must read for Janis fans, or anyone else interested in the 60s/Haight-Ashbury scene. I will say that it completely shifted my opinion of Peggy from Janis groupie, to a smart, savvy business woman, who backed/financed many of the start-up businesses in the Haight. For that alone she has my respect, not to mention her role as a caregiver to her mom. Wherever you are now Peggy, I hope you have the peace you deserve. You earned it!
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Top reviews from other countries

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LAURA HOEBAUS
5.0 out of 5 stars Review
Reviewed in Germany on August 28, 2020
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Ein ganz großes Lob an Peggy Caserta. Ein ganz aufregendes und mitreißendes Leben wird dabei erzählt, welches einem sofort in den Bann der Zeit und dessen Befindlichkeiten zieht.
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Travelling Crone
5.0 out of 5 stars Like a History Lesson
Reviewed in Canada on September 3, 2018
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It was wonderful to go back in time and learn about what went into creating my world during that time. I was in Manitoba, Canada in a small town about 5 years later, so far from the epicenter of the hippies. But what they did, then and there, had such a powerful impact on my life! I remember when Janis died and I am grateful to hear another plausible explanation of her death. I remember my friend locked himself in his bedroom for a month, grieving at her passing.
But I also enjoyed hearing about this survivor's personal story and what a life it was! While I understand that addiction was part of her path, I am still sad that so much time and energy was wasted on it. I am glad she eventually found some measure of peace and with her mom, to whom she owed so much. It was nice she had the opportunity to give back.
It felt really well written, smooth and clear... which give the time and drugs that occurred between events and writing, is even more impressive.
Thanks for sharing Peggy and for being so honest even when it wasn't flattering. <3
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N SINGLETON
5.0 out of 5 stars Loved this book!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 18, 2020
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This is a great book for anyone with an interest in the whole 60’s Haight-Ashbury era and Janis Joplin in particular. I’ve read loads of books about Janis and Peggy is often mentioned in them, but it was really interesting to hear the story from her side, which contained loads of info and anecdotes that I hadn’t read anywhere else. It’s more than just about Janis though, one of the best parts of the book for me was reading about how the whole Haight-Ashbury scene started, developed and eventually burned out, and how the beginning was largely centred around Peggy’s clothes shop on Ashbury Street. The book also does not get bogged down in boring family background stories before you get to the good bits like many memoirs, but switches back and forth through different eras, keeping the book lively and interesting. On top of this, the parts of her family life that Peggy does include are a fascinating insight to her charactor, and are an essential part of her story, helping you to empathise with her as her life swings from massive highs to desperate lows. Peggy comes across as a very honest person and the book
Is very well written too. Highly recommend!
2 people found this helpful
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V.Thiagarajan
4.0 out of 5 stars A wonderful experience
Reviewed in India on September 12, 2018
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Very interesting and I never put it down till I finished reading. Thank you Amazon for such books.
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Marit Hegge
5.0 out of 5 stars Janis Joplin & Haight Ashbury brought to life again!
Reviewed in Australia on September 28, 2018
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Wow, just finished reading this book which I came across online by chance. Having spent many of my teenage years in the 60s in Australia worshipping & being inspired by Janis Joplin, yet at the end of the day not knowing the real story of who she was. Thank you so much Peggy for writing this book. I never read, or even heard of the earlier 1973 book, but totally understand how Peggy got done over after she wrote it, signed away her rights & then had it edited by a third party who basically exploited her to make it as sensational and salacious as possible. Yes this mistake must have haunted her for so many years.

Incredibly brave of her to lay open her terrible downward spiral into long term drug addiction, how low she had sunk, the times she nearly died. But so lucky that she was a survivor, that somehow throughout all this her inner strength & resilience pulled her through. That finally she found some peace and redemption in going back to the place of her youth and caring for her mother. Things having come full circle for her.

And in the 21st century era of same sex marriage one can forget how hard it must have been to have been a lesbian in the 60s, let alone a lesbian woman from the Deep South in the USA. I actually find it despicable that some other Janis biographers and film makers have omitted or glosssed over this very important part of Janis’s life. Have tried to write Peggy out of the picture, when she was obviously such an important part of Janis’s life. After all it was Peggy whom she flew in to be with her at Woodstock. The photos attest to that one.
OK when I was a teenager in the ‘60s I did not even know that Janis was having sex with women. All her songs were in the “I need a man” vein. And back then this whole topic was basically off limits. At least growing up in Australia it was. But it would seem that some still have issues with this part of who Janis was and seek to sanitise her.

I felt such sadness as well after reading this book. How so many of the innocent and youthfully exuberant flower children of the early Haight Ashbury days ended up drug addicted, destroyed and deceased not long after. Was really touched by the sad end of that lovely young leather worker who shared the shop with Peggy.

Yet what was happening in San Francisco at the time spawned so many important political and cultural movements and changes across the world. I know that for me it was what inspired a decades long involvement in the peace movement and eventually to become one of the founding members of the Green Party in my country. It was the start of the whole Counter Culture revolution. And Janis Joplin was like a flaming star who made it possible for other women in the music industry to carve out their own wild, independent identities.

Ok I tried to write this review on the US Amazon site but now thanks to the purchasing laws in this country we Australians are not allowed to do so it seems. But go & read the reviews on that page. There are some great ones. Some appear to be from people who knew both Peggy & Janis back in the day.
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