I made my first post today after discovering this site last week.
I've been a fan of Bukowski's since the 70s. I'm a writer myself (that's how I've supported myself the last 15 years). Most of it's trade magazine work, but I have unpublished novels and unproduced screenplays that may someday see the light of day.
I never met Bukowski, but I had a business relationship with John Martin. Back in the 80s I had a bookstore in Hoboken. Martin used to ship me his "hurt" books - scuffed, unsold copies returned by bookstores. It was rare that a Bukowski volume would show up in one of those boxes, but there were lots of pristine and unmarked copies of books by other writers in the Black Sparrow stable. It was pretty clear he had some real dogs in his yard.
Around this time I made two very primitive videos of the short stories "The Devil was Hot" and "The Gut Wringer." Very primitive. I edited it on two VCRs. I sent them to Martin to show to Buk. According to Martin, Bukowski said they were the films closest to capturing his work. I have no way of verifying this, but Martin had no reason to lie to me.
After Bukowski's death, I approached an editor at St. Martin's about doing a book on Bukowski similar in format to Barry Gifford's Jack's Book. I always loved how Gifford went about interviewing the people who touched Kerouac's life. St Martin gave me the go-ahead.
I first contacted John Martin and he was dismissive of the idea. He didn't say he wouldn't contribute, but one remark was strange. he said, "Do you realize how much work this entails?" That wasn't an issue for me.
Neeli Cheernovski was the second person I contacted. he was enthusiastic - very eager to contribute.
Unfortunately, the third person I contacted stopped me in my tracks. I had a really warm half hour phone conversation with Linda Lee Bukowski; but she told me she was planning on writing the same kind of book. Once I heard that, I felt honor-bound to drop the project. Unfortunately years and years have gone by and as far as I know Linda isn't working on an oral history of Buk.
Up to a few months ago I was living a block from DeLongpre. The neighborhood is still raunchy as hell - lots of transvestites, hookers, drunks and gang-bangers. That kind of shit wears you down after awhile. A quiet life in the foothills with a beautiful Mexican woman suits me just fine.
I've been a fan of Bukowski's since the 70s. I'm a writer myself (that's how I've supported myself the last 15 years). Most of it's trade magazine work, but I have unpublished novels and unproduced screenplays that may someday see the light of day.
I never met Bukowski, but I had a business relationship with John Martin. Back in the 80s I had a bookstore in Hoboken. Martin used to ship me his "hurt" books - scuffed, unsold copies returned by bookstores. It was rare that a Bukowski volume would show up in one of those boxes, but there were lots of pristine and unmarked copies of books by other writers in the Black Sparrow stable. It was pretty clear he had some real dogs in his yard.
Around this time I made two very primitive videos of the short stories "The Devil was Hot" and "The Gut Wringer." Very primitive. I edited it on two VCRs. I sent them to Martin to show to Buk. According to Martin, Bukowski said they were the films closest to capturing his work. I have no way of verifying this, but Martin had no reason to lie to me.
After Bukowski's death, I approached an editor at St. Martin's about doing a book on Bukowski similar in format to Barry Gifford's Jack's Book. I always loved how Gifford went about interviewing the people who touched Kerouac's life. St Martin gave me the go-ahead.
I first contacted John Martin and he was dismissive of the idea. He didn't say he wouldn't contribute, but one remark was strange. he said, "Do you realize how much work this entails?" That wasn't an issue for me.
Neeli Cheernovski was the second person I contacted. he was enthusiastic - very eager to contribute.
Unfortunately, the third person I contacted stopped me in my tracks. I had a really warm half hour phone conversation with Linda Lee Bukowski; but she told me she was planning on writing the same kind of book. Once I heard that, I felt honor-bound to drop the project. Unfortunately years and years have gone by and as far as I know Linda isn't working on an oral history of Buk.
Up to a few months ago I was living a block from DeLongpre. The neighborhood is still raunchy as hell - lots of transvestites, hookers, drunks and gang-bangers. That kind of shit wears you down after awhile. A quiet life in the foothills with a beautiful Mexican woman suits me just fine.