Bill Press Collection, 1932-2021

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Summary

Creators:
Abstract:
Extent:
8.47 cubic feet
Language:
Preferred citation:

Bill Press Collection. Los Angeles Public Library

Background

Scope and content:

The Bill Press Collection includes materials created by the publisher Black Sparrow Press, founded in Los Angeles in 1966 by John Martin and Barbara Martin, with a focus on several of its best known authors: Charles Bukowski, William Everson (also known as Brother Antoninus), and John Fante. Black Sparrow Press was started amidst the literary culture of Los Angeles in the 1960s, which included the Black Arts Movement and Watts Writers Workshop, and later in the 1970s, Beyond Baroque Literary Arts Center and The Woman’s Building, and published poetry, fiction, and nonfiction. Bill Press assembled these materials over time from secondhand bookstores, rare book dealers, and book fairs. The collection showcases a personal love for the literature of Los Angeles, and especially writing by Charles Bukowski and John Fante. Bill Press collected a comprehensive amount of materials on Bukowski, including books and periodicals, as well as recordings, manuscripts, drawings, and ephemera, after being introduced to his work in 1980.

Biographical / historical:

John Martin (b.1930) was the founder, manager and CEO of a successful office supply company in Southern California when he founded Black Sparrow Press in Los Angeles in 1966 in order to publish work by Charles Bukowski and other contemporary writers. A book collector from a young age, he funded the business by selling a collection of first editions by D.H. Lawrence to UC Santa Barbara, and by working two jobs. He first read the work of Bukowski in mimeographed magazines and got in touch. In 1965, Martin began to financially support Bukowski so he could work exclusively on his writing. The first Black Sparrow Press publications were five broadsides by Bukowski, including the poem “True Story” published in April, 1966. Martin’s eye for literary talent extended to other Los Angeles area writers including John Fante, Wanda Coleman, and Diane Wakowski. The business became profitable in 1971, and by then the press published 20 titles a year. Martin had a practice of publishing multiple books by authors and following them throughout their careers; he wasn’t interested in one-off books, even if they would be profitable. He put a lot of stock in author relationships, trusting the artist and their vision. After 36 years in business, Martin closed Black Sparrow Press in 2002, and sold much of the catalog to HarperCollins. The name has been revitalized as a publisher in recent years by Joshua Bodwell and his partner, Tammy Ackerman. Barbara Martin took over responsibility for the design of all Black Sparrow Press books and catalogs in 1968 until the couple sold the business in 2002. Her designs were distinctive for their color, typeface and images. The illustrations and layout were inspired by the Bauhaus, Futurist, Vorticism, and de Stijl art movements, and were made using letterpress printing and offset lithography. Barbara Martin worked in a handmade process, never by computer, with a utility knife, pasting up designs and text. Black Sparrow Press was unique in book publishing, for example they chose a larger size for paperbacks, with textured, high quality paper covers, which became an industry standard. They didn’t print bar codes on the covers, or quotes, and they used color on the title pages and endpapers. All these design decisions contributed to instantly recognizable, eye-catching, and collectable books that contributed to the success of the press. Bill Press (b.1940) was introduced to Bukowski’s writing as a volunteer at the Braille Institute in Los Angeles. He volunteered to record audiobooks and his first assigned book was Hank: The Life of Charles Bukowski, a biography by Neeli Cherkovski. He had been a seminarian and studied theology at the University of Fribourg in Switzerland, and was working as a political commentator at KABC-TV in Los Angeles at the time, in September 1980. As his collecting became a passion, he purchased from used bookstores, book dealers, and antiquarian book fairs. Press built a Bukowski and John Fante collection, and a near-complete Black Sparrow Press collection, with multiple issues of editions, which for some titles included paperback, trade, numbered, signed, and lettered with original drawings by the author. Bill Press collected for the enjoyment of it, and despite living in Hollywood, in the Bronson Canyon neighborhood, and knowing people in common, he never met Bukowski or attended a reading. Charles Bukowski (1920-1994) was a writer shaped by Los Angeles, especially the poor and working class, and is widely considered an influential force in post-World War II literature. Bukowski was born in Germany and the family moved to Los Angeles when he was three years old. He had a difficult childhood marked by a stressful family life, and took refuge in his local public library near 21st and La Brea, spending hours there reading after school. He attended Los Angeles City College and held a variety of working class jobs. He didn’t start to make a living as a writer until he was about 35. He grew his audience by publishing poems in small, independent magazines. Bukowski became known as the poet of skid row with poetry books such as Love is a Dog From Hell, and novels including Ham on Rye. With John Martin, he wanted to make poetry and fiction available to, reflective of, and enjoyed by a wider public. He wrote in an accessible style about people who live on the fringes of society. His writing uniquely reflects the grittiness, loneliness, and chaos of Los Angeles, as he made his home for many years in East Hollywood. Bukowski’s books became the main source of income for Black Sparrow Press, enabling the publisher to support the work of many other writers. The collection includes recordings of Bukowski’s readings, poetry broadsides, chapbooks designed by Barbara Martin and published by Black Sparrow Press, original manuscripts, and independently published literary magazines, as well as original drawings by the author. The periodicals capture a flourishing time for independent literary print publications with well known titles such as Outsider, published by Loujon Press, the standard for poetry journals at the time, Ole and Oro Madre. Promotional materials in the archive include cards, flyers, poetry broadsides, posters, and catalogs. Original Bukowski manuscripts are dated from 1967-93, and many are signed with notes and small drawings by the author. John Fante (1911-1983) is known for his short stories and a series of semi-autobiographical novels about a struggling writer named Arturo Bandini set in Los Angeles in the 1930s. Although his books are now highly regarded, he had limited success with writing fiction and began to work as a screenwriter in 1940. Fante established a successful career in film which lasted three decades. Materials on Fante in the collection include articles about the author, ephemera, information about the film John Fante: A Life, stories that appeared in magazines from 1932-1952, and a copy of a screenplay by John Fante and Buckley Angell titled Thunder in the South. Also included is his first short story, “Home Sweet Home,” which was published in American Mercury magazine in 1932. Rare publications in the collection will be cataloged for Special Collections, and the records will be available on the library catalog. These include large format books, issues of The Wormwood Review, first editions, and hand-painted books by Bukowski. Other books await processing and include the rest of the near complete collection of Black Sparrow Press hardcover and softcover publications, as well as Bukowski books by other publishers, books about Bukowski, foreign translations, and John Fante books. Charles Bukowski and John Fante had a similar connection to the Central Library of the Los Angeles Public Library. As a young adult living in his first apartment on Temple Street in Los Angeles in the early 1940s, Bukowski spent a lot of time at the Central Library reading fiction, as did Fante, and looking for writing he could connect with. Bukowski discovered the work of Fante, his novel Ask the Dust, and he became an important influence on his life and work. Bill Press felt it was appropriate that his entire collection be housed at the Central Library, Bukowski and Fante’s old hang-out. Bukowski’s poem “The Burning of the Dream” expressed his feelings about the library after the devastating 1986 fire as a place of inspiration and discovery that feels like home. Sources "Bill Press." Gale Literature: Contemporary Authors, Gale, 2010. Gale Literature Resource Center, link.gale.com/apps/doc/H1000191577/LitRC?u=lapl&sid=bookmark-LitRC&xid=575d3901. Accessed 7 Nov. 2024. Dunlap, Brian. Literary History: Black Sparrow Press. Los Angeles Literature. October 13, 2021. Accessed on November 4, 2024 at https://losangelesliterature.com/2021/10/13/literary-history-black-sparrow-press/ Gerber, Anna; Arndorfer, Jim. “Ordinary Madness.” Print, New York. Vol. 59, issue 5, 2005, pages 106-111,14. Graalman, Bob. "Charles Bukowski." American Poets Since World War II, edited by Donald J. Greiner, Gale, 1980. Dictionary of Literary Biography Vol. 5. Gale Literature Resource Center, link.gale.com/apps/doc/H1200000838/GLS?u=lapl&sid=bookmark-LitRC&xid=459e7a09. Accessed 7 Nov. 2024. "John (Thomas) Fante." Gale Literature: Contemporary Authors, Gale, 2002. Gale Literature Resource Center, link.gale.com/apps/doc/H1000030553/LitRC?u=lapl&sid=bookmark-LitRC&xid=dab66156. Accessed 7 Nov. 2024. Press, Bill. “Bukowski and Me.” Undated. Sherman, Josh. “Press On: Black Sparrow is Back.” Los Angeles Review of Books. September 19, 2022. Uitti, Jacob. “Interview // Serious Books: A Conversation with John Martin.” Poetry Northwest. July 13, 2020.

Acquisition information:
The collection was acquired from Bill Press by John Szabo, the City Librarian, in 2019 as both a purchase and donation.

Access and use

Restrictions:

This collection is open for research by appointment only in the Special Collections reading room. Information about setting appointments can be found on the Library’s website at lapl.org/branches/rarebooks. Appointments can also be arranged by sending an email inquiry to specialcollections [at] lapl.org.

Preferred citation:

Bill Press Collection. Los Angeles Public Library

Location of this collection:
Central Library
630 W. 5th Street
Los Angeles, CA 90071, US
Contact:
(213) 228-7355
specialcollections@lapl.org
Website