While books are the most popular way to collect works by Charles Bukowski, broadsides represent an equally satisfying way to build a Bukowski collection.
There are over 60 known Charles Bukowski broadsides spanning the years 1946 to 2017. This includes Bukowski’s second published work, a short story titled “20 Tanks from Kasseldown”, published by Black Sun Press as part of Portfolio III in 1946. The portfolio included a total of 31 works, including broadsides by Henry Miller, Jean Genet and Kenneth Rexroth.
It’s also worth noting that the first Bukowski poems published by Black Sparrow Press were produced in the form of a series of five broadsides created between April and July 1966. That was approximately two years before Black Sparrow Press published “At Terror Street and Agony Way”, its first Bukowski book. These broadsides are considered the most valuable Bukowski broadsides to collect: Only 30 copies of each were produced and they were all signed by Bukowski.
Typically, broadsides are only published in a single edition, eliminating some of the complexity that’s involved with collecting books. They are also published in limited quantities, with many printed by hand using vintage presses that require a high degree of craftmanship. The whole idea is to create literary art that’s displayed on a wall as opposed to spines a bookshelf.
To make things even more interesting for the collector, it’s not uncommon to find different variants of the same broadside -- often the result of designers trying different colors and paper stock before selecting the final design. And while some Bukowski broadsides did have an official signed edition, many others did not. So, finding a signed copy of what should be a non-signed broadside adds even more fun to the hunt.
While some broadsides were sold in bookshops, most were distributed organically to friends of the printer or writer, as a supplement to a poetry journal, or passed out at events like readings. Broadsides were used as a marketing tool for Black Sparrow Press, but for the small press printer, the idea of profit was never a motivation. Something that’s still true today.
Contemporary examples can be found in the work of Bill Roberts from Bottle of Smoke Press and Johnny Brewton of X-Ray Press, both of which started creating broadsides after Bukowski’s death.
Bill Roberts mainly produced his broadsides as part of his Bottle series, a body of folios that included works by Bukowski and other poets. But Roberts also published the classic Bukowski poem “I Saw A Tramp Last Night” as a stand-alone broadside. He also created a portfolio of miniature broadsides titled AS BUDDHA SMILES, containing 20 Bukowski quotes printed in different colors and paper stock.
Bill is also notable for creating separate variants for the numbered edition and the lettered edition of his broadsides, with the lettered ones obviously being more collectible.
In recognition of his craftmanship, Bill’s work was recently added to the Yale University archives.
Johnny Brewton is an equally talented craftsman and artist. His first Bukowski work was a reproduction of a 1962 drawing titled “Self Portrait of Inner Man.” Published in 1994, It was printed thermographically on heavy stock, resulting in the ink being raised above the paper.
Many of Brewton’s works were published in his X-RAY Magazine. But don’t let the term magazine fool you: Each issue of X-Ray was composed of individual pieces printed on different paper stocks and colors before being bound into a single volume. Copies of X-Ray now sell in the range of $200-$500.
Brewton has also produced several individual Bukowski broadsides, his most recent being “HE WENT FOR THE WINDMILLS, YES”. He also collaborated with Michael Montfort on a photo project named POOP. Housed in a decorative box, it consists of a very long broadside by the same name and 13 color photographs of Bukowski taken by Montfort.
In today’s digital landscape, you’ll occasionally find homemade “broadsides” on places like eBay and Etsy. If you see one with your favorite Bukowski quote or poem, by all means purchase it and hang it on the wall. But understand that these “broadsides” are neither valuable or collectable and lack the craftmanship of the broadsides mentioned here. To help guide you, below is a list of “official” Bukowski broadsides that are collectible and have increased in value. You can also visit the broadside section of The Buk Shop to find photographs of many of these broadsides.
No matter what your reason for collecting them, broadsides offer a combination of visual art and literary art that is equally satisfying to display as it is to collect. In the process, you’ll be supporting small press printers like Bill Roberts and Johnny Brewton. That alone is a worthwhile investment.
List of Collectible Charles Bukowski Broadsides
- 20 Tanks From Kasseldown -- Black Sun Press, 1946
- His Wife, The Painter -- Hearse Press, 1960
- The Priest And The Matador -- Penny Poetry, 1962
- The Paper On The Floor -- Hearse Press, 1964
- The Old Man On The Corner -- Hearse Press, 1964
- Waste Basket -- Hearse Press, 1964
- True Story -- Black Sparrow Press, 1966
- On Going Out To Get The Mail -- Black Sparrow Press, 1966
- To Kiss The Worms Goodnight -- Black Sparrow Press, 1966
- The Girls / For The Mercy Mongers -- Black Sparrow Press, 1966
- The Flower Lover / I Met A Genius -- Black Sparrow Press, 1966
- The Nature Of The Threat And What To Do -- Tattoo Press, 1969
- Chilled Green -- Alternative Press, 1970
- The Mockingbird -- Black Sparrow Press, 1972
- Love Poem To Marina -- Black Sparrow Press, 1973
- 86'D -- Goldermood Rainbow Press, 1975
- Weather Report -- Pomegranate Press, 1975
- Winter -- Ravine Press, 1975
- Face Of A Political Candidate On A Street Billboard -- Old Marble Press (Black Sparrow), 1975
- 462-0614 -- Second Coming Press, 1976
- A Note Upon A Workshop Instructor With Tiny Hairs Under His Chin -- Pomegranate Press, 1978
- 40,000 Flies -- Black Sparrow Press, 1979
- Night Work -- Toothpaste Press, 1981
- Aftermath Of A Lengthy Rejection Slip -- Black Rose Editions, 1983
- Playing It Out -- Toothpaste Press, 1983
- Talking To My Mailbox -- Black Sparrow Press, 1984
- The Winner -- Certainty Remains Broadsides; Pineal Grit No. 1, 1986
- The Cage -- Limberlost Press, 1988
- This Most Delicate Profession -- Second Coming, 1990
- The Bluebird -- Black Sparrow Press, 1991
- Husk -- Beat Scene, 1991
- Pastoral -- Limberlost Press, 1991
- Fencing With The Shadows -- X-Ray Press, 1995
- The Luck Of The Draw / Writing / Final Score -- X-Ray Press, 1995
- Body Slam -- X-Ray Press, 1995
- The Word -- X-Ray Press, 1998
- Crime and Punishment -- Black Sparrow Press, 1999
- I Pour A Drink And Toast Love -- Black Sparrow Press, 2001
- Democracy -- X-Ray Press, 2001
- Be Cool, Fool -- X-Ray Press, 2002
- My Cats -- Verdant Press, 2003
- As Buddha Smiles (set) -- Bottle of Smoke Press, 2003
- Afternoons Into Night -- Bottle of Smoke Press, 2003
- Poop -- X-Ray Press, 2003
- Waste -- X-Ray Press, 2003
- Our Bones -- X-Ray Press, 2004
- I Shot the Cat -- X-Ray Press, 2004
- Let's Have Some Fun -- X-Ray Press, 2005
- Coffee And Babies -- Bottle of Smoke Press, 2005
- Advice For Some Young Man In The Year 2064 A.D. -- Bottle of Smoke Press, 2006
- A Consistent Sort -- X-Ray Press, 2007
- The Drowning -- Bottle of Smoke Press, 2007
- Democracy -- HarperCollins/Ecco, 2007
- I Saw A Tramp Last Night -- Bottle of Smoke Press, 2009
- Mannequins -- Bottle of Smoke Press, 2009
- Poem For Dante -- Tangerine Press, 2017
- He Went For The Windmills, Yes -- X-Ray Press, 2017