Nico Vassilakis has been a cornerstone of the Seattle visual and concrete poetry scene for many years. He is a founding member of the "Subtext Collective" and was co-curator of the recently retired Subtext Reading Series, which for 15 years exposed Seattle to a plethora of new writing from across the country.His latest book, West of Dodge has recently been published by Ireland's Redfoxpress, a press dedicated "to experimental, concrete and visual poetry, or any work combining text and visual arts in the spirit of dada or fluxus." It is the latest work in their series C'est mon dada.The book...
The Mother of Pictorial Satire, or Why Did Yankee Doodle Call His Hat Macaroni?
Despite their wide popularity and broad distribution, and their importance in the history of British caricature, the color-plate books and albums of Mary Darly are now quite rare.Who was Mary Darly?"Although most well-known cartoonists have been men, one of the most influential early figures in the field was a woman, Mary Darly. Though often overlooked in histories of the subject, women have played a significant part in the development of cartoons and caricature in Britain from its beginnings in the days of Hogarth almost 300 years ago right up to the present… However, the mother of them all, perhaps, was the...
The Hands (and Notebooks and Little Black Book) of Henry Miller
Handprint of Henry Miller's right palm....A man of good taste, intellectual quality of mind, and the ability to translate his ideas into words and action...he has a broad-minded attitude toward people and situations...He has a quick wit, he likes being with people who have alert minds so there can be a stimulating exchange of ideas...In 1957, novelist Henry Miller made handprints of his right and left palms. In 1966, Miller sent the handprints, with instructions, to graphologist Dorothy Sara for analysis, the above quotation an excerpt from her report.The left hand of god.The prints are amongst 120 Miller-related items from...
Murdered "Mill Girl" Memorialized At Maine Library
Illustration From: Mary Bean Or The Mysterious Murder by Miss J.A.B.,Cincinnati: H.M. Rulison, 1852.Saco, Maine 1850: The partially-clad body of a beautiful, young woman is found, bound to a board, floating in a stream. An immediate scandal ensues when the local police cannot identify the body. Newspaper reports take on an alarmist tone: Where is the girl's family? Why is she alone and far from home? Who has brought about her untimely death, and why? A new online exhibit hosted by Biddeford, Maine's McArthur Public Library reveals the history of this murder case so sensational it inspired three books in...
Bambi’s Dark Secret
Note that the book is featured in the movie's poster,typical during Hollywood's Golden Age.Walt Disney may turn in his grave or thaw and drop deader if and when he learns that Bambi, the book he adapted to create the animation classic, was written by a man who is solidly credited as being the anonymous author of a celebrated and notorious work of German erotica.In 1906, an erotic memoir was privately published. Purportedly written by a Viennese prostitute at the end of her life, Josefine Mutzenbacher, oder Die Geschichte einer Wienerischen Dirne, it became a popular success; it is now a...