Die Wilden Boys. Roman. Port of Saints. Arbeistjournal zu Die wilden Boys.
Herausgegeben und ubersetzt von Carl Weissner. Mit Zeichnungen von S. Clay Wilson.
[Frankfurt]: Zweitausendeins, 1980 Stock Code: 143542
Bound in snakeskin for the illustrator and inscribed to him by Burroughs
First edition in German, inscribed by William Burroughs to the illustrator S. Clay Wilson on the title page, "To Herr Clay von Wilson, viele grussen sic on a great Arbeit, von William S. Burroughs", with Wilson's own signature above and on the first blank. This copy was finely bound for Wilson by the printer, and has samples of the materials used in the binding tipped-in at the rear endpaper.In 1980 the German publishers Zweitausendeins were commissioned to publish a three-volume Collectors Edition of Burroughs's work, this being the second volume and the first to be illustrated by Wilson. It publishes the first appearance in German of The Wild Boys, Port of Saints, and Burroughs's work journal for The Wild Boys.
The first volume, also issued in 1980 though unillustrated, featured Junkie, In Search of Yage, Naked Lunch, and Nova Express, all of which had previously been published in German. The third volume, again illustrated by Wilson, was published in 1982 and was the first appearance in German of The Cities of the Red Night. The Collectors Edition eventually ran to five volumes, the fifth published in 1989. All but the third volume were published in a snakeskin-pattern jacket, reflecting the binding used here for Wilson's own copy.
S. Clay Wilson (b. 1941) was a central figure in the underground comix movement of the 1960s, his work vividly depicting scenes of violence, sex, and mayhem in subversive settings. Wilson was a fan of Burroughs and in 1975 drew several illustrations for Burroughs's short story, "Fun City in Ba'Dan", which were published alongside the story in Arcade 4. These apparently impressed Burroughs and when Zweitausendeins contacted him to discuss their edition "Burroughs recommended Wilson to illustrate them as well" (Rosenkranz, p. 103). The two "became pen pals during this assignment" and remained in regular correspondence well into the 1990s (ibid., p. 104).
Description
Octavo. Specially bound for the illustrator by the printer in contemporary tan calf, panelled with snakeskin on spine and front board, author's initials in blind to rear board, brown cloth endpapers. Housed in a brown cloth folding chemise.
Illustrations
Black and white illustrated plates by S. Clay Wilson.
Condition
A couple of light scratches to rear cover, remaining a fine copy.
Bibliography
Postdates Maynard and Miles; Patrick Rosenkranz, Demons and Angels: The Mythology of S. Clay Wilson (2015).
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