For immediate release
April 14, 2010
US Postal Service Considers Honoring LA Writer Charles Bukowski with a Stamp
LOS ANGELES- In 1969, when the 49-year-old underground poet and columnist Charles Bukowski quit his job at the Terminal Annex US Postal Service sorting facility, he was one step ahead of a pink slip. Offered $100 a month by an editor who believed in his work, Bukowski took the leap to become a professional writer, and in just a few weeks produced his first novel, the autobiographical "Post Office."
Bukowski never held a day job again. He would go on to write six more novels, the screenplay to "Barfly" and thousands of poems, and to find international acclaim as one of the truly distinctive voices of Los Angeles literature. Although he died in 1994, his literary output continues with posthumous anthologies, and he is widely known among American booksellers as the most shoplifted author on their shelves. In 2006, Bukowski's archives were acquired by the Huntington Library, and in 2008 the modest East Hollywood cottage where he wrote "Post Office" was named one of the Historic-Cultural Monuments of the City of Los Angeles.
But one perfectly apt honor still eludes Bukowski: shouldn't the second most famous American postal worker after Benjamin Franklin have his own postage stamp?
Richard Schave and Kim Cooper of the L.A.-based literary bus tour company Esotouric think so, and earlier this year circulated a petition asking the Citizens Stamp Advisory Committee to consider issuing a commemorative Bukowski stamp. More than one thousand Bukowski fans signed on to show their support, and the petition was submitted in March.
The US Postal Service's Stamp Development Manager Terrence W. McCaffrey has received the petition, and writes back to say "I am pleased to inform you this proposal will be submitted for review and consideration before the Committee..." The 2012 series of about 25 commemorative postage stamps is now being selected, and Bukowski fans worldwide will eagerly await their announcement in Fall 2011.
Esotouric's celebrations of Bukowski's life and work include the bus tour "Haunts of A Dirty Old Man: Charles Bukowski's LA" (next scheduled on April 24), working on the campaign to have his home landmarked, and inviting journalist Marco Mannone to host a Bukowski Salon at the October 2009 Downtown LA Art Walk. They also spearheaded the successful campaign to have the corner of Fifth and Grand, at the LA Central Library, designated John Fante Square, after the writer who Bukowski called "my God."
For the official letter from the US Postal Service, see
http://www.flickr.com/photos/richardschave/4520700041/
To view the petition, please visit:
http://www.petitionspot.com/petitions/bukowskistamp
For more on the process for recommending new postage stamps, see:
http://www.usps.com/communications/organization/csac.htm
To learn about Esotouric's repertoire of offbeat Los Angeles bus tours, visit:
http://www.esotouric.com
Esotouric's Richard Schave and Kim Cooper are available for interviews. Journalists and photographers on assignment can often be accommodated on Esotouric bus tours. Contact Kim at amscrayATgmailDOTcom, 323-223-2767.
Upcoming Esotouric bus tour schedule
Sat April 17 - John Fante's Dreams from Bunker Hill
Sat April 24 – Haunts of a Dirty Old Man: Charles Bukowski's L.A.
Sat May 1 - Pasadena Confidential crime bus tour with Crimebo the Clown
Sat May 8 - Blood & Dumplings crime bus tour
Sat May 15 - The Real Black Dahlia crime bus tour
Sat May 22 - The Birth of Noir: James M. Cain's So. Cal Nightmare
Sat June 5 - Weird Adams crime bus tour
Sat June 26 - Eastside Babylon crime bus tour
Sat July 10 - Raymond Chandler's Los Angeles
Sat July 24 - Haunts of a Dirty Old Man: Charles Bukowski's L.A.
Sun Aug 1- Reyner Banham Loves LA: South Los Angeles
Sat Aug 7- Reyner Banham Loves LA: The New Chinatowns
Sat Aug 14 - Reyner Banham Loves LA: Route 66
Sat Aug 28 - Reyner Banham Loves LA: The Lowdown on Downtown
