For Artaud
New York: Totem Press, 1959. First Edition, First Printing.
Octavo (8 1/2 x 5 5/8 inches; 220 x 145 mm), 8 pages, in illustrated stapled wrappers.
INSCRIBED by Michael McClure on the title page to book editor William Targ: "This copy for Bill Targ / and / all / cause / Baraka /published / it / Michael." The reference is to Amiri Baraka (known as LeRoi Jones until 1965), whose Totem Press published the book as Blue Plate #2 in an edition of 750 copies. Besides Targ, a previous owner of this book was poet Tony Weinberger; his signature is at top of the title page. Nice literary associations here.
Michael McClure, who was instrumental in launching the Beat movement, died on May 4, 2020, at age 87. McClure took part in a legendary poetry reading at the Six Gallery in San Francisco in October 1955. Other readers were Allen Ginsberg (who read an early version of Howl), Philip Lamantia, Gary Snyder, and Philip Whalen, with Kenneth Rexroth acting as master of ceremonies.
CONDITION: Light soiling to wrappers, heavy toning to title page and colophon. A Very Good or better copy. Item #2152
Price: $125.00