Black Lizard Press Archive, 1977-1994
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http://oac.cdlib.org/findaid/ark:/13030/tf3d5n99jh No online items Guide to the Black Lizard Press Archive, 1977-1994 Processed by Special Collections staff; machine-readable finding aid created by Steven Mandeville-Gamble Department of Special Collections Green Library Stanford University Libraries Stanford, CA 94305-6004 Phone: (650) 725-1022 Email: [email protected] URL: http://library.stanford.edu/spc © 1998 The Board of Trustees of Stanford University. All rights reserved. Guide to the Black Lizard Press Special Collections M0932 1 Archive, 1977-1994 Guide to the Black Lizard Press Archive, 1977-1994 Collection number: M0932 Department of Special Collections and University Archives Stanford University Libraries Stanford, California Contact Information Department of Special Collections Green Library Stanford University Libraries Stanford, CA 94305-6004 Phone: (650) 725-1022 Email: [email protected] URL: http://library.stanford.edu/spc Processed by: Special Collections staff Date Completed: 1997 Encoded by: Steven Mandeville-Gamble © 1998 The Board of Trustees of Stanford University. All rights reserved. Descriptive Summary Title: Black Lizard Press Archive, Date (inclusive): 1977-1994 Collection number: Special Collections M0932 Creator: Black Lizard Press Extent: 2.5 linear ft. Repository: Stanford University. Libraries. Dept. of Special Collections and University Archives. Language: English. Access Restrictions None. Publication Rights Property rights reside with the repository. Literary rights reside with the creators of the documents or their heirs. To obtain permission to publish or reproduce, please contact the Public Services Librarian of the Dept. of Special Collections. Provenance Purchased, 1997. Preferred Citation: [Identification of item] Black Lizard Press Archive, M0932, Dept. of Special Collections, Stanford University Libraries, Stanford, Calif. Historical Note In 1976 in Berkeley, California Don Ellis formed the Creative Arts Book Company. Later that year, Don Ellis met Barry Gifford, an author inspired by the nihilistic and violent side of the American dream presented in the crime fiction of the 1940's and 50's. Gifford later wrote Wild at Heart, the inspiration for the David Lynch movie of the same title. Shortly thereafter, Gifford became a consultant to the Creative Arts Book Company which gradually reprinted works by Huxley, Stein, Forster, and Kazantzakis. The Black Lizard imprint first appeared in 1980 when Ellis printed Gifford's novel Port Tropique: a story about the protagonist's involvement with smugglers and revolutionaries in Central America. Ellis, however, began to focus on more commercial ventures and Gifford drifted away, eventually ending up in France. In 1983, Guide to the Black Lizard Press Special Collections M0932 2 Archive, 1977-1994 Gifford found a dozen novels in a Parisian bookstore by a forgotten American crime novelist, Jim Thompson. Upon returning to the states, Gifford discovered that none of Thompson's books had been in print since shortly before his death in 1977. With Gifford as the founding editor, the Black Lizard imprint was resurrected to serve the gritty criminal ethos of fifties pulp, including the tawdry stylized covers. Black Lizard went on to print 82 titles including two anthologies edited by Barry Gifford; new works by authors such as Murray Sinclair; reprints of the works of Jim Thompson, David Goodis, James M. Cain, Gertrude Stein; and the obscure, sophisticated thrillers of Charles Willeford. Black Lizard and Barry Gifford were, in fact, instrumental to the revival of the lurid romans noir. The revival carried over into film as well, with several of Thompson's stories being adapted for the screen (Grifters, and The Getaway) as well as Gifford's own Wild at Heart. For his editorial work, Gifford received the Max Perkins award from PEN West. In 1990, Don Ellis sold Black Lizard Press, including the 30 unprinted titles to which the rights had been secured, to Vintage Books. The sole exception in this sale were the rights to Port Tropique, which were retained by the author, Barry Gifford. Scope and Content The collection contains information regarding 81 of Black Lizard's 82 titles, with the exception being Elliot Chaze's Black Wings has my Angel. The 170 folders are arranged alphabetically in four record storage boxes by book title. Though the order of the folders was changed, the original division of content amongst the folders, as well as their titles and sub-titles, was maintained. Folders without sub-titles usually contain information regarding contracts, copies of the contracts themselves, and other item regarding aspects of production. They are fairly synonymous with folders sub-titled "production." Reviews, press releases, advertisements, photographs, other legal correspondences, and personal correspondences are included in separate folders and marked accordingly. The collection also includes two posters: a poster of the Black Lizard logo advertising the press itself and a poster with the cover art from You Only Live Twice. The collection does not contain information regarding the broader business practices and situation (financial records, advertising practices, employee information, etc.) of The Creative Arts Book Company or The Black Lizard Press. It is confined to information regarding the books themselves. Access Terms Alter, Robert Edmund. Brown, Frederic. Cain, James M. Cain, Paul. Carco, Francis. Causey, James O. Ellis, Don. Fischer, Steve. Gifford, Barry. Goodis, David. Gorman, Ed. Heath, W.L. Knight, Eric. Lutz, John. Malzberg, Barry. Marlowe, Dan. Nelson, Kent. Nichols, Victoria. Nielsen, Helen. Nisbet, Jim. Pronzini, Bill. Rabe, Peter. Simon, Roger L. Sinclair, Murray. Sorocco, Sin. Stein, Gertrude. Thompson, Jim. Guide to the Black Lizard Press Special Collections M0932 3 Archive, 1977-1994 Thompson, Susan. White, Lionel. Whittington, Harry. Willeford, Charles. Williams, Charles. American literature--20th century. Detective and mystery stories. Printing--United States. Box 1, Folder 1 After Dark, My Sweet, Jim Thompson 1985-1986 Box 1, Folder 2 Agreement to Kill, Peter Rabe 1987 Box 1, Folder 3 Alcoholics, Jim Thompson 1985 Box 1, Folder 4 The Baby Doll Murders, James O. Causey 1987-1988 Box 1, Folder 5 Black Friday, David Goodis 1986 Box 1, Folder 6 The Black Mass of Brother Springer, Charles Willeford 1986-1987 Box 1, Folder 7 Black Lizard Anthology, Ed Gorman, ed. Production 1986-1989 Box 1, Folder 8 Black Lizard Anthology, Ed Gorman, ed. Reviews/Press Releases 1987-1989 Box 1, Folder 9 Second Black Lizard Anthology, Ed Gorman, ed. Reviews 1988-1989 Box 1, Folder 10 Blood Dance, Lansdale 1986 Box 1, Folder 11 Blood on the Dining Room Floor, Gertrude Stein 1981 Box 1, Folder 12 Blood on the Dining Room Floor, Gertrude Stein; Press Releases 1982 Box 1, Folder 13 Blood on the Dining Room Floor, Gertrude Stein; Reviews, Etc. 1982-1983 Box 1, Folder 14 Blood on the Dining Room Floor; Gertrude Stein; Reviews, Etc. 1983 Box 1, Folder 15 Blood on the Dining Room Floor, Gertrude Stein; Correspondence 1983-1985 Box 1, Folder 16 Blood on the Dining Room Floor, Gertrude Stein; Correspondence On Copyright 1983 Box 1, Folder 17 The Box, Peter Rabe 1987 Box 1, Folder 18 Burglar, David Goodis 1987-1990 Box 1, Folder 19 Burnt Orange Heresy, Charles Willeford 1986 Box 1, Folder 20 Burnt Orange Heresy, Charles Willeford 1986 Box 1, Folder 21 Burnt Orange Heresy, Charles Willeford; Reviews and Press Release 1987 Box 1, Folder 22 Burnt Orange Heresy, Charles Willeford; Production 1987 Box 1, Folder 23 Carny Kill, Robert Edmund Alter 1985 Box 1, Folder 24 Cassidy's Girl, David Goodis 1986 Box 1, Folder 25 Cassidy's Girl, David Goodis; Reviews 1988 Box 1, Folder 26 Coffin & Co., Roger L. Simon 1986 Box 1, Folder 27 Coffin & Co., Roger L. Simon; Production None Box 1, Folder 28 Coffin & Co., Roger L. Simon; Reviews 1985-1988 Box 1, Folder 29 Coffin & Co.; Roger L. Simon; Letters 1985-1987 Box 1, Folder 30 Cockfighter, Charles Willeford 1986 Box 1, Folder 31 Cockfighter, Charles Willeford 1986 Box 1, Folder 32 Cockfigher, Charles Willeford; Reviews and Press Release 1988 Box 1, Folder 33 Cockfighter, Charles Willeford; Production 1987 Box 1, Folder 34 The Criminal, Jim Thompson 1985 Box 1, Folder 35 The Criminal, Jim Thompson; Reviews 1987 Box 1, Folder 36 Cropper's Cabin, Jim Thompson 1986 Box 1, Folder 37 Cropper's Cabin, Jim Thompson; Reviews 1987-1988 Box 1, Folder 38 The Damned Don't Die, Jim Nisbet 1985 Box 1, Folder 39 The Damned Don't Die, Jim Nisbet; Reviews 1986 Box 1, Folder 40 Dead Meet, Roger L. Simon 1987 Box 1, Folder 41 Dead Meet, Roger L. Simon; Reviews 1989 Box 2, Folder 1 Death Puppet, Jim Nisbet 1988 Box 2, Folder 2 Death Puppet, Jim Nisbet 1989 Box 2, Folder 3 Death Puppet, Jim Nisbet; Reviews 1989 Box 2, Folder 4 Detour, Helen Nielsen 1986-1987 Guide to the Black Lizard Press Special Collections M0932 4 Archive, 1977-1994 Container List Box 2, Folder 5 Detour, Helen Nielsen; Reviews 1988 Box 2, Folder 6 Detour, Helen Nielsen; Production 1988 Box 2, Folder 7 The Devil Wears Wings, Harry Whittington 1986 Box 2, Folder 8 Doctor Syntax, Michael Petracca 1989 Box 2, Folder 9 Doctor Syntax, Michael Petracca; Reviews 1989 Box 2, Folder 10 Dig My Grave Deep, Peter Rabe 1987 Box 2, Folder 11 The Far Cry, Frederic Brown 1986-1987 Box 2, Folder 12 The Far Cry, Frederic Brown; Reviews 1988 Box 2, Folder 13 Fast One, Paul Cain; Production: Seven Slayers, Paul Cain; Production 1988 Box 2, Folder 14 Fast One, Paul Cain; Reviews 1988 Box 2, Folder 15 Fires that Destroy, Harry Whittington 1986 Box 2, Folder 16 Fires that Destroy, Harry Whittington; Production 1988 Box 2, Folder 17 Forgive Me, Killer, Harry Whittington 1986 Box 2, Folder 18 Forgive Me, Killer, Harry Whittington; Reviews and Press Release 1987 Box 2, Folder 19 Forgive Me, Killer, Harry Whittington; Production 1987 Box 2, Folder 20 Frenzy, James O.