McNally, Dennis; Montgomery, John; Nicosia, Gerald et al. (Kerouac, Jack)

Desolate Angel: Jack Kerouac, the Beat Generation, and America with: The Kerouac We Knew

ISBN: 0394500113;0918704
New York, NY; Kentfield, CA: Random House, Inc., 1979. First Editions. Hardcover; Softcover. A collectible bundle of two outstanding biographical-critical works about Jack Kerouac, the great American author & a Founding Father of the Beat Generation: (1) Desolate Angel: Jack Kerouac, the Beat Generation and America. Published in 1979, an acclaimed biography by Dennis McNally, the prolific author, historian & music publicist. Among the earliest studies as the Beats were beginning to be acknowledged & comprehended by the following generation, this pioneering work offers a sweeping view of Kerouac, his cohorts & their milieu: "From the drama of Jack Kerouac's own troubled life evolved a controversial new American anti-hero who came alive in On the Road, The Dharma Bums, The Subterraneans and a score of his other books. The prototype of the New Romantic and the New Consciousness, Kerouac prefigured the turned-on, dropped-out, ecstatic wandering hero of the 1960s. Nearly a quarter of a century has passed since the first public furor over Kerouac and his friends, Allen Ginsberg, Neal Cassady and William Burroughs, but they are now recognized as the catalysts for an enormous postwar shift in American literature and culture." (from front flap). With two sections of photographs. Hardcover in unclipped dust jacket, first edition as stated on copyright page, possible second printing as indicated by number sequence ending in "2," but we have seen several references to this nevertheless being a first printing per custom of publisher at that time. (2) The Kerouac We Knew. Published in 1982, this work is subtitled "Unposed portraits; action shots/ compiled by John Montgomery/ honoring the Kerouac Conference/ at Naropa Institute." The now-legendary conference referred to was held at the Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics- Naropa University in Boulder, Colorado to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the publication of On the Road in 1957. Montgomery (1919-1992) was a long-time friend of Kerouac who appears (under different names as usual) in several of his works; & is mentioned by McNally several times in (1) above. Along with Montgomery in his introduction, others who knew him intimately but are not well-known themselves give their accounts of "The Kerouac (they) Knew." Also a short article by Gerald Nicosia, the great critical biographer of Kerouac, about Kerouac's residency in the village of Northport, Long Island, NY during the late 1950s- early 1960s. With front cover, frontispiece & several interior photographs of or related to Kerouac which are as intimate & candid as the memoirs of his friends that they accompany. As Montgomery writes on back cover: "The people who have written this memorable little book have played sandlot ball with him, written news reports, delivered his newspaper, interpreted for him, played cards, climbed a mountain and participated in a barbecue. This book does what biography cannot: it draws the map, blots, dented beer cans, tears and all. I am grateful that each one is so eloquent. Jack would have given each one a six-pack for sure." Trade-format softcover in sewn binding, one of a first edition of 1000 copies of which 100 were clothbound per copyright page. Interestingly, publisher's printed address is hand-crossed-out & a different address is stamped below it. Two near-contemporaneous, relatively early & most informative studies of Kerouac, his life & work, in their now-rare original forms in one offering. (1) Book in fine condition with very light rubbing & fading to front, back black paper cover boards; mild wear & a few tiny bumps to edges & corners of same & cloth spine; one tiny, non-puncturing dimple at upper back cover board; slight rubbing, sparse spotting & small stamp of publisher at upper edge of text block; less rubbing at side & lower edges of same. Interior fine with remnant & residue of former seller's small price sticker at upper right area of blank front paste-down; tiny bumps at upper corners of a few page leaves. Dust jacket near-fine with mild rubbing & scratching to front, back covers, spine & flaps; mild wear & some creases, tiny chips & very short, mostly closed tears to edges & corners of same; mild browning esp. at/ near edges of blank inner jacket. (2) Very fine with only the slightest rubbinbg to front, back covers & spine; a few tiny bumps at edges & corners of same; very light rubbing & sparse spotting to lower edge of text block. Interior very fine, substantially mint. An extra handling fee will be added for shipping due to the weight of this item. Fine; Very Fine / Near Fine. [Item #4075]

Price: $75.00