Ginsberg, Allen

T.V. Baby Poems

New York, NY; London, England: Grossman Publishers Inc./ Cape Golliard, 1968. First Limited Softcover Edition. Softcover. "Switch on lights yellow as the sun/ in the bedroom.../ the gaudy poet dead Frank O'Hara's bones/ under grass/ An emptiness at 8PM in the Cedar Bar/ Throngs of drunken/ guys talking about paint/ & lofts, and Pennsylvania youth./ Klein attacked by his heart & chattering Frank/ stopped forever-" ("City Midnight Junk Strains (for Frank O'Hara)," first lines, unpaginated) A brilliant, wildly underrated collection from the Founding Father of the Beat Generation-&-Beyond, Allen Ginsberg (1926-1997). The above-quoted poem in tribute to Ginsberg's friend & contemporary New York School poet Frank O'Hara (1926-1966) is dated July 29, 1966- just days after O'Hara's untimely, accidental death on July 25 of that year. This collection is most famous for its title poem, the full name of which is "Television Was a Baby Crawling Toward that Death Chamber." Interestingly, the first draft of the poem was written in New York City in February of 1961- but the first live reading of the work took place on March 15, 1958 at California State University, Sacramento. Large-format softcover in sewn binding, a joint USA/UK publication of Grossman Publishers Inc. in NYC & Cape Golliard Press in London. One of 1750 softcover copies from a total edition of 2500 per colophon. Dowden, Section A: Addenda, pg. 26; Morgan, A10(a)5, pg. 18. A beautiful production; a classic Ginsberg collectible in one of its rarest, increasingly scarce original forms. See also item No. 1810. In relatively exceptional very fine condition with only mild rubbing, faint scratching to front, back covers & spine; a touch of wear & a few tiny bumps, creases at edges & corners of same; light rubbing, browning to edges of text block. Interior very fine with only light browning mostly to blank margins/edges of page leaves; tiny bumps at mostly upper corners of same. Very Fine. [Item #5444]

Price: $50.00