Various (Stettner, Irving (Editor); Cossery, Albert; Kirsch, Robert R.; Levy, Howard S.; Resnick, Joseph; Raned, Everett; Trantino, Tommy et al.)

Stroker No. 59 (1997)

Shavertown, PA: Stroker Magazine, 1997. First Edition. Stapled Wrappers. “I take a bit of nothing / That has no name, no history / And claim it as my own– / A dirty brown stone, odd-shaped / That in my hand has the weight of beauty, / Not that it’s beautiful / But that I feel / A roundness of perfection / Even where it’s flawed; / The pock-mark of quartz / Stuck in it like a navel glowers / Mildly to assure me of its place / As something never to be dislodged– / And for all that , it’s a bit of nothing / Warmed by my hand with a beginning heat, / Telling me that for all its days / No one ever thought it a treasure.”--Joseph Resnick, “A Nothing,” pg. 36. Stroker was a magazine of literature and arts that ran from 1974 to 1994. It was published from New York – and later from Nagano, Japan – by American artist and author Irving Stettner (1922-2004). Stettner, a friend of Henry Miller’s (1891-1980), lived many years as an ex-pat in France, Morocco, Japan and other countries. With little money, he cultivated a devoted following of readers who were also “Stroker” contributors -- including Henry Miller in the last two years of his life, as well as Paul Bowles (1910-1999), Mohammed Mrabet (b. 1936) and Charles Bukowski (1920-1994), among others. One lesser-known writer from Detroit named Ron Papandrea (b. 1948) became one of Stettner's closest allies, his "Western scout," acting as a collector, archivist, distributor and publisher of Stettner's works. Stettner’s vision for Stroker was largely to present an amalgamation of art, literary essays, correspondences, poetry, and a seemingly Walt Whitman (1819-1892)-esque enthusiasm for life and poetry. The topic of today’s curation, Stroker 59, was published in 1997. This issue features: “The Postman Gets His Own Back,” a section from the book Men God Forgot (1963) by Albert Cossery (1913-2008); “New York Kids,” a photograph by Mihoko Kato; the book review from 1964 titled “Miller Waxes Eloquent,” by Robert R. Kirsch (1922-1980); “Anis Nin Without the Sex Words: Japan’s Poetess Akazome-Emon (960s-1040s), a Few Comments and Poetry Examples” by Howard S. Levy who also translated Akazome-Emon’s poetry from the original Japanese; “A Nothing,” and “Shapes,” two poems by Joseph Resnick; “An Open Letter to Stroker!,” and ink drawings by Tommy Trantino (b. 1938); and “Oh, Sing, or Bust All My Springs!,” and an ink drawing by Irving Stettner, among many other great contributions! We have found and retained between front cover and contents page a pamphlet Stroker Press: Spring 1997 Catalog featuring some of the highlights of that year. Stapled wrappers. First & presumably only printing. In very fine condition with only minor wear to fine edges, and slight smudging to front and back covers. Very Fine. [Item #8735]

Price: $50.00