Various (Hollo, Anselm; Kupferberg, Tuli et al.)

Cuddon's Cosmopolitan Review No. 11 (July 1967)

London, England: Cuddon's Cosmopolitan Review, 1967. First Printing. Stapled Wrappers. A DADA-themed issue (No. 11: June-July 1967) of the anarchist literary review published in London from 1965-1967. The title is a reference to Ambrose Cuddon, per the following excerpt by Cuddon’s group member, Albert Meltzer: “In 1965 a group of us had got together and started publishing occasionally a review [called] Cuddon’s Cosmopolitan Review. The reference was to Ambrose Cuddon, whose review may have been the first consciously anarchist one to appear in English, and who was possibly the first in the English speaking world to be an anarchist in the modern sense. He was certainly a connection between the Luddite and Chartist movements on the one hand, and the newer non-Parliamentary Socialist groupings on the other. Our historical judgment was criticized [sic] as based only on anecdotal history from veterans but knowing how conventional history is concocted, I doubt if it suffered from that. We carried on Cuddon’s for a year or so, off and on, Ted Kavanagh editing, and it became a focus for people interested in the international struggle even though it refrained from mentioning it. We never quite decided whether it was to be entirely satirical, political or humorous, but the mixture made for interest and gathered a nucleus which later became an important pivot of active anarchism. One decision, though, not to publish more than was sold, so as to encourage people to read it rather than file it, and not to have back copies for reference, meant once it was gone it sank out of sight which was a pity. Some generations on, it would be good to reprint some of the witty pieces. Cuddon’s was one of the first of the satirical magazines later in vogue, not that we ever were, but nothing I was ever associated with ever got into the marketplace, even when I wanted to be” (from the “Cuddon’s Cosmopolitan Review” entry on libcom.org). This issue features work by the great Fug and “the world’s oldest Hippie” (per the great Allen Ginsberg [1926-1997]), Tuli Kupferberg (1923-2010); Anselm Hollo (1934-2013); and a long piece on “Dada in Zurich” by Jim Duke that, for Your Devoted VP-of-Operations here at Third Mind Books, is the highlight of the issue. A high-quality installment of the short-lived anarchist review. From the collection of Richard Cupidi (b. 1945), our esteemed mate in the UK who managed the fabled Unicorn Bookshop in Brighton, England with Bill Butler (1934-1977, the famed American-expatriate bookseller & publisher). From the late 1960s through the early 1970s, Unicorn proffered & published many outstanding productions by WSB, J.G. Ballard et al., some of which have become the scarcest, all-but-unobtainable Beat-&-Beyond collectibles (see for example our item no.s 8217, 8366). After prevailing against censorious harassment efforts, Unicorn closed & Butler died in short order. Cupidi went on to found the Public House Bookshop in Brighton, which had a long & successful run but is also now closed, & he still resides there. We have been honored to obtain what Cupidi has termed "The Last Hurrah," all the remaining treasures of Unicorn & Public House, some of which have become the stuff of myth. Literary journal in stapled wrappers: the First-&-likely-only Printing of this DADA-themed issue of Cuddon’s. In Very Good-Near Fine condition with moderate-to-enunciated shelf-wear, rubbing, some light bumping, a few instances of slightly more pronounced bump-creasing to fine-edges & corners of front, back covers & spine-edge; general horizontal, as well as vertical use-&-storage -based creasing to/at/along fine-edges of same; mild-to-enunciated age-toning, foxing, fading, & artifacts similar in style or gradation to these present variously throughout; a few pages have sprung loose from their binding at the front of the issue but the issue is complete; otherwise, pristine. Very Good-Near Fine. [Item #8828]

Price: $80.00