Biography

“early life”

Henry Charles Bukowski (Originally Heinrich Karl Bukowski) was born on August 16, 1920 in Andernach, Germany.

His father, Heinrich Bukowski, was an American serviceman who had an affair with his German friend’s sister, Katherina.

In 1923, the family immigrated to Baltimore, Maryland. Shortly after that, they settled in South Central Los Angeles.

In his youth, Bukowski was considered to be socially withdrawn and had an highly abusive relationship with his father.

He was introduced to alcohol at an early age by his friend “Eli Lacross”, which sparked his life long love of drinking.

After high school, He attended Los Angeles City College for two years, before quitting to leave for New York to start his writing career. However because World War II had just begun, he was accused of avoiding draft. After being prisoned for 16 days, he was given an 4-F, which means he was not qualified for service in regards to physical, mental and/or moral standards.

During this time, Bukowski published his first short story Aftermath of a Lengthy Rejection Slip at the age of twenty-four. Two years later he publishes another short story 20 Tanks From Kasseldown and publishes his first poetry with Matrix Group Publishing Inc.

“the ten-year drunk”

After failing to make a break in the literary world, Bukowski enters a period which he called a “ten-year drunk”, where he would apply for menial jobs (only to get fired after a few weeks or days) and drink to his heart’s content. In his “autobiography” Factotum Bukowski records a total of 24 lost jobs during the first half of this ten-year period.

In 1947, Bukowski meets Jane Cooney Baker (Known as Jan in Factotum), who was considered to be his first serious romantic attachment. Despite being ten years older than him, they lived together on and off until 1955. Records show that they were married, however Bukowski never admitted this.

After his last job in a pickle factory, he worked for the US Postal Service as a letter carrier for three years.

“the first writing period”

In 1955 Bukowski was treated at LA County Hospital for an interal hemorrhage which almost took his life. After his hospitalization, Bukowski began to write more poetry.

Bukowski marries the poet Barbara Frye in 1957, but divorces her a year later and resumes his position at the post office. In December, he reconnects with Jane and moved in with her.

Despite becoming published in small literary magazines, Bukowski attempts suicide in 1961.

In 1962 Bukowski was traumatized by the death of Jane, which he transformed his devastation into many works or poetry and stories.

A year later he meets Frances Smith, whom he has his first child with, Marina Louise Bukowski.

During this time, Bukowski works as a letter-filling clerk for the US Postal Service. He writes poetry on the side and starts publishing his poetry in magazines and a few books.

In 1967, Bukowski began writing a column called Notes of a dirty old man for Los Angeles’ Open City, an underground newspaper. It is at this time where John Martin of Black Sparrow Press took interest in Bukowski and offered him the opportunity to write full-time.

Bukowski quits the post office after ten years and publishes his first novel, Post Office about his time in the US Postal Service.

“years later”

After his agreements with Black Sparrow Press, Bukowski’s poetry and books become widely known, and are even translated into several languages.

During this time, Bukowski performs readings in various parts of Los Angeles county and the US, eventually meeting his future wife Linda Lee Beighle at a reading in Canada. (However, despite meeting in 1976, the do not get married until 1985).

In 1979, Bukowski teams up with Barbet Schroeder and write a screenplay titles The Rats of Thirst, which eventually is released in 1987 titled Barfly.

Many of Bukowski’s works were eventually adapted into films, such as the Belgian film Crazy Love, Factotum(2005) as well as two films about him — Bukowski, a 1973 documentary film about a San Francisco poetry reading, and Bukowski: Born Into This, a 2003 film documenting Bukowski’s life.

In 1989, Bukowski undergoes treatment for Tuberculosis. Later in 1993, Bukowski spends 64 days in the hospital for chemotherapy treatment for Leukemia. During this time, Bukowski is forced to quit drinking.

On March 9^th 1994, Bukowski dies battling Leukemia and is buried at Green Hills Memorial Park.

Despite his death, his poetry continues to be published, possibly all the poetry which was not published beforehand.

Novels
Post Office (1971)
Factotum (1975)
Women (1978)
Ham on Rye (1982)
Hollywood (1989)
Pulp (1994)

Poetry collections

Flower, Fist, and Bestial Wail (1960)
Poems and Drawings (1962)
Longshot Poems for Broke Players (1962)
Run with the Hunted (1962)
It Catches My Heart in Its Hands (1963)
Crucifix in a Deathhand (1965)
Cold Dogs in the Courtyard (1965)
The Genius of the Crowd (1966)
2 by Bukowski (1967)
The Curtains Are Waving (1967)
At Terror Street and Agony Way (1968)
Poems Written Before Jumping Out of an 8 story Window (1968)
A Bukowski Sampler (1969)
The Days Run Away Like Wild Horses Over the Hills (1969)
Fire Station (1970)
Mockingbird Wish Me Luck (1972)
Me and Your Sometimes Love Poems (1972)
While the Music Played (1973)
Burning in Water, Drowning in Flame (1974)
Africa, Paris, Greece (1975)
Scarlet (1976)
Maybe Tomorrow (1977)
Legs, Hips and Behind (1978)
Love Is a Dog from Hell (1977)
Play the Piano Drunk Like a Percussion Instrument Until the Fingers Begin to Bleed a Bit (1979)
Dangling in the Tournefortia (1982)
War All the Time (book)|War All the Time (1984)
Horses Don't Bet on People & Neither Do I (1984)
You Get So Alone at Times That It Just Makes Sense (1986)
The Roominghouse Madrigals (1988)
Beauti-ful & Other Long Poems (1988)
Septuagenarian Stew: Stories & Poems (1990)
People Poems (1991)
The Last Night of the Earth Poems (1992)
Betting on the Muse: Poems and Stories (1996)
Bone Palace Ballet (book)|Bone Palace Ballet (1998)
What Matters Most Is How Well You Walk Through the Fire. (1999)
All Night (2000)
The Night Torn Mad with Footsteps (2001)
Sifting Through the Madness for the Word, the Line, the Way (2003)
As Buddha smiles (2003)
The Flash of the Lightning Behind the Mountain (2004)
Slouching Toward Nirvana (2005)
Come on In! (2006)
The People Look Like Flowers at Last (2007)
The Pleasures of the Damned (2007)
The Continual Condition (2009)
Short story chapbooks and collections
Confessions of a Man Insane Enough to Live with Beasts (1965)
All the Assholes in the World and Mine (1966)
Notes of a Dirty Old Man (1969)
Erections, Ejaculations, Exhibitions, and General Tales of Ordinary Madness (1972)
South of No North (1973)
Hot Water Music (1983)
Tales of Ordinary Madness (1983)
The Most Beautiful Woman in Town (1983)
Portions from a Wine-stained Notebook: Short Stories and Essays (2008) Absence of the Hero (2010)
More Notes of a Dirty Old Man (2011)