Charles Bukowski - Poets, Career and Childhood
Charles Bukowski's Personal Details
Charles Bukowski was a German-born American novelist, short story writer and poet
| Information | Detail |
|---|---|
| Birthday | August 16, 1920 |
| Died on | March 9, 1994 |
| Nationality | German, American |
| Famous | School Dropouts, Writers, Poets, Novelists, Short Story Writers |
| Nick names | Buk, Hank |
| Spouses | Barbara Bukowski, Linda Lee Beighle |
| Known as | Henry Charles Bukowski |
| Childrens | Marina Louise Bukowski |
| Universities |
|
| Birth Place | Andernach |
| Born Country | Germany |
| Height | 183 |
| Gender | Male |
| Father | Heinrich Bukowski |
| Mother | Katharina Bukowski |
| Sun Sign | Leo |
| Born in | Andernach |
| Famous as | Poet |
| Died at Age | 73 |
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Charles Bukowski's photo
Who is Charles Bukowski?
Charles Bukowski was a prolific novelist, short story writer and poet who gained a cult status for his work that brought out his experience, emotion and imagination on paper. Unlike other contemporaries of his time, Bukowski was a natural at what he wrote. Through his autobiographical works, he did not try to make himself look heroic and instead plainly addressed the urban lives of Americans, the act of writing, his alcohol addiction, his relationship with women and so on. In his lifetime, he wrote several poems, short stories and novels, eventually publishing over sixty books. For his outstanding contribution to the American literary field, he was given the title of ‘Laureate of American Lowlife’ by Time. Interestingly, though Bukowski enjoyed a successful literary career, at the start he failed to make an impression and instead succumbed to a period of drunkenness that lasted for a decade. Bukowski produced a plethora of works, all of which had Henry Chinaski, a fictional character that was loosely based on him. Bukowski had written such voluminous work in his lifetime that even a decade after his death, his original works were being published
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Childhood & Early Life
Charles Bukowski was born as Heinrich Karl Bukowski to Heinrich Henry Bukowski and Katharina on August 16, 1920, in Andernach, Germany. They eventually shifted to South Central Los Angeles.
His early memories of childhood were tragic, given the harsh and abusive treatment of his father, insulting comments by neighbourhood boys and the Great Depression. As such, he grew up to be shy and socially withdrawn.
Young Bukowski was introduced to alcohol at an early age by his loyal friend William ‘Baldy’ Mullinax, which later transformed into chronic alcoholism.
He completed his preliminary studies from Los Angeles High School and later enrolled at Los Angeles City College to study art, journalism, and literature. He quit college after two years and instead pursued a blue-collared job in New York.
Career
His tryst with writing started soon after he left college; his first ever publication being a short story titled ‘Aftermath of a Lengthy Rejection’. It was published in Story magazine in 1944.
In 1946, his second short story, ‘20 Tanks from Kasseldown’ was published by Black Sun Press. Not finding much success with his printed works, he decided to give up on his literary aspirations.
Disheartened with his early failure in writing, Bukowski embarked on a personal journey that lasted for ten-long years. The period was marked by excessive drinking and travelling. It was these ten years that formed the basis of his later semi-autobiographical writings.
In 1952, he took up the job of a fill-in letter carrier with the US Postal Service in Los Angeles. He resigned a little before three years.
Life gave Bukowski a second chance in 1955 after he recovered from a fatal bleeding ulcer that nearly killed him. After his brush with death, he once again commenced his literary career, writing poetry.
Like many of his contemporaries, his second innings of professional writing started for underground newspapers and magazines. Soon he gained a cult status for his poetry and short stories that were largely semi-autobiographical, revolving around the life of an indigent writer Henry Chinaski.
In 1959, he came up with his inaugural book of poetry, ‘Flower, Fist and Bestial Wail’. The book was widely appreciated for beautifully portraying the sense of desolation and abandonment through free verses. Same year, he came up with his best known essay, ‘Manifesto: A Call for Own Critics’.
In 1960, he resumed his duties as the letter filling clerk at the post office in Los Angeles, a position which he held for almost a decade. During this period, he penned much of the pains and agony of his early life into a series of poems and short stories.
In 1963, he came up with a poetry collection, ‘It Catches my Heart in Its Hands’. Written in the period between 1955 and 1963, each of the poem in the book was unrivalled in terms of content and beautifully merged together. Later in 1965, his other work, ‘Crucifix in a Deathbed’ was published.
He wrote the column ‘Notes of a Dirty Old Man’ for Los Angeles underground newspaper, Open City since 1967. Interestingly, despite the closure of Open City, the column survived, finding place in yet another underground newspaper, Los Angeles Free Press and NOLA Express in New Orleans.
In 1969, he joined hand with Neeli Cherkovski to launch their short-lived mimeographed literary magazine, ‘Laugh Literary and Man the Humping Guns’. They produced 3 issues over the next 2 years.
In 1969, he accepted the offer by Black Sparrow Press of becoming a full-time writer, which led him to quit his post office job for good. Just a month later, he finished his semi-autobiographical first novel, ‘Post Office’.
Starting with 1970s, Bukowski literary career blossomed as he came up with an extensive collection of works, both in poetry and fiction that were published in small independent presses.
Some of his works published in the decade of 1970s include novels such as ‘Factotum’ and ‘Women’, poetry, ‘Mockingbird Wish Me Luck’, ‘Burning in Water, Drowning in Flame’, ‘Scarlet’, ‘Maybe Tomorrow’ and so on. He also came up with his first collection of short stories titled ‘Erections, Ejaculations, Exhibitions and General Tales of Ordinary Madness’.
The decade of 1980s saw Bukowski venture forth into the genre of screenplay writing for the film ‘Barfly’, released in 1984. Semi-autobiographical, the film revolved around three days in the life of Bukowski’s when he was 24. Like his other works, the film had his alter-ego character of Henry Chinaski play the protagonist. It was his experience with making ‘Barfly’ that formed the basis of his next novel, ‘Hollywood’.
Shortly before his death, he completed his last novel, ‘Pulp’. Much like his last poetry collection published in his lifetime, ‘The Last Night of the Earth Poems’, ‘Pulp’ dealt with the theme of mortality wrapped in scathing humor.
Major Works
Bukowski literary aspirations took wings when he resumed his writing career in the late 1950s. Semi-autobiographical in content, his works centred on the character of Henry Chinaski that was loosely based on his life. Some of his best known works include, ‘Post Office’, ‘Women’, ‘Flower, Fist and Bestial Wall’, ‘Hollywood’, ‘Notes of a Dirty Old Man’ and so on.
Personal Life & Legacy
In 1955, Bukowski married Barbara Frye, a small-town Texas poet. The marriage ended in a divorce in 1958.
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Charles Bukowski biography timelines
- // 16th Aug 1920Charles Bukowski was born as Heinrich Karl Bukowski to Heinrich Henry Bukowski and Katharina on August 16, 1920, in Andernach, Germany. They eventually shifted to South Central Los Angeles.
- // 1944His tryst with writing started soon after he left college; his first ever publication being a short story titled ‘Aftermath of a Lengthy Rejection’. It was published in Story magazine in 1944.
- // 1946In 1946, his second short story, ‘20 Tanks from Kasseldown’ was published by Black Sun Press. Not finding much success with his printed works, he decided to give up on his literary aspirations.
- // 1952In 1952, he took up the job of a fill-in letter carrier with the US Postal Service in Los Angeles. He resigned a little before three years.
- // 1955Life gave Bukowski a second chance in 1955 after he recovered from a fatal bleeding ulcer that nearly killed him. After his brush with death, he once again commenced his literary career, writing poetry.
- // 1955 To 1965In 1963, he came up with a poetry collection, ‘It Catches my Heart in Its Hands’. Written in the period between 1955 and 1963, each of the poem in the book was unrivalled in terms of content and beautifully merged together. Later in 1965, his other work, ‘Crucifix in a Deathbed’ was published.
- // 1955 To 1958In 1955, Bukowski married Barbara Frye, a small-town Texas poet. The marriage ended in a divorce in 1958.
- // 1959In 1959, he came up with his inaugural book of poetry, ‘Flower, Fist and Bestial Wail’. The book was widely appreciated for beautifully portraying the sense of desolation and abandonment through free verses. Same year, he came up with his best known essay, ‘Manifesto: A Call for Own Critics’.
- // 1960In 1960, he resumed his duties as the letter filling clerk at the post office in Los Angeles, a position which he held for almost a decade. During this period, he penned much of the pains and agony of his early life into a series of poems and short stories.
- // 1967He wrote the column ‘Notes of a Dirty Old Man’ for Los Angeles underground newspaper, Open City since 1967. Interestingly, despite the closure of Open City, the column survived, finding place in yet another underground newspaper, Los Angeles Free Press and NOLA Express in New Orleans.
- // 1969In 1969, he joined hand with Neeli Cherkovski to launch their short-lived mimeographed literary magazine, ‘Laugh Literary and Man the Humping Guns’. They produced 3 issues over the next 2 years.
- // 1969In 1969, he accepted the offer by Black Sparrow Press of becoming a full-time writer, which led him to quit his post office job for good. Just a month later, he finished his semi-autobiographical first novel, ‘Post Office’.
- // 1984The decade of 1980s saw Bukowski venture forth into the genre of screenplay writing for the film ‘Barfly’, released in 1984. Semi-autobiographical, the film revolved around three days in the life of Bukowski’s when he was 24. Like his other works, the film had his alter-ego character of Henry Chinaski play the protagonist. It was his experience with making ‘Barfly’ that formed the basis of his next novel, ‘Hollywood’.
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Charles Bukowski's FAQ
What is Charles Bukowski birthday?
Charles Bukowski was born at 1920-08-16
When was Charles Bukowski died?
Charles Bukowski was died at 1994-03-09
Where was Charles Bukowski died?
Charles Bukowski was died in San Pedro
Which age was Charles Bukowski died?
Charles Bukowski was died at age 73
Where is Charles Bukowski's birth place?
Charles Bukowski was born in Andernach
What is Charles Bukowski nationalities?
Charles Bukowski's nationalities is German, American
What is Charles Bukowski nick names?
Charles Bukowski's nickNames is Buk, Hank
Who is Charles Bukowski spouses?
Charles Bukowski's spouses is Barbara Bukowski, Linda Lee Beighle
Who is Charles Bukowski childrens?
Charles Bukowski's childrens is Marina Louise Bukowski
What was Charles Bukowski universities?
Charles Bukowski studied at Los Angeles City College, Los Angeles High School
How tall is Charles Bukowski?
Charles Bukowski's height is 183
Who is Charles Bukowski's father?
Charles Bukowski's father is Heinrich Bukowski
Who is Charles Bukowski's mother?
Charles Bukowski's mother is Katharina Bukowski
What is Charles Bukowski's sun sign?
Charles Bukowski is Leo
How famous is Charles Bukowski?
Charles Bukowski is famouse as Poet