Charles Bukowski

@Poets, Career and Childhood ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ Charles Bukowski was a German-born American novelist, short story writer and poet School Dropouts American German Writers Poets Novelists Short Story Writers Leo Celebrities 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

Personal Details

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 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 Los Angeles City College Los Angeles High School Birth Place Andernach Born Country Germany Height 183cm Gender Male Father Heinrich Bukowski Mother Katharina Bukowski Sun Sign Leo Born in Andernach Famous as Poet Died at Age 73

Andernach

Charles Bukowski born at Unsplash Birth Place

In 1955, Bukowski married Barbara Frye, a small-town Texas poet. The marriage ended in a divorce in 1958. Unsplash Personal 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. Unsplash Childhood & Early Life

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. Unsplash Childhood & Early Life

Young Bukowski was introduced to alcohol at an early age by his loyal friend William ‘Baldy’ Mullinax, which later transformed into chronic alcoholism. Unsplash Childhood & Early Life

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. Unsplash Childhood & Early Life

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. Unsplash Career

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. Unsplash Career

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. Unsplash Career

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. Unsplash Career

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. Unsplash Career

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. Unsplash Major Works

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	Los Angeles City College Los Angeles High School
Birth Place	Andernach
Born Country	Germany
Height	183cm
Gender	Male
Father	Heinrich Bukowski
Mother	Katharina Bukowski
Sun Sign	Leo
Born in	Andernach
Famous as	Poet
Died at Age	73

Charles Bukowski

German

Aug 16, 1920

Biography

Personal Details

Andernach