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1953

[To Caresse Crosby]

August 7, 1953

Saw in book review (never really read one, but) your name, “Dail Press.”

You printed me sometime back in Portfolio, one of the earliest (1946 or so?). Well, one time came into town off long drunk, forced to live with parents during feeble clime. Thing is, parents read story (“20 Tanks from Kasseldown”) and burnt whole damn Portfolio. Now, no longer have copy. Only piece missing from my few published works. If you have an extra copy????? (and I don’t see why in the hell you should have) it would do me a lot of good if you would ship it to me.

I don’t write so much now, I’m getting on to 33, pot-belly and creeping dementia. Sold my typewriter to go on a drunk 6 or 7 years ago and haven’t gotten enough non-alcoholic $ to buy another. Now print my occasionals out by hand and point them up with drawings (like any other madman). Sometimes I just throw the stories away and hang the drawings up in the bathroom (sometimes on the roller).

Hope you have “20 Tanks.” Would appreci.

[To Judson Crews]

Late 1953

You send out the only cheerful rejections in America. It’s nice to have the news behind those delicious photos! You are a pretty good guy, I’d rather imagine.

I was impressed with your last edition of Naked Ear. It smacked of aliveness and artistry much more than, say, the latest edition of The Kenyon Review. That comes of printing what you want to print instead of printing what is correct. Keep it up.

Met Janet Knauff yesterday. She has met you. Took her to the races.

[To Judson Crews]

November 4, 1953

I’ll be honest with you. You might as well keep those poems as long as you want to because when you do send them back I’ll just throw them away.

Except for the new ones on top, these poems have been rejected by Poetry magazine and a new outfit, Embryo. Favorable remarks, etc., but they do not think my stuff is poetry. I know what they mean. The idea is there but I can’t break thro the skin. I can’t work the dials. I’m not interested in poetry. I don’t know what interests me. Non-dullness, I suppose. Proper poetry is dead poetry even if it looks good.

Keep these things as long as you like. You’re the only one who has shown an interest. If I do any more, I’ll send them out to you.