Reports from the Bibliographic Bunker

Jed Birmingham on William S. Burroughs Collecting

This list is by no means comprehensive, although I attempted to make it as complete as possible. I combed through Maynard & Miles and Eric Shoaf’s Checklist marking down all the men’s magazines with William Burroughs fiction, essays, or interviews. I took adult men’s magazines to be glossy magazines with a mixture of nude pictorials, fiction, and lifestyle articles. Basically, they are skin or porno mags; be it girlie or gay. (See Wikipedia.)

The key element to this list is the glossy Time / Life magazine format mixed with the nude photos. As a result, the Mayfair Academy Rip-off of 1973 did not make the list although this publication would be a nice addition to a Beat / men’s magazine collection and is a simple way to get a hold of the many Mayfair articles in one place. I did not include Olympia Magazine or the later issues of Evergreen Review (especially the issues of the late 1960s) which flirt with the men’s magazine format but remain literary magazines at heart. I also listed gay magazines (a men’s magazine from a different bent if you will), most notably Playgirl, to show the changing ways Burroughs’ image and works could be utilized. In some cases, I just was not sure if the magazine was in fact a glossy men’s magazine at all. I listed Suck, National Screw, and Blueboy, for example. National Screw started as a newspaper tabloid format like an underground sex paper, but morphed into a glossy after a couple of issues. I know little about Suck and Blueboy but they clearly are sex-oriented magazines and they tell an interesting story about Burroughs so I included them. Any additions to this list would be greatly appreciated as well as a brief write up describing its contents both Burroughs related and otherwise.

Excerpt from Junkie, Man’s Wildcat Adventures Volume 1, No. 1, pp 23-25, 47, 55-72. New York: June 1959 (35 cents).

“The Word,” Swank 8, no. 3: 51-55. New York: July 1961 (50 cents).

“Prophet or Pornographer,” Jaguar, New York: January 1966. (Interview with Jaguar Staff)

“Exterminator!” King, pp 58-60. London: July 1966 (7s 6d).

“Interview,” Mayfair 2, No. 10 pp. 5. London: October 1967 (5s). Opening Interview to Burroughs Academy Series.

“The Future of Sex and Drugs,” Mayfair 2, No. 10, pp 11-15. London: October 1967 (5 s) (The Burroughs Academy Bulletin 1).

“The Engram Theory,” Mayfair 2, No. 11, pp 28-31. London: November 1967 (5 s) (The Burroughs Academy Bulletin 2).

“Where’s Our Killer Whistle?” Mayfair 2, No. 12, pp 54-56. London: December 1967 (5 s) (The Burroughs Academy Bulletin 3).

“Scientology Revisted,” Mayfair 3, No. 1, pp 29-31. London: January 1968 (5 s) (The Burroughs Academy Bulletin 4).

“The Last Broadcast,” Mayfair 3, No. 2, pp 28-29. London: February 1968 (5 s) (The Burroughs Academy Bulletin 5).

“By Far The Most Efficient and Precise Language We Possess is the Common Cold,” Mayfair 3, No. 3, 54-56. London: March 1968 (5 s) (The Burroughs Academy Bulletin 6).

“The Fire Breaks Out,” Mayfair 3, No. 4, pp 32-34. London: April 1968 (5 s) (The Burroughs Academy Bulletin 7).

“In That Year of 1969, Astonished Motorists Were Hustled at Random into the Death Cells for Parking Offenses,” Mayfair 3, No. 5, pp 54-55. London: May 1968 (5 s) (The Burroughs Academy Bulletin 8).

“Switch On and Be Your Own Hero,” Mayfair 3, No. 6, 52-54. London: June 1968 (5 s) (The Burroughs Academy Bulletin 9).

“The Academy’s Ultimate Offer — Immunity to Death,” Mayfair 3, No. 7, 52-54. London: July 1968 (5 s) (The Burroughs Academy Bulletin 10).

“Do You Remember Tomorrow?” Mayfair 3, No. 8, pp. 28-29. London: August 1968 (5 s) (The Burroughs Academy Bulletin 11).

“Oh God, Get Me Out of This!” Mayfair 3, No. 9, pp. 32-34. London: September 1968 (5 s) (The Burroughs Academy Bulletin 12).

“Wind Die You Die We Die,” Mayfair 3, No. 10, pp 52-53, 62. London: October 1968 (5 s) (The Burroughs Academy Bulletin 13).

“O Say Can You See If Bently’s Who He Appears to Be?” Cavalier 18, No. 12, pp 43, 57. New York: October 1968 (60 cents).

“Man, You Voted for a Goddam Ape,” Mayfair 3, No. 12, pp 52-54. London: December 1968 (5 s) (The Burroughs Academy Bulletin 14).

“Rally Around the Secrets, Boys,” Mayfair 4, No. 1, pp 52-54. London: January 1969 (5 s) (The Burroughs Academy Bulletin 15).

“Infiltration,” Mayfair 4, No. 2, pp 52-53. London: February 1969 (5 s) (The Burroughs Academy Bulletin 16).

“The Brain Grinders,” Mayfair 4, No. 4, pp 32-34. London: April 1969 (5 s) (The Burroughs Academy Bulletin 17).

“I’m Scared, I’m Scared, I’m Not,” Mayfair 4, No. 5, pp 52-54. London: May 1969 (5 s) (The Burroughs Academy Bulletin 18).

“The Final Crusade of the Veteran Warriors,” Mayfair 4, No. 6, pp 52-54, 56, 58. London: June 1969 (5 s) (The Burroughs Academy Bulletin 19).

“The Voracious Aliens,” Mayfair 4, No. 8, 32-34. London: August 1969 (5 s) (The Burroughs Academy Bulletin 20).

“Days of Great Luxury Are Coming Back,” Mayfair 4, No. 9, 54-56. London: September 1969 (6 s) (The Burroughs Academy Bulletin 21).

“Discussion Playboy Panel: The Drug Revolution,” Playboy Magazine 17, No. 2, pp 53-74, 200-201. Chicago: February 1970 ($1.00).

“The Transplant Apocalypse,” Mayfair 5, No. 2, pp. 32-33. London: February 1970 (6 s).

“Without Your Name, Who Are You?” Mayfair 5, No. 3, pp. 52-54. London: March 1970 (6 s).

“And a Final Word From William Burroughs,” Mayfair 5, No. 6, pp. 36. London: June 1970 (6 s).

“D.E. My Super Efficiency System,” Mayfair 5, No. 7, pp. 52-54. London: July 1970 (6 s).

“Twilights Last Gleamings,” Mayfair 5, No. 12, pp 61-62. London: December 1970 (8s 6d).

“William Burroughs: Mind Engineer,” Penthouse 6, No. 6, pp 37-40, 60. London: June 1971 (30p). (Interview with Graham Masterson and Andrew Rossabi).

“The Penny Arcade Peep Show / The Wild Boys Smile,” Suck 5, pp 10, 15. Amsterdam: Summer 1971.

“Blue Movie/Who Are These Boys?” Suck 6, pp 15-16. Amsterdam: 1971.

“William Burroughs Takes a Look at Sex Films,” Suck 6, p 15. Amsterdam: 1971.

“William Burroughs ‘I’ve Noticed a Regrettable Vagueness in Accounts of Hallucinogenic Drugs. In Time I Think These Just Lead to a Sort of Dreamland State,” Penthouse 3, No. 7, pp 44,46, 52. New York: March 1972. (reprint of June 1971 Interview).

“Face to Face with the Goat God,” Oui 2, No. 8, pp 68, 92, 94. Chicago: August 1973.

“First Meetings: One Dozen Memories from the Files of William Burroughs,” National Screw, April 1977. Taken from discussions with Victor Bockris.

“Los Ninos Locos,” National Screw, Vol. 1, No. 7. June 1977. Part of Port of Saints.

“Day is Done,” National Screw, August 1977. First issue as a glossy magazine.

“My Life on Orgone Boxes,” Oui Magazine, October 1977.

“The Health Officer,” Club Magazine, October 1977.

“Women: A Biological Mistake?” Playgirl Magazine, March 1978.

“Dear Allen…Love Bill,” Blueboy, April 1978.

“Dinner with Andy and Bill,” Blueboy, October 1980. Interview with Warhol and Burroughs.