Bauman Rare Books Early 2020 Online Catalogue

L I T E R A T U R E

B A U M A N R A R E B O O K S • E A R L Y 2 0 2 0 O N L I N E

“More Whiskey And Broken Crockery And Maybe Broken Necks… (And Please Be Kind Enough To Burn This Page)” CRANE, Hart. Autograph letter signed. Santa Monica, California, December 19, 1927. Five original leaves of letterhead (each 7 by 11 inches) in manuscript on recto (1-4), and on recto and verso (5). $8200. View on Website Rare lengthy December 19, 1927 six- page autograph signed letter written by Hart Crane to his good friend and fellow writer, William Slater Brown, recounting Crane’s adventures in California as companion and literary guide to eccentric millionaire Herbert Wise, containing exceptional insights into his literary influences. Within six months of this letter Crane was headed back to New York and in 1930 published his magnum opus, The Bridge. This rare six-page autograph letter signed by Hart Crane—hailed by Robert Lowell as “the great poet of that generation”—was written in late December 1927 to close friend and fellow writer, William Slater Brown, and is dated less than three years before publication of his masterpiece, The Bridge . Crane’s wonderfully intimate letter, rich with drama and breezily poetic descriptions, offers an exceptional glimpse into his short stay in California. In mid- 1927 Crane, then struggling in New York, was introduced to “Herbert Wise, a wealthy 34-year-old neurotic who onmedical advice

75 ©2020 Bauman Rare Books

www.baumanrarebooks.com

1-800-97-BAUMAN (1-800-972-2862)