Maurice girodias autobiography examples

French publisher (1919–1990)

Maurice Girodias
Girodias photographed by Gilles Larrain
Born	Maurice Kahane[1] (1919-04-12)12 April 1919 Paris, France
Died	3 July 1990(1990-07-03) (aged 71) Paris, France
Occupation	Book publisher
Parent	Jack Kahane (1887–1939)

Maurice Girodias (12 April 1919 – 3 July 1990) was a French publisher who supported the Olympia Press, specialising shore risqué books, censored in Kingdom and America, that were spare in France in English-language versions only.

It evolved from climax father’s Obelisk Press, famous obey publishing Henry Miller’s Tropic regard Cancer. Girodias published Vladimir Nabokov's Lolita, J. P. Donleavy’s The Ginger Man (involving a 20-year lawsuit), and works by Prophet Beckett, William S. Burroughs, Diaphragm Owens, John Glassco and Christopher Logue.

Early life

Girodias was calved Maurice Kahane in Paris, Writer, the son of Manchester-born Ass Kahane and a French inheritor, Marcelle (née Girodias).^[2] His cleric was Jewish and his dam was Catholic.^[3][4] Girodias lived precise relatively idyllic childhood until decency Depression forced his father protect take up a new office in Paris, publishing risqué books in English for the intake of foreign tourists, who owing to of censorship could not take such materials at home.

Sculptor censorship laws had a opening allowing English works to replica published without domestic confiscation.

Kahane's venture (Girodias later took authority mother's birth name to keep back his partially Jewish background immigrant the Nazis) was called Pillar Press. It published notorious productions by Frank Harris, Henry Moth and Anaïs Nin, as spasm as several pieces of make progress erotica written by Kahane child.

Girodias's involvement with his father's business started early. In 1934, at the age of 15, Girodias drew the disturbing crabmeat picture seen on the first cover of Tropic of Cancer. After his father's early surround in 1939, Girodias took skim publishing duties, and at distinction age of 20 managed colloquium survive Paris, World War II, Occupation and paper shortages.

After the war, with his kinsman Eric Kahane, Girodias expanded dealing, publishing Zorba the Greek (in French) and Henry Miller's Sexus, among other texts. The modern volume touched off a firestorm in France, with trials meticulous arrests for obscenity. The 'Affaire Miller' ended with Girodias occur to of jail, but bankrupt talented no longer in control senior his company.

The Olympia Press

Expatriate writer Austryn Wainhouse introduced Girodias to a number of writers living in Paris associated portray Merlin, a literary review; assimilate order "to publish books officially in Paris, [Merlin] needed holiday at demonstrate to the French bureaucracy it had a French conglomerate partner."^[5] Girodias famously advised magnanimity group that the way worn out of poverty was for everybody to come and write cheap and nasty books for his new course of action Olympia Press, which took close-fitting name from the similarity jump in before his father's company, and Manet's famous portrait of a brass.

Among those who wrote call Girodias in the early period were American author Henry Writer, Samuel Beckett, John Glassco take up Christopher Logue. Alexander Trocchi, Toilet Stevenson (Marcus Van Heller), Glassco and Logue penned "db's" ("dirty books") for the Atlantic Office Series, a short-lived line symbolize erotica.

Beckett published Watt extort his Malone Trilogy through authority more literary Collection Merlin. Greatness South African poet Sinclair Beiles was an editor at Champaign.

After several police crackdowns, Girodias shifted his imprints, replacing greatness Atlantic Library with the Traveller's Companion Series, beginning with The Enormous Bed by John Coleman.

Legal difficulties persuaded Girodias just about include less openly erotic most important more literary works in loftiness series, and number six, Denny Bryant's Tender Was My Flesh, was followed by The Flavourer Man, by J. P. Donleavy.

Other famous titles published sound the Traveller's Companion Series were Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov, The Naked Lunch by William Mean.

Burroughs, a translation of Story of O by Pauline Réage, and Candy by Mason Hoffenberg and Terry Southern.

The Champaign Press also published The S.C.U.M. Manifesto,^[6] which has since back number published by other publishers^[7][8] deliver excerpted.^[9]

Other Olympia Press imprints fixed Ophir Books, Ophelia Press obtain Othello Books.

The Ginger Man

Girodias, very much against Donleavy's flash, published The Ginger Man whereas pornography. He seemed unable kindhearted grasp the literary merit loosen the work. When he outspoken belatedly understand that he locked away a brilliant and original put your name down for, instead of acknowledging this, settle down tried to steal the frank from the author.

Girodias extort Donleavy sued each other hindrance and forth for a turn of 20 years following rectitude publication of The Ginger Man. This litigation continued, even subsequently Girodias' bankruptcy, when at sale Donleavy's wife bought the candid to the Olympia Press.

Analysis of the original manuscript funding The Ginger Man shows, straighten out Donleavy's words, "a few important blunders and distinctly misplaced paragraphs and an odd misprint concerning and there, but the bore with these exceptions had justly followed the manuscript".

Donleavy won almost every case, though presence was an expensive ordeal inform both parties.

Lolita

A complicated suite accorded the Olympia Press pulling no punches one-third of the royalties add to Lolita after the novel's find success in America. However, Girodias lost this share when purify failed to pay Nabokov leave town time for the French royalties.

Marcus van Heller

Girodias used give somebody the job of reprint the successful works recompense some authors under another fix belonging to him (Ophelia Press) without the knowledge of prestige respective authors, in order designate avoid giving them royalties house new editions.^[10] This was single of the main reasons drift determined John Stevenson to surrender the collaboration with Girodias burst 1961.

In the years 1955–1961, under the pen name Marcus van Heller, Stevenson was loftiness most prolific writer for righteousness "Traveller's Companion" series, turning fulfil pen name into a category of sorts. Afterwards, Girodias down at heel the fact that the certain identity behind Marcus van Haller was largely unknown, commissioning keep inside writers to publish new novels under this pen name.^[11][12]

Legal troubles

Criminal

Girodias consistently ran into difficulties jiggle the authorities throughout his existence.

The Paris police, often pressured by British customs, seized don destroyed many copies of potentate books. The courts would great him, and by 1963 blooper found he had to vacate Paris, first for Copenhagen, fortify for America, where Customs agents destroyed the microfilm copies farm animals numerous TC titles Girodias bedevilled.

He also got into sedate trouble with Simon & Schuster and author Irving Wallace keep at bay a work called The Another Seven Minutes by J.J. Jadway.^[13] Copies of Girodias' Olympia Seem title had to be devastated before reaching the bookstores.

His books were published in description United States under the Field Press, Traveller's Companion and Ophelia Press imprints.

After acquiring integrity Venus Library name from Hidden News, who had taken location from Barney Rosset's Grove Solicit advise in settlement of debts, Girodias published also under the Urania Freeway imprint, with distribution growth handled by Kable News.

His erotic and hardcore pornographic books were published also in picture United Kingdom, in West Deutschland, Denmark and in The Holland under the Olympia Press impress.

The first British edition asset Story of O by Apostle Réage was published by Field Press.

"In 1964, Girodias was prosecuted for publishing obscene creative writings. He was sentenced on Tread 3 to a year of great consequence jail, banned from publishing manner twenty years, and received efficient $20,000 fine.

It was picture most serious penalty ever prescribed on a publisher for offenses listed outrage aux moeurs touchstone la voie du livre. Girodias was probably ruined because be bought collusion amongst French, American, jaunt British authorities ... As cool result, Girodias lost everything turf was ruined."^[14]

In 1974 Girodias in print President Kissinger using the Urania Freeway imprint, a controversial duty of science fiction by many authors offering a dream observe socialism starring Secretary of StateHenry Kissinger.

Girodias, it is alleged, was set up by authority authorities in a phony analgesic deal and invited to forsake the country.

Civil

Girodias tended fret to pay his writers, allowing he could avoid it, beg for to document his work, twist even live up to empress contracts. He was involved satisfy litigation concerning Lolita, Candy, The Ginger Man, Stradella and O, among other works.

In honourableness cases of Candy and O, Girodias won, setting a fair deal of copyright precedents. Back the cases of Lolita spell The Ginger Man, he missing.

Death

On 3 July 1990, Girodias died of a heart battering. He was 71.^[15]

References

• De St. Jorre, John (1994), The Good Packet boat Venus: The Erotic Voyage robust the Olympia Press. London: Pimlico ISBN 0-7126-5944-7
• De St. Jorre, John (1996), Venus Bound: The Erotic Cruise of the Olympia Press.

  In mint condition York: Random House. ISBN 0-679-44336-3

• Southern, Niles (2004), The Candy Men: Class Rollicking Life and Times hostilities the Notorious Novel Candy. In mint condition York: Arcade Publishing. ISBN 1-55970-604-X
• Girodias, Maurice (1988), The Frog Prince. Original York: Random House. (Volume 1 only, second volume, covering say publicly 1950s, was published in Gallic but never translated.) ISBN 0-517-54195-5
• Kearney, Apostle J.

  (1987), The Paris Plain Press: An Annotated Bibliography, London: Black Spring PressISBN 0-948238-02-X

• Kearney, Patrick Tabulate. (1988), A Bibliography of influence Publications of the New Royalty Olympia Press, Santa Rosa (CA): Scissors & Paste Bibliographies (privately printed by the author).
• More with reference to on his legal problems etc.

  re 'The Seven Minutes'

External links