Regardless of your opinion of the man, his work has inspired hundreds of thousands, and has enabled many a boozehound with a writerly excuse for imbibing. As a writer & fan of the sauce myself, I personally really appreciate his work, and lament that his life–and that work–was cut short by addiction. But a monument will stand to remember him by, aside from his books: the house in which he penned a number of them has been designated an LA Historic Landmark. Acting on the recommendation of the Cultural Heritage Commission, the L.A. City Council today voted to name his longtime East Hollywood home an official Historic-Cultural monument.
So, no condos for this little section of Hollywood. The Spanish Colonial Revival style “ready to assemble” apartments and bungalows, built on the lot between 1922 and 1926, will stay, likely much to the chagrin of the property owner.
It took a San Diego paper to break the news immediately.
LA’s coolest tour company, Esotouric, will be hosting a special tour on March 9 to honor the decision & tour The Buk’s haunts.
How does dying at 73 from leukemia mean his life was ‘was cut short by addiction’?
I still don’t understand the motivation behind this. Why not designate the house that his widow Linda still lives in, that he lived in when he died, his actual home, as a historical monument instead of this cookie cutter bungalow?
And dying at 73 isn’t having one’s life cut short – that’s a natural, good life.
My bad, I though he died much younger. Lucky bastard, getting away with that. :)
What’s the address?
As one of the folks involved with the preservation campaign, I’d say that we believe 5124 Delongpre is a significant location because it is where Bukowski made the transition from postal worker to full time writer, because he wrote or researched his most important works there, because the address appears on the cover of “Post Office” and because he cites Delongpre in a poem thanking John Martin for discovering him there.
Also, this property was in immediate danger of being bulldozed, so the landmarking application was a matter of urgency. We think it would be great if San Pedro landmarked his home there as well. The more literary landmarks in LA the better!
Thank goodness a property as lovely as this will be with us to enjoy into eternity.
It’s not about architectural significance, Ruth. What made you think that was the issue?
Being a D.I.Y. guy from the 1980s punk scene, I cannot wait to hoof it over to the nearby Home Depot to get more pick-axes and sledge hammers to finish the job Bukowski started when he usta tear up the place.
Anyone bother to ask FrancEyE–the mother of Buk’s bastard child–what she thinks about the historical landmark? I’d bet the hair on her, er, MY, chin she could care less, as would Buk were he still existing.
Agreed, Bustard! Here’s my alternative take on the matter:
http://carversdog.wordpress.com/2008/02/26/bukowskis-transmigration-of-the-soul/
I’m absolutely certain Buk would think this was hilarious, and pointless.
If I still drank, I’d get wasted and go piss on the side of the place in tribute. Guess I’ll just have to do it sober.