Cold Turkey Press

“Classic Gerard Bellaart - fine ambitious spirit mind and meticulous loving eye happily surprised”

Allen Ginsberg (poet)

The Cold Turkey Press motto is CONCEDO NVLLI, with the admonition: “He who hides his madmen dies voiceless.”

Cold Turkey Press Rotterdam was founded in 1970 by Gerard Bellaart in association with a small group of benefactors.

In 1965 on the Greek island of Hydra, Bellaart met various beat poets; Leonard Cohen, Gregory Corso, Sinclair Beiles, and others some of whom he would later publish:

“I first came across the writings of Charles Bukowski in 1965, Hydra, Greece, when someone handed me a copy of ‘The Outsider’. In 1969 I made a selection of his poems, translated them into Dutch and published them under the title ‘Drunk Miracles & Other Immolations’ in 1970 with a specially written introduction by Bukowski. It was the first appearance of his work in Holland.

Followed within the next 5 years some 12 books in English and Dutch, all in limited first editions of 250 printed on a Gestetner mimeograph machine.The wartime radio speeches of Ezra Pound (edited by W.Levy) proving the most controversial.

Other publications included works by: Antonin Artaud, Blaise Cendrars, Garcia Lorca, Cesar Vallejo, William Burroughs, Allen Ginsberg, Ed Sanders, Sinclair Belies, Carl Weissner, Ira Cohen, Heathcote Williams and others.

In 1975 after Cendrars’ ‘Rotterdam’ called it a day. The ’Americans Abroad’ anthology edited by Lynne Tillman remained unpublished. Summary excerpts titled “In the dark of Expatriate Bluff ” were published in pamphlet form as part of the “Dystopia” manifestation at Tent Rotterdam in 2008.

Cold Turkey Press is now being recognised as having been ahead of its time and responsible for putting Rotterdam on the international map during the 1970’s. Much to Bellaart’s amusement CTP’s reputation has grown, both in Europe and in the US.

Bellaart’s achievements have been marked by an exhibition of the Cold Turkey Press archive at the Historische Museum in Rotterdam May 2006.

In collaboration with Cold Turkey Press, Sea-Urchin Editions issued a fine CD containing all the tracks from the original cold turkey/klacto LP plus another 18 minutes of recordings from the project that could not be included on the LP. The album is titled 12 Great Americans, and its release coincided with the salute to Cold Turkey Press by the Rotterdam Historische Museum. The occasion prompted Bellaart to resume editing & publishing under the Cold Turkey Press Imprint.

2007 Marked the appearance of his ‘Fragmentations’, a selection of painted & stencilled texts by Antonin Artaud (suppôts et supplications), Henri Michaux, (Innards & Upwards), & excerpts from Bellaart’s “ Omitted Texts”. In collaboration with Sea Urchins Editions first publication of a poster sized new translation of Artaud’s ‘Le style me fait Horreur’.

2008 Edited & designed ‘Dystopia 1968-2008’ as part of a large scale exhibition ‘REDEFINE THE ENEMY’ at Tent Gallery in Rotterdam. www.tentrotterdam.nl This pamphlet included hitherto unpublished work by John Giorno, Mary Beach, Ed Sanders, Allen Ginsberg, Blaise Cendrars, Sinclair Beiles & others.

2009 First publication in an edition limited to 28 copies of Ira Cohen’s poster poem “14th Jan”, with a comment by Louise Landes Levi.With her edited and translated “Simon Vinkenoog 1950-2006” published by Bob Arnold’s Longhouse publishers and booksellers www.Longhousepoetry.com

2010 Edited “The Idiot’s voice”, a selection from Sinclair Beiles’ “Inmates”, a manuscript of 300 pages from the CT press archives. An English & French edition (in a translation by Agnes Racine and Frédérique Berringer) is scheduled for publication in 2011.

Publication of a series of large size poem cards titled “Dutch Mordant” with texts & images by Bellaart .

2011 Various poster poems & 4 portfolios of poem cards; ‘With Phantoms’, ‘Next to nothing’, ‘Somnam Breve’, & ‘Cloaca Maxima’ comprising texts by Sinclair Beiles, Heathcote Williams, Gerard Bellaart, Samuel Beckett, Jean Arp, Antonin Artaud, Mallarmé, Kurt Schwitters, L.F.Céline, Ira Cohen, Ed Sanders, Ezra Pound, and others.All in a 1st limited edition. Full list available on request.

Scheduled for publication in 2011 ‘American Porn‘ A collection of new poems by Heathcote Williams.

Cold Turkey Press is edited & published By Gerard Bellaart

website www.gerardbellaart.com

Bibliography

• Charles Bukowski: Dronken mirakles en andere offers. 56 p. . Gerard Belart (editor, translator). Evert Maliangkay (cover design). 250 numbered books. Poems. The prize was six Dutch guilders.
• Nanos Valaoritis: Eindeloze kruisiging. Broadside. 34 x 22 cm .
  • Nanos Valaoritis: Endless Crucifixion. Nova Broadcast Press. Broadside.^[1]
• Sinclair Beiles: Deliria. 1971. 30 p. .
• Harold Norse: sleutelgaten snuffen, Ed Sanders: de harige tafel, Carl Weissner: anemniese cinema. 28 p. . 1971. Gerard Belart (editor, translator).
  • Harold Norse: Sniffing Keyholes. In: Ira Cohen (ed.): Gnaoua, No. 1, Tangiers 1964
  • Ed Sanders: The Hairy Table.^[2] In: Jan Jacob Herman (ed.): The San Francisco Earthquake, No. 4, Beach Books Texts & Documents, San Francisco, Summer/Fall 1968
  • Carl Weissner: The Braille Film. Nova Broadcast Press, San Francisco, 1970.
• William S. Burroughs: Roosevelt na de ambtsinwijding. 23 p. . 1972. Jan Oudenaarden (translator). With: In een interview met Dan Georgakas; Roosevelt na de ambtsinwijding; Burroughs' antwoord; De tijd in beweging; Martin's mag.
• Federico Garcia Lorca: Duende: theorie en divertissement. 15 p. . 1972. (Teoria y juego del duende).
• César Vallejo: Mensen-gedichten. Boek 1: De ongedaterde gedichten. 1972. (Poemas Humanos)
• George Dowden: Hommage aan Ezra Pound: Zege! De dansers, Inleiding, Canto CXVI ezra pound. 38 p. . 1973.
  • George Dowden: This is the Land of the Dead: The Island of the Blessed. Hapt, Hapt Free Print, Bournemouth, 1970. 16 p. . With: Earth Incantations (Homage to Ezra Pound), This Is the Land of the Dead, The Island of the Blessed, Victory! The Dancers. This was one earlier edition of the poems, there may have been others.
• Allen Ginsberg: De verandering. 24 p. . 1973. Gerard Belart (translator). With: TV was een baby die naar die doodskamer toekroop, De verandering: Kyoto-Tokyo, Wales visitatie. Plus an excerpt from the Allen Ginsberg interview: Mystery in the Universe.
  • Allen Ginsberg: Television Was a Baby Crawling Toward That Deathchamber, The Change, Wales Visitation; Excerpt from: Mystery in the Universe. In: Rogue Magazine: Designed for Men, Vol. 10, No. 3, June 1965, p. 6-7.
• D. A. Levy: Proza: Over de poezie in een konsumptie opvoeding en kultuur systeem. 14 p. . 1973. Kees Spermon (translator).
  • d.a. levy: Prose: On Poetry in the Wholesale Education & Culture System. Gunrunner Press, Milwaukee 1968. Edition of 300.
• Sinclair Beiles: Sacred Fix. [90] p. . 1975.
  • Sinclair Beiles: Lear in Los Angeles, Needle Vestal, The Rake's New Progress.
• William Levy (editor): Certain Radio Speeches of Ezra Pound: From the Recordings and Transcriptions of his Wartime Broadcasts, Rome 1941-1943. 110 p. . 1975. Thirteen transcripts. An improved edition came out the same year.
• Heathcote Williams: Manifestoes/Manifesten. 43 p. . 1975. Gerard Belart, Susan Janssen (eds., translation).
• Ira Cohen: from the divan of petra vogt: poems & photographs. 37 p. . 1976.
• Brian Brett, with Allan Safarik: Green, Light, Stones & Trees. 1977.
• Blaise Cendrars: Romatisch Rotterdam: de grote vechtpartij. 40 p. . 1977. Jan Oudenaarde (translator).
  • Blaise Cendrars: Bourlinguer. Editions Denoel, Paris 1948.
• Ira Cohen: Kathmandu portfolio: 12 photographs. 1978.^[3]

Dicscography

• Gerard Belart [!], Carl Weissner (eds.): Cold Turkey Press/Klacto Present. Poetry International Festival, Rotterdam, The Netherlands, June, 20-24, 1972. Cold Turkey Press, Lp No. 6802 944. 33 1/3 rpm, 12". 500 copies. Rotterdam 1972.
• 12 Great Americans. Sea Urchin Editions. The old Lp with additional material.

External links

• Gerard Bellaart's website
• Fred DeVries: Beat Archives in France
• Fred DeVries: Lees Passionate! Part 2

Notes

1. ^ Jan J. Herman Archive, 1967-2002. Charles Deering McCormick Library.
2. ^ The Hairy Table really is the name of the story, for its role in the NEA-wars: [1]
3. ^ http://www.asianart.com/exhibitions/cohen Kathmandu Portfolio + 1: Ira Cohen: An Exhibition of Photography from Kathmandu, 1970-1974