Beschreibung:

R. Crumb Handwritten Letter to Marty Pahls, March 19, 1975, Four Sheets Author: Place: Publisher: Date: Description: Three-sheet letter measuring 6x9", hand-written by Robert Crumb in blue ink in a neat and tiny script on lined note paper, text on rectos and all but the final verso, with a dateline of "Route Two, Box 478 / Dixon / California / —95620." Signed "R.Crumb." Excellent condition, original folds. Provenance: From the Collection of R. Crumb, who explains: "I got these letters back after [Pahls] died in 1989, found among his possessions." Note: This letter is not collected in Fantagraphics' "Your Vigor For Life Appalls Me: Robert Crumb Letters, 1958-1977." "[Kurtzman and Roth] were both like two horny guys out of Little Annie Fannie, fawning all over that broad..." In a dense and lengthy letter packed with all manner of interesting morsels for the discerning Crumb voyeur, the highlight must surely be another burst of Kurtzman gossip, tinged with a tantalizing hint of the salacious and spiced with Crumb's version of locker room lingo: "No, Aline is definitely not Harvey Kurtzman's type in the physical department... too Jewish-middle-European peasant looking... You should have seen him going gah-gah over that bitch Michelle Yuri or whatever her name is... that cartoon editor of Playboy... I went with Kurtzman and her and Arnold Roth to some big gallery opening in New York when I was there... They were both like two horny guys out of Little Annie Fannie, fawning all over that broad... and she is COLD, lemme tell ya... she's not human, everything about her is totally studied and calculated... her looks, her charm, her tone of voice... The guys go crazy over her." According to Skip Williamson "Urry was horrible to work with. Many people lived inside her. She could be sweet and deferring, and two minutes later, snarling and wanting to rip your throat out. You were always unnerved around her because you never knew what was coming." -Bill Schelly, Harvey Kurtzman The Man Who Created MAD and Revolutionized Humor in America. Schelly's biography of Kurtzman is comprehensive in almost every other regard, but the sexually frustrated Kurtzman that emerges in Crumb's letters is barely glimpsed within its pages. A limited edition of 100 softcover and 15 hardcover catalogues are available. Over 200 pages, fully illustrated. Fun reference, great keepsake. Softcovers $40, dust-jacketed hardcover with limitation plate $200. To order, contact ivan@pbagalleries.com or visit: https://www.pbagalleries.com/content/comics/. R. Crumb says, "I found [PBA's catalogue] so interesting that I am saving it for the texts that accompany the comics which were put up for auction. This is some of the best commentary I’ve yet seen on the quality of the content of comic books. I especially enjoyed the reviews of the post-war horror comics. Great. Priceless." Consignments welcome for PBA's Spring 2021 Comic Book sale. Pre-Code Horror, Golden Age and Silver Age comics, original art and ephemera sought. Send inquiries to ivan@pbagalleries.com. Lot Amendments Condition: Item number: 324084