"The Best of Olympia" (1966)

 

Paris, France: The Olympia Press (book, anthology), 1966.
7.5" x 5.5" x 0.75", 240 pages, softcover.

The Best of Olympia: An Anthology of Tales, Poems, Scientific Documents and Tricks Which Appeared in the Short-Lived and Much Lamented Olympia Magazine, as compiled and edited by Maurice Girodias and published by his Olympia Press (Paris), with the New American Library (London), in 1966.

This contains Brion Gysin’s “Dream Machine”, pp. 18–20, and Ian Sommerville’s “Flicker”, pp. 25–27. At pages 21–24 are Dreamachine plans, which are more illustrational than practical. These all come from Olympia, issue 2, 1st quarter 1962.

Contents:

• Maurice Girodias: Preface
• Professor Henry Crannach: "Chastity Belts: A Mystification?"
• Lawrence Durrell: "Pursewarden's Incorrigibilia"
• Brion Gysin: "Dream Machine"
• Brion Gysin and Ian Sommerville: Dreamachine plans
• Ian Sommerville: "Flicker"
• unstated: "Frankie and Johnny — New Style"
• Ann Federman: "The Trial of the Templars"
• Eric Kahane: "The Eagle as a Lover: Some Further Conquests of Napoleon Bonaparte"
• Robert Giraud collection: "The Skin Artists" (photographs)
• Mark Twain: "1601"
• Jascha Kessler: "An Egyptian Bondage"
• Nazli Nour: "The Trial of Gretchen Green"
• William S. Burroughs: "The Ticket That Exploded [excerpts]"
• Gregory Corso: "3 Poems"
• Walter Lowenfels: "Whitman's Many Loves"
• Terry Southern: "The Spy's Corner"
• Claire Rabe: "Sicily Enough"
• unstated: "French Postcards"
• Stephen Schneck: "In the Dirty Pictures"
• Kaja: "I Worship Paperclips"
• Jonathan Kozol: "The Contest"