Bukowski Spotting In New York

I was sitting in a bar in New York, the name of which I can't remember but I know it was on 5th Avenue, and I know that it was 5 a.m. because my girlfriend had been announcing the time after each round of drinks bought after 3 a.m. This was becoming slightly irritating to me because as this was my first visit to the U S of A I had been looking forward to sampling the 24 hour bars and clubs and thought, rightly so, that time was not an issue here. I was on holiday after all.

I picked up a copy of The Village Voice and started to scan through in the hope of drowning my personal clock across the table, when I turned the page and saw a picture of Charles Bukowski standing in his kitchen holding a beer in one hand and a smoke in the other with that, "Can life be any easier" grin on his face. The banner splashed across the picture read "BUKOWSKI IS BACK."

Back from where? It was an advert for a theatre production of South of No North, a collection of Buk short stories and this, suddenly, definitely was next on my list of things to do in the Big Apple. If anything it would keep me out of the bars for a few hours, which in turn would keep my girlfriend happy, as my trip to visit her had consisted mainly of all night Jazz clubs followed by all night comedy clubs and the obligatory many drinks before, during and after.To say she was getting kind of exasperated with this non-stop, four hours of sleep where did the daylight go ride, would be a supreme understatement.

The 29th Street Rep Company is a small, funky theatre just Off-Broadway.