# Is "Hollywood" by Charles Bukowski a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Hollywood by Charles Bukowski (Black Sparrow Press, 1989) is identified by: Black Sparrow Press, Santa Rosa, 1989. True first is the 1989 Black Sparrow Press edition.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Black Sparrow Press, Santa Rosa, 1989
- The collectible first is the trade hardcover, quarter cloth over decorated paper-covered boards (John Register cocktail-glass-and-sunset design) with acetate dustjacket; roughly 1,000 trade hardcover copies
- Also issued as a signed and numbered limited (about 500 copies) and a deluxe hand-bound issue with an original signed silkscreen print
- Two-color title page; no statement of later printing on the copyright page of the first
- Publisher imprint reads Black Sparrow Press
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Charles Bukowski |
| Publisher | Black Sparrow Press |
| Year | 1989 |
| True first | — |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Black Sparrow Press, Santa Rosa, 1989 |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
Black Sparrow Press, Santa Rosa, 1989. Novel. The collectible first is the trade hardcover, quarter cloth over decorated paper-covered boards (John Register cocktail-glass-and-sunset design) with acetate dustjacket; roughly 1,000 trade hardcover copies. Also issued as a signed and numbered limited (about 500 copies) and a deluxe hand-bound issue with an original signed silkscreen print. Two-color title page; no statement of later printing on the copyright page of the first.

## Is this the true first?
True first is the 1989 Black Sparrow Press edition. Signed and numbered and deluxe issues are the scarcer states.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book club edition; Black Sparrow was a small literary press.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Hollywood* by Charles Bukowski a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/hollywood
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-03.