Black Mask – Issues 8, 9 e 10 (1967–1968) - 1967-1968

Black Mask – Issues #8, #9 & #10 (1967–1968)
Three issues of the legendary New York anarchist tabloid

Description
Set of three original issues of Black Mask, the notorious anarchist / proto–Situationist publication produced in New York by Ben Morea, Ron Hahne, Osha Neumann, Dan Georgakas and others. Printed in tabloid format and distributed on the streets of the Lower East Side, Black Mask was one of the most radical and confrontational underground papers of the 1960s.

The group behind the publication — later known as Up Against the Wall Motherfuckers (U.A.W.M.F.) — organized free stores and crash pads, collaborated with the Black Panthers, shut down the Museum of Modern Art, dumped Lower East Side garbage at Lincoln Center during the 1968 strike, and famously cut the fence at Woodstock. Around the release of issue #8 (January 1968), members staged a performance firing blanks at poet Kenneth Koch, causing him to collapse — shocking the audience, who briefly thought he had been killed.

Issue #10 is especially sought-after as the final issue, featuring material on Berlin Dada, a prison letter by H. Rap Brown, and the essay Revolution As Being. The group disbanded shortly thereafter; Morea went underground for decades before resurfacing in the 21st century.

Publication Details

Title: Black Mask

Issues included: #8, #9, #10

Editors: Ben Morea, Ron Hahne (with contributions from the collective)

Publisher: Black Mask, New York

Years: 1967–1968

Format: Offset tabloid; single sheet folded to [4] pp each

Size: approx. 25 x 33 cm (10 x 13 in)

Condition

Good to very good overall

All issues with colouring and expected horizontal folds

Issue #8: small stain on front

Issue #10: price (“30 c.”) written in pencil on front

Pages clean and intact, no major damage