The Captain Is Out to Lunch and the Sailors Have Taken Over the Ship
Charles Bukowski
The Captain Is Out to Lunch and the Sailors Have Taken Over the Ship
Bukowski's last journals, 1991 to 1993, with twelve drawings by Robert Crumb.
- 1998
- Wry
- Melancholy
- Savage
- autobiographical
- voice-driven
- funny
- intimate
About Charles Bukowski
The story, briefly
Spoiler-freeThe Captain Is Out to Lunch and the Sailors Have Taken Over the Ship collects extracts from Charles Bukowski's journals between 1991 and 1993, the final years of his life. Black Sparrow Press first issued it in 1997 through its Graphic Arts imprint and followed with the trade edition in 1998. Robert Crumb, the underground comics artist, supplied twelve full-page black-and-white drawings. The entries are short and dated, and they record what the last years actually consisted of: the racetrack most afternoons, the computer he had started writing on, the cats, his health, and his opinions of other writers. A limited issue of 426 copies carries an original signed colour serigraph portrait of Bukowski by Crumb.
The story, in more detail
Bukowski published novels, poems, stories, columns, screenplays and letters, but this is his only book in the form of a dated diary. The entries are short and undecorated, with none of the performance the interviews and readings carried. Crumb's drawings match that: he draws faces without flattering them, which is close to what the prose does with a sentence. The book is also a document of the very end. Bukowski was diagnosed with leukemia the year after the last entry.
Why we recommend it
The one journal
The only book Bukowski published in diary form — dated, short and unperformed.
Crumb and Bukowski together
Twelve full-page drawings by the underground comics artist, plus a signed serigraph portrait in the limited issue.
What this book explores
Timeline
1991–1993
The years the journal entries cover.
1994
Bukowski dies in March, months after the last entry.
1997
Black Sparrow Graphic Arts publishes the book, with the trade edition following in 1998.
Book editions
- Hardcover
- Black Sparrow Press
- 1997
- 9780964411524
- Paperback
- Black Sparrow Press
- 1998
- 9781574230598
Reader reviews
Readers may also like
The Last Night of the Earth Poems
The 1992 collection published in the middle of the period the journals cover.
Read our take
The Captain Is Out to Lunch and the Sailors Have Taken Over the Ship: frequently asked questions
What is The Captain Is Out to Lunch?
Extracts from Charles Bukowski's journals between 1991 and 1993, published by Black Sparrow Press with twelve full-page drawings by Robert Crumb.
Why are there two dates on it?
Black Sparrow Graphic Arts issued it in 1997; the trade edition followed in 1998. The text is the same.
Who is Robert Crumb?
The underground comics artist, best known for his work in the 1960s counterculture. He illustrated this book and drew the serigraph portrait in its limited issue.
What do the entries cover?
The racetrack most afternoons, the computer Bukowski had started writing on, his cats, his health, and running opinions on other writers.
How close to the end is it?
Very. The last entries are from 1993; Bukowski was diagnosed with leukemia and died in March 1994.
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References
References
The sources below include the primary text, editions, scholarship, archival materials, and other records that informed this page. They document The Captain Is Out to Lunch and the Sailors Have Taken Over the Ship, its publication, and its place in literary history.
1The Captain Is Out to Lunch and the Sailors Have Taken Over the Ship
MemoirCharles Bukowski, 1998Used forThe primary text represented by this page, used for descriptions of the work’s contents and for any quoted passages shown here.
2Charles Bukowski timeline (bukowski.net)
WebsiteUsed forPublication history of both issues and the Crumb illustrations.
3Charles Bukowski: books and chapbooks (Verdant Press checklist)
WebsiteUsed forBibliographic details including the limited serigraph issue.
4Charles Bukowski
BiographyReaktion Books, 2012Used forThe final years the journals record.
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Why these sources are here
The primary text is the baseline reference for every book page. Additional references document publication history, interpretation, and historical context where that evidence is available.
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