Charles Bukowski
A laureate of the Los Angeles underbelly, he chronicled the poetry of dead-end jobs, cheap wine, and desperate survival with brutal, beautiful honesty.
1920–1994 (age 74)·American writer·Birthday: August 16·The Greatest Generation
Biography
Charles Bukowski lived the life he wrote about, and the writing was his salvation. Born in Germany and raised in a Depression-era Los Angeles marked by an abusive father and severe acne, Bukowski's early years were a blueprint for outsider status. He drifted through a decade of manual labor, heavy drinking, and transient living before a near-fatal bleeding ulcer prompted him to start writing in earnest. His poetry and prose, published first in small literary magazines, rejected academic pretension in favor of a raw, confessional style that spoke directly to the disenfranchised. Working for years at the U.S. Postal Service, which he immortalized in his novel 'Post Office,' he wrote at night, building a cult following. Director Barbet Schroeder's film 'Barfly' brought him wider fame, but Bukowski remained a contradictory figure—a misanthrope who connected deeply with readers, a romantic disguised as a brute. He became the patron saint of everyone who ever felt crushed by the system, proving that art could be forged from the grit of a failed life.
The Greatest Generation
1901–1927
Grew up during the Depression, fought World War II, and built the postwar economic boom. Defined by shared sacrifice, institutional trust, and a belief that hard work and loyalty would be rewarded.
Charles was born in 1920, placing them squarely in The Greatest Generation. The events that shaped this generation — world wars, depression, and rapid industrialization — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Charles Was Born
The biggest hits of 1920
#1 Movie
Way Down East
Charles's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1920Born
Women gain the right to vote in the US
Home: $3,395President: Woodrow Wilson"Swanee" — Al Jolson
1925Started school
The Scopes Trial debates evolution in schools
Home: $4,366President: Calvin Coolidge"Sweet Georgia Brown" — Ben Bernie
1933Became a teenager
FDR's New Deal launches; Prohibition ends
Gas: $0.18/galPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"Stormy Weather" — Ethel WatersBest Picture: Cavalcade
1936Could drive
Jesse Owens wins four golds at the Berlin Olympics
Gas: $0.19/galPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"The Way You Look Tonight" — Fred AstaireBest Picture: The Great Ziegfeld
1938Could vote
Kristallnacht and the escalation toward WWII
Gas: $0.20/galHome: $2,850Min wage: $0.25/hrPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"Begin the Beguine" — Artie ShawBest Picture: You Can't Take It with You
1941Turned 21
Pearl Harbor attack brings the US into WWII
Gas: $0.19/galHome: $3,060Min wage: $0.30/hrPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"Chattanooga Choo Choo" — Glenn MillerBest Picture: How Green Was My Valley
1950Turned 30
Korean War begins
Gas: $0.27/galHome: $7,354Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Goodnight Irene" — Gordon Jenkins & The WeaversBest Picture: All About Eve
1960Turned 40
Kennedy-Nixon debates become first televised presidential debates
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $11,900Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Theme from A Summer Place" — Percy FaithBest Picture: The Apartment
1970Turned 50
First Earth Day; The Beatles break up
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $17,000Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Bridge over Troubled Water" — Simon & GarfunkelBest Picture: Patton
1980Turned 60
John Lennon shot and killed in New York
Gas: $1.19/galHome: $47,200Min wage: $3.10/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Call Me" — BlondieBest Picture: Ordinary People
1990Turned 70
Hubble Space Telescope launched; Germany reunifies
Gas: $1.15/galHome: $79,100Min wage: $3.80/hrPresident: George H.W. Bush"Hold On" — Wilson PhillipsBest Picture: Dances with Wolves
1994Died at 74
Nelson Mandela elected president of South Africa
Gas: $1.11/galHome: $90,400Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"The Sign" — Ace of BaseBest Picture: Forrest Gump
Key Achievements
- Wrote over sixty books of poetry, prose, and novels, including 'Post Office,' 'Factotum,' and 'Women.'
- His column 'Notes of a Dirty Old Man' ran in the underground newspaper *Open City* and later the *LA Free Press*.
- The semi-autobiographical film 'Barfly,' starring Mickey Rourke, was based on his life and scripted from his stories.
- His work has been translated into more than a dozen languages and continues to sell widely worldwide.
Did You Know?
He wrote his first novel, 'Post Office,' in less than a month.
He was a prolific correspondent, and many volumes of his letters have been published.
The independent publisher Black Sparrow Press was founded specifically to publish his work.
He hated public readings but was persuaded to give them later in life, where he was often drunk and confrontational.
“Find what you love and let it kill you.”
