SIGNED TYPESCRIPT FOR HARLAN ELLISON’S IMPROMPTU SHORT STORY KEYBOARD
Typescript signed by Harlan Ellison of his impromptu short story Keyboard, written in 1994 in the front window of a San Francisco bookstore. It was later included in Ellison’s short story collection Slippage, published in 1997 by Houghton Mifflin.
Ellison began public compositions in bookstore windows in the 1970s, inspired by French author Georges Simenon, who was rumored to have written an entire novel while sitting in a glass cage. Ellison wrote more than 100 stories in bookstore windows across the country, raising awareness for both the writing process and the bookstores where he worked.
When people grew suspicious that he was plotting stories in advance, he began soliciting premises. In 1994 at the Booksmith in San Francisco, Robin Williams gave him the prompt “computer vampyre, the byte that bites”. It was reported that Ellison replied, “Screw you, I don’t know anything about computers!” He then proceeded to write the 3100-word story “Keyboard” on his portable typewriter.
Ellison (1934-2018) is known for his prolific and influential work in New Wave speculative fiction and for his outspoken, combative personality. His published works include more than 1,700 short stories, novellas, screenplays, comic-book scripts, teleplays, essays, and a wide range of criticism covering literature, film, television, and print media. Among his best known work is the 1967 Star Trek episode "The City on the Edge of Forever", regarded as one of the best episodes in the franchise.
This appears to be a photocopy of the 13-page typescript with an original signature by Ellison in black ink on the title page. The typescript is copyright 1994 by The Kilimanjaro Corporation, the company that manages Ellison’s literary estate. It is housed in a bright blue 11 x 17” wrapper with Robin Williams and Computer Vampyre (or, the Byte that Bites) printed on the front cover. Item #80031
Price: $500.00