American Whiskey Bar is a remarkable faux memoir about the un-making of a film—a film which Michael Turner was commissioned to write. However, whether or not this film was ever “made” is debatable. And only one print is said to exist. Nevertheless, American Whiskey Bar, a film seen by only a handful of people, is well on its way to becoming a curious footnote to cinematic history.
American Whiskey Bar, the book, is an attempt to set the record straight—a story of sex, violence, lies, ambition, power, paradox, dreams, and regret. Consider yourself warned.
First published in Canada in 1997, this new edition, which features a foreword by William Gibson (Neuromancer, Pattern Recognition), is the first edition ever available in the U.S.
Praise for American Whiskey Bar:
“Tightly packed . . . the book weaves its way in and out of various levels of reality. . . . There’s a bright, playful mind at work here.”—Toronto Star
“Turner constructs an intense, intelligent, and darkly humorous satire. . . . Too original to be nominated for awards.”—Quill & Quire
“Brilliant . . . a dazzling, dizzying multilayered blend of fact and fiction, of the plausible and the preposterous, of the real and the hyper-real. It is also screamingly funny.”—Globe & Mail
Globe & Mail Notable Book, 1997
Quill & Quire Best Book of 1997
Coolest Canadian Book of the Year, Chapters
Michael Turner lives in Vancouver, where, in addition to books and screenplays, he writes art essays and edits ArsenalAdvance, a literary/visual art imprint. He has won a BC Book Prize for fiction and a Genie Award for Original Song. Recently, he has collaborated with artist Stan Douglas and filmmaker Bruce LaBruce. His novel The Pornographer’s Poem was published this year by Soft Skull.
"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.
When the book American Whiskey Bar first released in Canada in 1997, many people were confused, and one likes to think that Michael Turner, the author of more genre twists than perhaps any other canadian writer, was pleased.
Based on a screenplay Michael Turner was commissioned to make, eventually made in to a live tv experiment, denounced and acclaimed by many, American Whiskey Bar is trailed by a long shadow of weirdness.
It’s now 2004. Far from losing momentum, the intrigue and mystery of this faux memoir/screenplay continues to fester. The circle grows wider and ensnares more and more readers. First, Quentin Tarantino, then William Gibson.
The latest victim: Daphne Gottlieb, the San Francisco performance poet and author of Final Girl packs her bags and heads up the coast to spend 10 days touring the I-5 with a man she hardly knows.
What she does know about Michael Turner:
He wrote The Pornographer’s Poem.
Michael Turner once recieved a grant from Viacom which he used to make a porn film set to poetry.
He can be an unreliable narrator.
Born in North Vancouver, Canada, 1962. Fiction and poetry: Company Town (1991), Hard Core Logo (1993), Kingsway (1995), American Whiskey Bar (1997), and The Pornographer's Poem (1999). Awards include the 1999 BC Book Prize for Fiction and a 1996 Genie Award for Music/Original Song; as well, a finalist for the 1991 Dorothy Livesay BC Book Prize for Poetry. Lives in Vancouver, where, in addition to books and screenplays, he writes art essays and edits ArsenalAdvance, a literary/visual art imprint he founded with Arsenal Pulp Press in 1998.
"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.
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Seller: Russell Books, Victoria, BC, Canada
Paperback. Condition: Good. 1st Edition. Seller Inventory # FORT576794
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Paperback. Condition: Very Good. 1st Edition. Seller Inventory # FORT786220
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Seller: Alex Simpson, Carrying Place, ON, Canada
Soft Cover. Condition: VG. First Edition Paperback. Tanning to paper and small curl/creasing at corners. Wraps have edge/rub wear. Actual book for sale pictured. 14 x 22.9 x 1.4cm, wt400g Size: 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. Seller Inventory # 011562
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Soft cover. Condition: Fine. First Edition. | Fine -- illus. wraps. Seller Inventory # 007353
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Seller: The Next Page, Calgary, AB, Canada
Paperback. Condition: Very Good. First Edition, 1997. Signed by author on Title page. Seller Inventory # 978155152048C
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Seller: Tony Power, Books, North Vancouver, BC, Canada
Soft cover. Condition: Fine. Revised Edition (SIGNED GALLEY). Fine -- oversize spiral-bound wraps, with 2-pp publicity laid in. Author's signature scrawled on fornt cover. Foreword (2 pp) by William Gibson. 'GALLEY COPY' Revised ed. - first published 1997. Signed by Author(s). Seller Inventory # 008157
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