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Olympia Press, that most censorable of publishing set-ups, has been discovering that not all publicity is good publicity. After a lengthy interview of Maurice Girodias in the Guardian — all good advertising copy — Jill Tweedie took up the distaffs of Women's Liberation by pointing out that many of the Olympia Press's more celebrated books like the Story of ' 0 ' and works by Henry Miller, once considered obscene for their language and detailed sexual descriptions, are now again regarded as obscene because of the way they treat women as objects and playthings. In the course of a stout reply to Miss Tweedie, Maurice Girodias pressed all readers of his letter in the Guardian " to accept as a free gift five of our latest books, and read them and tell us what they think." He went on, "This is a serious offer — just wtite to us at 20 Rupert Street and we'll send the books on."
Both these pieces appeared on the Women's Page, and M. Girodias, holding traditional views of the English male, may have imagined that there would be few replies. In fact the Olympia Press was inundated with letters (mostly from men), is having to send out 30,000 free copies, and is in process of reprinting a number of titles — simply to send out free. It now looks as if the offer will be cut down to three free titles, thus saving £1,000 on postage alone, but it is costing at least £4,000 to give Guardian readers the luxury of having their horizons narrowed. The offer, incidentally, closed last week.
Apart from having to find a successor for Ann Rosenberg, the London representative, who is flying off to take over the New York office, the Olympia Press is also having trouble with Its retailers. W. H. Smith Unlimited, who only suggested that their branches should not stock that best of Christmas gifts, The Life and Times of Private Eye, have had no doubts. After the ritual " consultation at board level," the Deputy Buyer (Paperbacks and Children's Books) has "given the branches instructions that they are on no account to buy any copies from your representatives, and trusts that you will co-operate that none are distributed." No doubt he would have been equally firm a few years back about Tropic of Cancer and Lawrence Durrell's Black Book, both published by M. Girodias. It must be heart-warming to be so rigorously certain that a few dirty puns cauterize the sensitive spirit more than acres and acres of romantic slush.
Bookbuyer would like to extend his congratulations to Mr Auberon Waugh, our novel reviewer, who was awarded the Critic of the Year prize at the annual party of the Publishers' Publicity Circle. Details of the award were drowned by the applause and catcalls; but since most Winners were called upon to receive a kiss from Jilly Cooper, and the only Spectator representative at the party was not asked to undergo this experience, it may well hav'e been a purely h,morific acknowledgment of Mr Waugh's achievement.
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