Gentleman Junkie

"Gentleman Junkie and Other Stories of the Hung-Up Generation" is the short story collection that got Harlan Ellison to Hollywood, which, in retrospect, may not have been a good move, but it was certainly an important move. The key factor is all of this was a book review in "Esquire" by the legendary Dorothy Parker whose description of "Daniel White for the Greater God," far and away the best story in this collection, deserves repeating: "It is without exception the best presentation I have ever seen of present racial conditions in the South and of those who try to alleviate them." When I was teaching "To Kill a Mockingbird" I had my students read Ellison's story, to give them some idea of what things were like in the South before they were born. It is, simply put, a short story that makes the purchase of this entire volume well worth the money. For the record, or more specifically for those of you trying to find Ellison stories you have not read in other collections, here are the short stories you will find within these pages: "Final Shtick," "Gentleman Junkie," "May We Also Speak?", "Daniel White for the Greater Good," Lady Bug, Lady Bug," "Free With This Box!" (a personal favorite), "There's One on Every Campus," "At the Mountains of Blindness," "This is Jackie Spining," "No Game for Children," "The Late, Great Arnie Draper," "High Dice," "Enter the Fanatic, Stage Center," "Someone is Hungrier," "Memory of a Muted Trumpet," "Turnpike," "Sally in Our Alley," "The Silence of Infidelity," "Have Coolth," "RFD #2," "No Fourth Commandment," and "The Night of Delicate Terrors." Since we are talking Harlan Ellison there is really no reason to engage in any further advocacy. I am either preaching to the converted or spitting into the wind. There is no middle ground with Ellison. Consequently the point here is to be informative. "Gentleman Junkie" is a collection of dark stories dealing more with the real world than you usually find in Ellison's more famous works of speculative fiction. These are stories about racial prejudice, drug addiction, juvenile delinquency, anti-Semitism, alienation, violence and other fun topics. Consequently, these are tales best consumed one at a time, because to sit down and read this book cover to cover would be a bit much for most souls.

In this early collection of mainstream fiction, Harlan Ellison looks at the violent subculture of the punk, the addict, any person who finds themselves of the underside of life. Mr. Ellison has gone underground as a member of a street gang, among other jobs, and his experiences ring through in every story. HE pulls no punches, and the cumulative effect brings a truth to these urban fables.