Helix Vol. II No. 5 November 16, 1967: Napoleon - LBJ postcard cover
Seattle: Helix, 1967. Walt Crowley, First Printing. Tabloid Newspaper. Tabloid printed on newsprint measuring 11.25 x 17.5. Pp. 16. Front and rear covers printed in color. Edges lightly ruffled, moderate age toning. Very Good. Item #6265 In late spring 1967, Helix joined a burgeoning underground press then including groundbreaking alternative papers the East Village Other, the Los Angeles Free Press, the Fifth Estate and the Berkeley Barb. Founded by Paul Sawyer, Paul Dorpat and Lorenzo Milam, it sprang from their intellectual fervor at the Free University, an alternative thinktank they also founded. Eventually star-illustrator Walt Crowley assumed editorship. A pebble in the shoe of Seattle establishment, the "hip rag" brought attention to civic injustice by rallying its youthful readership to activism. The apogee of that effort followed the 1970 killing of students at Kent State: over the course of May 5-8, Helix organized protests that blocked US Interstate 5 while marching between the University District and rallies at the Federal Courthouse in downtown Seattle. Early issues are increasingly scarce. This issue is housed in a removable, clear sleeve with an acid-free backing.
An early issue of the Seattle underground bi-weekly (that transitioned to a weekly in September 1969) with interviews about pot smoking on the UW campus and sculptor Ron Gasowsky, and featuring ads for the opening of Whitey Davis' The San Francisco Sound in the former Encore Ballroom with West Coast Natural Gas, The Daily Flash "farewell appearance" at the HUB ballroom and Doc Watson at the Friends Center.
Price: $60.00