23 June 2008

Original Falcons For Old Family Rifts

23 Pepper - Year 41 p.r.S.P.

I received an e-mail from Nick Tharcher last week - detailing the formation of Original Falcon Press. It seems that shortly after Dr. C.S. Hyatt's passing--Michael Miller, Hyatt's biological (and possibly estranged) son was allegedly able to get Hyatt to sign some papers stating that Miller would then control New Falcon Publications, Hyatt's book imprint, founded in 1979.

New Falcon (when began as "Falcon Press") was an outlet for books on magick, occult philosophy and other esoteric topics that more than likely wouldn't receive a "mainstream" publication. Over the years it featured titles by Robert Anton Wilson, Timothy Leary and Antero Alli, to name just a few of New Falcon's more well-known authors. Nick Tharcher was a good friend of Hyatt's and acted as a buisness partner in N.F. According to Tharcher, after Hyatt's death, he was effectively locked out of N.F. interests. In the meantime, Miller appears to be attempting to destroy N.F.'s reputation as a quality publisher.

I've visited New Falcon's website right after receiving Tharcher's e-mail and it does seem to lack the quality of the former site. The inflated prices for some of the items seem to belie a bit of a 'quick-cash' grab-in, to me. That and the request for a $1,000 donation for a Hyatt Memorial Library...hmmm...I won't go into those poor excuses for book-cover scans. I only hope that R.A.W.'s estate can rescue his books from New Falcon's clutches at some point.

I'll leave the reader to make their own decision about all of this cloak-and-dagger/family business stuff - but I know where I'll be shopping for any more of Hyatt's material.

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