When you're 19, you are likely to do things you'll later regret. It happens to almost everyone, and William Powell is no exception. Powell is the author of The Anarchist Cookbook, a 160 page book that teaches its readers how to make TNT, blow up suspension bridges, cook up narcotics, and engage in many other illegal and destructive activities.
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"If the real people of America, the silent majority, are going to survive, they must educate themselves. That is the purpose of this book." --William Powell, The Anarchist Cookbook |
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But that was thirty years ago, and Powell has gotten older, had kids, and converted to Christianity - all of which have contributed to his current desire to see his infamous book go out of print.
Powell explains his motivations and his current feelings toward the book in a letter he sent to many Webmasters of sites that mentioned or featured the 'cookbook'.
At the time, I was 19 years old and the Vietnam War and the so-called "counter culture movement" were at their height.... The book, in many respects, was a misguided product of my adolescent anger at the prospect of being drafted and sent to Vietnam to fight in a war that I did not believe in.
The letter, which also appears on Amazon.com's page for The Anarchist Cookbook, goes on to say that he's asked his publisher on several occasions to take the book out of print, but his request was refused. The letter strongly implies that the publisher used the author's age and inexperience as an excuse to misappropriate his rights and deny him royalties.
As well-written and heart-rending as the letter is, my skepticism prevailed over my outrage when reading it. A number of the claims the author makes just don't add up, and further research showed that, although the letter was not entirely false, it was a long, long way from being the whole truth.
In The Beginning...
The Anarchist Cookbook was first published in 1971 by Lyle Stuart, Inc., a publisher first established in 1956. The copyright for the book, as the author asserts in his letter, was taken out in the name of the publisher rather than the author:
Contrary to what is the normal custom, the copyright for the book was taken out in the name of the publisher rather than the author. I did not appreciate the significance of this at the time and would only come to understand it some years later when I requested that the book be taken out of print.
When Powell later requested that the book be allowed to go out of print, the letter says, his publisher refused saying that "the copyright was in his name and therefore such a decision was his to make - not the author's."
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"Our books test the boundaries of the First Amendment, ultimately strengthening it and protecting our personal freedom.... We remain committed not only to making a profit but also to protecting people’s right to free speech.
" --From the Barricade Books Website |
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Lyle Stuart, the former owner of Lyle Stuart, Inc. and the current owner of Barricade Books, tells a very different version of this story. According to Stuart, the book was copyrighted in the publisher's name deliberately, not to harm the Powell's interest, but rather to accommodate his unusual need for privacy. At the time, Powell had taken his son and was in Saudi Arabia hiding from his wife. Royalty checks, which over the years amounted to several hundred thousand dollars, were sent to his brother in a successful attempt to conceal his whereabouts.
Even if the copyright registration was taken out with less than honorable intent, a copyright registration doesn't transfer the ownership of the original work. Without the author's signature on a contract selling all rights to the publisher, the publisher's name on the copyright forms means very little.
So what happened between publication and this letter that caused the royalty payments to stop, and caused Powell to lose all rights to his book? The copyright issue does not stand up to scrutiny, nor does it explain the loss of royalties after several hundred thousand dollars had already been paid out. This is Powell's version of the events:
In 1976 I became a confirmed Anglican Christian and shortly thereafter I wrote to Lyle Stuart Inc. explaining that I no longer held the views that were expressed in the book and requested that The Anarchist Cookbook be taken out of print. The response from the publisher was that the copyright was in his name and therefore such a decision was his to make - not the author's. In the early 1980's, the rights for the book were sold to another publisher. I have had no contact with that publisher (other than to request that the book be taken out of print) and I receive no royalties.
According to Lyle Stuart, Powell has his dates wrong, but the Lyle Stuart, Inc. imprint was indeed sold. And there was considerable confusion that followed over who would be publishing The Anarchist Cookbook, but there's no reason that William Powell shouldn't know his new publisher as well as he did the old one.
Meet the new boss, same as the old boss...
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"I consider it to be a misguided and potentially dangerous publication which should be taken out of print." --William Powell |
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In 1980, Steven Schragis purchased Lyle Stuart Inc. for more than 12 million dollars. According to Stuart, The Anarchist Cookbook was the only title he decided to drop from his list. Stuart decided the book was too important to go out of print, so he found another company willing to buy the title. The company Stuart contacted offered Schragis $75,000, but backed out of the agreement at the last minute. Rather than see the book disappear into oblivion, Lyle Stuart bought The Anarchist Cookbook back from Schragis for $75,000.
This is how, after a brief juggle, Barricade Books, run by the same Lyle Stuart that originally accepted the manuscript for Lyle Stuart, Inc., came to publish The Anarchist Cookbook. It does not explain, however, how William Powell lost his royalties. The sale of a publishing company has no bearing on the intellectual properties of the authors they publish. A publisher can't sell rights it doesn't own.
God and Mammon
In the middle of the transition described above, it appeared as though the book was going to go out of print. It was then that William Powell contacted Stuart. "Powell said he wanted out. I bought his author rights from him for five figures," Stuart explained.
If there was ever a good time for William Powell to assure himself and his conscience that his book would disappear from bookstore shelves, he had it back then. If he had not sold his rights, it's likely the book would not have been reprinted. But he took the money, and lost his right to direct the future of his book.
So now it makes sense. Lyle Stuart purchased all the rights to The Anarchist Cookbook for a fair price, and can publish it forever, if that is his desire. Powell no longer has any right to the work, no longer receives royalties, has no right to demand that Barricade Books cease publication of the book he wrote three decades ago.
Ten years ago William Powell was given a choice between "morality" and money. He made his decision. Although it might sooth his conscience, it's unlikely he's winning any points with his deity of choice by 'bearing false witness' against his publisher.
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