I rencetly found this item in the collection, but it does not have any publication information. Based on other copies of this document in the collection it is most likely attributed to a Stephen Miller, but it has been difficult to pinpoint his associations. The pamphlet also mentions Thomas A. Bresnaham from the State (MA?) Commission to Curb Communism. The item calls into question Gordon Hall’s communist sympathies. Although I do not know much about this item I chose to include it because it illustrates Gordon Hall’s profile in the extremist community. Through his collecting and writing Gordon Hall was a known entity to both left and right wing groups.

Send an email along if you think you might know more about this item.

This week’s highlight is a bit topical. With all of the coverage of the current gun control legislation I thought I would share an item from the Jews for the Preservation of Firearms Ownership (JPFO) which is an organization based in Hartford, Wisconsin founded by former firearms dealer Aaron S. Zelman in 1986. [1] According to the JPFO website the “JPFO initially aimed at educating the Jewish community about the historical evils that Jews have suffered when they have been disarmed” and then later expanded to prove that “’gun control’ had played a fundamental role in all the major genocides of the 20th Century … not just the Holocaust.”[2]  The JPFO is noted for its extreme view of gun control legislation and has been criticized by Abraham Foxman, National Director of the Anti-Defamation League who wrote “anti-Semitism has a long and painful history, and the linkage to gun control is a tactic by Jews for the Preservation of Firearms Ownership to manipulate the fear of anti-Semitism toward their own end.”[3]

The group has released a variety of publications including pamphlets, documentaries and comic books. It is difficult to determine how many members and/or subscribers the group has. There are only 6 items from the JPFO in the Hall Hoag collection.

Jews For the Preservation of Firearm Ownership Poster (1991)

The Realist was a magazine of “social-political-religious criticism and satire” published and edited by Paul Krassner from 1958-2001 with 146 editions.  The Realist was a byproduct and helped influence the counter culture press of the 20^th century.[1] It included writing from Norman Mailer, Ken Kesey and Joseph Heller as well controversial figures like George Lincoln Rockwell (who has an editorial in the edition shown below).  By the time publication ended The Realist was circulated to between 5000-7000 people and in its heyday could be bought at newsstands.[2] The Realist was known for being one of the first magazines to publish conspiracy theories and wrote about the Watergate scandal prior to the mainstream press. Krasner was a cofounder of the Yippies—counterculture political party known for their theatrical demonstrations outside of the 1968 Democratic Convention.[3] The Hall Hoag collection only contains about 12 issues of the Realist.

The entire Realist archive, including the issue below is available online: http://www.ep.tc/realist/39/

The Realist No. 39 (1962)