The Atrocity Exhibition

TitleThe Atrocity Exhibition
Year for Search1969
AuthorsBallard, J[ames] G[raham](1930-2009)
Tertiary AuthorsBallard, J. G.
Date Published1969
PublisherJonathan Cape.
Place PublishedLondon
KeywordsEnglish author, Male author
Annotation

Wide-ranging dystopia with the violence of the contemporary world the primary focus.

Additional Publishers

Rpt. St. Albans, Eng.: Triad/Panther, 1979. The first U.S. ed. Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1970, was suppressed and destroyed. The first existing U.S. ed. U.S. ed. as Love and Napalm: Export U.S.A. New York: Grove Press, 1972. Parts originally published between 1966 and 1969 as “The Assassination of John Fitzgerald Kennedy Considered as a Downhill Motor Race.” Ambit, no. 29 (1966): 3-4, rpt. in New Worlds SF 50.171 (March 1967): 119-21, rpt. in England Swings SF: Stories of speculative fiction. Ed. Judith Merril (Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1968), 393-95; and in his The Complete Short Stories London: Flamingo, 2001), 720-21; “The Atrocity Exhibition.” New Worlds SF 50.166 (September 1966): 91-102; “The Assassination Weapon.” New Worlds SF 49.161 (April 1966): 4-12; “You: Coma: Marilyn Monroe.” Ambit, no. 27 (1966): 3-6, rpt. in New Worlds SF 50.163 (June 1966): 66-71; “You and Me and the Continuum.” Impulse 1.1 (March 1966): 53-60;  rpt. in England Swings SF: Stories of speculative fiction. Ed. Judith Merril (Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1968), 95-102; “Plan for the Assassination of Jacqueline Kennedy.” Ambit, no. 31 (Spring 1967): 9-11; rpt. in England Swings SF: Stories of speculative fiction. Ed. Judith Merril (Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1968), 397-401, with a note on the reaction to it on pp. 402-06; “Notes Towards a Mental Breakdown.” Originally published as “The Death Module.” New Worlds 51.173 (July 1967): 20-25; “Love and Napalm: Export USA.” Circuit, no. 6 (June 1968): 55-57; “The Generations of America.” New Worlds, no 183 (October 1968): 13-14; “The University of Death.” The Transatlantic Review, no. 29 (Summer 1968): 68-79; “Why I Want to Fuck Ronald Reagan.” International Times (1968), rpt. Brighton, Eng.: Unicorn Bookshop, 1968, and London: Plasnet 1988; and in his The Complete Short Stories London: Flamingo, 2001), 757-59; “The Great American Nude.” Ambit, no. 36 (Summer 1968): 39-43; “Crash!” ICA Eventsheet (February 1969); “The Summer Cannibals.” New Worlds, no. 186 (January 1969): 19-23; and “Tolerances of the Human Face.” Encounter 33.3 (September 1969). New rev. ed. with annotations by the author and four additional stories. San Francisco, CA: RE/SEARCH Publications, 1990. The new stories were previously published as “Princess Margaret’s Facelift.” New Worlds, no. 199 (March 1970): 8-; “Mae West's Reduction Mammoplasty.” Ambit, no. 44 (Summer 1970): 9-11; “Queen Elizabeth's Rhinoplasty.” Triquarterly, no. 351 (Winter 1976): 18-20 [Omitted from all U.K. editions]; and "The Secret History of World War 3." Ambit, no. 114 (Autumn 1988): 2-9. The book was first published in Danish translation as Grusomhedsudstillingen. Rhodes, 1969. Rpt. St. Albans, Eng.: Triad/Panther, 1979. The first U.S. ed. Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1970, was suppressed and destroyed. The first existing U.S. ed. U.S. ed. as Love and Napalm: Export U.S.A. New York: Grove Press, 1972. Parts originally published between 1966 and 1969 as “The Assassination of John Fitzgerald Kennedy Considered as a Downhill Motor Race.” Ambit, no. 29 (1966): 3-4, rpt. in New Worlds SF 50.171 (March 1967): 119-21, rpt. in England Swings SF: Stories of speculative fiction. Ed. Judith Merril (Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1968), 393-95; and in his The Complete Short Stories London: Flamingo, 2001), 720-21; “The Atrocity Exhibition.” New Worlds SF 50.166 (September 1966): 91-102; “The Assassination Weapon.” New Worlds SF 49.161 (April 1966): 4-12; “You: Coma: Marilyn Monroe.” Ambit, no. 27 (1966): 3-6, rpt. in New Worlds SF 50.163 (June 1966): 66-71; “You and Me and the Continuum.” Impulse 1.1 (March 1966): 53-;  rpt. in England Swings SF: Stories of speculative fiction. Ed. Judith Merril (Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1968), 95-102; “Plan for the Assassination of Jacqueline Kennedy.” Ambit, no. 31 (Spring 1967): 9-11; rpt. in England Swings SF: Stories of speculative fiction. Ed. Judith Merril (Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1968), 397-401, with a note on the reaction to it on pp. 402-06; “Notes Towards a Mental Breakdown.” Originally published as “The Death Module.” New Worlds 51.173 (July 1967): 20-25; “Love and Napalm: Export USA.” Circuit, no. 6 (June 1968): 55-57; “The Generations of America.” New Worlds, no 183 (October 1968): 13-14; “The University of Death.” The Transatlantic Review, no. 29 (Summer 1968): 68-79; “Why I Want to Fuck Ronald Reagan.” International Times (1968) [Not Found}, rpt. Brighton, Eng.: Unicorn Bookshop, 1968, and London: Plasnet 1988; and in his The Complete Short Stories London: Flamingo, 2001), 757-59; “The Great American Nude.” Ambit, no. 36 (Summer 1968): 39-43; “Crash!” ICA Eventsheet (February 1969); “The Summer Cannibals.” New Worlds, no. 186 (January 1969): 19-23; and “Tolerances of the Human Face.” Encounter 33.3 (September 1969). New rev. ed. with annotations by the author and four additional stories. San Francisco, CA: RE/SEARCH Publications, 1990. The new stories were previously published as “Princess Margaret’s Facelift.” New Worlds, no. 199 (March 1970): 8-; “Mae West's Reduction Mammoplasty.” Ambit, no. 44 (Summer 1970): 9-11; “Queen Elizabeth's Rhinoplasty.” Triquarterly, no. 351 (Winter 1976): 18-20 [Omitted from all U.K. editions]; and "The Secret History of World War 3." Ambit, no. 114 (Autumn 1988): 2-9. The book was first published in Danish translation as Grusomhedsudstillingen. Rhodes, 1969. 

Info Notes

For a detailed analysis of the stages of the book, see Mike Holliday, “Desperate Measures: A History of The Atrocity Exhibition.” The J.G. Ballard Book. Ed. Rick McGrath (Toronto, ON, Canada: Terminal, 2013), 104-14.  

Film in 2000 with a screenplay by Michael Kirby (1925-2002) and Jonathan Weiss (b. 1964) and directed by Weiss.

Title Note

U.S. ed. as Love and Napalm: Export U.S.A. New York: Grove Press, 1972.

Holding Institutions

PSt

Author Note

The English author (1930-2009) was born in China.

Full Text

1969 Ballard, J[ames] G[raham] (1930-2009). The Atrocity Exhibition. London: Jonathan Cape, 1970. Rpt. St. Albans, Eng.: Triad/Panther, 1979. The first U.S. ed. Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1970, was suppressed and destroyed. The first existing U.S. ed. U.S. ed. as Love and Napalm: Export U.S.A. New York: Grove Press, 1972. Parts originally published between 1966 and 1969 as “The Assassination of John Fitzgerald Kennedy Considered as a Downhill Motor Race.” Ambit, no. 29 (1966): 3-4, rpt. in New Worlds SF 50.171 (March 1967): 119-21, rpt. in England Swings SF: Stories of speculative fiction. Ed. Judith Merril (Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1968), 393-95; and in his The Complete Short Stories London: Flamingo, 2001), 720-21; “The Atrocity Exhibition.” New Worlds SF 50.166 (September 1966): 91-102; “The Assassination Weapon.” New Worlds SF 49.161 (April 1966): 4-12; “You: Coma: Marilyn Monroe.” Ambit, no. 27 (1966): 3-6, rpt. in New Worlds SF 50.163 (June 1966): 66-71; “You and Me and the Continuum.” Impulse 1.1 (March 1966): 53-60;  rpt. in England Swings SF: Stories of speculative fiction. Ed. Judith Merril (Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1968), 95-102; “Plan for the Assassination of Jacqueline Kennedy.” Ambit, no. 31 (Spring 1967): 9-11; rpt. in England Swings SF: Stories of speculative fiction. Ed. Judith Merril (Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1968), 397-401, with a note on the reaction to it on pp. 402-06; “Notes Towards a Mental Breakdown.” Originally published as “The Death Module.” New Worlds 51.173 (July 1967): 20-25; “Love and Napalm: Export USA.” Circuit, no. 6 (June 1968): 55-57; “The Generations of America.” New Worlds, no 183 (October 1968): 13-14; “The University of Death.” The Transatlantic Review, no. 29 (Summer 1968): 68-79; “Why I Want to Fuck Ronald Reagan.” International Times (1968) [Not Found], rpt. Brighton, Eng.: Unicorn Bookshop, 1968, and London: Plasnet 1988; and in his The Complete Short Stories London: Flamingo, 2001), 757-59; “The Great American Nude.” Ambit, no. 36 (Summer 1968): 39-43; “Crash!” ICA Eventsheet (February 1969); “The Summer Cannibals.” New Worlds, no. 186 (January 1969): 19-23; and “Tolerances of the Human Face.” Encounter 33.3 (September 1969). New rev. ed. with annotations by the author and four additional stories. San Francisco, CA: RE/SEARCH Publications, 1990. The new stories were previously published as “Princess Margaret’s Facelift.” New Worlds, no. 199 (March 1970): 8-; “Mae West's Reduction Mammoplasty.” Ambit, no. 44 (Summer 1970): 9-11; “Queen Elizabeth's Rhinoplasty.” Triquarterly, no. 351 (Winter 1976): 18-20 [Omitted from all U.K. editions]; and "The Secret History of World War 3." Ambit, no. 114 (Autumn 1988): 2-9. The book was first published in Danish translation as Grusomhedsudstillingen. Rhodes, 1969. For a detailed analysis of the stages of the book, see Mike Holliday, “Desperate Measures: A History of The Atrocity Exhibition.” The J.G. Ballard Book. Ed. Rick McGrath (Toronto, ON, Canada: Terminal, 2013), 104-14.  Film in 2000 with a screenplay by Michael Kirby (1925-2002) and Jonathan Weiss (b. 1964) and directed by Weiss.

Wide-ranging dystopia with the violence of the contemporary world the primary focus.