Alta

Biography

Shameless Hussy i am one of the true hussies; i have no shame; i was a housewife, and stretched from the housiness of it (hus) and the wifiness of (wif/hus-wif) to a woman who cant bear wifedom (hussy) / i grew beyond the house, like alice after eating too many cookies. exactly what i did; i ate too many cookies; lovers, poetry, moving my body in a new way, an old way, the way women like me have always moved, largely; with great motions beyond our allotted sphere, with more need than fear, and more grace than shame. Alta

Shameless Hussy Press was started in Oakland, California in 1969 by Alta (Gerrey) a poet and prose writer. She published three of her own books as well as the first poems of influential writers, Susan Griffin and Pat Parker and the first edition of the ground-breaking play, "For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide, When the Rainbow Is Enuf" by Ntozake Shange and new editions of "Lavinia" and "Haunted Pool" by George Sand. Alta also published many other feminist writers, mostly women, and children's books by her own children and others. Shameless Hussy Press was the first feminist/women-owned press in America and influenced other presses and publishers such as Women's Press which published in the seventies in Oakland, California. Alta continued Shameless Hussy Press until 1989.

The Shameless Hussy Press Archive is part of the California Feminist Presses Collection which is a project of the University of California Women's Studies Consortium.

The following chronological list contains publications by Alta whether published and printed by Shameless Hussy Press or not, and publications distributed but not published by Shameless Hussy Press.

• 1969 - 1978 : Remember our fire (continued by Shameless Hussy Review). Periodical. No. 1, 3-6.
• 1969: Freedom's in sight: poems & collages / by Alta. Drawings by Lorelei. [Berkeley, Calif.]: Series title: Aldebaran Review: printed by Noh Directions Press, 1969. Series title: Aldebaran review; 5.
• 1970: Letters to women / Alta [San Lorenzo, Calif., Shameless Hussy Press, 1970].
• 1971: No visible means of support / Alta. [San Lorenzo, Calif.: Shameless Hussy Press, c1971]. Song of the wife; Song of the mistress / Alta; [drawings, Martha Kuech]. San Lorenzo, Calif.: Shameless Hussy Press, 1971. Burn this and memorize yourself; poems by Alta. Photographs by Ellen Shumsky. [New York, Times Change Press, c1971. Dear sky / by Susan Griffin. Berkeley, Calif.: Shameless Hussy Press, 1971. Personae non gratae / Paul Mariah. San Lorenzo, Calif.: Shameless Hussy Press, c1971. Child of myself / Pat Parker. [San Lorenzo, Calif.: Shameless Hussy Press, 1971?].
• 1972: Women, poetry & the small presses / [edited by Alta]. [Paradise, Ca.: Dustbooks?, 1972?]. Series title: Small press review; v. 3, no. 3. Through / Alta. [San Francisco: Panjandrum Press], 1972. Series title: Panjandrum broadside. Immersion / by Mary Mackey; with illustrations by Mady Sklar. [San Lorenzo, Calif.: Shameless Hussy Press, c1972]. Self-defense for girls & women: a physical education course [by Bruce Tegner & Alice McGrath]. Ventura, Calif., Thor Pub. Co.[1972, c1969].
• 1973: Bittersweet; poems / Joyce Carol Thomas [San Jose, Calif., Firesign Press, 1973]. Personae non gratae / Paul Mariah. San Lorenzo, Calif.: Shameless Hussy Press, c1973. True story; prose by Alta. Drawings by Pat. [Oakland, Calif.] Mama's Press [c1973]. Dear sky / by Susan Griffin. San Lorenzo, Calif.: Shameless Hussy Press, c1973. The further fattening adventures of Pudge, girl blimp. no. [1]-3 / Lee Marrs. Berkeley, Calif.: Last Gasp Eco-Funnies, 1973-1977. The old house on the Croton / Lyn Lifshin. [San Lorenzo, Calif.: Shameless Hussy Press, c1973]. Puppet X: a lamentable tragedie / Jerry Ratch. [San Lorenzo, Calif.: Shameless Hussy Press, 1973]. Let them be said / by Susan Griffin; [graphics, Joanne Bourgault, Jeri Robertson, Frida Kohler]. [Berkeley, Calif.: Black Widow Publications, c1973].
• 1974: The sink: [six short stories] / Susan Griffin. San Lorenzo, Calif.: Shameless Hussy Press, [c1974]. The vow: for Anne Hutchinson / Alta. [San Leandro, Calif.]: Shameless Hussy Press, c1974. And all living things their children / Dan Georgakas. San Lorenzo, Calif.: Shameless Hussey Press, [1974]. Snake's tooth / John Oliver Simon. Berkeley, Calif.: Aldebaran Review, c1974. Series title: Aldebaran review; 16. & everybody is a children / Kia Simon, Lorelei Bosserman, Edith Hodgkinson. San Lorenzo, Calif.: Shameless Hussy Press, c1974. Momma: a start on all the untold stories. New York, Times Change Press; [distributed by Monthly Press, 1974]. Crystal breezes: poems / by Joyce Carol Thomas. 1st ed. Berkeley, Calif.: Firesign Press, c1974.
• 1975: Family way / Gail Todd. Shameless Hussy Press, c1975. Blessing: poems / by Joyce Carol Thomas. [1st ed.]. [Berkeley, Ca.: Jocato Press, c1975]. The small singer / Mimi Albert. San Lorenzo, Calif.: Shameless Hussy Press, c1975. I am not a practicing angel: poems / by Alta; foreword by Marge Piercy; drawings by Raymond Larrett. Trumansburg, N.Y.: Crossing Press, [1975]. If we know where the poems come from why don't we just go there: a collection of poems from "Women making poetry" offered by Alta at UC Extension Workshop, fall 1975. San Lorenzo, CA: Shameless Hussy Press, 1975. Pauline & the mysterious pervert / by Alta. [Warwick, N.Y.?]: Wyrd Press, c1975. Poems and prose / by Alta. Pittsburgh: Know Inc., [1975?]. For colored girls who have considered suicide, when the rainbow is enuf / Ntosake [sic] Shange; [drawings by Wopo Holup]. [San Lorenzo, Calif.: Shameless Hussy Press, c1975]. Theme & variations: longpoem / by Alta; drawings by Mady Sklar. San Lorenzo, Calif.: Shameless Hussy Press, c1975. Series title: Aldebaran review; 18. Clown birth / Jerry Ratch. San Lorenzo, Ca.: Shameless Hussy Press, 1975.
• 1976: Puppet X / Jerry Ratch. 2d ed. San Lorenzo, Ca.: Shameless Hussy Press, 1976. The haunted pool= La mare au diable / from the French of George Sand by Frank Hunter Potter. San Lorenzo, Calif.: Shameless Hussy Press, 1976. Lavinia / George Sand; translated from the French by G. Burnham Ives; illustrations from a painting by J. B. Graff. San Lorenzo, Calif.: Shameless Hussy Press, c1976. Calamity Jane's letters to her daughter / Martha Jane Cannary Hickok. 1st Shameless Hussy ed. San Lorenzo, Calif.: Shameless Hussy Press, c1976. Leila / Judith Murray. Shameless Hussy Press, c1976. A pen, some paper, pen & paper / Opal Nations; [illustrated by Ellen Frank]. San Lorenzo, Calif.: Shameless Hussy Press, c1976. Sassafrass / by Ntozake Shange; [portrait by Thulani; photograph by Aman]. San Lorenzo, Calif.: Shameless Hussy Press, c1976. Camp notes and other poems / by Mitsuye Yamada. San Lorenzo, Calif.: Shameless Hussy Press, c1976.
• 1977: Sassafrass / by Ntozake Shange. Berkeley, Calif.: Shameless Hussy Press, c1977. The wise queen / Kia Simon. Shameless Hussy Press, c1977. Monster coloring book / Pamela, Shelley, Lori, and Anthony. Shameless Hussy Press, c1971, c1977. Self-defense & assault prevention for girls & women / by Bruce Tegner & Alice McGrath. Ventura, Calif.: Thor Pub. Co., 1977.
• 1978: Fight for freedom: a slave girl's escape / Pamela Erens. Shameless Hussy Press, c1978. Mother Racoon and family / James Adam Eriksen. Shameless Hussy Press, c1978. I don't know you but I love you -- write me a letter? / Felicia Hernandez. Shameless Hussy Press, c1978. [reading from Momma] / Alta accompanied by Dan Skarry. Berkeley, Calif.: University of California Extension Media Center; Washington (P.O. Box 50145, Washington D.C. 20004): distrib. by Poets' Audio Center, [1978]. 1 sound cassette (ca. 30 min.): 1 7/8 ips, 2 track, mono. Series title: A mouth that speaks.
• 1979: New plays by women / edited by Susan LaTempa; with plays by Susan Boyd ... [et al.]. Berkeley, Calif.: Shameless Hussy Press, 1979. Our mothers' daughters / Judith Arcana. Berkeley: Shameless Hussy Press, 1979. Strawberries / Barbara Noda; drawings by Wendy Yoshimura. Berkeley, Calif.: Shameless Hussy Press, c1979.
• 1980: Fifteen past seventy: counsel from my elders / James Maas; [drawings by Fran Raboff]. Berkeley: Shameless Hussy Press, 1980. The shameless hussy: selected stories, essays, and poetry / by Alta; introd. by Judy Grahn. The tenth muse: women poets before 1806: a rediscovery of 540 women poets lost to history / Jean Buyze. Berkeley, Calif.: Shameless Hussy Press, c1980.
• 1981: Neither of us can break the other's hold: poems for my father / John Oliver Simon. Berkeley, Calif.: Shameless Hussy Press, 1981. My special father and me / by Jennifer Jaffe. Berkeley, Calif.: Shameless Hussy Press, c1981.
• 1982: A herstory of prostitution in western Europe / by Jess Wells. Berkeley, CA: Shameless Hussy Press, c1982. The worlds tiniest dog / Amanda Meltzer. San Lorenzo, Calif.: Shameless Hussy Press, 1982.
• 1983: Diana Lucifera / Marilyn Krysl. Berkeley, Calif.: Shameless Hussy Press, c1983.
• 1984: Cabin journal / Yvonne Pepin. Shameless Hussy Press, c1984.
• 1985: Speaking of friends: the variety of man-to-man friendships / [compiled] by James Maas; photos by Sam Julty. Berkeley, CA: Shameless Hussy Press, c1985.
• 1986: Three summers: a journal / by Yvonne Pepin; illustrated by the author. Berkeley, Calif.: Shameless Hussy Press, c1986. Home front: women and Vietnam / by Barthy Byrd. Berkeley, CA: Shameless Hussy Press, c1986.
• 1987: The Wander woman's phrasebook / Alison Owings. Shameless Hussy Press, c1987. April & June / Nancy Travis. Berkeley, CA: Shameless Hussy Press, 1987.
• 1989: Deluged with dudes: platonic & erotic love poems to men / by Alta. Berkeley, Calif.: Shameless Hussy Press, c1989.
• 1990: Traveling tales: flings I've flung in foreign parts / Alta. Berkeley, Calif.: Acapella Communications, c1990.

From the guide to the Shameless Hussy Press Records, 1968-1989, (University of California, Santa Cruz. University Library. Special Collections)