Adam Parfrey facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Adam Parfrey
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| Born | April 12, 1957 New York City, U.S.
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| Died | May 10, 2018 (aged 61) Seattle, Washington, U.S.
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| Occupation |
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| Years active | 1982–2018 |
| Spouse(s) |
Jodi Wille
(m. 2006; div. 2011) |
| Parent(s) | Woodrow Parfrey (father) |
Adam Parfrey (born April 12, 1957 – died May 10, 2018) was an American writer, editor, and book publisher. He was known for publishing books about interesting and sometimes unusual topics.
Contents
Early Life and Beginnings
Adam Parfrey was born in New York City. When he was a child, his family moved to Los Angeles. His father, Woodrow Parfrey, was an actor, and his mother, Rosa Ellovich, directed plays.
After finishing high school, Adam went to college at the University of California, Santa Cruz and UCLA. He later left college and moved to San Francisco. There, he started a small magazine called IDEA, but it only published two issues.
In 1983, Adam moved to Hoboken, New Jersey. He began working at the Strand Bookstore in New York City. In 1984, with friends Kim Seltzer and George Petros, he started another magazine called EXIT. He worked on three issues before leaving in 1987.
Publishing Career
Adam Parfrey became well-known for his work in publishing. He started two important publishing companies.
Amok Press: First Steps
In 1987, Adam Parfrey and Kenneth Swezey started Amok Press in New York. Their first book was an English translation of a novel called Michael.
Amok Press also published Adam's own book, Apocalypse Culture. This book was a collection of articles, interviews, and documents. It explored many unique and sometimes strange parts of culture. In total, Amok Press released eight books. These included You Can't Win by Jack Black and The Grand Guignol: Theatre of Fear and Terror.
Feral House: A New Chapter
Adam Parfrey later moved back to the West Coast. While living in Portland, Oregon, he started a new publishing company called Feral House in 1989.
Over the years, Feral House published many books by different authors. These authors included Steven Blush, John Zerzan, and Anton LaVey. Adam also wrote or edited many books for Feral House himself.
In 2000, a follow-up book, Apocalypse Culture II, was published. In 2005, Adam also helped start another publishing company, Process Media, with Jodi Wille.
Vice Magazine once said that Adam Parfrey was like an early version of popular online communities such as 4chan and Reddit.
Later Life and Passing
Adam Parfrey moved from Portland to Los Angeles for a while. He then settled permanently in Port Townsend, Washington, where he lived for the rest of his life.
He passed away in Seattle on May 10, 2018. His death was due to problems from several strokes.
Awards and Recognition
Adam Parfrey's work was recognized with an award.
- In 2012, his book Ritual America: Secret Brotherhoods and Their Influence on America Society, which he wrote with Craig Heimbichner, won a Silver Medal in the Independent Publisher Awards for Best History Book.
Selected Works
Adam Parfrey wrote and edited many books. Here are some of them:
- Apocalypse Culture (Amok Press, 1988)
- Rants and Incendiary Tracts (Amok Press, 1988)
- The Manson File (Amok Press, 1988)
- Apocalypse Culture: Revised and Expanded (Amok Press, 1990)
- Cult Rapture: Revelations of the Apocalyptic Mind (Feral House, 1995)
- End Is Near!: Visions of Apocalypse, Millennium and Utopia (Dilettante Press, 1998)
- Muerte!: Death in Mexican Popular Culture (Feral House, 2000)
- Apocalypse Culture II (Feral House, 2000)
- Extreme Islam: Anti-American Propaganda of Muslim Fundamentalism (Feral House, 2002)
- Lexicon Devil: The Fast Times and Short Life of Darby Crash and the Germs (Feral House, 2002)
- It's a Man's World: Men's Adventure Magazines – the Postwar Pulps (Feral House, 2003)
- War Is a Racket: The Anti-War Classic by America's Most Decorated General (Feral House, 2003)
- Two Thousand Formulas, Recipes, and Trade Secrets: The Classic Do-It-Yourself Book of Practical Everyday Chemistry (Feral House, 2003)
- Secret Source: The Law of Attraction and Its Hermetic Influence Throughout the Ages (Feral House, 2007)
- Feral Man in a Feral Land: Strange Tales from the Apocalypse Culture (Feral House, 2010)
- Ritual America: Secret Brotherhoods and Their Influence on American Society: A Visual Guide (Feral House, 2012)
- Citizen Keane: The Big Lies Behind the Big Eyes (Feral House, 2014)
Articles and Columns
Adam Parfrey also wrote articles for magazines like the Village Voice and San Diego Reader. From 1990 to 1994, he wrote a weekly column called "HelL.A." for the San Diego Reader.
Recordings and Collaborations
Adam Parfrey was involved in some music and audio projects:
- He released an audio CD called S.W.A.T. – Deep Inside a Cop's Mind: The Soundtrack for the Next Police State in 1994.
- Another audio CD, A Sordid Evening of Sonic Sorrows, came out in 1997.
- He worked with Boyd Rice on his album Hatesville.
- He voiced the character of Lord Jehova in an audio reading called The Gods on War.
Images for kids
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Adam Parfrey
