The Last Supper of Chicano Heroes: Selected Works of José Antonio Burciaga

by José Antonio Burciaga, Mimi R. Gladstein (Editor), Daniel Chacón (Editor)

Overview

Widely considered one of the most important voices in the Chicano literary canon, José Antonio Burciaga was a pioneer who exposed inequities and cultural difficulties through humor, art, and deceptively simple prose. In this anthology and tribute, Mimi R. Gladstein and Daniel Chacón bring together dozens of remarkable examples of Burciaga’s work. His work never demonstrates machismo or sexism, as he believed strongly that all Chicano voices are equally valuable.

Best known for his books Weedee Peepo, Drink Cultura, and Undocumented Love, Burciaga was also a poet, cartoonist, founding member of the comedy troupe Cultura Clash, and a talented muralist whose well-known work The Last Supper of Chicano Heroes became almost more famous than the man. This first and only collection of Burciaga’s work features thirty-eight illustrations and incorporates previously unpublished essays and drawings, including selections from his manuscript “The Temple Gang,” a memoir he was writing at the time of his death. In addition, Gladstein and Chacón address Burciaga’s importance to Chicano letters.

A joy to read, this rich compendium is an important contribution not only to Chicano literature but also to the preservation of the creative, spiritual, and political voice of a talented and passionate man.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780816549092
Publisher:	University of Arizona Press
Publication date:	08/23/2022
Series:	Camino del Sol
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	256
File size:	5 MB

About the Author

Mimi Reisel Gladstein is the author of four books and coeditor of one. Her scholarly articles, covering subjects as diverse as the Harry Potter series and bilingual wordplay in Hemingway and Steinback, have been translated and published in both Mexico and Japan. Gladstein has been recognized internationally with the John J. and Angeline R. Pruis Award for teaching Steinback and the Burckhardt Award for Steinback scholarship.

Daniel Chacón is a professor of creative writing at the University of Texas, El Paso. He earned an MFA in creative writing from the University of Oregon. He is the author of several books, including The Cholo Tree and Hotel Juárez: Stories, Rooms and Loops, which won the 2014 PEN Oakland Award for Literary Excellence.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments     xi
Editors' Introduction     1
Adelante!     17
Cosas Linguisticas
Essays
Bilingualism Isn't Just for Hispanics, You Know (1980, San Jose Mercury)     27
An Anglicized Nightmare in Official English (1981, San Jose Mercury)     30
Chicano Terms of Endearment (1988, Weedee Peepo)     32
Por Quien Dobla la Campana-For Whom the Bell Tolls (1988, uncollected)     35
Pendejismo (1993, Drink Cultura)     39
What's in a Spanish Name? (1995, Spilling the Beans)     42
Ay Caramba! (1995, Spilling the Beans)     46
Bilingual Cognates (1995, Spilling the Beans)     49
Spanish Words in Anglo-American Literature: A Chicano Perspective (1996, Spanish Loanwords in the English Language)     52
Poetry
Lo del Corazon (1986, 1992, Undocumented Love/Amor Indocumentado)     56
Modismos (1980, 1992, Undocumented Love/Amor Indocumentado)     58
Colors Have No Translations (date unknown, uncollected)     60
Cartoons     63
Las Fronteras of Culture Clash
Essays
Living Astride the Line between Two Cultures Can Be Difficult (1980, Denver Post)     75
The First Thanksgiving (1988, Weedee Peepo)     78
An Anglo, Jewish, Mexican Christmas (1988, Weedee Peepo)     81
E.T. and Me (1988, Weedee Peepo)     84
The White Gospel (1991, uncollected)     87
Reasons to Celebrate El Cinco de Mayo (1993, Drink Cultura)     92
The Last Supper of Chicano Heroes (1993, Drink Cultura)     95
Pachucos and the Taxicab Brigade (1993, San Jose Weekly)     99
Quetzalcoatl (1993, Spilling the Beans)     107
One Who Knows Finds No Humor in Prejudice (date unknown, uncollected)     112
For Whites Only (1991, uncollected)     114
Chicano Art: A War That Was Never Won (date unknown, uncollected)     117
Fiction
It's in the Mail (date unknown, uncollected)     120
La Puerta (1992, Mirrors beneath the Earth)     124
Poetry
Redwood City (1992, Undocumented Love/Amor Indocumentado)     129
El Juan from Sanjo (1992, Undocumented Love/Amor Indocumentado)     131
Sister Maria de la Natividad Burciaga Zapata (1992, Undocumented Love/Amor Indocumentado)     133
Virgin Variations     135
Cooks and Comidas
Essays
A Bohemian's Toast (1988, Weedee Peepo)     151
I Remember Masa (1988, Weedee Peepo)     154
Tio Pancho and the Margarita (1988, Weedee Peepo)     161
The Great Taco War (1993, Drink Cultura)     163
The Joy of Jalapenos (1993, Drink Cultura)      167
Spilling the Beans (1995, Spilling the Beans)     172
In Defense of the Jalapeno and Other Chiles (1995, Spilling the Beans)     176
Poetry
Litany for the Tomato (1992, Undocumented Love/Amor Indocumentado)     180
Berta Crocker's Bicentennial Recipe (1992, Undocumented Love/Amor Indocumentado)     182
Skool Daze (1992, Undocumented Love/Amor Indocumentado)     183
From His Sketch Pad     185
Friends     195
The Temple Gang (unpublished memoir)
Set'n the Scene: El Paso, Texas     203
Maria Guadalupe Fernandez     208
Rabbi Joseph M. Roth     212
The Day We Saw God     215
Birth of the Temple Gang     217
Work and Football     219
From Hebrew School to St. Patrick's School     224
Who Killed Jesus Christ?     227
Mexico, Loved and Surreal     229

Editorial Reviews

Burciaga seeks the roots of his Chicano heritage in Mexico and Texas, telling today’s Mexican Americans how the Chicano movement has changed their lives for the better. His personal anecdotes of growing up a stranger to both of his native lands speak to today’s immigrants, especially the second and third generations.”—Library Journal

From the Publisher