intended to bring in a paycheck,[citation needed].In the late 1970s, at the suggestion of novelist and poet Charles Bukowski,[3] Black Sparrow Press began to republish the (then out-of-print) works of Fante, creating a resurgence in his popularity. When Black Sparrow was reconfigured on its founder's retirement in 2002, publication of John Fante's works was taken over by HarperCollins under the Ecco imprint, but not before Black Sparrow Press could publish the last of Fante's uncollected stories in The Big Hunger (2000). Full of Life: The Biography of John Fante was published by Stephen Cooper also in 2000, followed by The Fante Reader in 2003. Also available are two collections of letters, Fante/Mencken: A Personal Correspondence(1989) and Selected Letters (1991).Legacy and recognition[edit]A view of John Fante Square in downtown Los AngelesHe is known to be one of the first writers to portray the tough times faced by many writers in L.A.. Robert Towne has called Ask the Dust the greatest novel ever written about Los Angeles.His work and style has influenced similar authors such as Charles Bukowski, who stated in his introduction to Ask the Dust "Fante was my god".[4] He was proclaimed by Time Out as one of America's "criminally neglected writers."[citation needed]In 1987, Fante was posthumously awarded the PEN USA President's Award.[5]On October 13, 2009, Los Angeles City Council member Jan Perry put forward a motion, seconded by Jose Huizar, that the intersection of Fifth Street and Grand Avenue be designated John Fante Square. The site is outside the Los Angeles Central Libraryfrequented by the young Fante, and where Charles Bukowski discovered Ask The Dust. On April 8, 2010, the author's 101st birthday, the Fante Square sign was unveiled in a noon ceremony attended by Fante's family, fans and city officials. Fante Square is located near the old Bunker Hill neighborhood he wrote about, and where he also lived.[6]Film and theater adaptations[edit]Dominique Deruddere directed the movie version of Wait Until Spring, Bandini, which was released in 1989. In March 2006, Paramount Pictures released Ask the Dust, directed by Robert Towne and starring Colin Farrell, Salma Hayek and Donald Sutherland. In December 2006, a 2001 documentary film about Fante, entitled A Sad Flower in the Sand(directed by Jan Louter), aired on the PBS series Independent Lens.On January 18, 2001, the play 1933 by Randal Myler and Brockman Seawell, based on the novel 1933 Was a Bad Year, premiered at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts.Bibliography[edit]The Road to Los Angeles (1936, publ.1985)Wait Until Spring, Bandini (1938)Ask the Dust (1939)Dago Red (1940), short story collectionFull of Life (1952)Brave Burro (book, with Rudolph Borchert) (1970)The Brotherhood of the Grape (1977)Dreams from Bunker Hill (1982)The Wine of Youth: Selected Stories (posthumously, 1985), Dago Red and short story collection1933 Was a Bad Year (post., 1985; incomplete)West of Rome (post., 1986), two novellasFante/Mencken: John Fante & H. L. Mencken: A Personal Correspondence, 19321950 (post., 1989), lettersJohn Fante: Selected Letters, 19321981 (post., 1991), lettersThe Big Hunger: Stories, 19321959 (post., 2000), short story collection