In search of the ultimate barfly, Charles Bukowski

I remember returning to San Pedro's Williams' Book Store about a year ago, inquiring about the infamous local author Charles Bukowski - Did he ever come in here? Were you friends with the ol' Buk? What was he like?

With a soft, articulate voice, the store worker told me about Bukowski. He said that Bukowski would come in to hang around the front of the store where all of his books were lined up, and one night, one by one, Bukowski signed every book on that shelf.

Being a life-long resident of San Pedro, it crushes me to realize that such an impressionable author like Bukowski, who made his fame as being an honest writer, along with being the crudest and rudest man in 20th century literature, was always so close and yet so far.

When I found out about Esotouric, a company based in Los Angeles , which specializes in giving "offbeat bus tours exposing LA's secret history," according to its website, I booked myself a seat on the bus and brought along an open mind.

Adding appeal to this particular tour, which was aptly titled "Haunts of a Dirty Old Man: Charles Bukowski's L.A.," was that it'd take place on Bukowski's 14th year death anniversary, March 9.

I figured that this would be my chance to celebrate the 20th century drunkard and his favorite places: liquor stores; his homes, like one that was most recently threatened to be torn down; and the places that inspired his career, like the rotten climate of Skid Row, which, in Buk's day, was more of a bar and hooker hangout.

And while I was impressed with the tour leaders' clear enthusiasm over the tour subject, I was mesmerized by the diversity of the group, and its reek of beer by the third stop.

The experience was meant for enjoyment of an internal sense, flourishing the understanding of a man who spun the world and its people into a suspicious race, and yet kept his readers interested in more of his biting openness and insight to the darker aspects of humanity.

And strangely, sensations of a rare illusion overcame me throughout the tour, giving me that feeling as if I were there with Bukowski.

Bukowski lived as the reckless barfly, as the outlawed poet, as the author who gave us sick prose and poetry with even greater titles: "Erections, Ejaculations, Exhibitions and General Tales of Ordinary Madness," "Love is Dog from Hell" and "Notes of a Dirty Old Man."

You can travel to downtown L.A. to visit 900 Alameda to see the pristine face of the torturous beast that fed Bukowski material for "Post Office," or visit 5124 De Longpre, where Bukowski wrote the novel "Women."

But it'd probably save you time and energy if you let the Esotouric people show you these places in their comfy, air-conditioned bus over a five-hour period.

Unfortunately, however, the tour left out any details of Bukowski living in my part of town, which left me aflame with curiosity - What did Bukowski ever do in San Pedro? What bars did he frequent?

There are stories that ripple the waters when it comes to Bukowski living in San Pedro, such as Madonna and other celebrity friends parading through town in white limousines on their way to visit the ol' Buk, or claims that he was always hanging out at various bars throughout Long Beach.

But, just as he was low-key at Williams' Book Store, he was low-key overall.

Esotouric also offers excursions tracing other Angeleno writers, like Raymond Chandler and John Fante, or even interesting themes, like that of the Black Dahlia and her last whereabouts in this city.