The Hacienda Bridge newsletter (also known briefly as "up") was a periodical newsletter written by Hardy Fox in order to promote releases by his publishing company of the same name and to share anecdotes of his history (and that of Charles Bobuck) with The Residents.
The newsletter began in October 2016 and ended two years later with the announcement of Fox's death from glioblastoma on October 30th, 2018.
It is notable for serializing Fox's novella "The Stone" in issues 12 through 25. This novella became infamous due to its concluding chapter, in which Fox unambiguously reveals his role as Charles Bobuck, and therefore the primary composer and arranger for The Residents since their beginning.
History[]
Originally sent to mailing list subscribers on or around the first and fifteenth day of every month beginning in October 2016 after the retirement of Charles Bobuck and Hardy Fox and establishment of their new music publishing company, Hacienda Bridge, the Hacienda Bridge newsletter ultimately revealed many previously unknown details about the history of The Residents, as witnessed through the eyes of their long-time composer, producer and manager Hardy Fox.
The newsletters ended their usual twice per month regularity after the 25th issue (and the newsletter's one year anniversary), which included the final chapter of "The Stone", revealing the true identity of Bobuck (and thus the primary composer and arranger for The Residents throughout their existence) to be Fox himself. After this, the newsletters abandoned the Hacienda Bridge branding and number system, briefly being retitled "up" and becoming largely a platform for Fox to promote new musical releases (under his own name).
The newsletter concluded with two short entries simply titled "morning", including a final missive from Fox in the last month of his life, and concluding with one last newsletter announcing his death on October 30th 2018. Issues #15 onwards remained available via the newsletter archive on Mailchimp for several years.
The Hacienda Bridge newsletter archive was removed from the Mailchimp server in early 2024; the deletion apparently included all image files used in the newsletters, thus rendering most subscribers' email copies text-only. Newsletters from issue #15 onwards, with original images intact, remain accessible via the Internet Archive.
Issues[]
Hacienda Bridge (2016 - 2017)[]
- Hacienda Bridge #1 - "A Bobuck Newsletter #1" - October 1, 2016
- Hacienda Bridge #2 - "Hardy Fox and Bobuck News #2" - October 14, 2016
- "Bobuck's Black Tar" - October 31, 2016
- Hacienda Bridge #3 - "Charles Bobuck & Hardy Fox News #3 - November 1, 2016
- "Pumpkins are rotting" - November 13, 2016
- Hacienda Bridge #4 - "Charles Bobuck & Hardy Fox News #4 - November 15, 2016
- Hacienda Bridge #5 - "Charles Bobuck & Hardy Fox News #5 - December 1, 2016
- Hacienda Bridge #6 - "Charles Bobuck & Hardy Fox News #6" - December 15, 2016
- Hacienda Bridge #7 - "Charles Bobuck & Hardy Fox News #7" - January 1, 2017
- Hacienda Bridge #8 - "The Political Issue" - January 15, 2017
- Hacienda Bridge #9 - "The Charles Bobuck Interview" - February 1, 2017
- Hacienda Bridge #10 - "The Vagina Issue" - February 14, 2017
- Hacienda Bridge #11 - "Lost and Found" - March 1, 2017
- Hacienda Bridge #12 - "Beware The Eyes Of March" - March 15, 2017
- Hacienda Bridge #13 - "Goddamn The Tar Man" - April 1, 2017
- Hacienda Bridge #14 - "Reading Words about Reading Words" - April 15, 2017
- Hacienda Bridge #15 - "Heir Guitar" - May 1, 2017
- Hacienda Bridge #16 - "Robots + Music" - May 15, 2017
- Hacienda Bridge #17 - Hacienda Bridge Summer School: "I Want my CRISPR" - June 1, 2017
- Hacienda Bridge #18 - Hacienda Bridge Summer School: "Quantum Computing" - June 15, 2017
- Hacienda Bridge #19 - Hacienda Bridge Summer School: "The robot is dead, long live the robot" - July 1, 2017
- Hacienda Bridge #20 - Hacienda Bridge Summer School: "Humans" - July 15, 2017
- Hacienda Bridge #21 - Hacienda Bridge Summer School: "Graduation" - August 1, 2017
- Hacienda Bridge #22 - "Showrunners as Artists and the rise of WTF TV" - August 15, 2017
- Hacienda Bridge #23 - "Flailing Arms" - September 1, 2017
- Hacienda Bridge #24 - "Danno*" - September 13, 2017
- Hacienda Bridge #25 - "The Stone - The Final Chapter" - October 1, 2017
- "Left with the Fires" - October 13, 2017
- "Goodbye 2017" - December 27, 2017
up (January - September 2017)[]
- up #1 - "A Day Hanging Dead Between Heaven And Earth" - January 12, 2018
- up #2 - "One From The Heart" - February 7, 2018
- up #3 - "Nachtzug - Night Train" - May 10, 2018
- up #4 - "Rillo Contemplates Love" - September 22, 2018
morning (September - October 2018)[]
See also[]
- Hardy Fox
- Charles Bobuck
- Hacienda Bridge
- "The Stone"
External links and references[]
- Archived newsletters (#15 onwards) on Mailchimp (archived May 8th 2020 via archive.org)