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Bob Dylan’s Miracle Manuscript up for sale |
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 Pulitzer Prize winner - Bob Dylan’s rare unedited manuscript is being offered for sale. The following is an interview with the owner of the manuscript, Zainab McCoy. In this interview, Zainab McCoy talks about how Bob Dylan's unedited manuscript survived a fire that totally destroyed her apartment.
Interview by Nasibu Mwanukuzi
N. I saw your Bob Dylan Chronicles-volume one DVD and your story is incredible. I’ve heard there’s more to the story. Would you like to share the events leading up to making the DVD?
Z. Yes, I’d like to share this story with you but if I didn’t have photographs no one me would believe me because it sounds incredibly unreal. I’m not saying that Dylan should be beatified as a Saint it’s only a strange coincidence that his family stems from the same country were the Virgin Mary is buried (nearby Ephesus in Turkey) but it’s a bizarre miracle that my copy of his manuscript survived the massive fire at my loft apartment.
N. Why would it be a miracle that the Chronicles manuscript survived the fire?
ZM. Because the Chronicles manuscript is paper and over 90% of everything in my flat melted and burned.
N. Was it close to where the fire started?
ZM. No, it was packed in a long small white box the back of the room on the floor close to my instruments on top of a wicker chest.
N. You saved this manuscript for four years without it getting smoke or water damaged?
Z. Yes but only because I had wrapped it in plastic before I placed it in the box. I should mention that I had offered it to four auction houses for sale with no luck. Two of the auction houses weren’t interested because it doesn’t contain Bob’s handwriting and the others because they simply were not Dylanologist or fact checkers and didn’t appreciate the historical value of the unpublished deleted and unedited text. So I just forgot about it and where it was placed. Originally Hans and I had planned to sell it when we got old or when Dylan died but the fire made me realize out of necessity that Now is the Time because it was truly a miracle that it survived the fire.
N. What were you doing when the fire started?
ZM. I was dreaming that I was in the hospital and was reaching up as my arms were being bandaged in white cloth. It was exactly 09:00 January 28th, 2008. I woke from the tremendous heat in my flat. In a corner of the flat, far off in the middle of the room was a huge flame reaching up to my 4-meter ceiling. I built a small loft room and was sleeping high up close to the ceiling. As I slept my body roasted like a freshly plucked chicken. I awoke for a second, rolled over on my back, pushed off the blanket because it was hot. I’m used to the heat because I have a wood burning oven next to my loft bed in the near corner but something said to me “Zainab wake up” this heat is not from your fireplace.
N. Then what happened?
ZM. I woke up and said, “Oh shit”. I jumped feet first; forget the ladder, over two meters down out of my bed like a monkey out of hell fire.
N. Did you get hurt?
Z. No I didn’t get hurt from the jump. I’ve fantasized many times about jumping from my loft just for the fun it, so I guess I was mentally prepared. I grabbed my double bass put it in the hallway and ran back like an idiot and tried to put out the fire. That was a big mistake because I was horribly burned on my pug nose, arms and back. Needless to say, I was in shock. I grabbed my double bass again but this time, I ran downstairs to my neighbor on the second floor. I pounded on his door hollering, “Fire, fire” but there was no answer from the other side of the door. So, I kept on going and ran outside across the courtyard to my other neighbors all the time screaming “fire, fire” that’s when I realized I was completely bare footed and naked.
N. That’s and amazing story. Have you heard from Bob Dylan?
ZM. No I haven’t. I guess it’s no big deal to him that I offering a copy of the unedited manuscript for sale. He’s probably too busy with the Pulitzer Prize Award he received last week.
N. Have you received any offers and how much are you hoping to get for the first unedited Chronicles Manuscript?
Z. As of today the Bob Dylan Chronicles - volume one DVD has been viewed over 600 times on the positivelybobdylan.com website and via You Tube, so yes I have had some offers but I’m still waiting for the right offer.
N. Who made the DVD?
Z. Three Blind Mice and me.
N. Can you tell me their names?
Z. The making of the DVD was a labor of love and a tribute to Hans Marius and Dylan. The folks who helped with the film don’t want publicity.
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