Dutch writer, poet and influential publisher of modern Dutch writers and the Russian world literature..
Van Oorschot was born in Vlissingen in a nuturing middle class socialist family. His father Levinus Petrus van Oorschot (b. 21 Dec 1885) was a social democratic politician who started his career as a bricklayer. His father married Johannna Wilhelmina Smallegange (b. 1884) on 9 August 1907 in Vlissingen. They got three children who all became famous: Gerardus Adriaan (1909-1987), Maria “Mieke” Adriana (18 May 1911- 20 September 1996) who became an actress and Adrie (22 may 1920 – 9 March 2004, Vlissingen) who became an actor and mentalist.
As a child he became acquainted with the Dutch literature at home. He followed the Higher Civil School (HBS) in Vlissingen, bu worked as a labourer and activist in the Rotterdam harbours since October 1926. He was a talented speaker and board member of the idealistic “Jeugdbond van Onthouding”, but in his later years he would not abstinence from alcohol.
Being a principal pacifist in his youth, he refused to serve the army and spent 10 months in prison for that (1929-30). His debut came in 1930 with the “De turfgravers” (The peat diggers). Begin November 1931 he published the poetry bundle “Gevangenis“ (Prison) about his experiences in prison. Since September 1931 he was active as a book seller for the left wing writers collective “Links richten”. He also wrote poetry for it. Till 1935 he wrote poetry under his own name (Van Oudegeest tot revolutie), later only under a pseudonym. He did not see himself as a great writer and poet, but he was an enthusiastic and rhetoric door-to-door seller of the work of others.
In 1936 he worked as a book seller for publisher Stols, from 1938 to 1943 for the successful literature fund Querido (1898-1943 ) of the Jewish Emanuel Querido (6 augustus 1871, A’dam – 23 juli 1943, Sobibor).
Begin 1945 Van Oorschot decided to become a publisher himself. He started half september 1945 Uitgeverij G.A. van Oorschot at the Herengracht 613 in Amsterdam. He published and admired the work of the socialist politician Jacques de Kadt (30 juli 1897, Oss – 16 april 1988, Santpoort), who was often his time far ahead. Prominent Dutch authors he supported were Hans Lodeizen, Gerard van het Reve and W.F. Hermans.
In 1953 he started “De Russische Bibliotheek” (The Russian Libary) that contained the celebrated translations of Charles B. Timmer, Karel van het Reve and others of great Russian writers like Dostoyevsky, Poesjkin, Turgenev, Tolstoy and Tsjechov for a low price (Dünn-druck).
In 1957 he started “Tirade”, a literary and cultural magazine. He wrote in it under the pen-name R.J. Peskens, referring to an anarchist in Vlissingen. Van Oorschot was personally as wel as politically seen an anarchist that opposed many people. Other pen-names were Karel Blomkwist, Mozes Cohen, Kees Milot. Tirade published poetry of Elisabeth Eybers, Rutger Kopland and Judith Herzberg, as well as political essays of Jacques de Kadt.
As a publisher he wrote and received many letters of writers. He collected them. Some were published, for instance “Briefwisseling 1951-1987 Gerard Reve en Geert van Oorschot”, others were destroyed on request by the author (the letters of the secretive poet Vasalis).
Personal
In 10 November 1932 he married Jantina Smit in Winschoten, they got two sons, Geert (19 August 1933-2005) en Levien (20 november 1937, Rolde). On 30 Sept 1943 they divorced and he married Hillie Munneke (13 juli 1920, Onstwedde – 28 augustus 1979, Baambrugge) on 23 February 1944. The got two sons Guido (17 March 1944-1963) and Wouter (1952).
He died 18 December 1987 in Baambrugge (near Abcoude) at age 78..
Link to Dutch Wikipedia