[citation needed] In 1962, he had one child with partner Martina Clinton, Ooljah Bissett[4] (whom later in life changed her name to Michelle), who died in 2012 from an unknown illness.
[5] He later launched blewointmentpress, which has published volumes by Cathy Ford, Maxine Gadd, Michael Coutts, Dick Clements writing under the pen name, "p.x.
belinsky", Hart Broudy, Rosemary Hollingshead, Beth Jankola, Carolyn Zonailo, bpNichol, Ken West, Lionel Kearns and D. A.
[7] In 1968, Bissett collaborated with experimental rock group Th Mandan Massacre to release a spoken word album, Awake In The Red Desert, in a limited edition of 500 copies.
[13] Indeed, according to Frank Davey, a Canadian poet and scholar, by as early as 1974, Bissett had been "ejected from cross-Canada trains, evicted by countless landlords, beaten, harassed by police, and arrested and sentenced to prison.
"[14] In 1983, financial hardship,[5] plus a desire to focus on his own writing and visual art, led him to sell blewointment press (which later became Nightwood Editions).
From 1986 to 1991, Bissett was the lyricist and vocalist in the London, Ontario band Luddites, they released several demo cassettes and an LP.
[citation needed] In 2006, Nightwood Editions published radiant danse uv being,[16] a poetic tribute to Bissett with contributions from more than 80 writers, including Margaret Atwood, Leonard Cohen, Lorna Crozier, Patrick Lane, Steve McCaffery, P. K. Page and Darren Wershler-Henry.
In 2006 he was also featured in an episode of the television series Heart of a Poet produced by Canadian filmmaker Maureen Judge.