Poetry Happens
From Paul McDonald
| 00:02:04
Producers: Paul McDonald
Two minutes, four seconds. Straight Commentary.
Broadcast History
To be broadcast on WFPL, FM in Louisville, KY
Transcript
A couple of years ago I read a magazine article by someone who felt that poetry was dead and no one really cared.
It is a sentiment I hear on occasion, and every time I hear it I have to restrain myself to keep from laughing. Maybe poetry doesn't necessarily happen in a particular form that someone thinks it should, but poetry is an art form that defies convention.
Case in point: October 7, 1955. A date, depending on who you talk to, that is either historical or infamous. This was the night of a poetry reading at the Six Gallery in San Francisco. Among the poets reading were Gary Snyder, Michael McClure and Allen Ginsberg. Also present was an inebriated Jack Kerouac, who made sure everyone had wine and shouted out the word "Go!" after every line recited. The centerpiece of the evening was Allen Ginsberg's first public reading of his poem "Howl", which shocked everyone with its f...
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Timing and Cues
Two Minutes, Four Seconds Straight Commentary
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Additional Information
- Produced: Apr 07, 2006
- Added to PRX: Apr 07, 2006
- This piece is in English
James Reiss
Posted on April 06, 2007 at 05:34 AM | Permalink
Review of Poetry Happens
Paul McDonald's drop-in spiel about the poetry reading that Allen Ginsberg, Gary Snyder, and Michael McClure gave in San Francisco on October 17, 1955 is a must-hear for many public radio-philes who don't rank poems or National Poetry Month as top dog. McDonald's description of the wild, whirling events surrounding the emergence of Beat Poetry -- plus his summary about how the events on that famous October night developed from earlier sources and influenced the zeitgeist of the future -- is a gem of compression. Still, in 2007 I long for more. It's as if we linger in a time warp more than 50 years old, neglecting such brilliant current practitioners of experimental poetry as Michael Palmer, Paul Violi, and Erica Bernheim. It would be great to hear more about these and other edgy new poets on public radio.