Bill Berkson reads from “Biotherm” for O’Hara birthday event (in San Francisco)

(from l to r): Gerard Malanga, LeRoi Jones (Amiri Baraka), David Shapiro, Bill Berkson, Frank Lima, and Frank O’Hara, at Wagner College, 1962

Reason #1657 it would be terrific to live in San Francisco.

As the Poetry Foundation’s Harriet blog posted yesterday, Bill Berkson will be reading tomorrow night from the long poem Frank O’Hara dedicated to him, “Biotherm (for Bill Berkson),” at an event in SF being held in honor of what would’ve been O’Hara’s 87th (?!) birthday.  The event is being hosted by Arion Press.

Here are the details:

On June 27, 2013, the late great poet Frank O’Hara would have turned 87. His accidental death at age 40 deprived American poetry of one of its finest talents. In 1990, Arion Press published an artist book of O’Hara’s last long poem, “Biotherm”, with lithographs by Jim Dine and a suite of eight photogravures. The book and prints are displayed in the Arion Press gallery this summer. San Francisco poet and art writer Bill Berkson wrote an essay for the Arion edition. The author of some twenty-five books, most recently Portait and Dream: New and Selected Poems, and a word-and-image collaboration with John Zurier, Repeat After Me, Berkson was key member of the New York School of poets and painters beginning in the 1960s. He will read from the poem, and champagne will be served to celebrate O’Hara’s birthday.

Thursday, June 27, 6:00 p.m.
Refreshments from 5:00 p.m.

THE ARION PRESS
1802 Hays Street, The Presidio, San Francisco, California 94129

Directions
West on Lake Street, north on Fourteenth Avenue, to building with tall smokestack.

Come for the long poem, stay for the Champagne, and raise a glass for O’Hara’s birthday.

“The best thing in the world                    but I better be quick about it

better be gone tomorrow            better be gone last night and

                                      next Thursday better be gone”