Category Archives: Jack Kerouac

“A Frank O’Hara Notebook” by Bill Berkson

Posted on January 3, 2019 by

When the poet and art critic Bill Berkson passed away in 2016, he left behind a notebook full of fragments and notes about his close and decisive friendship with Frank O’Hara.  Apparently, he had been planning for many years to … Continue reading →

Posted in Arthur Rimbaud, Bill Berkson, Books, Frank O'Hara, Jack Kerouac, Jane Freilicher, Kenneth Koch, William Carlos Williams | 1 Comment

Tom Clark (1941-2018), the New York School, and the Paris Review

Posted on August 23, 2018 by

  Very sad news in the poetry world: the poet Tom Clark died this week at the age of 77 after being struck by a car while walking across a street in Berkeley, California.  A prolific and controversial writer, Clark … Continue reading →

Posted in Alice Notley, Allen Ginsberg, Amiri Baraka (LeRoi Jones), Anne Waldman, Barbara Guest, Bill Berkson, Charles Olson, Clark Coolidge, David Lehman, David Shapiro, Denise Levertov, Frank Lima, Frank O'Hara, Gerard Malanga, Harry Mathews, In Memoriam, Jack Kerouac, James Schuyler, Jim Carroll, Joe Brainard, Joe Ceravolo, John Ashbery, John Koethe, Kenneth Koch, Kenward Elmslie, Larry Eigner, Larry Fagin, Lewis Warsh, Lou Reed, Peter Schjeldahl, Philip Whalen, Poetry Project at St. Marks, Robert Creeley, Ron Padgett, Ted Berrigan, Tom Clark, Tony Towle, Uncategorized, Velvet Underground | 1 Comment

Cecil Taylor (1929-2018), Frank O’Hara, Amiri Baraka

Posted on May 17, 2018 by

When the groundbreaking avant-garde jazz pianist and composer Cecil Taylor died last month, there was an outpouring of obituaries and tributes to his genius and influence.  But there was less attention paid to Taylor’s connections to the literary world, and … Continue reading →

Posted in Allen Ginsberg, Amiri Baraka (LeRoi Jones), Beats, Billie Holiday, Bob Kaufman, Cecil Taylor, Charles Olson, Frank O'Hara, Franz Kline, Gilbert Sorrentino, In Memoriam, Influences on the NY School, Jack Kerouac, Jazz, Kenneth Koch, Larry Rivers, Michael McClure, Morton Feldman, Music, Norman Mailer, NY School Influence, Ornette Coleman, Paul Blackburn, Robert Creeley, Robert Duncan, Thelonious Monk | 1 Comment

Look What They’ve Done to The San Remo

Posted on May 5, 2017 by

There is no shortage of opportunities to feel nostalgic for the good old days when rents were cheap, bars were smoky and filled with intellectual chatter, Kafka was the rage, and New York was a haven for rebellious artists.  Nor do you … Continue reading →

Posted in Barbara Guest, Beats, Frank O'Hara, Jack Kerouac, Joe LeSueur, John Ashbery, Kenneth Koch, New York, William S. Burroughs | Leave a comment

David Kirby on a Wild Allen Ginsberg Reading

Posted on March 11, 2015 by

                  Over the past few months, the 92nd St. Y has been hosting a “75 at 75” series, which asks authors to select and respond to a recording from the 92Y Poetry Center’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Allen Ginsberg, Beats, David Kirby, Frank O'Hara, Gregory Corso, Jack Kerouac

A Real Mad, “All-American” Combination: LeRoi Jones/Amiri Baraka’s Salon

Posted on October 27, 2014 by

Last week, on a trip to the Czech Republic, I had the pleasure of meeting Josef Jařab , one of the most important Czech scholars of American literature.  Jařab is a leading Czech authority on American poetry, and he has translated and written … Continue reading →

Posted in Abstract Expressionism, Allen Ginsberg, Amiri Baraka (LeRoi Jones), Beats, Cecil Taylor, Frank O'Hara, Franz Kline, Jack Kerouac, Jazz, John Ashbery, Kenneth Koch, Larry Rivers, Music, Ornette Coleman, Visual Art | 1 Comment

Jed Perl’s Art in America: Frank O’Hara, John Ashbery, and More

Posted on October 8, 2014 by

  The esteemed Library of America has just published a massive new anthology called Art in America 1945–1970: Writings from the Age of Abstract Expressionism, Pop Art, and Minimalism, edited by Jed Perl, the art critic for the New Republic. The … Continue reading →

Posted in Abstract Expressionism, Andy Warhol, Book Review, Books, Fairfield Porter, Frank O'Hara, Grace Hartigan, Jack Kerouac, James Schuyler, Jane Freilicher, John Ashbery, Larry Rivers, Robert Creeley, Robert Duncan, Robert Motherwell, Visual Art

James Schuyler on Allen Ginsberg and the Beats

Posted on May 8, 2014 by

From a 1990 interview with James Schuyler, by Raymond Foye — another interesting sign of the complicated relationship between the Beats and the New York School of poets: Q: How did you feel about the Beats when they came along? A: I … Continue reading →

Posted in Allen Ginsberg, Beats, Frank O'Hara, Jack Kerouac, James Schuyler

William S. Burroughs to Frank O’Hara: Drop Dead

Posted on February 5, 2014 by

William S. Burroughs was born one hundred years ago today.  In honor of his centennial, there has been a great deal of activity in Burroughs-land, including a series of events in various cities, with a big centenary conference getting underway … Continue reading →

Posted in Allen Ginsberg, Amiri Baraka (LeRoi Jones), Beats, Delmore Schwartz, Diane Di Prima, Frank O'Hara, Gregory Corso, Jack Kerouac, Peter Schjeldahl, William S. Burroughs