The winners of 2011 Allen Ginsberg Poetry Awards will read their winning poems at a poetry reading and award ceremony on Saturday, March 10, 2012, at the Poetry Center at Passaic County Community College, Paterson, New Jersey. First prize this year went to Christopher Bursk and the aptly-named Charlotte Muse. The Allen Ginsberg Poetry Awards, “honoring Allen Ginsberg’s contributions to American Literature”, are given annually to poets, “both established and emerging”. Poems are judged anonymously with first prize winning $1,000, second prize, $200, and third prize, $100.
Last week’s Philip Glass-Patti Smith hommage to Allen was a grand succès. Long-time companions and collaborators, this was the first time they’d played New York City together. Here’s Steven Thrasher’s report for the Village Voice
and here’s Joe Winkler’s account of the previous evening’s “Kaddish” event –
Here’s an intriguing article on Booktryst by Steven J Gertz – “When Ginsberg and Burroughs Met Samuel Beckett – a three-pronged perspective on the September 1976 visit by Allen and William and.. Susan Sontag – “Allen said, “What was it like to be with (James) Joyce? I understand Joyce had a beautiful voice and that he liked to sing?”. Allen did some kind of “OM” and Beckett said, “Yes, indeed, he had a beautiful voice”.
And finally, the release of Walter Salles’ much-anticipated On The Road movie (Tom Sturridge plays Allen) looms ever-closer. The image that we first glimpsed here has been up-dated and can now be seen, in its most recent manifestation here – (see below)
