UC San Diego. Archive for New Poetry Curator's Correspondence and Subject Files, 1974-1989 (RSS 1034)

Extent: 3 Linear feet (8 archives boxes)

Records created primarily by Michael Davidson, curator of the Archive for New Poetry (ANP) include correspondence with many prominent figures in contemporary American writing, and files on ANP projects such as the New Writing Series, Documents for New Poetry, the San Francisco Renaissance Conference (1982), and the ANP NEWSLETTER.

The Archive for New Poetry (ANP) is a collection of materials devoted to the work of significant English-language writers who have published since 1945. It is located in Special Collections & Archives in the UC San Diego Library. The ANP was conceived and begun by Literature Professor Roy Harvey Pearce. Establishing the collection in 1968, Pearce donated to the UC San Diego Library important first editions of post-war American poets.

The ANP's holdings emphasize the ongoing "alternative tradition" in recent American writing -- particularly the Objectivist movement, the Black Mountain poets, the San Francisco Renaissance, the New York School, and the "language" writers. This interest has led the ANP to acquire a large number of manuscripts, audiotapes, monographs, rare and well-known serials, and alternative printing (non-book) experiments.

The records in RSS 1034 were created primarily by Michael Davidson, Ph.D., who served as long-time curator of the ANP. Davidson began as a post-doctoral appointee in 1974. Two years later he was permanently hired by the Library to serve as "Associate Research Historian," the official title for the ANP curator. In the administrative hierarchy he reported to the head of the Department of Special Collections.

Davidson's responsibilities included curating for the Archive's extensive book and manuscript collection, organizing a poetry-reading series (called the "New Poetry Series" and later the "New Writing Series"), supervising the processing of manuscripts, editing and producing a tri-annual newsletter, serving as adviser for several local poetry-related projects, and periodically publishing issues of "Documents for New Poetry," a pamphlet focusing on a given aspect of ANP's collection. As a result of his long-term employment at the library and his considerable knowledge of contemporary American poetry, Davidson strongly influenced the shape and vision of the ANP -- encouraging and aiding in the acquisition of a number of its most prized papers and collections.

Throughout most of his term at the library, Davidson also taught in the Department of Literature. In 1985, after receiving tenure in the Literature Department, he resigned his position at the ANP in order to teach literature full-time. The position was subsequently filled by Stephen Rodefer (1985-1988) and John Granger (1988-1992).

Records created primarily by Michael Davidson, curator of the Archive for New Poetry (ANP) include correspondence with many prominent figures in contemporary American writing, and files on ANP projects such as the New Writing Series, Documents for New Poetry, the San Francisco Renaissance Conference (1982), and the ANP NEWSLETTER. Also included are photographs of poets and materials relating to a 1984 public television presentation "Rasgado en dos/Ripped in two," sponsored by UC San Diego and the California Council for the Humanities.

Arranged in 4 series: 1) GENERAL CORRESPONDENCE, 2) POETS' FILES, 3) ANP PUBLICATIONS AND PROJECTS, and 4) PHOTOGRAPHS.

Container List

GENERAL CORRESPONDENCE

Scope and Content of Series

Series 1) GENERAL CORRESPONDENCE: Includes letters sent to ANP curators Michael Davidson, John Granger and Stephen Rodefer and copies of a few of their responses. The letters have been alphabetized by correspondent and are placed in folders labeled with a letter of the alphabet. Most of the correspondence relates to the various business transactions of the Archive: inquiries into the procedures and holdings of the Archive, funding concerns, the New Writing Series, and acquisitions of manuscripts, books and serials.

Box 1 Folder 1
Aaron, R. - Aston, A.
Box 1 Folder 2
Babb, H. - Butterick, G.
Box 1 Folder 3
Caddel, R. - Curtay, J.
Box 1 Folder 4
Dahl, D. - Duncan, R.
Box 1 Folder 5
Eaves, T. - Everwine, P.
Box 1 Folder 6
Faas, E. - Fussell, E.
Box 1 Folder 7
Gaburo, K. - Guss, D.
Box 1 Folder 8
Haak, J. - Huntsinger, L.
Box 2 Folder 1
Iddings, K. - Irby, K.
Box 2 Folder 2
Jackson, L. - Joul, R.
Box 2 Folder 3
Kahn, P. - Kyger, J.
Box 2 Folder 4
Lally, M. - Lurie, T.
Box 2 Folder 5
MacAdams, L - Myers, G.
Box 2 Folder 6
Nathan, S. - Nower, J.
Box 2 Folder 7
Ohannessian, G. - Owens, R.
Box 2 Folder 8
Pacosz, C. - Propper, D.
Box 2 Folder 9
Quartermain, P. - Quinn, B.
Box 2 Folder 10
Rabiner, M. - Ruth, B.
Box 3 Folder 1
Sadoff, I. - Serrano, I.
Box 3 Folder 2
Sharp, T. - Sze, A.
Box 3 Folder 3
Taggart, J. - Turner, M.
Box 3 Folder 4
Villanueva, A. - Vangelisti, P.
Box 3 Folder 5
Wakoski, D. - Wright, R.
Box 3 Folder 6
Xelina - Young, G.
Box 3 Folder 7
Zamora, B. - Zweig, E.

POETS' FILES

Scope and Content of Series

Series 2) POETS' FILES: Mainly devoted to publicity information, resumes, press releases and correspondence of poets who were asked to read or considered for reading in the New Writing Series. Each folder contains materials relating to a single poet or writer, and folders have been alphabetized by writer.

Box 4 Folder 1
Amichai, Yehuda, 1975
Box 4 Folder 2
Anderson, Jon, 1975
Box 4 Folder 3
Antin, Eleanor, 1975
Box 4 Folder 4
Bakken, Dick, 1977
Box 4 Folder 5
Baracks, Barbara, 1978
Box 4 Folder 6
Bartlett, Elizabeth, 1979
Box 4 Folder 7
Berge, Carol, 1974
Box 4 Folder 8
Bromige, David, 1981
Box 4 Folder 9
Broughton, James, 1977
Box 4 Folder 10
Brownstein, Michael, 1981
Box 4 Folder 11
Coleman, Wanda, 1979
Box 4 Folder 12
Coolidge, Clark, 1976
Box 4 Folder 13
Cooper, Dennis, 1982
Box 4 Folder 14
Creeley, Robert, 1978-1983
Box 4 Folder 15
Curtray, Jean-Paul, 1979-1983
Box 4 Folder 16
Cuson, Tom, 1974
Box 4 Folder 17
Dawson, Fielding, 1975
Box 4 Folder 18
Deak, Norma Jean, 1980
Box 4 Folder 19
Deguy, Michel
Box 4 Folder 20
Di Prima, Diane, 1974
Box 4 Folder 21
Dorn, Edward, 1976
Box 4 Folder 22
Dresman, Paul, 1984
Box 4 Folder 23
Duncan, Robert, 1978
Box 4 Folder 24
Enslin, Ted, 1976
Box 4 Folder 25
Eshleman, Clayton, 1975
Box 4 Folder 26
Eulert, Donald D., 1976
Box 4 Folder 27
Everson, William (a.k.a. Brother Antonius), 1967
Box 4 Folder 28
Everwine, Peter, 1977
Box 4 Folder 29
Fagin, Larry, 1977
Box 4 Folder 30
Federman, Raymond, 1979
Box 4 Folder 31
Forche, Carolyn, 1975
Box 4 Folder 32
Fox, Siv Cedering, 1977
Box 4 Folder 33
Fraser, Kathleen, 1975
Box 4 Folder 34
Friedman, Edward, 1979
Box 4 Folder 35
Fussell, Edwin Sill, 1976
Box 4 Folder 36
Gallup, Dick, 1974
Box 4 Folder 37
Gass, William, 1977
Box 4 Folder 38
Gitin, David, 1976
Box 4 Folder 39
Gold, Rich, 1980
Box 4 Folder 40
Goodell, Larry, 1976
Box 4 Folder 41
Gibson, Morgan, 1977
Box 4 Folder 42
Green, Geoffrey, 1975
Box 4 Folder 43
Greenwald, Ted, 1979
Box 4 Folder 44
Griffith, Susan, 1975
Box 4 Folder 45
Harper, Michael, 1977
Box 4 Folder 46
Harwood, Lee, 1982
Box 4 Folder 47
Hawkins, Bobbie Louise
Box 4 Folder 48
Henderson, David, 1976
Box 4 Folder 49
Higgins, Dick, 1978
Box 4 Folder 50
Hollo, Anselm, 1977
Box 4 Folder 51
Inada, Lawson Fusao, 1983
Box 4 Folder 52
Infrarrealistas (Spanish-language poets)
Box 4 Folder 53
Jaffe, Sherril
Box 4 Folder 54
Jordan, June, 1982
Box 4 Folder 55
Kaneko, Lonny, 1980
Box 4 Folder 56
Kessler, Milton, 1977
Box 4 Folder 57
Koertge, Ronald
Box 4 Folder 58
Kowit, Steve
Box 4 Folder 59
Langland, Joseph, 1978
Box 4 Folder 60
Larsen, Ernest, 1982
Box 4 Folder 61
Latin American Poets
Box 4 Folder 62
Laughlin, James, 1974
Box 4 Folder 63
LeGuin, Ursula K., 1977
Box 5 Folder 1
Lettau, Reinhard, 1977
Box 5 Folder 2
Levertov, Denise, 1980
Box 5 Folder 3
Levine, Phillip, 1977
Box 5 Folder 4
Loewinsohn, Ronald, 1973
Box 5 Folder 5
Logan, John, 1976
Box 5 Folder 6
Mac Low, Jackson, 1975
Box 5 Folder 7
Malanga, Gerard
Box 5 Folder 8
Mazzaro, Jerome L., 1978
Box 5 Folder 9
McCaffery, Steve, 1979
Box 5 Folder 10
McClure, Michael, 1975
Box 5 Folder 11
McCord, Howard, 1976
Box 5 Folder 12
Melendez, Jesus Papoleto, 1980
Box 5 Folder 13
Meltzer, David, 1977
Box 5 Folder 14
Menashe, Samuel, 1974
Box 5 Folder 15
Michaels, Leonard, 1975
Box 5 Folder 16
Michaelson, Louis, 1981
Box 5 Folder 17
Montoya, Jose, 1981
Box 5 Folder 18
Mor, Barbara, 1975
Box 5 Folder 19
Morrow, Charlie, 1983
Box 5 Folder 20
Notley, Alice, 1985
Box 5 Folder 21
Okai, Atukwei, 1979
Box 5 Folder 22
Owens, Rochelle
Box 5 Folder 23
Palmer, Michael, 1974-1977
Box 5 Folder 24
Pearce, Roy Harvey, 1974-1982
Box 5 Folder 25
Peters, Robert, 1976
Box 5 Folder 26
Pickard, Tom, 1981
Box 5 Folder 27
Plymell, Charles D., 1980
Box 5 Folder 28
Prado, Holly, 1976
Box 5 Folder 29
Rakosi, Carl, 1975
Box 5 Folder 30
Randall, Margaret, 1983
Box 5 Folder 31
Rexroth, Kenneth, 1974
Box 5 Folder 32
Ricard, Rene, 1979
Box 5 Folder 33
Ro, Emanuel, 1979
Box 5 Folder 34
Robinson, Kit, 1982
Box 5 Folder 35
Rojas-Urista, Xelina, 1978
Box 5 Folder 36
Rosen, Gerald
Box 5 Folder 37
Rothenberg, Jerome, 1974-1979
Box 5 Folder 38
Silk, Dennis, 1979
Box 5 Folder 39
Snyder, Gary, 1974-1979
Box 5 Folder 40
Sukenick, Lynn, 1982
Box 5 Folder 41
Talamantez, Ines
Box 5 Folder 42
Tarn, Nathaniel, 1974-1980
Box 5 Folder 43
Traxler, Pat, 1976
Box 5 Folder 44
Valdes, Gina
Box 5 Folder 45
Villanueva, Alma, 1980
Box 5 Folder 46
Wakoski, Diane, 1974
Box 5 Folder 47
Watten, Barrett, 1979
Box 5 Folder 48
Whalen, Philip, 1976
Box 5 Folder 49
Williams, C.K., 1984
Box 5 Folder 50
Williams, Emmett, 1979
Box 5 Folder 51
Williams, Jonathan, 1980-1982
Box 5 Folder 52
Williams, Sherley Anne, 1973-1976
Box 5 Folder 53
Wilson, Keith
Box 5 Folder 54
Wright, Charles, 1979
Box 6 Folder 1
Wylie, Robert Hawthorne, 1980
Box 6 Folder 2
Yip, Wai-Lim, 1976
Box 6 Folder 3
Yoshimasu, Gozo, 1981

ANP PUBLICATIONS AND PROJECTS

Scope and Content of Series

Series 4) ANP PUBLICATIONS AND PROJECTS: Consists of materials relating to three special activities involving ANP and the ANP Curator.

The "Documents for New Poetry" is an ANP pamphlet format series publication which features materials from the ANP's collection. Only two issues were ever published: "Roadtesting the Language: An Interview with Edward Dorn" by Stephen Fredman (1978) and "Paul Blackburn: A Checklist" by Kathleen Woodward (1980). In 1982 a third issue of "Documents for New Poetry" entitled "Objectivist Contexts: George Oppen and Charles Reznikoff" (edited by Kathryn Shevelow) was prepared. However, it was never published due to funding problems. Textual materials for this third issue can be found in the ANP PUBLICATIONS series. These materials include interviews with and about Oppen and Reznikoff, unpublished comments by the two poets, and an article by Tom Sharp on the early publishing history of the Objectivists. Folders are arranged by subject and chronologically by date of publication or possible publication.

This series also contains materials that relate to the "Rasgado En Dos/Ripped In Two" Poetry-Video Project, a thirty-minute sound-and-picture collage featuring the words of four local Chicano poets: Patrick Ojeda, Ruben Medina, Gina Valdes and Alurista. It was sponsored by the California Council for the Humanities, ANP, the UCSD Department of Literature and the UCSD Office of the Chancellor. It was produced by Valley Cable Television in 1984, and was broadcasted on several PBS television stations. Davidson assisted and advised the program's two producers, Claire McClance and Alan McGlade. These materials are organized by subject and arranged chronologically within each folder, and they include grant applications and agreements, correspondence, publicity information, budget plans, schedules, legal documents and scripts.

Also included are materials relating to the San Francisco Renaissance Conference, a festival and conference organized by Davidson and held at UCSD from February 9-12, 1982. Focusing on the San Francisco Literary Renaissance of the mid-fifties and sixties, the conference brought together poets, scholars, editors and the general public. Many well-known figures in contemporary writing attended. These materials are arranged by subject and include grant applications and agreements, legal documents, correspondence, budget plans and publicity items.

Finally, this series contains materials related to John Granger's preparation of the ANP Newsletter for 1988 and for the Spring Quarter of 1989. Materials include correspondence, selections of poems and writings and some rough drafts of essays written for the newsletter. The materials are arranged chronologically.

Box 6 Folder 4
Documents for New Poetry I - Annotated draft, 1978
Box 6 Folder 5
Documents for New Poetry I - Related materials, 1978
Box 6 Folder 6
Documents for New Poetry II - Rough drafts of partial bibliographies, 1980
Box 6 Folder 7
Documents for New Poetry II - Introduction and bibliography, 1980
Box 6 Folder 8
Documents for New Poetry II - Correspondence, general, 1977 - 1979
Box 6 Folder 9
Documents for New Poetry II - Correspondence from Edith Jarolim, 1979-1980
Box 6 Folder 10
Documents for New Poetry II - Correspondence to Edith Jarolim, 1980
Box 6 Folder 11
Documents for New Poetry II - Photographs, 1967
Box 6 Folder 12
Documents for New Poetry II - Bookslinger receipts and ephemera, 1980-1981
Box 6 Folder 13
Documents for New Poetry II - Related materials
Box 6 Folder 14
Documents for New Poetry III - Early draft, 1982
Box 7 Folder 1
Documents for New Poetry III - Corrected copy
Box 7 Folder 2
Rasgado En Dos/Ripped in Two Poetry-Video Project - Correspondence, 1980-1984
Box 7 Folder 3
Rasgado En Dos/Ripped in Two Poetry-Video Project

California Council for the Humanities - Grant applications - Agreements and applications

Box 7 Folder 4
Rasgado En Dos/Ripped in Two Poetry-Video Project - Grant agreements, 1980
Box 7 Folder 5
Rasgado En Dos/Ripped in Two Poetry-Video Project - Press releases, 1984
Box 7 Folder 6
Rasgado En Dos/Ripped in Two Poetry-Video Project - Production schedules
Box 7 Folder 7
Rasgado En Dos/Ripped in Two Poetry-Video Project - Recording waiver forms
Box 7 Folder 8
Rasgado En Dos/Ripped in Two Poetry-Video Project - Videoscripts
Box 7 Folder 9
Rasgado En Dos/Ripped in Two Poetry-Video Project - Miscellaneous legal forms
Box 7 Folder 10
San Francisco Renaissance Conference - Advertising and announcements, 1982
Box 7 Folder 11
San Francisco Renaissance Conference, 1982

California Council for the Humanities - Correspondence and ephemera.

Box 7 Folder 12
San Francisco Renaissance Conference - Conference schedules, 1982
Box 7 Folder 13
San Francisco Renaissance Conference - Correspondence, sent by Davidson, 1981-1982
Box 7 Folder 14
San Francisco Renaissance Conference - Correspondence, from participants, 1980-1982
Box 8 Folder 1
San Francisco Renaissance Conference - Grant applications
Box 8 Folder 2
San Francisco Renaissance Conference - Grant and budget forms
Box 8 Folder 3
San Francisco Renaissance Conference - Photographs
Box 8 Folder 4
ANP NEWSLETTER related materials - Fall Quarter, 1988

Most materials are undated.

Box 8 Folder 5
ANP NEWSLETTER related materials - Winter Quarter, 1988

Most materials are undated.

Box 8 Folder 6
ANP NEWSLETTER related materials - Spring Quarter, 1988

Most materials are undated.

Box 8 Folder 7
ANP NEWSLETTER related materials - Spring Quarter, 1989

Most materials are undated.

Box 8 Folder 8
Originals of Preservation Photocopies
Box 8 Folder 9
Unidentified correspondence and materials

PHOTOGRAPHS

Scope and Content of Series

Series 4) PHOTOGRAPHS: This series contains images of poets.

Box 8 Folder 10
Antin, David
Box 8 Folder 11
Bunting, Basil (and George Oppen)
Box 8 Folder 12 Oversize FB12604
Cortazar, Julio
Box 8 Folder 13
Creeley, Robert
Box 8 Folder 14
Dorn, Ed
Box 8 Folder 15
Dragomoshchenko Reading, 1989
Box 8 Folder 16
Ginsberg, Allen
Box 8 Folder 17
Hawkins, Bobbie Louise
Box 8 Folder 18
H. D.