Saturday, October 12, 2013

TRIBUTE TO HARVEY SHAPIRO

I took part in a reading last night at Poets House in Manhattan, a tribute to the late poet and friend Harvey Shapiro. Twenty-five people read poems they had selected from Harvey's books (some even reading from a posthumous book that'll come out next year). I can't think of a better way to remember and pay tribute to a poet.

Unless you've had a documentary made on you, and even then, depending on the filmmaker's biases or perspective, there's nothing like someone's poems to create the sensation that they are there, in the poems, speaking directly to you. That's how it felt last night.

Lots of Harvey's friends and family, lots of old friends of mine I hadn't seen in a while, some for decades, many decades. It was good. It was moving. It was inspiring. It was a tribute to a fine poet (I recommend you get hold of his new and collected poems: THE SIGHTS ALONG THE HARBOR, a wonderful collection that deserves to be on any poetry lover's bookshelf) and a good man.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Michael,
I always appreciate your care for your fellow poet.
With admiration,
Harry E. Northup

Lally said...

Thanks Harry. As I do yours.

tpw said...

It was great to see Harvey last year at the Hanging Loose anniversary reading. His gait was slow, but his mind was fast. Wish I could have been at the tribute. They should webcast those events, out them up on YouTube etc.

Lally said...

It was being recorded and filmed, so hopefully it will show up on Youtube or Pennsound or somewhere on the web..