A report on Six Gallery reading, Michael McClure and Beat Generation

Placed before the location of Six Gallery on the 50th anniversary of the first full-length public reading of HOWL.
McClure during the video taping of "Add-Verse", 2004
Lawrence Ferlinghetti
A section devoted to the beat generation at a bookstore in Stockholm, Sweden

Conceived by Wally Hedrick, this event was the first important public manifestation of the Beat Generation and helped to herald the West Coast literary revolution that continued the San Francisco Renaissance.

- Six Gallery reading

After moving to San Francisco as a young man, he found fame as one of the five poets (including Allen Ginsberg) who read at the famous San Francisco Six Gallery reading in 1955, which was rendered in barely fictionalized terms in Jack Kerouac's The Dharma Bums.

- Michael McClure

He soon became a key member of the Beat Generation and was immortalized as Pat McLear in Kerouac's Big Sur.

- Michael McClure

At the reading, five talented young poets—Allen Ginsberg, Philip Lamantia, Michael McClure, Gary Snyder, and Philip Whalen—who until then were known mainly within a close company of friends and other writers (such as Lionel Trilling and William Carlos Williams), presented some of their latest works.

- Six Gallery reading

When asked by Wally Hedrick to organize the Six Gallery reading, Ginsberg wanted Rexroth to serve as master of ceremonies, in a sense to bridge generations.

- Beat Generation

Philip Lamantia, Michael McClure, Philip Whalen, Ginsberg and Gary Snyder read on October 7, 1955, before 100 people (including Kerouac, up from Mexico City).

- Beat Generation
Placed before the location of Six Gallery on the 50th anniversary of the first full-length public reading of HOWL.

2 related topics with Alpha

Overall
Howl and Other Poems was published in the fall of 1956 as number four in the Pocket Poets Series from City Lights Books.

Howl (poem)

0 links

Poem written by Allen Ginsberg in 1954–1955 and published in his 1956 collection Howl and Other Poems.

Poem written by Allen Ginsberg in 1954–1955 and published in his 1956 collection Howl and Other Poems.

Howl and Other Poems was published in the fall of 1956 as number four in the Pocket Poets Series from City Lights Books.
The administrative board of Yleisradio is getting ready to discuss the broadcast of “Howl” in December 1969.

It came to be associated with the group of writers known as the Beat Generation.

The poem was first performed at the Six Gallery in San Francisco on October 7, 1955.

Ginsberg was ultimately responsible for inviting the readers (Gary Snyder, Philip Lamantia, Philip Whalen, Michael McClure and Kenneth Rexroth) and writing the invitation.

First edition

The Dharma Bums

0 links

First edition

The Dharma Bums is a 1958 novel by Beat Generation author Jack Kerouac.

Chapter 2 of the novel gives an account of the legendary 1955 Six Gallery reading, where Allen Ginsberg ('Alvah Goldbrook' in the book) gave a debut presentation of his poem "Howl" (changed to "Wail" in the book).

At the event, other authors including Snyder, Kenneth Rexroth, Michael McClure, and Philip Whalen also performed."Anyway I followed the whole gang of howling poets to the reading at Gallery Six that night, which was, among other important things, the night of the birth of the San Francisco Poetry Renaissance. Everyone was there. It was a mad night. And I was the one who got things jumping by going around collecting dimes and quarters from the rather stiff audience standing around in the gallery and coming back with three huge gallon jugs of California Burgundy and getting them all piffed so that by eleven o'clock when Alvah Goldbook was reading his poem 'Wail' drunk with arms outspread everybody was yelling 'Go! Go! Go!' (like a jam session) and old Rheinhold Cacoethes the father of the Frisco poetry scene was wiping his tears in gladness."