KUSP's Poetry Show

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Local poet, and physicist Len Anderson joined host Dennis Morton  on August 30, 2015 to read from and discuss the , one of our favorite poetry periodicals. Len has extra incentive to celebrate this latest issue: the inclusion of one of his own poems in a special section devoted to poetry written by scientists.

In addition to Len’s composition, titled The Basic Question, Len and Dennis share other poems – both from the “scientists” section and from other parts of issue #49, including works by:

• Lauren S. Cook

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Guest reader Joan Maro again joined host Dennis Morton on August 23, 2015 for an hour of back-and-forth poetry reading and discussion. This is Joan’s third guest spot on the Poetry Show, and listeners can look forward to more visits in the future.

Joan read a number of poems from among those published this year in , and also one by .  New Yorker authors included:

Dennis’ readings were drawn from a number of books, including:

• (two selections)
•  (two selections)

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On this week’s Poetry Show, host Dennis Morton shared readings from a variety of poets. Check back in about a week for updates to this post.

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Last night, poet Troy Jollimore returned for his quadrennial visit to the Poetry Show. He sat down with host Dennis Morton to read from and discuss Troy’s newest poetry collection, titled , which will be published on September 29. The title is perhaps partly a reference to a  (1864), which comprised an extensive list of “errors” on a wide range of “modern” subjects.

The poems in this book have a lot to say about truth, lies, falsehoods, and authority – and the often problematic relationships among them. We should expect no less from a philosopher – . At another point in the interview, Troy noted that his students sometimes complain that he answers questions with questions. These poems employ some of that same Socratic approach.

This is Troy Jollimore’s third visit to the Poetry Show. The first was was back in May, 2007, to talk about his first published book, . Apropos of nothing, the timing of that visit made him the second earliest guest poet in our podcast library. Although the KUSP Poetry Show stretches back into the mists of the early 1970s, we only have podcasts from May, 2007. A , coincided with publication of a second book, . 

For our most up-to-the-minute blog readers, be advised that Troy Jollimore will be . This is the regular monthly “second Tuesday” poetry reading, sponsored as always by Poetry Santa Cruz. Joining Troy will be Maggie Paul – also a past Poetry Show guest.

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Local poet and animal-rights advocate C. J. Sage visited the Poetry Show on August 2, 2015. She and host Dennis Morton read and discussed poetry primarily about animals. Ms. Sage edits , and has five published books:

• (poetry)
• (poetry anthology)
•  (textbook/anthology )
• (poetry, 2007)
•  (poetry, 2010)

In addition to poetry, Dennis and C.J. discussed a rescue and sanctuary center for dogs, focused especially on a group of hunting dog breeds known as “sighthounds”.  The center is run by a 501(c)3 nonprofit called Hound Sanctuary Inc. Learn more at .

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On the KUSP Poetry Show broadcast for July 26, 2015,  host Dennis Morton was joined once again by poet, spoken-word artist and creative development advisor .

But before continuing the discussion of spoken-word poetry with Marc, we paused briefly to pay respects to Tilly Shaw, longtime local poet and educator who passed away a few days ago. Dennis read three poems from Tilly’s book, (2002, Hummingbird Press). A future show will revisit Tilly’s poetry in more depth. The poems:

• Vroom
• My Mother’s Death
• Quitting Computer Solitaire After Playing 17, 309 Times

Marc Zegans’ first Poetry Show appearance a few weeks ago included readings/tracks from a book-with-CD anthology titled . This time, we hear cuts from the second volume of that collection, titled , again edited by Mark Eleveld and narrated by Mark Smith. Redux expands the scope of the first volume along with the commonly-understood definition of spoken-word. The Redux collection includes older-style poetry readings alongside more recent forms like slam, hip-hop, etc.

We also got a sneak preview of Marc’s soon-to-be-published poetry collection, titled . Marc will be back soon for a show dedicated to the new book.

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For the July 19, 2015 Poetry Show, host Dennis Morton again welcomed guest reader Joanie Maro. Readings this time were from new issues of a pair of our favorite poetry periodicals, and from one of Dennis’ favorite poets:

•  - July August 2015 issue
• – July August 2015 issue
• Selected Poems by

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For this week’s Poetry Show, host Dennis Morton welcomed a guest reader – Joanie Maro. It was Joanie’s first appearance on the show, but hopefully not the last. She’s a new member of the Board of Directors of , poetry lover (obviously) and intrepid discoverer of out-of-print local poetry publications. Joanie and Dennis shared and discussed a number of poems with listeners.

• Joanie shared poems by: , Ray Gwyn Smith, , , Edith S. Herring (from a collection published by the ), , , , , David Sullivan
• Dennis shared poems by: , Luis Cernuda (from Stephen Kessler’s new book of translations from the original Spanish),

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On the Poetry Show broadcast of July 5, 2015, host Dennis Morton read poetry selections from a variety of sources, including:

•  (University of Pittsburgh Press, 2005)
•  (Gray Wolf Press, 1992)
• (Mayapple Press, 2015)
• (Bloodaxe Books, 2011)

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Poet, spoken-word artist and creative development advisor  joined host Dennis Morton on June 28, 2015 for a discussion of Marc’s chosen genre: spoken-word poetry. Marc quickly introduced the first and most obvious difference between spoken-word and traditional poetry – performance is an integral part of spoken-word, inseparable from the words themselves. To demonstrate, we heard several cuts from a book-with-CD anthology titled , edited by Mark Eleveld. An advisor on the collection was Mark Smith, who many credit with founding the “slam” scene. Also included is an introduction by Billy Collins.

Marc also shared some of his own wry poems, demonstrating (among other things) that humor is often an element of spoken-word. An interesting discussion ensued concerning Marc’s composition process, paying special attention to the sound of the lines and words when performed - in Marc’s words, the “musical possibilities”. For more biography of Marc Zegans, check out .